• MLB is suspending all political contributions in the wake of last week’s ransacking of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, while the NFL said it will reconsider its own policies on donations through its political action committee, Gridiron PAC. Since the 2016 election cycle, MLB has donated $669,375 to Senate and House candidates, with slightly more than half going to Republicans, including two senators and nine representatives who opposed the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral victory over Trump in the 2020 election. (The Associated Press)

• NBCUniversal is restarting the process of selling advertising time during the Summer Olympics in Tokyo just months after the Comcast Corp.-owned media conglomerate unwound $1.25 billion worth of ad inventory sold for the Games prior to last summer’s postponement of the event. The company is offering potential advertisers a new service through which it will review creative elements of spots set to run during the Olympics to determine their expected effectiveness based on analysis of 671 commercials that aired during the 2016 Rio and 2018 PyeongChang Games. (Variety)

• Bob Foose, executive director of the MLS Players Association, scoffed at Commissioner Don Garber’s assertion that Jan. 28 is a “hard deadline” for the union and league to agree to a new collective bargaining agreement after the league invoked a force majeure clause in the deal the two sides signed last year, adding that he believes the league feels pressure to redo the agreement while the pandemic is raging to squeeze the most favorable terms out of the players. Foose added he believes it is unlikely that the 2021 MLS season will start in mid-March as Garber has suggested, and sources said the league has not communicated a season start date or preseason report date to its clubs. (The Athletic)

• The NBA postponed another three games, bringing the total number of delays this week to eight due to issues related to COVID-19 and contact tracing. The league also revealed that 16 players tested positive for the virus between Jan. 6-12, the most in a one-week period since training camps started and representing a positivity rate of 3.2 percent. (The Associated Press)

FS1 Lands No. 2 Spot For Total-Day Audience In 2020
John Ourand, Sports Business Journal

Buoyed by its studio shows, college football games and NASCAR races, FS1 finished 2020 as the second most-watched cable sports network on a total-day basis, marking the first time the channel has drawn more viewers than ESPN2, NBCSN and NFL Network in a calendar year. NFL Network placed third, NBCSN was fourth and ESPN2 was fifth.

Denver Broncos reach deal with Minnesota Vikings’ George Paton to be general manager
Jeff Legwold, ESPN

Paton, who has spent the past 13 years with the Minnesota Vikings, has agreed to a six-year deal to be the Broncos’ general manager. The Broncos also interviewed New Orleans Saints assistant general manager Terry Fontenot, Chicago Bears assistant director of player personnel Champ Kelly, the New England Patriots’ Dave Ziegler and the Broncos’ director of college scouting Brian Stark.

Adrian Peterson ordered to pay $8.3 million over loan default
Daniel Kaplan, The Athletic

A New York state judge has ordered Detroit Lions running back Adrian Peterson to pay a Pennsylvania lender $8.3 million on a defaulted loan, with interest adding several thousand dollars a day to the tab moving forward. The ruling came at the end of a hearing Wednesday in which Peterson did not send counsel.

The Brooklyn Nets Bet the Franchise and Trade for James Harden
Ben Cohen, The Wall Street Journal

James Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving now play for the same NBA team. What could go wrong? The Brooklyn Nets made the biggest trade of the NBA season on Wednesday and created a team of temperamental superstars by dealing for Harden, the Houston Rockets’ virtuosic scorer and the league’s former Most Valuable Player, and making him the latest bearded millennial seeking reinvention by moving to Brooklyn.

NBA memo details plans for game-day COVID-19 testing in all 28 cities
Tim Bontemps, ESPN

As the NBA continues to deal with the reality of attempting to play the 2020-21 regular season amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the league sent a memo to teams Wednesday night detailing plans to try to supplement the testing already in place for players and referees with localized game-day testing in all 28 NBA cities. The memo, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, asks each team to spend the next two days attempting to find local testing providers.

