Merchandising considerations are important at this stage. See Lords of the Rings for a discussion of the cost of the rights and what happens in negotiations. A major opportunity for exploitation is by sponsorship and naming rights. Thus the Ford Australian Tennis Open, the Optus Grand Prix in athletics. Sponsorships can be at different levels.
Organisers have relationships with participants.
It is interesting to consider how in the AFL its attempts to reduce the number of clubs has been made very difficult eg in trying to force mergers of clubs or to eliminate clubs as with Footscray. The rugby league competition hopes to reduce the current 20 teams to 14. If this is done there will be significant issues about the rights of the clubs that are to be eliminated and the arrangements to provide for the merger of clubs if that is a method used to reduce numbers. Clubs that do compete are subject to a number of rules. Clubs are one level of participants in a competition.