General
With Pub Pass, NBC Sports tries B2B bundles for specialty sports programming
Max Willens, Digiday
The magic of media is remixing content to create new value. That’s the approach NBC Sports is taking with its new vertical sports programming bundles. Three weeks ago, NBC Sports announced the launch of NBC Sports Pub Pass, a subscription service targeted at bar, restaurants and other commercial establishments that offers access to rugby, soccer and cycling events commercial-free, on-demand.
Nike just created a high-tech shoe that you can control with Siri
Melissa Locker, Fast Company
Your footwear is about to get a whole lot more interactive. Today, Nike announced the shoe of the future, the Nike Adapt Huarache shoe, which features the company’s “FitAdapt” technology, to let you adjust the fit of the shoe through Siri or your Apple Watch.
The Best Offense in WNBA History? It’s Built Around 3-Pointers.
Ben Cohen, The Wall Street Journal
The Washington Mystics are in the middle of the greatest offensive season the WNBA has ever seen. But simply having the best offense in history says less about their dominance than how much better that offense is than everyone else’s.
Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones to form an exploratory committee on Senate bid
Joe Sonka, Louisville Courier Journal
Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones is forming an exploratory committee for a potential U.S. Senate bid against Mitch McConnell in 2020. Jones, a Democrat, told the Courier Journal he expects to come to a final decision on such a run after the election for statewide offices this November.
Stacey Abrams, Jerry Stackhouse highlight WNBPA’s ‘Board of Advocates’
Ava Wallace, The Washington Post
The WNBA players’ association announced Thursday the formation of a board of advocates, which brings together leaders in business, politics, sports and entertainment and is highlighted by prominent Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams. The union is engaged with the league in collective bargaining negotiations, with the aim of reaching a new deal ahead of the 2020 season.
NFL
Suspended Browns RB Hunt undergoes sports hernia surgery
Tom Withers, The Associated Press
Browns running back Kareem Hunt will spend part of his NFL suspension rehabbing after surgery. Hunt, who will serve an eight-game ban for two physical off-field altercations in 2018 while he played for Kansas City, had a sports hernia operation Thursday — hours before the Browns played Detroit in their exhibition finale.
Will Tony Romo Become Biggest Free Agent in TV Sports History?
Michael McCarthy, Front Office Sports
Tony Romo of CBS Sports could potentially become the most sought-after free agent in sports TV history. With the new 2019 NFL season a week away, talks on a contract extension between Romo and CBS have stalled with little progress, said sources.
NFL calls shrinking ad breaks a win as it plots growth across digital
Andrew Blustein, The Drum
The National Football League (NFL), consistently atop destinationfor advertisers, is continuing to evolve its ad offering – and is calling on broadcasters to embrace such innovation. In 2017, the NFL augmented its broadcasts with the double box ad format – essentially, a commercial placed side-by-side to in-game content.
NBA
Arrest Warrant Issued for DeMarcus Cousins
Sopan Deb and Kevin Draper, The New York Times
An arrest warrant for the Los Angeles Lakers center DeMarcus Cousins was issued Thursday in Mobile, Ala., for a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence, a Mobile police spokeswoman confirmed. A court also granted Christy West a protective order, forbidding Cousins from contacting her.
MLB
Pitcher: Life ‘destroyed’ by slayings of wife, son, in-law
The Associated Press
Tampa Bay Rays minor leaguer Blake Bivens said his “heart was turned to ash” when his wife, 1-year-old son and mother-in-law were slain this week.
Ex-Major League Baseball player Dotel has Dominican charge dismissed, freed on bail
Ezequiel Abiú López, Reuters
A Dominican court released former Major League Baseball pitcher Octavio Dotel on bail on Thursday after he spent nine days in detention over allegations of money laundering. Dotel was arrested on Aug. 20 as part of a series of raids targeting what prosecutors have called the Dominican Republic’s largest drug trafficking group.
NHL
NHL Network’s ‘Behind the Glass’ Lands in Philadelphia Flyers Camp
Geoff Magliocchetti, The Big Lead
NHL Network’s Behind the Glass will descend upon the land of Magic Gardens, goals, Gostisbehere, and Gritty. Hockey’s answer to Hard Knocks will spend its September at training camp for the Philadelphia Flyers.
Why Sportsnet will look and sound different when the NHL returns this fall
Sean Fitz-Gerald, The Athletic
Rogers Communications sent a thunderclap rolling across the Canadian sports media landscape on a Tuesday morning in November 2013, having secured exclusive national rights to the NHL for the staggering sum of $5.232 billion. The deal was to run for 12 years.
Soccer
How The Sun’s fantasy football newsletter increased retention to 68%
Lucinda Southern, Digiday
Dream Team, the fantasy football offshoot from U.K. tabloid The Sun, has had a retention problem. From one year to the next, the free-to-play game would have to reacquire two-thirds of its audience who signed up to play the previous year, which is typically around 1 million subscribers.
