A new licensee for the Adelaide Giants is being discussed. (Photo: Ryan Schembri/SMP Images)
The current ownership group of the Australian Baseball League’s Adelaide Giants has announced it is in discussions to transfer the ownership of the baseball club’s license it has held since 2018.
The Adelaide Football Club has entered consultations with interested parties and formally notified the national sporting body, Baseball Australia of its intentions.
The decision by the Adelaide Football Club comes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Adelaide Crows CEO Tim Silvers stated many sporting teams were doing it tough and as a result, changes to club’s operational structures needed shifting.
“A great deal has changed since the club acquired the Giants and like all professional sporting clubs, the Crows have been heavily impacted by the global pandemic,” Silvers said.
“This has forced us to take on debt and significantly reduce our staffing levels and we are pushing ahead with an 18-month strategic recovery plan.
“We are currently in discussions with prospective buyers and we want to see the Giants’ potential realised.
“The team has a strong following and maintains an important place in the South Australian sporting landscape while also having exposure to national and international markets.”
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General Manager of the Adelaide Giants, Nathan Davison quelled any concern that this news will affect the club as the 2021/22 ABL season begins later this year, signalling it was business as usual. The Giants are still focused on building a roster capable of winning its first Championship.
“Our playing roster has the best Australian talent in the country to complement the best coaching staff in the country,” Davison said.
“We’ve built a strong program that improves each year and we are also working hard to build crowds at West Beach.”
Baseball Australia CEO Glenn Williams recognised the amount of work the Adelaide Football Club had contributed to to the club, the league and the wider baseball community in the state.
“The club has made a significant contribution to our sport and league over the past few years, taking the Giants to new levels on and off the field,” Williams said.
“We remain committed to working closely with the Crows to find a new licensee for the Giants who will continue to contribute to growth of the ABL and baseball in South Australia.”
The Adelaide Football Club took ownership of the Giants in 2018 when the club was known as the Adelaide Bite and prior to the 2019/20 ABL season, was rebranded to the Giants name.
The 2019/20 season saw the Giants enter the ABL Championship Series, however they went down in two games to the Melbourne Aces. They again made the playoffs last season, finishing fourth overall.
The Adelaide Crows aren’t the only sporting organisation in Australia to have partnered with a baseball outfit either, with the ABL’s Canberra Cavalry and the Australian Ice Hockey League’s CBR Brave entering a partnership back in 2016.
Continuing the raft of changes ahead of the upcoming ABL season, the league’s two newest teams, Geelong-Korea and the Auckland Tuatara won’t be participating, each citing COVID-19 difficulties.
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