Sport & Story Daily October 28, 2023

Stay Ahead of the Game

October 28, 2023

Good morning! Prime Video is touting growth trends for its Thursday Night Football franchise, as its Bills/Bucs matchup propelled programming to double-digit gains…

TNF growth streak hits seven weeks
Thursday Night Football’s winning streak continued for its Bucs/Bills matchup on Prime Video, reporting gains of 12% year-over-year and stretching the season-long streak of gains to seven games. According to Nielsen National TV Ratings (panel only), TNF on Prime Video averaged 11.22 million viewers on Thursday night, an increase of +12% over last year’s comparable TNF game (10.01M for Ravens vs. Buccaneers, 10/27/22). Read more here.

PGA Tour turns down Endeavor investment offer
Endeavor’s bid to invest in or form a strategic partnership with the PGA Tour is not going to happen, according to a Sportico story. "They've officially turned it down," Endeavor’s Mark Shapiro told the site. "We're big fans of golf, and we'll continue to champion the PGA Tour, but we're not going to be an investor at any level." Shapiro said Endeavor offered to expand its body of work with the PGA Tour, which already includes selling commercial rights and managing tournaments. Read more here.

LPGA Tour returning to Boston for first time in nearly three decades
The LPGA Tour on Friday revealed a return to Boston with its newest tournament, the FM Global Championship. The 72-hole event with a 144-player field will take place at the end of August in 2024 at TPC Boston, marking the first time the LPGA has had a tournament in Boston since 1997. Only the majors and the tour championship will offer more than the FM Global Championship’s $3.5 million purse. Read more here.

Lakers launch direct-to-consumer streaming service
Addressing its cord cutter fans, Spectrum SportsNet and the Los Angeles Lakers announced the launch of “ Spectrum SportsNet+,” a direct-to-consumer streaming subscription service designed to offer a 24/7 feed of Spectrum SportsNet programming, including live Lakers games and behind-the-scenes Lakers content. Read more here.

NFL fans aren’t happy as YouTube has Sunday Ticket streaming issues
Multiple reports say that YouTube TV’s NFL Sunday Ticket drew the ire of fans after viewers complained about buffering issues within minutes of Week 8 football games kicking off. YouTube commented on the increasingly loud fanbase, at approximately 1:53 p.m., noting “our team is aware and working on a fix,” they wrote on X. “YouTube TV or NFL Sunday Ticket may also be impacted. we’ll follow up here once this has been resolved.” Read more here.

Avocados from Mexico is skipping the Super Bowl
Avocados From Mexico, a regular Super Bowl advertiser for almost a decade, is skipping Super Bowl 2024 to invest elsewhere, particularly in college football. “This isn’t the first time we’ve skipped the Big Game, and it likely won’t be the last,” Alvaro Luque, president and CEO of Avocados From Mexico, told Ad Age. The produce marketer’s 2023 ad starred Anna Faris.
adage.com

NBCUniversal and Visa partner on to send a content creator to Tahiti to cover surfing competition at Olympic Games Paris 2024
NBCUniversal and Visa are partnering on a once-in-a-lifetime program, “Tap into Tahiti”, which will send a content creator to Tahiti to cover the surfing competition for NBCU’s coverage of the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The men’s and women’s Olympic surfing competition will take place July 27-30, 2024, in Tahiti, a part of French Polynesia, and nearly 10,000 miles from the center of the Olympic action in Paris.
nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com

Comcast’s Peacock adds 4m subscribers, Q3 revenue up 64%
NBC streaming service Peacock added four million subscribers on a net basis in the third quarter to reach 28 million and saw its revenue rise 64 per cent from last year to $830m, as revealed in parent company Comcast's earnings.
sportbusiness.com

Smithfield won’t return as NASCAR sponsor in 2024
After Aric Almirola announced he was departing Stewart-Haas Racing at the conclusion of the 2023 Cup Series season, Smithfield announced it won’t return as a sponsor in 2024. Smithfield sponsored Almirola for 12 seasons, dating back to 2012, his first full season at the Cup level. Almirola won three races in Smithfield colors, with two of those coming under the SHR banner. Almirola finished a career-high fifth in points during the 2018 season.
jayski.com

Tug-of-War over NBA rights provides glimpse of media’s future
The league’s longtime television partners, including ESPN and Turner, are undergoing major changes, which could alter how games are watched. The National Basketball Association’s season tipped off on Tuesday with stars like LeBron James and Nikola Jokic beginning the long quest for a title. But the action that will have longer-term ramifications for the league, and the media and entertainment landscape, is happening off the court.
nytimes.com

Call of Duty League 2024 schedule leaked
Dexerto disclosed the full schedule for the Call of Duty League 2024 season, with matches due to start in December and four Majors across the season. Play will kick off on Dec. 8, and culminate with the Call of Duty Championship from July 11-14.
dexerto.com

MLB commissioner plays down prospect of regular season pause for Los Angeles 2028
Major League Baseball (MLB) commissioner Rob Manfred has admitted it would be difficult to halt its season to allow top players to compete at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. Baseball and softball are set to return to the Olympic program at the Games in five years' time after approval was granted by the International Olympic Committee Session in Mumbai earlier this month.
insidethegames.biz

NHL’s Coyotes says bankrupt broadcaster Diamond Sports owes it $18 million
The National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes said bankrupt sports broadcaster Diamond Sports Group owes the team nearly $18 million following the termination of its telecast deal. Diamond has said it needed to end the deal because its regional sports channel, Bally Sports Arizona, was losing money.
bloomberg.com

Grant and Tamia Hill buy into Orlando’s MLS, NWSL owners group
Basketball Hall of Famer Grant Hill and his wife, Grammy-nominated singer Tamia Hill, announced Friday that they were joining the ownership group for Orlando Soccer Holdings, which includes the city’s MLS and NWSL clubs. Already a co-owner of the Atlanta Hawks, Hill also serves as an NBA and college basketball broadcaster while investing in several real estate projects.
sportico.com

MLB planning to broadcast Diamondbacks, Padres games in 2024
Amid uncertainty about the regional sports network model, commissioner Rob Manfred made clear that the league will air games for at least the two NL West clubs next season. Major League Baseball is prepared to spend another year broadcasting games for at least two teams—including the National League pennant-winning Diamondbacks—amid uncertainty about the regional sports network model, commissioner Rob Manfred said on Friday before Game 1 of the World Series.
si.com

Danny Townsend named CEO of SRJ Sports Investments
SRJ Sports Investments, the new sports investment company formed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), appointed Danny Townsend as chief executive. Townsend will be tasked with leading the company’s strategic direction, while taking on a key role in driving the organization’s growth in the local and global sports investment sector.
sportspromedia.com

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Sport & Story Daily and Sports & Story College are the sport industry’s daily resource for business news. In addition to serving up exclusive trends, Q&As, and columns, the newsletter connects reads to top platforms and stories from across the sports landscape.

Chris Pursell is the founder of staple industry events such as the Cynopsis Sports Business Awards, the Esports Business Summit, the CMO Exchange, the Tempest Awards, and the Esports Newfronts. He was previously a reporter and editor for publications such as Variety and The Los Angeles Times and launched leading business publications for Cynopsis and PromaxBDA.

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