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WSJ on MLB: “Dream Postseason”
Sport & Story Daily October 16, 2024 WSJ on MLB: “Dream Postseason”
Interest in Baseball Has Soared With a Postseason Featuring Big-Market Teams
October 16, 2024
Good morning! WSJ on MLB: “Dream Postseason”
Getty Images
MLB Postseason Riding Wave of Major-Market Team Success
MLB is currently “enjoying what could only be described as a dream postseason" at a time when it “desperately needed an October to celebrate,” according to Jared Diamond of the WALL STREET JOURNAL via SBJ. Interest in baseball has “soared to heights not seen in years” as big-market teams—the Dodgers, Mets and Yankees—have reached the League Championship Series. Overall playoff viewership has “climbed nearly 20% from this time last year.” The division series round “just had its best performance on TV since 2017.”
Sports Business Journal
WNBA Eyes 16th Team by 2028: Engelbert Evaluates Candidates
FOS’ Colin Salao writes, “Despite announcing three expansion teams since last September, commissioner Cathy Engelbert has stated the WNBA wants to add one more by 2028—a 16th franchise that would tie the record high the league had from 2000 to 2002.”
At a press conference last Thursday, Engelbert said there are about “10 to 12 cities” the league is evaluating for an expansion franchise.
Front Office Sports
Courtesy of Texas Tech
Texas Tech, Adidas … Mahomes
Adidas, which signed Mahomes before his rookie year in 2017, inked a 10-year deal with Texas Tech after the latter’s previous agreement with Under Armour expired. The new contract includes varying incentives and, per the Dallas Morning News via SBJ, represented a “107% increase in the team’s average cash annual value than its previous deal with Under Armour,” reportedly worth around $12.9 million.
Sports Business Journal
Foot Locker, Bulls Ink Multiyear Deal to Boost Basketball Presence
SBJ’s Na’Andre Emerson writes, “Partnering with the Bulls is a part of the global retailer’s ‘Lace Up’ initiative which aims to boost annual revenue to over $9.5B by 2026 through brand diversification and improvements to customer experience. Through this, Foot Locker has begun to build stronger connections with basketball fans and players.”
Sports Business Journal
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
CHSN and Comcast Negotiate as Blackhawks Fans Miss Games
According to an Oct. 12 report in The Athletic via Sportico, Comcast wants to place CHSN in one of its pricier cable packages in a deal similar to what Diamond Sports Group eventually agreed to for its Bally Sports RSNs. CHSN, for its part, agreed to take in a lower rights fee from Comcast, yet does not want to end up in the pricier tiers.
Sportico
Tim Kiely Returning to TNT's 'Inside The NBA' Ahead of Possible Final Season
According to Turner Sports via SBJ, Tim Kiely, the innovative producer behind TNT’s “Inside The NBA" for three decades before retiring 17 months ago, will rejoin the studio show for what could be the program’s final season this year, Turner Sports revealed today. With the title of vice president and executive producer of NBA studio production, Kiely is considered by many to be the mastermind behind popular “Inside The NBA" memes.
Sports Business Journal
Bettman Praises Prime’s Distribution, Speaks on Future NHL TV Rights
Monday night’s Canadiens-Penguins game was the first of 26 Monday night Prime NHL games in Canada this season, and Commissioner Gary Bettman said he believes the streamer “is more widely distributed than any other platform—cable or satellite—in the country,” according to Stu Cowan of the MONTREAL GAZETTE via SBJ. Bettman said, “Most people have Prime. And as the media landscape continues to evolve with technology there are going to be changes in distribution.”
Sports Business Journal
Sources: PIF Eyes New CEO For Liv; Norman to Stay [In Senior Role]
Josh Carpenter breaks some huge golf news, writing, “A search has been ongoing in recent months to find a new CEO for LIV Golf, according to sources briefed on the matter. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which backs LIV financially, has contracted out London-based Odgers Berndtson for the search, which would take over for Greg Norman in the CEO role. Though handled quietly, the search firm has looked to well-regarded executives in sports business for the position, with names including Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark among those targeted early on…”
Sports Business Journal
Man United Great Alex Ferguson to Step Down as Club Ambassador in Latest Change Under Jim Ratcliffe
Manchester United great Alex Ferguson will step down from his lucrative role as club ambassador at the end of the season, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Ferguson has been a club ambassador since retiring after leading United to its last league title in 2013. In financial accounts from 2014, United said Ferguson was paid 2.16 million pounds ($2.8 million at current exchange rates) for services as a global ambassador.
AP News
Bill Belichick Rips Jets Owner Woody Johnson Over Robert Saleh Firing: 'Just Ready, Fire, Aim'
“It seemed quite early to me to be making a coaching change,” Manning said while talking to Belichick on Payton and Eli Manning’s ESPN alternate broadcast.
“Yeah, well look, that’s kind of what it's been there at the Jets,” Belichick responded. “They’ve barely won over 30% in the last 10 years. The owner being the owner, just ready, fire, aim.”
Yahoo! Sports
Getty Images
Las Vegas’ Sphere Will Get a Twin, as a Second Location Is Announced for Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates
“The vision for Sphere has always included a global network of venues, and today’s announcement is a significant milestone toward that goal,” said James L. Dolan, executive chairman and CEO of Sphere Entertainment, in a statement. “Sphere is redefining live entertainment and extending the reach of its transformative impact. We are proud to collaborate with DCT Abu Dhabi to develop Sphere in their city.”
Variety
Boston NWSL Team to Be Known as BOS National Football Club, With Green as Primary Color
As Steph Yang from The Athletic reports, “Boston’s NWSL team has a name: BOS Nation Football Club. The club revealed the name Tuesday while also announcing its colors. It will keep the green motif it established when it launched its temporary black and green logo featuring the Zakim Bridge. The team will launch its permanent crest at a later date.”
The Athletic
France Will Host Israel in the Nations League ‘Under Unusual Conditions,’ French Authorities Say
Israel’s Nations League soccer match against host France next month will take place in “usual conditions,” French authorities said Tuesday, one day after Italy hosted Israel in the same competition without incident despite security concerns.
As the AP News notes, it was the first match Israel has played outside neutral Hungary this year. After the Israel-Hamas war started on Oct. 7 last year, the national soccer team played in Kosovo and Andorra.
AP News
Hawaii to Become Full Mountain West Member, Leaving Big West, AD Says
The Athletic’s Chris Vannini reports, “Hawaii has been a football-only member of the Mountain West since 2012 and in the Big West with most of its other sports. Last month, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State announced plans to leave the Mountain West for the Pac-12 in 2026. Utah State later did the same. But the MW was able to stay together, securing a commitment from its six remaining full members through 2032, as well as Hawaii.”
Sportico
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