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How Michael Jordan Lost at Sea

How Michael Jordan Lost at Sea

August 14, 2025

August 14, 2025 | Edition #27

Hey there!

Money talks. Influence wins.

Michael Jordan knows both. But last week at the White Marlin Open, he lost $3.5M by a single pound. No trophy, yet still the headline everyone talked about.

Because in today’s sports, winning isn’t everything. Owning the moment is.

That’s the play behind ESPN and Fox’s new $39.99 sports bundle - more access, less hassle, bigger audience.

This week, we’re tracking how the game is shifting from chasing titles to cashing in on influence, and who’s making it pay.

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Michael Jordan might have lost NBA Finals games, golf bets, and maybe a few cigars to the wind. But in 2025, he lost $3.5 million… to a fish.

It happened at the 52nd tournament of the White Marlin Open (August 5th-10th), also known as the Sport Fishing Super Bowl.

There, Jordan’s 82-foot yacht “Catch 23,” worth $15 million, battled 12-foot waves and a 71-pound marlin. Former pro fisherman Trey “Cricket” McMillan fought the fish alone for hours while water poured over the 40-foot tower, and the nine crew members, including Jordan, were knee-deep on deck, with pumps running to keep the boat from sinking.

When they returned to Ocean City Harbor, “Sirius,” the Chicago Bulls’ anthem, blasted over the crowd. The weigh-in? One pound short of first place.

The catch that broke Michael Jordan’s dream

Billfisher won it days earlier on Aug. 6, under Captain Jon Duffie and angler Dan Gough with a 72-pound white marlin. But make no mistake, they already hold Maryland’s record for a 1,135-pound blue marlin.

So, how much money did they win?

Winner’s prize: about $3.91 million
Jordan’s prize: about $389,000
Difference: roughly $3.52 million

The price of the hunt

At the White Marlin Open, boats can join extra side contests called calcuttas, mostly winner-take-all. In 2025, these included White Marlin $10K, Premium $20K, Added cash $50K, and Pay Day $1.5K. Boats only win the contests they enter, so missing one means no money from it. The 72-pound winning fish in 2025 won several pots, totaling nearly $3.91 million.

But that doesn’t make us forget MJ’s previous achievements. Check out here:

Is it easy for anyone to compete in such events? Actually not!

Competing at the White Marlin Open isn’t cheap because money talks.

Registration & calcuttas:

Base registration covers guaranteed prizes. $1,700 per boat (after June 1st), before that, $1,400, including tournament entry and eligibility for the $50,000 guaranteed prize pool.
Optional calculations hold most of the money.

Operating the boat & team:

Crew: Captains and mates earn professional wages and tips
Fuel: Large boats burn 10 to 20 gallons per hour
Maintenance, tackle, travel, and slips can push an 80-foot boat’s annual costs into six figures.

Yes, competing is expensive. But the White Marlin Open comes with big perks.

Michael Jordan’s real win

Even without the trophy, Jordan dominated attention. Public weigh-ins, the MarlinCam livestream, and national coverage kept Catch 23 front and center all week. His appearance linked the event to his larger-than-life brand - “Be Like Mike,” Air Jordans, and now high-stakes fishing.

This isn’t new for him. Since 2020, Catch 23 has competed in tournaments from the Big Rock Blue Marlin to the Mid-Atlantic and Abaco Shootout, often making the leaderboard. Even in 2020, they landed a 442.3-pound blue marlin at Big Rock.

In the end, 2025’s White Marlin Open wasn’t about the fish Jordan didn’t catch; it was about the audience he did.

In 2025, What Matters More in Sports?

Four logins. Three remotes. One headache. That’s been the cost of following your favorite teams in the streaming era, until now. But now? Just two. Here’s how.

ESPN and Fox are giving it another shot. Back in 2024, they teamed up with Warner Bros. Discovery to launch Venu Sport.

But two major blows killed it:

Antitrust regulators feared the platform would dominate the sports streaming market.
Disney’s majority stake in Fubo complicated the partnership.

By January 2025, Venu was gone. But now the NEW PLAN is ready.

What’s inside the bundle

On August 21, 2025, ESPN and Fox launched their direct-to-consumer platforms, ESPN DTC and Fox One. And starting October 2, you’ll be able to buy them together for $39.99/month. It’s part price drop, part survival strategy, and it could reshape the sports streaming map.

For $39.99 (vs $49.98 separately), you get:

ESPN DTC:

ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPN on ABC, ESPN+, SECN+, ACCNX
47,000+ live events per year, replays, studio shows, originals, expanded NFL coverage

Fox One:

Fox main network, local Fox stations, Fox News, Fox Business, Fox Weather, Fox Sports, FS1, FS2, Big Ten Network, Fox Deportes
Optional add-ons: Fox Nation, B1G+

Yes, it’s a win for fans, but for ESPN and Fox, this bundle is about survival.

Here’s why:

ESPN+ stalled at 24M subs → focus shifts from growth to retention.
Bundles cut churn 59% (Disney+ example).
Streaming costs ballooned to $122/month on average, and fans hate fragmented logins.
$39.99 all-sports pass vs. $29.99 ESPN + $19.99 Fox One = $9.99 saved, feels like
a win.

And now the ESPN x Fox deal directly addresses these by offering fewer logins, lower combined cost, and a “cable-like” single package experience. And this approach isn’t guesswork.

What ESPN and Fox took from Disney’s bundle success

The Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ bundle proved how well it works. Ampere Analysis found churn plunged from 8% to 3% when ESPN+ joined the mix, and 80% of new bundle subscribers were still active after three months, beating even Netflix’s 74% retention rate. By the end of 2024, a similar Disney+ with Hulu and Max bundle had already attracted 2.2 million sign-ups. So, yes, it’s a return to a proven playbook.

In case you want to know the best streaming services in 2025, check the list below:

So, who would you pick? The ESPN x Fox bundle? Naturally, but it has worried the sports streaming world.

Here’s how:

Peacock bumped prices to $10.99 (ad-supported) and $16.99 (ad-free), added a $7.99 “Select” tier without sports, and is doubling down on big sports like Sunday Night Football and WWE.
Amazon Prime Video landed an 11-year, NBA deal, WNBA coverage, plus exclusive Thursday Night Football rights.
YouTube TV, Sling, and Fubo pack ESPN and Fox Sports into bigger bundles, giving more to watch but at a higher price.

So, should you buy the ESPN and Fox streaming services?

Subscription	Price (per month)
ESPN DTC	$29.99
Fox One	$19.99
Total if bought separately	$49.98
Bundle Price	$39.99

The timing couldn’t be better. ESPN and Fox are finally giving fans what they’ve been asking for: one bundle, top leagues, and fewer logins. NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, UFC, and college sports all in one place. Subscriber growth and engagement are the focus, but the real test is execution - a smooth, no-nonsense experience fans can rely on.

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