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NFL’s Swift Mania Starting To Show Impact Through Merch Sales, Viewership
It’s been two days since Taylor Swift took over the NFL’s coveted late-Sunday afternoon window by attending the Chicago Bears-Kansas City Chiefs game amid rumors she’s dating star tight end Travis Kelce. Now, evidence is mounting that the pop star’s appearance at Arrowhead Stadium is positively impacting...
CBS Nets 13-Year High in September NFL Viewership
Sunday’s NFL on CBS coverage, which featured Patriots-Jets, was the most-watched September single-header broadcast for CBS Sports in 12 years. The Patriots-Jets window drew 17.5 million viewers for CBS, up 19% over Week 3 last season. This season’s first three weeks of NFL games on CBS averaged 18.69 million viewers, giving CBS its best September NFL viewership in 13 years.
Ratcliffe Reworking Bid To Buy Manchester United
There’s seemingly no end in sight to the saga of the potential sale of Manchester United by its heavily criticized owners, but one of the remaining bidders is still pushing to acquire the team. Jim Ratcliffe, who is believed to be battling with Qatari Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani...
Amazon Gets Back-to-Back ‘Thursday Night Football’ Ratings Wins
Amazon has opened the NFL season with its two highest audiences for Thursday Night Football since Prime Video started streaming NFL games in 2017. Thursday’s Week 3 matchup between the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers averaged a 6.5 rating and 13.92 million viewers on Amazon Prime Video, making it the second-most watched NFL game ever on Prime Video, per SportsMedia Watch. It trails only the prior week’s Minnesota Vikings-Philadelphia Eagles game on TNF, which drew 15.05 million viewers as the most-streamed game in NFL history.
Sounders Eye Leaving Lumen Field For Soccer-Specific Stadium
Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders have been an unqualified success by any metric. The league’s winningest team since their arrival in 2009, the Sounders have won two MLS Cups and placed no lower than third in attendance in any season. Now, they’re looking for a home stadium to...
NFL Fans Can Now Bet On Games While Streaming
NFL live streaming has arrived in sportsbook apps. On Tuesday, sports data and technology company Genius Sports launched BetVision. This first-of-its-kind live streaming service will allow users to bet while watching games via integrated bet slips. The platform will also feature statistical insights and other real-time augmentations directly over the video player.
Coffee Is Becoming The Next Big Trend in Sports
Several luminaries in the sports business and media spaces are coming together to put their own spin on the morning routine. Fara Leff (Klutch Sports Group COO), Paul Rivera (SpringHill Co. chief brand officer and co-creator of “The Shop”), David Creech (Adopt co-founder and Nike design veteran), and Andrew and Nate Forbes (The Forbes Company and former minority owners of the Cleveland Cavaliers) have founded Beekeeper Coffee, a new ready-to-drink coffee brand.
Sharpe: ‘First Take’ Would Still Beat ‘Undisputed’ Without Stephen A.
Shannon Sharpe has thrown down the gauntlet to Skip Bayless and his new castmates at FS1. Now that he’s joined forces with Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim on ESPN’s “First Take,” Sharpe says Bayless and “Undisputed Live” will have to swallow their pride and accept finishing a distant second in the ratings race.
Writer’s Strike End a Boon for Sports Networks, Agencies
With the writer’s strike ending, major sports broadcasters such as Disney, Comcast, and Warner Bros. Discovery are breathing a sigh of relief, as are top agencies. We delve into the potential long-term impact of the five-month strike. Also, the PGA Tour and LIV Golf are still acting like rivals,...
Commanders Still Face Legal Fight Over Former Name
More than three years after shedding their former nickname, the Washington Commanders are still facing legal hurdles in connection with it. The Native American Guardian’s Association — a nonprofit organization aimed at advancing cultural and ethnic awareness — has filed a defamation lawsuit against the team in U.S. District Court in North Dakota, claiming a “coordinated and willful effort” by the team to defame and delegitimize the organization both verbally and in writing.
ESPN’s Reported Studio Closures Could Mean More Layoffs
ESPN has been in the news a lot this year, with most of the items pointing to a cloudy future for the Disney-owned sports network — a trend that won’t stop after more revelations about the company’s plans. The network has reportedly decided to close its Seaport...
NFL Owners’ Debt Limit Could Increase To $1.6B
More concessions to the NFL’s long-standing policies on team ownership structures appear to be on the way as rising franchise values make it increasingly difficult to acquire clubs and fund operations. The NFL owners’ finance committee may soon suggest upping the allowed debt for an incoming owner from $1.1...
Oakland-MLB Relationship Devolves Into Next-Level Toxicity
The Oakland A’s now appear to leave Oakland for Las Vegas as soon as possible. The team might not play another game at the Coliseum after the current lease expires following the 2024 season, as the already-strained relationship between the city of Oakland and MLB has now reached an unprecedented level of toxicity.
Ohio State-Notre Dame Scores Historic 10.5M Viewers for NBC
Ohio State’s last-minute heroics to beat Notre Dame 17-14 in South Bend this past Saturday was apparently enough to attract a historic broadcast audience. NBC Sports announced that Saturday’s contest averaged 10.5 million viewers — NBC’s second-most-watched regular-season college football game ever, trailing only the “Game of the Century” between Notre Dame and Florida State that attracted 22 million viewers in Nov. 1993.
Vegas Golden Knights Launch New Streaming Model Amid RSN Fallout
The Vegas Golden Knights and their local broadcast partner Scripps Sports have launched their new KnightTime+ streaming service to livestream 69 regular season games this upcoming season as the NHL team adapts to the changing regional sports landscape. Fans can purchase a full-season pass to KnightTime+ for $69.99 or single...
NFL’s Next International Goal: Games in Spain, Brazil
On the opening night of the 2023 NFL season, commissioner Roger Goodell emphasized the league’s desire to grow its international footprint. Since then, the NFL has already taken two major steps toward that goal. First, the league solidified its place in London by extending its deal to host multiple...
LIV, PGA Tour Schedules Likely Clashing Despite Merger
There are more questions than answers regarding the PGA Tour’s still-unofficial union with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, but the 2024 golf calendar is starting to come into focus. The PGA Tour has already released the schedule for its next FedEx Cup season, which begins in January, and...
Hollywood Writers’ Deal Would Boost Sports Networks and Agencies
The tentative deal to end the Hollywood writers’ strike after nearly five months will be welcome news for several sports-related companies and networks. TBS and TNT parent Warner Bros. Discovery previously projected a $300 million to $500 million hit in annual adjusted earnings due to the Hollywood strikes. French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault recently completed his $7 billion acquisition of Creative Artists Agency — one of the largest agencies representing both athletes and Hollywood personnel — and can now begin to approach full operations.
Jacksonville Jaguars President Walks Back Stadium ‘Threat’
“If Jacksonville loses an NFL team, they’re never going to get another one,” Jacksonville Jaguars president Mark Lamping said last week. “Do you want to keep the NFL in Jacksonville?”. Those comments at the AXS DRIVE conference were widely seen as a threat to move the Jaguars...
IRS Lowers Threshold to Tax Ticket Resellers for Sports, Concerts
The International Revenue Service (IRS) has significantly lowered its threshold to tax ticket resellers, impacting those who have resold tickets to sporting events or concerts on marketplaces such as Ticketmaster and StubHub. Ticket platforms will now be required to report information on sellers’ proceeds to the IRS if their ticket...
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