The Savannah Bananas

What The Savannah Bananas does

The Savannah Bananas is a privately held sports entertainment organization founded in 2015-2016 by Jesse and Emily Cole through Fans First Entertainment, headquartered at Historic Grayson Stadium in Savannah, Georgia. It operates the Banana Ball Championship League (BBCL), a six-team professional baseball league (Savannah Bananas, Party Animals, Firefighters, Texas Tailgaters, Loco Beach Coconuts, and Indianapolis Clowns) built around a proprietary modified baseball format with nine rule changes designed for faster, theatrical, fan-interactive gameplay finishing in under two hours. The product portfolio includes live touring games, a verified Fans First Ticket Marketplace, a Shopify-powered DTC e-commerce operation with 70+ stadium retail locations and 4,000 SKUs, the Bananaland at Sea cruise experience operated with Sixthman, and the Bananas Foster 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

The organization runs a direct-to-consumer, scarcity-driven go-to-market: tickets priced from $35 face value are allocated via lottery rather than first-come-first-served, with secondary-market resale capped at face value through the verified marketplace, and a K Club membership tier providing priority access. Revenue is generated across five streams: ticket sales (approximately $80M+ in 2025), merchandise sales ($50M+ in 2025), broadcast rights (ESPN/Disney+/ABC for 25 games, TNT Sports/truTV/HBO Max for 15 games, and a novel Creator Sports Network streaming tier), brand partnerships (Dairy Queen, Shure), and experiential products (Bananaland at Sea). The company sold 2.2 million tickets in 2025, maintains a 4 million-person waiting list for the 2026 tour, and has a 35+ million social media following that functions as a primary top-of-funnel acquisition channel. All-inclusive food with admission, choreographed player dances, celebrity guest appearances, and theatrical player entrances are embedded into the core product offering as differentiated entertainment features rather than upsells.

Name

The Savannah Bananas

Legal name

The Savannah Bananas

Website

https://thesavannahbananas.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Savannah Bananas operates the Banana Ball Championship League, a six-team professional baseball entertainment property touring 190 games across 45 states annually, serving mass-market consumers through ticket lottery sales, DTC merchandise, and broadcast partnerships with ESPN, Disney+, and HBO Max.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Sports Entertainment

NAICS

Sporting Goods Retailers (45911), Tour Operators (561520)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Sporting & Athletic Goods, Nec (3949)

akta.pro primary industry

Baseball & Softball Leagues (MPAKAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Baseball & Softball Equipment Retail (CRAMAEAA)

Keywords

• Entertainment baseball
• Live sports events
• Banana ball league
• Fan entertainment experiences
• Sports merchandise sales

Headquarters

HQ city

Savannah

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Direct ticket sales through official website starting at $35, with premium pricing for major venues. The organization sold 2.2 million tickets in 2025. Games sell out consistently with high demand driven by limited availability and entertainment experience.
2. Merchandise Sales: Merchandise sales through online DTC and 70+ stadium retail locations. Generated over $50 million in merchandise sales in 2025. Operates a new 100,000-square-foot merchandise facility in Pooler, Georgia.
3. Broadcast Rights: ESPN and Disney+ broadcast partnership featuring 25-game Banana Ball package in 2026, more than doubling the previous year's 12 games. First-ever Bananas broadcast on ABC at Autzen Stadium. TNT Sports secured a deal with truTV and HBO Max for 15 games.
4. Sponsorship and Brand Partnerships: Major brand partnerships including Dairy Queen (co-branded products, game-day promotions), Shure (official audio provider), and creator sports network streaming partnerships. Attracts high-profile celebrity appearances that drive additional media value.
5. Bananaland at Sea Cruise: Immersive four-day cruise experience featuring games, performances, and activities with the team and fans in Cozumel, Mexico, operated in partnership with Sixthman.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Savannah Bananas operates a traveling entertainment baseball tour featuring Banana Ball, a proprietary fast-paced variant of baseball with modified rules designed for two-hour entertainment-first gameplay. The organization sells tickets directly to consumers, operates merchandise e-commerce and retail at 70+ stadium locations, and licenses broadcast rights to ESPN, Disney+, ABC, TNT Sports, truTV, and HBO Max. The product is delivered through six professional teams in the Banana Ball Championship League touring 190 games across 45 states and 75 stadiums annually.

