Dodgers-Yanks = Corporate Dream

This World Series is Corporate Dream; College Coaches Getting Fired Right + Left

October 22, 2024

Good morning! Dodgers-Yanks World Series = Corporate Dream

Dodgers-Yankees World Series Delivers Matchup of MLB’s Biggest Brands
The Yankees and Dodgers are set to face off when the World Series begins on Friday, and MLB is getting a matchup "between its two biggest brands," according to Jack Harris of the L.A. TIMES via SBJ. This series will “draw global eyeballs” and “represent one of the most high-profile title matchups in recent memories,” pitting not only the winningest clubs in each league but the two MLB franchises with the most previous World Series appearances of all-time with 41 for the Yankees and 26 for the Dodgers. USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale also said Friday night marked the "moment that Major League Baseball, their TV partners, their corporate advertisers, and millions of baseball fans have been clamoring for the past 43 years.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Women’s Footballers Call on FIFA to End Saudi Oil Partnership: ‘We Deserve So Much Better’
An open letter to FIFA president Gianni Infantino that 106 players have signed reads in part: “The Saudi authorities trample not only on the rights of women, but on the freedom of all other citizens too. Imagine LGBTQ+ players, many of whom are heroes of our sport, being expected to promote Saudi Aramco during the 2027 World Cup, the national oil company of a regime that criminalises the relationships that they are in and the values they stand for?”
^{The Athletic}

Monumental Sports, D.C. Government Move Forward on Deal to Renovate Capital One Arena
The Athletic’s Josh Robbins reports: “After months of negotiations with the parent company that owns the NBA’s Washington Wizards, NHL’s Washington Capitals and WNBA’s Washington Mystics, the mayor of the District of Columbia has introduced a bill that, if passed by the city council, would sell Capital One Arena to the District for $87.5 million and set the stage for arena renovations to be completed for the Wizards’ and Capitals’ 2027-28 seasons.”
^{The Athletic}

Twins Sale Process Could Take More Than a Year as Potential Suitors Begin to Emerge
It could take until the end of the 2025 season for a Twins ownership transaction to become official and though the team is “hoping for” a $1.8B offer, $1.5B is a “more realistic expectation,” according to Charley Walters of the St. Paul PIONEER PRESS via SBJ. The “most publicly recognized local possibilities with potential to buy” the Twins are Marty Davis, the Cambria quartz countertop businessman, and T’Wolves owner Glen Taylor.
^{Sports Business Journal}

WNBA Business Turns the Corner—but Its Home Stretch Is Complicated
Sportico’s Dan Bernstein writes, “A $2.2 billion media deal will kick in soon, potentially leading to league profitability for the first time and affecting collective bargaining negotiations. Additionally, the WNBA has announced that three expansion teams are set to join in the next two years: Golden State, Toronto and Portland. And as the league’s audience balloons, it must navigate differences in values between longtime supporters and some of its new ones—an issue that has already contributed to conflict between fans, players and WNBA leadership.”
^Sportico

ESPN+ Exclusive NFL Game Adds Intrigue to Shifting ‘MNF’ Slate
FOS’ David Rumsey writes, “ESPN’s biggest—and wonkiest—NFL season ever continues with two games to close out Week 7, including the first exclusive streaming broadcast of Monday Night Football.

“In the third of a record-four MNF doubleheaders this year, the Ravens and Buccaneers will kick off at 8:15 p.m. ET on ABC and ESPN, before Chargers-Cardinals will be shown solely on ESPN+, beginning at 9 p.m.”
^{Front Office Sports}

SeatGeek Taps Mike Shane to Grow Enterprise Biz
Per SBJ, SeatGeek has hired Mike Shane as EVP/Enterprise Partnerships. Shane, a 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree, joins the ticketing company after four years as Comcast Spectacor’s Chief Business Officer and 12 1/2 years with the Nationals, the last three of which he was EVP/Business Operations overseeing consumer revenue.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Liberty Championship a Culmination of NY Fans’ Hope
Liberty fans “stuck with their franchise” through 28 years, four home arenas, and five “heartbreakingly unsuccessful” trips to the WNBA Finals, “hoping and believing and praying” that their championship would finally come, according to Barbara Barker of NEWSDAY via SBJ. In many ways, Barker says there “couldn’t have been a more perfect finale to what has been a transformative season” for women’s basketball than for “the teams with the two best records to take the final game into overtime."
^{Sports Business Journal}

What to Know About Packers, City of Green Bay Issues Over Lambeau Field Lease
The Green Bay Press Gazette’s Richard Ryman writes, “The Green Bay Packers and the city of Green Bay have very different views of what a new Lambeau Field lease should include. In fact, they appear even to disagree on the existing lease.

“On Thursday, the Packers filed a lawsuit against the city over the relocation of the Packers Heritage Trail Plaza in downtown Green Bay. The plaza relocation is an issue separate from the lease, but it is a further sign of the growing tension between the parties.”
^{Green Bay Press-Gazette}

Asian Football Federation Accused of ‘Unequal Treatment’ After Moving Games From Iran
The AFC had said following “consultation with FIFA and the relevant stakeholders” that the “prevailing security situation” in Iran was behind the decision to move the World Cup qualifier to Dubai.
^{The Athletic}

Coastal Carolina Fires OC-QB Coach Trickett With Head Coach Beck Taking Over Both Roles
Coastal Carolina offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Travis Trickett has been fired, the school announced Monday. Head coach Tim Beck will take on both roles.

Trickett spent the past two years leading the Chanticleers’ offense. They finished seventh in the Sun Belt Conference at 416.2 yards per game in 2023. They’re currently sixth in the league with 396.4 yards a game this season. The Chants have lost their last two games to Louisiana and James Madison, scoring 31 points combined in the defeats. Their 181-yard of offense in the 39-7 loss to the Dukes was a season-low.
^{AP News}

Oklahoma Offensive Coordinator Seth Littrell is Fired After Back-to-Back Poor Outings
AP News’ Cliff Brunt writes, “Oklahoma offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Seth Littrell was fired on Sunday after consecutive dismal outputs during what already had been a poor season.

“The Sooners (4-3, 1-3 Southeastern Conference) gained just 237 yards in a 34-3 loss to then-No. 1 Texas on Oct. 12, then finished with 291 yards in a 35-9 home loss to South Carolina on Saturday. Oklahoma, an offensive powerhouse for the past decade, has one of the worst offenses in the FBS this season, its first as a member of the SEC.”
^{AP News}

Southern Miss Fires Will Hall After 1-6 Start in his 4th season; Reed Stringer Named Interim Coach
Per the AP News, Southern Mississippi football coach Will Hall was fired Sunday after a 1-6 start to his fourth season. Assistant head coach Reed Stringer was named interim coach for the rest of the season. Hall was 14-30 following a 44-28 home loss to Arkansas State. The Golden Eagles’ only win this season was against Southeastern Louisiana of the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision.
^{AP News}

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