The famous Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, a stand-alone issue since 1997, could have its lease spun away from the one for the magazine, according to a recent report.
Sports Illustrated and its swimsuit issue belong to Authentic Brands Group, which revoked the license from The Arena Group in January. That prompted the layoff of much of the Sports Illustrated staff, although the SI website and magazine still exist.
The Arena Group is still operating the magazine as it negotiates how much it owes Authentic.
An unnamed source told Front Office Sports that Authentic is deep in discussions to spin off the swimsuit edition as its own entity.
If it separates, it would revert to Authentic Brands Group in the short term before being licensed to a new publisher, according to the report.
Minute Media, which owns The Players’ Tribune, The Big Lead and FanSided, is the leading contender to acquire the license to publish and operate Sports Illustrated, two sources connected to the negotiations told Front Office Sports.
Authentic Brands Group has not responded to a request for comment on the possible spinoff of the swimsuit issue.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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