Product overview

The Savannah Bananas operates as a baseball entertainment organization featuring Banana Ball, a fast-paced baseball variant with unique rules, played by six professional teams in the Banana Ball Championship League (BBCL). The product portfolio includes live game experiences at major stadiums nationwide, the Fans First Ticket Marketplace for verified ticket resale, the Banana Ball Backstage premium experience, merchandise e-commerce with stadium retail operations, Bananaland at Sea cruise experiences, and Bananas Foster nonprofit community programs. The organization tours 45 states and 75 stadiums annually, with games broadcast on ESPN, Disney+, ABC, and streaming platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bananaland at Sea: A four-day immersive cruise experience featuring games, performances, and activities with the team and fans, sailing aboard the Norwegian Jewel with stops in Cozumel, Mexico.

Products and services

• Banana Ball Banana Ball is a fast-paced, entertainment-focused variant of baseball with nine modified rules including a two-hour time limit, fan catch-outs for foul balls, no walks, batters stealing first base on wild pitches, no bunting, no mound visits, and showdown tiebreakers. It is played by six professional teams in the Banana Ball Championship League at major stadiums nationwide.
• Banana Ball Championship League (BBCL) The six-team professional baseball league operated by Fans First Entertainment, featuring the Savannah Bananas, Party Animals, Firefighters, Texas Tailgaters, Loco Beach Coconuts, and Indianapolis Clowns. The league tours 190 games across 45 states and 75 stadiums annually.
• Fans First Ticket Marketplace A verified secondary ticket marketplace that allows fans to resell tickets at face value ($35-$60) without markups or fees, with the league covering taxes and fees. The marketplace combats ticket scalping and fraud for Banana Ball games.
• Banana Ball Merchandise Store E-commerce merchandise operation supporting online DTC orders and 70+ stadium retail locations with real-time inventory management across 4,000 SKUs through ShipBob's warehouse management system and Shopify POS integration.
• Bananaland at Sea A four-day immersive cruise experience featuring Banana Ball games, performances, and activities with the team and fans in Cozumel, Mexico, operated in partnership with Sixthman aboard the Norwegian Jewel.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2.2 million tickets sold in 2025
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• ShurecoreTechnology or Integration · 21 May 2026Shure named Official Audio Provider of the Savannah Bananas, deploying DCA901 Broadcast Microphone Array technology for immersive audio capture at Banana Ball broadcasts. The digitally steerable array microphones replace complex multi-microphone setups at each dugout, capturing bat cracks, player reactions, and crowd noise while simplifying audio mixing. Bananas also implemented Shure's Axient Digital Wireless Systems across productions.
• TNT Sports (truTV/HBO Max)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 30 March 2026TNT Sports secured a deal with truTV and HBO Max to broadcast 15 games from the Savannah Bananas' Banana Ball Championship League this summer, expanding multi-platform distribution.
• Creator Sports NetworkcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 March 2026Creator Sports Network named exclusive creator-led streaming partner for the Banana Ball Championship League, distributing four live games simultaneously across YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, Instagram, X, and Facebook through a curated network of digital creators. Deal treats creator distribution as a standalone rights tier alongside linear and streaming platforms, representing a structural shift in sports media rights packaging.
• ESPN and Disney+flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 25 February 2026Largest partnership to date with ESPN and Disney+ featuring a 25-game Banana Ball package in 2026 that more than doubles last year's 12-game offering. Includes events at Disneyland and Angel Stadium. First-ever Bananas broadcast on ABC at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon. Deal positions Banana Ball as major entertainment property.
• Dairy QueencoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 23 February 2026American Dairy Queen Corporation (ADQ) partnered with the Savannah Bananas for a multi-platform collaboration featuring a co-branded Savannah Bananas Split Shake available at participating locations nationwide. The partnership includes national TV spots, social content, fan activations at games, and a promotional offer giving DQ Rewards members a free shake when catching a foul ball at Savannah Bananas games. DQ participates in pre-game pep rallies and may make pit stops at DQ locations during team travel.
• ShipBobcoreTechnology or Integration · 16 February 2026Savannah Bananas partnered with ShipBob's warehouse management system to solve complex omnichannel inventory challenges across online DTC orders and 70+ stadium retail locations. ShipBob built a custom Shopify POS connection specifically for the team achieving real-time inventory visibility and unified stock management. Implementation resulted in 80% of peak season orders shipped within 24 hours and improved inventory accuracy across 4,000 SKUs.
• Negro Leagues Baseball MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 October 2025Indianapolis Clowns partnership with Negro Leagues Baseball Museum to revive the historic barnstorming baseball team's legacy. Partnership aims to educate fans about Negro Leagues history while promoting entertainment in baseball. Features notable coaches like Errick Fox and Ryan Howard and celebrates legendary players such as Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige.
• SixthmanminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 March 2025Savannah Bananas and Sixthman announced return of Bananaland at Sea, a four-day immersive cruise experience scheduled for February 2026 aboard the Norwegian Jewel. Event features games, performances, and activities with the team and fans in Cozumel, Mexico.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Topgolf: Topgolf operates a chain of entertainment venues combining sport with social/dining experiences, targeting similar casual and family demographics as the Savannah Bananas. Both reinvent traditional sports for entertainment-first consumption in non-traditional formats.
• WWE: WWE is the dominant sports entertainment brand, monetizing scripted athletic content through touring, broadcast rights, and premium live events globally. While not baseball, WWE represents the established sports-entertainment model the Savannah Bananas is reinventing in a baseball-specific format.
• Minor League Baseball: Minor League Baseball operates hundreds of professional baseball teams across the US, sharing the Savannah Bananas' touring-entertainment playbook at smaller scale. Many BBCL expansion cities overlap with MiLB markets, and the Bananas have effectively replaced some MiLB attendance.
• Major League Baseball: MLB is the traditional professional baseball league that the Savannah Bananas explicitly compete against for fan attention and entertainment dollars. The Bananas' positioning addresses MLB's slow pace, declining youth engagement, and ticket pricing issues — making MLB the incumbent the company is differentiated against.
• X Games: X Games operates action-sports entertainment events and leagues with theatrical elements, viral video content, and brand sponsorships — comparable to the Bananas in monetizing entertainment-first sports content through events, broadcast rights, and digital media.

