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Fred Wilpon made a big deal the other day about how he is past his financial problems. That is true, but the team itself is still in massive debt.
Mets Owners Are Debt Free But Team And Its Network Owe Over $1 Billion
New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon recently told ESPN that he and his partner, Saul Katz, no longer have any personal debt. But don’t expect the New York Mets to begin spending like a big-market team any time soon.
The baseball team and the regional sports network of which it owns 65%, SportsNet New York, have over $1 billion in debt combined, according to sources. The Mets have about $430 million of debt while SNY has near $750 million of debt. Of that $750 million, the owners of the Mets are on the hook for some $450 million, putting their total obligations near $900 million.
A phone call and email to the team for confirmation of the debt figures were not returned.
With the combined enterprise values of the Mets and SNY around $2 billion, leverage is above 50%. Moreover, the team pays $50 million a year in annual ballpark PILOT bond and rent payments that come from Citi Field’s revenue. Attendance at Citi Field is down significantly the past three years.
Standard & Poor’s stated in a December report in which it downgraded Citi Field’s bonds one notch, to two levels below investment grade, “The negative outlook reflects our expectation that the project cash flow will have slight cash flow declines in the near future before it begins to stabilize.”
Despite signing David Wright in the off-season to a $138 million extension, the team’s payroll will likely remain in the middle of the league the next few seasons. GM Sandy Alderson has his work cut out.
New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon recently told ESPN that he and his partner, Saul Katz, no longer have any personal debt. But don’t expect the New York Mets to begin spending like a big-market team any time soon.
The baseball team and the regional sports network of which it owns 65%, SportsNet New York, have over $1 billion in debt combined, according to sources. The Mets have about $430 million of debt while SNY has near $750 million of debt. Of that $750 million, the owners of the Mets are on the hook for some $450 million, putting their total obligations near $900 million.
A phone call and email to the team for confirmation of the debt figures were not returned.
With the combined enterprise values of the Mets and SNY around $2 billion, leverage is above 50%. Moreover, the team pays $50 million a year in annual ballpark PILOT bond and rent payments that come from Citi Field’s revenue. Attendance at Citi Field is down significantly the past three years.
Standard & Poor’s stated in a December report in which it downgraded Citi Field’s bonds one notch, to two levels below investment grade, “The negative outlook reflects our expectation that the project cash flow will have slight cash flow declines in the near future before it begins to stabilize.”
Despite signing David Wright in the off-season to a $138 million extension, the team’s payroll will likely remain in the middle of the league the next few seasons. GM Sandy Alderson has his work cut out.
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