Sport & Story Daily September 22, 2023

Stay Ahead of the Game

September 22, 2023

Good morning! USA Network will once again be feeling the SmackDown, as NBCU regains rights to the WWE staple series in a five-year deal…

🤝🏼 WWE’s ‘SmackDown’ returns to USA Network in $1.4 billion deal
WWE’s “Friday Night SmackDown” is making a move from FOX back to NBCUniversal’s USA Network in October 2024, courtesy of a new carriage deal valued at a reported $1.4 billion and spanning five years. CNBC writes that WWE does not expect to reach a rights agreement for its flagship show “Raw” until next year. “SmackDown” has been on Fox since October 2019, with a rights agreement for $205 million per year in a five-year deal. The new agreement is roughly a 40% increase. Read more here.

🔎 Examining Murdoch’s sports legacy at FOX
Longtime FOX stalwart Rupert Murdoch is stepping down from the role atop the company. The org said Thursday that Murdoch’s son, Lachlan, will become News Corp. chairman and continue as chief executive officer of Fox Corp. On the sports front, Lachlan has already been active helping manage FOX Sports' rights relationships. FOS takes a look at how the announcement will impact its high-powered sports front. Read more here.

🏝 PGA Tour will begin '24 in Maui
Following the fires that ravaged Maui earlier this year, the PGA Tour confirmed that the company will return to Kapalua on the island once again to begin the 2024 season. “Working in cooperation with state, county and community officials, the PGA Tour is committed to playing The Sentry in 2024 at The Plantation Course at Kapalua,” chief competitions officer Tyler Dennis wrote in a memo to players. Read more here.

📢 Paramount to help brands create influencer content around Super Bowl, other sporting events
Paramount is launching a new initiative, announcing an arm to create new opportunities for brands to develop custom social advertising featuring athletes during major sporting events such as the Super Bowl, which so happens to air next year on Paramount-owned channels CBS and Nickelodeon. The media company will launch a new division within its branded content unit called CBS Sports Creator Studio, dedicated to its sports properties including the NFL, PGA and college football and basketball, among others. Read more here.

🏒 Warner Bros. Discovery Sports locks in NHL crew
With season three of NHL on TNT coverage quickly approaching, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports reached multi-year extensions with its four studio analysts – Wayne Gretzky, Paul Bissonnette, Anson Carter and Henrik Lundqvist – who will continue to appear alongside host Liam McHugh throughout the 2023-24 season. Additionally, play-by-play commentator Kenny Albert and game analyst Eddie Olczyk will be joined by the newest member of the NHL on TNT team – Brian Boucher. Read more here.

Andlauer completes record $950M Senators acquisition
After more than three months of due diligence and league review, Michael Andlauer has at last completed his record-setting, $950 million acquisition of the Ottawa Senators. After prior approval by the league’s executive committee, the Board of Governors also unanimously cleared the transaction, which represents the highest price ever paid for an NHL team, and deal is now officially closed. The approval process also follows a separate and protracted sales process lasting seven months.
nhl.com

Panini files lawsuit with WWE over cancelled card deal
After news broke earlier this week that WWE was taking its trading card business to Fanatics, Panini has responded by filing a lawsuit against the company, lodging its complaint in a federal court within the Southern District of New York contending that WWE’s termination constitutes a breach of the contract and seeks a declaration of the invalidity of this termination.
ringsidenews.com

Foresight Sports Canada renews multi-year agreement as an “official sponsor” of Golf Ontario
The commitment from Foresight has “many layers,” including being recognized as the “Official Launch Monitor and Golf Simulator Partner” of Golf Ontario, and continuing as a “Founding Partner of the Junior Golf Pathway”. To celebrate the renewal of the agreement and demonstrate their commitment to the ongoing development of the Junior Golf Pathway, the company is also the “Presenting Sponsor” of the inaugural Golf Ontario Junior-Am Fundraising Tournament.
gao.ca

‘Hard Knocks’ hits 13-year viewership high
Despite a lack of teams willing to participate on Hard Knocks, viewership on HBO hit a mark not seen in over a decade for this season with the New York Jets. Per a release from Warner Bros. Discovery, Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the New York Jets averaged 4.4 million viewers for each of its five episodes.
awfulannouncing.com

