General
Is This Pro Lacrosse’s Moment? This Star Is Betting Everything on It
Andrew Cotto, The New York Times
The face of professional lacrosse is bearded and chiseled, a look tailor-made for drawing fans on Instagram and YouTube. It belongs to Paul Rabil, who has long been considered the kind of athlete who could take his sport into the mainstream.
ESPN’s Dan Le Batard rips President Trump, derides network’s no-politics policy
Des Bieler, The Washington Post
There’s a racial division in this country that’s being instigated by the president, and we here at ESPN haven’t had the stomach for that fight.” With those words, Dan Le Batard launched into an impassioned monologue Thursday.
IOC Picks Alibaba Group To Handle Ticketing For ’22 Beijing Games
Ben Fischer, Sports Business Daily
The IOC has tapped the Alibaba Group to handle ticketing for the ’22 Beijing Games and suggested the contract can be extended to include future Games in Paris, Milan, L.A. and beyond. The deal is a major expansion of Alibaba’s relationship with the Olympics, adding a key service element alongside its global e-commerce and cloud computing sponsorship.
Fashionable 50
Jamie Lisanti, Sports Illustrated
There’s no denying that all athletes have style. The touchdown dances, the acrobatic slam dunks, the spin moves and the bicycle kicks and the all-around attitude on the court or field or ice—it all gives us a little glimpse in players’ personalities.
Police shut down an Adidas pop-up selling 99-cent Arizona Iced Tea sneakers after 2 teenagers were assaulted in massive crowds
Kate Taylor and Shoshy Ciment, Business Insider
Police shut down a pop-up selling Arizona Iced Tea-branded Adidas sneakers that drew massive crowds in New York City on Thursday morning. Fans had lined up down the block, hoping to buy the Arizona Iced Tea-branded sneakers for 99 cents.
NFL
Why would NFL, NFLPA pull the plug on three days of CBA talks?
Mike Florio, Profootballtalk.com
A three-day collective bargaining session set for this week suddenly became a one-day event, capped by a nothing-to-see-here joint statement from the NFL and the NFL Players Association calling the meeting “productive, constructive, and beneficial” for both sides (it always sound better with three adjectives). Let’s think about that one for a second.
The NFL’s Latest Approaches to Mental Health
Jenny Vrentas, Sports Illustrated
One of the first questions asked was a simple but important one: Where do you put the office of your team’s mental health clinician?
Why Erin Andrews Can’t and Won’t Comment on the NFL National Anthem Kneeling Controversy
Chris Ariens, Adweek
It’s about to get real busy for Erin Andrews. The Fox Sports NFL sideline reporter is preparing for training camp and reading up on draft picks and returning players. She’s also heading back to the ballroom as co-host of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars in September.
Josh Norman says jumping over bulls in Pamplona brought him peace and joy
Scott Allen, The Washington Post
Rich Eisen cut right to the chase during his interview with Josh Norman on Wednesday, asking what many have been wondering since video of the Washington Redskins cornerback jumping over a bull in Pamplona, Spain, made the rounds last week. “What the hell were you thinking?” he asked.
NBA
Infiniti gives a look inside the off-court life of Stephen Curry in three-part series
Kyle O’Brien, The Drum
Infiniti Motor Company has teamed with NBA superstar Stephen Curry’s Unanimous Media for a three-part YouTube series that offers a look into Curry’s life. ‘Life, Lived’ highlights comfort, luxury and creativity as they relate to both Curry’s life and Infiniti autos.
Source: Raptors’ Lowry has surgery on thumb
Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN
Toronto Raptors All-Star guard Kyle Lowry underwent a procedure to repair a torn tendon in his left thumb on Thursday, league sources told ESPN. Lowry remains hopeful he can participate in USA Basketball’s training camp in August and play for the national team in the FIBA World Cup in China in September, sources told ESPN.
MLB
Aaron Boone Berates an Umpire, and the Yankees Take 2 From the Rays
James Wagner, The New York Times
To understand how seriously the Yankees have taken games against their division rivals, the Tampa Bay Rays, this season, consider Manager Aaron Boone’s second-inning outburst in the first game of his team’s doubleheader sweep on Thursday. After a called strike by the rookie umpire Brennan Miller, who had already riled the Yankees, Boone loudly voiced complaints.
NHL
Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin to make summer trip to China
Laine Higgins, The Associated Press
Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin will go to China as part of the NHL’s continued outreach in that country. Ovechkin will visit Beijing in early August as a league ambassador. He’s expected to take part in youth hockey clinics, interviews and business development meetings.
Ron Francis has big hopes as GM of Seattle’s new NHL club
Chris Talbott, The Associated Press
Ron Francis has all kinds of eye-popping statistics attached to his Hall of Fame career. He averaged more than point a game, is second in NHL history in assists behind Wayne Gretzky and fifth in career points.