Racing
Kate Courtney: A World Champ From Mountain Biking’s Northern California Heart
Jason Gay, The Wall Street Journal
“That was the most fun I’ve ever had,” a beaming Kate Courtney said to her mother at the finish line. “I’m never running again.”
Golf and Tennis
Taylor Townsend, With Thrilling Charges, Ousts Simona Halep From the U.S. Open
Ben Rothenberg, The New York Times
A long wait ended for Taylor Townsend on Thursday afternoon, thanks to a game plan from an era considered long gone. Attacking with serve-and-volley as well as chip-and-charge, the 116th-ranked Townsend flummoxed the reigning Wimbledon champion, Simona Halep, in the second round of the United States Open and finished with a tight 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory.
Novak Djokovic’s $740 Solution for Processing Your Feelings
Daniel Taub, Bloomberg
Ahead of his matches at the U.S. Open, Novak Djokovic—winner of 16 Grand Slam singles titles and ranked No. 1 in the world in men’s singles tennis—spent some time in New York promoting a collaboration with luxury pen company Montblanc. Sales of the limited-edition StarWalker Metal Fineliner pen and matching notebook ($740) will help raise money for the Novak Djokovic Foundation, which supports preschool education in his native Serbia.
Ralph Lauren’s TikTok Campaign Around the US Open Is a First for the Platform
Ann-Marie Alcántara, Adweek
As the U.S. Open ramps up with brand activations, Ralph Lauren is rolling out a new campaign tied to the sporting event on TikTok. Ralph Lauren is using both the sponsored hashtag challenge offered on TikTok and the platform’s latest offering, which lets consumers buy products within the app, called hashtag challenge plus.
IBM Serves Up an Ace With AI at the US Open
Ann-Marie Alcántara, Adweek
For anyone attending the U.S. Open, the tournament has become much bigger than simply watching the tennis matches. Between activations from American Express and all the different food concessions, there’s plenty of action happening off the courts, too.
Suarez Navarro fined $40,000 after retiring in U.S. Open first round
Amy Tennery, Reuters
The U.S. Open fined Carla Suarez Navarro $40,000 on Thursday for violating the First Round Performance Rule. The 30-year-old Spaniard retired after losing the first set of her first-round match against qualifier Timea Babos 6-2, citing back issues.
College Sports
Rules changes could come to NCAA if California bill passes
Michael Marot, The Associated Press
The NCAA wants a level playing field for all athletes, even if state law proposals threaten its longtime model for amateur sports. With the California assembly considering a potentially landmark measure that would allow athletes at state colleges and universities to profit from the use of their names, likenesses and images, an NCAA working group is trying to figure out how to respond.
Nissan ups its college sports marketing, adds NCCA hoops sponsorship
E.J. Schultz, Ad Age
College football season is just getting started, but Nissan is already thinking about hoops. The brand today announced it is now an official sponsor NCAA men’s basketball, including the Final Four, giving it the rights to use trademarked phrases like March Madness.
Rules Changes in College Football: Targeting, Overtime and Blindside Blocks
Alan Blinder, The New York Times
College football is back, and the rule book is (a little) different. Although 2019 was classified as an off-year for rule changes, officials could still make edits if they involved player safety; adjustments to any recent change that was “not achieving its intent”; or if they would have “a significant impact on the image of the game.”
Hurricane Dorian prompts move of Boise State-FSU game
Bob Ferrante, The Associated Press
The college football season opener for Boise State and Florida State will kick off a few hours sooner and a little further inland with discounted ticket prices because of the threat of Hurricane Dorian. Officials announced Thursday that the game will be played Saturday at Florida State’s Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee and start at noon, seven hours before it was originally scheduled to start in Jacksonville.
Esports
Philadelphia Fusion, Flyers Plan Joint Ticketing Deal
Adam Stern, The Esports Observer
The Comcast-owned Philadelphia Fusion in the Overwatch League are planning a new dual ticket option with the Flyers, in what the company believes is the first esports/major stick-and-ball team ticket package of its kind. Fusion Chief Business Officer Joe Marsh told THE DAILY today that full details are not ready to be released, but because of the dual ownership under Comcast, the sides have been working on putting together an unprecedented offer that will include tickets to both the Fusion’s esports events and the Flyers’ games.
Pizza Hut debuts ‘first’ virtual stadium deal for Madden NFL tournament
George P. Slefo, Ad Age
Pizza Hut is doubling down its football footprint after scoring a deal with EA Sports as the official sponsor of the Madden NFL 20 Championship Series, which is an esports event where fans of the popular video game compete throughout the season for a chance to win nearly $200,000. As part of the deal, Pizza Hut will have its own virtual stadium, making it the “first-ever virtual stadium deal in esports,” according to the restaurant chain.
Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research
An NFL veteran opens up on his sexuality
Ryan Russell, as told to Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN
In early August, I met with an NFL team that was interested in signing me as a free agent for the upcoming season. This was a big moment for me because, other than the love for my family, playing football again in the NFL is my dream.
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