NHL on ESPN+ presents 30+ preseason out-of-market games beginning September 23
Opening the NHL preseason – and available to all ESPN+ subscribers without blackouts – the Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings are set to face off in the 2023 NHL Global Series – Melbourne at Rod Laver Arena on Saturday, Sept. 23 and Sunday, Sept. 24. Both games will start at 12:05 a.m. ET and mark the first-ever NHL games played in the Southern Hemisphere.
espnpressroom.com

Fanatics begins streaming NFL games In sports betting app
Tonight’s Thursday Night Football matchup between the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers is streaming on the Fanatics Sportsbook app, as long as NFL betting occurs, according to a promotion on its website. When at least $1 of NFL betting occurs, Fanatics Sportsbook users in Massachusetts, Maryland, Ohio, and Tennessee gain access to an in-app stream of their bet’s corresponding game, provided it is also broadcasted in their local market.
legalsportsreport.com

Kroenkes in dispute with FIFA over SoFi Stadium deal for 2026 World Cup
FIFA is at the center of escalating tensions with the Kroenke family, the owners of Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium, over the terms of the agreement to be a host venue at the 2026 men’s World Cup. Multiple sources familiar with the discussions, who have asked to remain anonymous in order to protect their jobs, have told The Athletic that KSE is unhappy with the terms of the deal to host fixtures during the tournament, in respect of how revenue will be shared between FIFA, the cities and the stadiums.
theathletic.com

Vegas Golden Knights and Scripps Sports announce launch of KnightTime+ streaming platform
KnightTime+ and Scripps Sports will have 69 games available live to fans during the 2023-24 regular season, as well as six of the team’s seven contests during the preseason and the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, should the Golden Knights qualify. As part of a free trial, each of the six preseason games will be streamed on KnightTime+.
nhl.com

Jazz announce new jersey sponsor patch for upcoming 2023-24 NBA season
Since the NBA implemented sponsors onto uniforms, the Utah Jazz had dawned their Five for the Fight jersey patch in support of raising awareness and money for cancer research. Now, after surpassing their goal of $50 million collected for the cause, the team announced they would be retiring the patch.
si.com

LA Kings welcome Custodio & Dubey as the NHL team’s official law firm
The LA Kings have launched a strategic new marketing partnership with leading personal injury law firm, Custodio & Dubey LLP. As part of the multi-year agreement, brokered by AEG Global Partnerships, CD Law will become the official law firm of the NHL team, strengthening its ties to millions of passionate sports fans across Southern California. The deal also marks CD Law’s first official partnership with a professional sports organization, making this a significant milestone and first-of-its-kind deal for the firm.
businesswire.com

FC Dallas announces partnership with NBC 5 and Telemundo 39
FC Dallas announced Wednesday that NBC 5 and Telemundo 39 have become the official local television partners of the club. The new agreement  includes  expanded coverage of FC Dallas and exclusive access to its players, coaches and staff for fans seeking  expert analysis, feature stories and human-interest angles of the most diverse and exciting professional sports franchise in the DFW market. 
nbcdfw.com

MLS restructures sporting department leadership, moves Nelson Rodriguez to EVP
Major League Soccer has created a new sport and competition group that will be co-led by Nelson Rodriguez and Todd Durbin, the league said on Thursday. The group will be charged with “ensuring the integrity of competition and continuing our focus on elevating the league’s quality of play.” Rodriguez, most recently chief of staff to commissioner Don Garber, but also a former president and general manager of the Chicago Fire, will be Executive Vice President of Sporting Product & Competition.
theathletic.com

Omnic.ai partners with Belong Gaming, hires former Vindex VP
Esports AI startup Omnic.AI has announced a partnership with gaming arena operator Belong Gaming, focusing on the company’s UK and Europe arenas. As a result of the partnership, Omnic’s product, Forge, will be available in Belong Gaming venues. In addition, Francis Thai, former VP at esports technology company Vindex, has joined Omnic as its new Chief Marketing Officer.
esportsinsider.com

On this Day in Sports History:
1969: San Francisco Giant Willie Mays becomes the second player to hit 600 HRs
1974: The Steelers and Broncos are the first teams to play to a tie, 35-35, with the new overtime rule.
1987: NFL players go on strike for 24 days
1991: Dolphins coach Mike Shula notches his 300th career victory
2012: Old Dominion QB Taylor Heinicke sets NCAA Division I records by throwing for 730 yards in a game.

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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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