Some Arizona officials hope MLB delays start of spring training by a month
Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times

Some Arizona officials are hoping Major League Baseball delays the start of spring training. By waiting another month, as holiday-related coronavirus surges subside and vaccinations become more readily available, Cactus League games could be regarded as a safer and more attractive draw for tourists.

Toronto Blue Jays sign president and CEO Mark Shapiro to five-year contract extension
Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press

Toronto Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro helped guide a rebuilding effort through most of his tenure with the team. Now he’ll get a chance to try to finish the job. Team owner Rogers Communications announced a five-year contract extension Wednesday for Shapiro, who also serves as the club’s chief executive officer.

Blue Jackets putting plan together to ask state to allow fans at home games
NBC4 Columbus

Representatives with the Columbus Blue Jackets say they are working to put a plan together to get fans back at Nationwide Arena for future games. NBC4’s Jerod Smalley confirmed that the team is working with local health officials to present a formal request to the state to allow some level of fans at their home games. 

Coyotes say corporate partnership with PPE maker will benefit Arizona community
Jeff Gifford, Phoenix Business Journal

The Arizona Coyotes will be wearing a new logo on their practice jerseys after entering into a multimillion-dollar partnership with a national medical equipment manufacturer. Med-Supply, a Michigan-based company that makes personal protective equipment, or PPE, and other medical supplies, will be the official PPE provider for the National Hockey League club.

2021 CAA men’s basketball tournament moved to JMU
John O’Connor, Richmond Times-Dispatch

For the first time since 1986, the CAA will crown its men’s basketball champion on a member campus. The league announced Wednesday that the tournament will be held March 6-9 at James Madison’s new Atlantic Union Bank Center rather than Washington’s Entertainment and Sports Arena, where it was originally scheduled on those dates.

Senators react to NCAA’s decision to delay vote on Name, Image, Likeness proposal
Ryan Williamson, Saturday Tradition

Recently, the NCAA delayed a decision to vote on whether college athletes can profit off themselves. It’s a decision that has frustrated many, including Senators Cory Booker (New Jersey) and Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut).

Tuscaloosa mayor Walt Maddox: ‘Time will tell’ if Alabama football CFP championship celebration causes COVID spike
Jason Morton, The Tuscaloosa News

As coronavirus-positive inpatients at DCH Health System dipped below 170 this week, data shows a slight downward trend in the number needing treatment in Tuscaloosa. But Monday night’s mass gathering on The Strip in celebration of the University of Alabama’s 18th football national championship may send those numbers back upward, city officials said.

MLS Players Association says delaying season “best solution” for Canadian teams
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press

The executive director of the MLS Players Association says delaying the start of the 2021 season would be the “best solution” for Canadian teams given the pandemic-related border issues. Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver were forced to relocate south of the border for much of the 2020 campaign due to travel complications caused by COVID-19.

Liga MX hands IMG global sponsorship sales brief
Sam Carp, SportsPro Media

Liga MX, the top flight of Mexican soccer, has appointed IMG as its exclusive commercial agency for global sponsorship sales until 2023. The pair are working together to launch a centralised sponsorship offering comprising a mix of assets, including official association, experiential and digital marketing opportunities. 

Floyd Mayweather Plans To Back NASCAR Team, But Sponsor Interest Remains Key
John Wall Street, Sportico

The boxing legend’s stock car racing brand, The Money Team Racing, is reportedly engaged in discussions with Spire Motorsports about a joint venture that would see TMT Racing co-brand the #77 (and possibly the #7) car for several races this coming year, before introducing the #50 TMT car in 2022. But with institutional sponsorship money tough to come by (think: Fortune 500 brands), doubts remain that TMT Racing will be able to raise enough capital to put a full-time team on the track next year—at least one capable of running up to Mayweather’s standards.

Phoenix Open announces daily attendance cap of 5,000 spectators for 2021 tournament
Arizona Republic

Attendance at next month’s Waste Management Phoenix Open, which was going to be capped at a reported 8,000 spectators daily due to COVID concerns, is being reduced even further as the pandemic continues to surge in Arizona. Tournament director Scott Jenkins announced on Wednesday that the daily attendance limit will be fewer than 5,000 people per day, Wednesday-Sunday, for the PGA Tour event at TPC Scottsdale scheduled for Feb. 1-7.

