Sports Illustrated May Become A Licensing Play For Greg Norman To Give Golf Tips, Among Other Awful Ideas

That is a bleak assessment of Jean Palmieri’s WWD report on Authentic Brands Group’s pursuit of Sports Illustrated, which will likely die as a print publication and become “primarily a licensing and digital play.”

Even if they tried to resuscitate the brand, this should kill it:

According to sources, the print magazine would continue to be published for at least the next two years as ABG works to capitalize on its content to extend the brand’s reach into a number of sports-related businesses. That could include everything from camps for kids to sports rehabilitation clinics, sources said.

AGB owns 50 brands, 45 percent of which are in the fashion space, and is the world’s fourth-largest licensing company. It has $9.3 billion in annual retail sales. Among its sports-affiliated brands are Greg Norman, Shaquille O’Neal, Muhammad Ali, Prince, Spyder, Volcom, Hind, Above the Rim and Julius Erving.

One source close to the company said a Sports Illustrated site could potentially include golf tips from Norman or basketball strategy ideas from O’Neal. “This would be very different from just making Sports Illustrated jackets,” the source said. “That’s not the business they’re going into.”

While it’s a sad state of affairs, at least think of the comedy in imagining someone on the business side thinking this is a good idea.