Research by NTG

BBCL

Banana Ball Championship League · Baseball

UNDER REVIEW · Applications → invited workouts → selection

Evidence reviewed ·

US$100K+

Average player salary

2026 report · operator-published average

6 teams · inaugural 2026 season

ATHLETE ECONOMICS

What reaches the athlete?

The 2026 Fans First Report states average player salary exceeds US$100,000. This is an operator-reported average. Individual contracts, revenue shares and NIL earnings are not supplied in that report.

Organization & business model

The operator also reports average player salary above US$100,000 and selected operating investments. The financial records below include the published disclosures and the company filing.

  • 2.2M · Tickets sold · 2025
  • 113 · Shows played · 2025
Origins
Savannah Bananas team: 2016. Banana Ball’s first official game: 2020. BBCL league play: 2026. These are three different clocks.
Business model
Fans First Entertainment operates the teams. The model combines ticketed live entertainment and merchandise under Banana Ball’s own playing rules.

Rules & athlete rights

We examine entry and exit rules, who owns and licenses an athlete’s name, image and likeness (NIL), and how income reaches the athlete.

Participation
Prospective players can apply. Workouts are invitation-only and rosters are selected; that alone does not establish a closed federation system.
Movement & exit
Public application materials do not establish player release, exclusivity or outside earning terms.
NIL ownership & licensing
Player NIL ownership, licensing and outside sponsorship terms are not verified. Independent operation does not prove OPEN status.
Athlete earnings
The 2026 Fans First Report states average player salary exceeds US$100,000. This is an operator-reported average. Individual contracts, revenue shares and NIL earnings are not supplied in that report.
What makes a market OPEN or CLOSED?

OPEN · athlete autonomy

Athletes can enter through sporting ability without federation control over entry, exit or outside earning opportunities, while retaining control of their name, image and likeness (NIL). Event rules, safety standards and selection can still apply.

CLOSED · governing-body controls

Participation in a federation-governed system is conditional on compliance with that governing body’s bylaws and regulations. Registration and eligibility determine who can compete; transfer and contract rules govern movement, with financial and commercial conditions set by the system.

OPEN / CLOSED are NTG research classifications, not legal statuses. Selection alone does not make a system closed. Independence alone does not prove openness. An event media licence is not automatically a transfer of all NIL rights.

Published financial records

Operator-reported financial figures · USD

Fans First Entertainment, LLC

BBCL operator · North Carolina LLC · EIN 47-4632098

2026 Fans First Report · selected operating disclosures

Average player salary
US$100,000+
Annual touring costs
US$15,000,000+
2026 live-show investment
US$10,000,000+
Broadcast investment
US$13,000,000

These are selected operator disclosures, not complete audited accounts. The cost and investment categories are not added together: their periods and potential overlap differ. The published salary is an average, not an individual pay guarantee.

Company filing: 2026 annual registration, filed 12 February 2026 (Florida M23000002892). It confirms the legal entity but contains no revenue, total-expense or asset figures. Florida states that this annual filing does not require financial information.

Operator financial disclosures · 2026 company filing · original PDF · Florida filing requirements

LIFECYCLE & GROWTH

Progress in its own time

Index each documented series to 100, then inspect years since its own launch. This separates growth from dollar size while keeping the organization’s maturity visible.

Index: first documented value = 100. Calendar age: years since the stated launch; launch year = 0. Observation years and lifecycle age are shown separately.

BBCL · League teams · count

League play began in 2026; earlier team history is separate

Baseline · 2026
6 · Index 100
Latest observed · 2026
6 · Index 100
Annualized change
—
Needs two elapsed annual intervals

One league-season observation establishes a baseline. It cannot establish a growth rate. The team’s 2016 origin is not used as the league’s start date.

BBCL · League teams · count
YearCalendar ageObserved valueIndexSource
202606100Evidence

Values, time conventions & methodology

Index = 100 × current value ÷ baseline. Annualized change = 100 × [(last ÷ first)^(1 ÷ elapsed years) − 1]. Calendar age = observation year − launch year; launch year is 0. At least two elapsed annual intervals are required here for annualized change.

Different metrics remain different: prizes, transfer fees, programs and teams. Indexing does not make them comparable valuations, investment returns or an age-adjusted ranking. Blank years are unobserved; no interpolation or forecasts are used.

For the same 2023–2025 window: TST prize growth is +41.4% annualized; FIFA-reported transfer fees +16.4%. These are different financial flows, not a performance ranking.

European Commission · normalization · SEC · market capitalization

Federation Market Capacity · research framework

Not rated · insufficient comparable peers

A future capacity score needs comparable peers, the same metric and scope, a declared age band and sufficient evidence. These four subjects do not form a valid peer cohort, so no score is published. Market capitalization would require an actual equity valuation; financial flows cannot substitute for it.

Sources & documents

Open the original records to investigate the evidence behind this profile.