Direct peers

• Big3 Basketball League: BIG3 is a professional 3-on-3 basketball league founded by Ice Cube that, similar to Banana Ball, reimagines a traditional sport with modified rules, a faster pace, and entertainment-first positioning. Both leagues target casual fans seeking spectacle rather than traditional sports purists.
• Harlem Globetrotters: The Harlem Globetrotters are a traveling entertainment basketball brand that, like the Savannah Bananas, monetizes a modified version of a traditional sport through theatrical performance, fan interaction, and national touring. Both prioritize entertainment-first competition over pure athletic outcomes.
• Premier Lacrosse League: Premier Lacrosse League is a newer professional sports league that built a national touring model with weekend festival-format events and aggressive digital/social content distribution — a similar playbook to the Savannah Bananas in building a modern professional league from scratch around entertainment and fan-first experience.

Emerging players

• Athletes Unlimited: Athletes Unlimited operates innovative professional sports leagues (volleyball, softball, basketball, lacrosse) with athlete-centric models and touring formats. Like the Bananas, AU is experimenting with league structures outside traditional professional sports conventions.
• Dude Perfect: Dude Perfect built a billion-dollar sports entertainment brand through viral social media content, trick-shot performances, and family-friendly theatrical sports — the same social-first, entertainment-driven approach that underpins the Savannah Bananas' growth and audience acquisition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TheSavBananas
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCVMOQmAEqtzfBGV-_X6_zMw
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheSavBananas
• Instagraminstagram.com/thesavbananas
• TikToktiktok.com/@thesavbananas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Savannah Bananas