Soccer
U.S. fans at heart of growing Arsenal fan protests
Peter Hall, Reuters
Arsenal fan websites in the United States are playing a pivotal role in a protest campaign against the club’s owners as a petition demanding change surpassed 100,000 signatures on Thursday, three days after launching. Sixteen supporters’ groups, three from the U.S., came together to launch the “#WeCareDoYou” campaign in response to “poor leadership” from owner Stan Kroenke and Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), declaring the Premier League club to be in need of “meaningful action” to “reinvigorate” it.
World Cup Star Alex Morgan Looking to Launch Female-Focused Media Venture
Eben Novy-Williams, Bloomberg
Alex Morgan, co-captain of the U.S. women’s soccer team that just won its second straight World Cup, is planning to launch her own media venture. The company will focus on storytelling, specifically content for girls created by female athletes, Morgan said.
With US Women’s Soccer Donation, Secret Hopes to Start a Sponsorship Trend
Diana Pearl, Adweek
When the U.S. women’s national soccer team brought home its fourth—and second consecutive—World Cup title earlier this month, the celebration couldn’t help but serve as glaring reminder of another battle the team has not yet won: the fight over equal pay.
Sources: USL may drop MLS-owned teams from second-tier Championship to third-tier League One by 2021
Sam Stejskal, The Athletic
All MLS-owned teams currently playing in the second-division USL Championship could be moved to third-division USL League One by 2021, sources from around MLS and USL have told The Athletic. Nine MLS teams—Atlanta United, D.C. United, LA Galaxy, New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders and Sporting Kansas City—field their own squads in the 36-team USL Championship.
Racing
Two horse deaths reported at Del Mar in a freak training accident
John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times
In a freak accident, two horses died during morning training on the Del Mar dirt surface Thursday after a horse unseated his rider and collided with another horse. At about 6:40 a.m., Charge a Bunch, an unraced 2-year-old trained by Carla Gaines, unseated his rider, Geovanni Franco, and then ran into Carson Valley, an unraced 2-year-old trained by Bob Baffert.
On the Road With the Tour de France
Michael Powell, The New York Times
I was late, oh so late, and my car’s GPS had expired in the midst of remote vineyards and stands of cypress and golden fields of humanoid-looking sunflowers. So this American hurtled down medieval farm roads making wrong turns after wrong turns until, miracle sacre, I suddenly found myself at Hotel La Réserve, a handsome country hotel with manicured grounds and a glittering swimming pool.
Golf and Tennis
Woods tries not to make it a short week at Royal Portrush
Doug Ferguson, The Associated Press
Tiger Woods arrived at Royal Portrush on Sunday morning. Now he tries to avoid leaving Friday afternoon from the British Open. Woods, Rory McIlroy and others who got off to a rugged start faced a daunting task trying to make the cut on a links course with ever-changing conditions and a steady challenge.
Li Na’s tennis journey to stretch from China to Hall of Fame
Brian Mahoney, The Associated Press
Li Na remembers first watching a tennis match on TV, drawn to the unforgettable style of one of the players. Andre Agassi had long hair, an earring and wore denim shorts, and made an instant fan in China.
College Sports
What comes next for the most undervalued television property in American sports
Andy Staples, The Athletic
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey stood before an assembled media horde this week and spent a solid half hour talking about all the ways the SEC is winning. “We led the nation in football attendance for the 21st consecutive year,” Sankey said at one point.
Big Ten’s Delany says old mistakes to blame for college woes
Keith Jenkins, The Associated Press
Outgoing Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany kicked off his final Big Ten football media days Thursday by saying he thinks some serious mistakes made in the 1970s created problems today in college athletics. Delany, who is in his 31st and final year as commissioner, said the loss of the four-year scholarship, the ending of the $15 weekly “laundry” stipend for athletes and allowing freshmen to play have all contributed to various headaches.
Esports
Cloud9 and PUMA on Co-Creating an Esports Clothing Line
Graham Ashton, The Esports Observer
As of H1 2019, nearly every major esports team has now signed an apparel partner—if they don’t already have their own merchandise brand. Back in January, North American team organization Cloud9 and athletics brand PUMA partnered with the ultimate goal of co-creating an original clothing line, which will eventually make its way to retail. On the most recent TEO Podcast episode, Jordan Udko, Cloud9 executive VP of commercial partnerships, said that feedback from the collaboration has been highly positive so far.
Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research
Kendrick Perkins and the Making of an NBA Talking Head
Bryan Curtis, The Ringer
Nine days before the start of NBA free agency, Kendrick Perkins had a take. “I think the Nets are the front-runner to land KD,” he said on ESPN’s The Jump.
Baseball’s Latest Identity Crisis
Will Leitch, New York Magazine
When was the last time baseball transcended its fan base and broke into the broader culture? For my money, it has happened only once since the season began back in March: at last week’s Home Run Derby.
Manny Pacquiao Might Be Making a Terrible Mistake
Kelefa Sanneh, The New Yorker
Muhammad Ali boxed professionally from 1960, when he outscored a journeyman (and police officer) named Tunney Hunsaker, until 1981, when Ali, damaged and diminished, was beaten, in the Bahamas, by Trevor Berbick. Everyone now agrees that Ali fought too long, but not everyone can agree on how much too long.
|