Twitch Brings On Samsung As Sponsor Of New Gaming Platform
Adam Stern, Sports Business Journal

Twitch has signed Samsung to become a new sponsor of its Rivals platform, where the company will activate its Galaxy smartphones by holding mobile gaming tournaments. Rivals is the tournament series on Twitch that typically involves big-name streamers competing, and this deal will be for the duration of this year and center around Samsung and Twitch putting on co-branded events like the Twitch Rivals Mobile Challenge.

G2 Esports announces major adidas partnership
Joey Poole, Esports Insider

European organisation G2 Esports has announced a major two-year partnership with the global sportswear brand adidas. The multi-year deal sees adidas become the sports apparel provider for G2, with the brand manufacturing the esports organisation’s 2021 jersey.

Dolphin Entertainment acquires esports and gaming agency B/HI
Henrieta Hyrliková, Esports Insider

North American marketing and content production company Dolphin Entertainment, Inc. has announced the acquisition of esports, gaming and entertainment agency B/HI. B/HI will operate as a division of Dolphin Entertainment’s subsidiary, PR firm 42West, with the agency’s President, Dean Bender, and Managing Partner, Shawna Lynch, appointed as Co-presidents.

Legends Hospitality Seeks $500 Million To Weather Covid Fallout
Brendan Coffey, Sportico

Just days after striking a deal for investment firm Sixth Street to take majority control of the business, which was co-founded by the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys, Legends wants to sell $350 million in senior secured notes—a type of debt—and create a $150 million revolving credit facility, a line of credit it may or may not access, according to a note published by Fitch Ratings.

ShotTracker Raises $11 Million With Sights Beyond College Basketball Analytics
Jacob Feldman, Sportico

ShotTracker parent company, DDSports Inc., has secured $11 million in funding amid basketball’s analytics revolution. Two strategic investors, Evertz Microsystems and Verizon Ventures, led the round.

UFC looks into Johns Hopkins study on psychedelic drugs as potential therapy for fighters
Marc Raimondi, ESPN

The UFC is looking to get involved with research into psychedelic drugs as a therapy for fighters’ brain health. The promotion has been in contact with Johns Hopkins University about its psychedelics studies with an eye toward seeing if the drugs can be helpful for fighters dealing with brain issues, UFC president Dana White told MMA Junkie on Wednesday.

The U.S. Sports Betting Race Is On—and Many Marketers Want A Piece Of The Action
Michael Applebaum, Ad Age

Brands and agencies drawn to this huge opportunity should be forewarned: Sports betting is not an easy business to break into—or break through. DraftKings and FanDuel are both owned by large public companies with deep pockets to spend on marketing, and both have vast legal and compliance teams to help navigate a patchwork of complex regulations that vary from state to state.

How Dick’s Sporting Goods Thrived During the Pandemic
Lisa Lacy, Adweek

We’ve heard a lot about the successes of Amazon and Walmart as essential retailers during the pandemic, but it’s time to add another to the list: Dick’s Sporting Goods. After shutting down its 720 U.S. locations in March, the retailer nevertheless saw both revenue and comparable store sales increase 23% in Q3.

After college football’s most trying season ever, what did we learn? Seismic change is coming
Pete Thamel, Yahoo Sports

There’s little doubt that college sports leaders will label 2020 as a success through adversity. But what’s much more compelling is how the pandemic-induced financial crunch and desperation for revenue will fundamentally change both the sport and the college athletics industry.

Houston Rockets win in James Harden divorce
Brian Fonseca, Deadspin

This is real life; managing personalities, building chemistry with co-workers, curating healthy habits, leading responsibly, giving a damn, and holding yourself to a standard that requires accountability. Harden demonstrated none of that on his way out of Houston