Sport & Story Daily September 8, 2023

Stay Ahead of the Game

September 8, 2023

Good morning! With the new NFL season comes a barrage of new partnerships and deals as brands look to embrace the country’s most popular sport…

Lowe’s nails down NFL extension
Now that the NFL season is underway, the league unveiled multiple deals inked before first kickoff. Included in the stream was news that Lowe's renewed its multi-year contract with the league for the 2023 season. The brand will be launching an integrated marketing campaign and is welcoming five players to the Home Team roster this season, including Dak Prescott, Travis Kelce, Christian McCaffrey, Kelvin Beachum and Bryce Young. Read more here.

Uber books expanded partnership with the National Football League
Uber Technologies signed a four-year deal to expand its partnership with the NFL, becoming the official on-demand delivery partner and official rideshare partner of the league. Fans will have access to special deals, limited-edition promotions, and unique integrations with food brands from across the country. Uber Eats will also launch in-venue mobile ordering at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles for the Los Angeles Chargers home opener on September 10. Read more here.

DraftKings becomes presenting sponsor of RedZone
Continuing the theme, DraftKings will now be the presenting sponsor of the NFL’s RedZone whip-around show this season, part of a multiyear partnership. The deal will see the DraftKings logo appear on the screen during live action and under the RedZone logo in graphics packages. In addition, the company’s live odds and stats will occasionally be integrated into the ad-free broadcast. Read more here.

Nielsen pauses move to include first-party streaming data
Speaking of the NFL, a controversial move championed by Amazon and the NFL to incorporate first-party streaming data into audience measurements for “Thursday Night Football” has been put on pause, with Nielsen thus far unable to get the needed clearance from the Media Rating Council, which sets industry measurement standards. Read more here.

Wilson Tennis racket maker Amer Sports files for US IPO
Shifting gears, Amer Sports, the company behind brands such as Wilson tennis rackets and Salomon ski boots, filed confidentially for a US initial public offering that could value the group at as much as $10 billion, according to Bloomberg. The company is reportedly working with Bank of America Corp., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley on preparations for the share sale, with plans to list by early next year. Read more here.

Liberty Media buys QuintEvents, valuing company at $313m
Liberty Media, owners of Formula 1, has announced that it has purchased "greater than 90 per cent" of QuintEvents in a deal that values the US-based ticket and hospitality company at $313m.
sportbusiness.com

CAA sells majority stake to Francois-Henri Pinault’s Artemis
French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault has completed his acquisition of a majority stake in Creative Artists Agency. Variety reports that through his family investment company Artemis, Pinault replaces private equity player TPG as the primary holder of one of Hollywood’s superpower talent agencies.
sportico.com

Reebok and NFL star Justin Fields enter into a long-term partnership
With the NFL regular season kicking off today, Reebok announced that it has entered into a long-term partnership with Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields. The partnership, according to Reebok, will bolster their shared commitment of community support and charitable giveback.
footwearnews.com

America’s Cup and Yanmar extend partnership
The organizers of the 37th America’s Cup have announced the extension of their partnership with Yanmar, who will continue to be the Official Marine Partner for the event. Yanmar is working towards its goal of being a greenhouse-gas-free corporation by 2050 and is committed to driving sustainability in the marine sector.
bvmsports.com

Peyton Manning rides giant flying baguette to kick off NBCUniversal’s fall campaign for its coverage of Olympic Games Paris 2024
Peyton Manning stars in a promotional spot that will kick off NBCUniversal’s fall campaign to promote its coverage of the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, which begin July 26, 2024, in Paris, France. The promo debuted yesterday on TODAY. The spot begins with Manning riding in a giant baguette blimp that is flying high above Paris while holding a glass of red wine. “Welcome to Paris. Home to French bread, wine, and now, the Olympics,” says Manning, while sky divers leap from the blimp to form Olympic rings over the city.
nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com

Pat McAfee to appear on First Take every Tuesday
ESPN is getting its money’s worth from Pat McAfee. On the same day that the former NFL punter brought his show to the network, Stephen A. Smith announced that McAfee is going to be pulling double duty with ESPN’s morning lineup on Tuesdays. McAfee will become part of the rotation of panelists on First Take this season.
barrettsportsmedia.com

ESPN Fantasy Football 2023 sees record signups
Heading into kickoff of the 2023 season, ESPN Fantasy Football, the No. 1 fantasy football game, has already set a new all-time record with 11.6 million players and more signing up through Week 1 and beyond.
espnpressroom.com

2023 Rugby World Cup begins today on Peacock
NBC Sports’ presentation of the 2023 Rugby World Cup from France – featuring every match live on Peacock – begins tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 8, with host-nation and World No. 3 France taking on World No. 4 New Zealand at 3:15 p.m. ET live exclusively on Peacock.
nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com

Nexstar’s KTLA renews deal to air Clippers NBA games
Nexstar Media Group said its Los Angeles station, KTLA, will air more Los Angeles Clippers NBA games this season, extending an agreement reached last year. KTLA will televise 15 games this season, including four preseason games.
nexttv.com

Commanders' new owners won't return to old name: 'That ship has sailed'
The Washington Commanders have been under new ownership for a few months now, and there are likely many changes in store for the franchise over the next year. One thing that will remain in the past, though, is the old name.
yahoo.com

Roots, Soul soccer to include fans as owners, be ‘Oakland’s team more than ever’
Since 2019, Oakland, Calif., has had two of its major professional sports teams leave the city, and a third is preparing to relocate. The Golden State Warriors first moved to San Francisco. The Oakland Raiders then moved to Las Vegas, and the Oakland A’s have announced plans to do the same.
theathletic.com

ESPN signs on-air sports betting analyst Erin Dolan to multi-year contract renewal
ESPN has agreed to a multi-year contract renewal with sports betting analyst Erin Dolan. As part of her deal, Dolan will be Bristol-based with regular in-studio appearances on ESPN’s Daily Wager, SportsCenter, and more. Dolan – who signed with ESPN in December 2021 – will continue to create betting-specific content on YouTube – including her weekly show, The EKD Show. She’ll also make weekly appearances on Sunday NFL Countdown.
espnpressroom.com

On This Day in Sports History:
1884: The first time a boxing match is filmed, taking place at West Orange, NJ
1965: Kansas City A’s Bert Campaneris plays all nine positions in a game
1973: Hank Aaron sets record for most homeruns in one league, at 709
1979: Tracy Austin beats Chris Evert to win the US Open
1988: A. Bartlett Giamatti is elected as MLB’s 7th Commissioner

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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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Sept7