Top Stories

  • Manny Machado agreed to the largest free-agent deal in the history of North American sports, a 10-year, $300 million contract with the San Diego Padres, who last reached the playoffs in 2006. Machado, who can opt out following the 2023 season, topped the $275 million deal the New York Yankees gave Alex Rodriguez in 2007, though that contract is bigger when adjusted for inflation. (The Wall Street Journal)
  • Sources said MLB is instituting new measures to prevent high-tech sign stealing, a practice that grew more widespread this past season and slowed the pace of play, including banning all non-broadcast outfield cameras from foul pole to foul pole as well as tightening restrictions on in-house video. MLB has drafted a document that updates a pre-existing rule intended to limit sign-stealing, and now holds each general manager and manager personally responsible as they must sign a document professing their compliance. (Sports Illustrated)
  • Yahoo Sports is launching its own digital subscription products starting with a paid, ad-free site and app covering the New York Mets called Queens Baseball Club. Subscribers to the Yahoo service —  which will launch March 28 at around $5 per month and is developed in partnership with the Mets, the terms of which have not been disclosed — will receive access to exclusive content, message boards and chat tools as the publisher expects to launch at least a dozen similar products for different sports franchises in 2019. (Digiday)

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Events Calendar (All Times Local)

02/20/2019
Commercial Sport and Entertainment Facilities Safety and Security Summit 7:30 am
02/21/2019
Commercial Sport and Entertainment Facilities Safety and Security Summit 7:30 am
02/22/2019
2019 Sports Industry Networking and Career Conference
Front Office Sports Digital Media Huddle 8:00 am
Founders Friday NYC 8:30 am
02/23/2019
2019 Sports Industry Networking and Career Conference
02/26/2019
SVG College: Louisville
02/27/2019
SportTechie State of the Industry 1:00 pm
Building a Gaming Startup 6:30 pm
View full calendar

The State of the Democratic Primary

On a daily basis, Morning Consult is surveying over 5,000 registered voters across the United States on the 2020 presidential election. Each week, we’ll update this page with the latest survey data, offering an in-depth guide to how the race for the Democratic nomination is shaping up.

General

Former marketing executive named new president of USA Gymnastics
Liz Clarke, The Washington Post

In naming its fourth president and CEO in the past two years, USA Gymnastics has tapped ­former gymnast-turned-NBA ­executive Li Li Leung. Leung, most recently the NBA’s vice president for global partnerships and a former managing director of global sports management firm Helios Partners, succeeds former congresswoman Mary Bono, who resigned in October, after just four days on the job, following vehement criticism of her selection by Olympic gold medalists Simone Biles and Aly Raisman.

Why Budweiser Saved a Super Bowl Spot Starring Charlize Theron for the Oscars
Kristina Monllos, Adweek

Earlier this month, Budweiser was planning to air a 30-second spot starring Charlize Theron and touting its Reserve Copper Lager during the Super Bowl. Instead, the Anheuser-Busch brand held off, saving the ad for the Academy Awards as part of a strategy to let its other Super Bowl spot shine.

Q&A: Tom Dundon on $250 million well spent, and his ‘bunch of jerks’
Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski, ESPN

Since becoming majority owner of the Carolina Hurricanes in January 2018, Tom Dundon has been one of the NHL’s most unconventional owners. Look no further than the team’s choreographed victory celebrations, which have ranged from players competing in “duck, duck, goose” to human bowling.

NFL

Todd Gurley ‘more hurt’ than initially thought, says Rams’ C.J. Anderson
Des Bieler, The Washington Post

One of the immediate takeaways from the Rams’ 13-3 loss to the Patriots in the Super Bowl was that Los Angeles made a major mistake in not giving the ball more to Todd Gurley. Assuming he was healthy, as the team insisted, how could the star running back not have gotten more than 11 touches for 34 yards?

Pre-’93 NFL pension benefits group receives $100K donation
The Associated Press

Two leading advocates for retired NFL players have teamed up in pushing for increased pension benefits for pre-1993 retirees. The Pro Football Retired Players Association, a nonprofit chaired by Hall of Famer Jim Brown, donated $100,000 to “Fairness for Athletes in Retirement, a nonprofit advocating for pension parity in the upcoming negotiations over the league’s next collective bargaining agreement.

Brown meets with Rooney, saying ‘it is time to move on’
The Associated Press

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown has ended his lengthy standoff with the team by meeting with president Art Rooney II, though any shot at reconciliation between the two sides appears to be out of the question. Brown, who has asked to be traded, posted a picture on various social media accounts on Tuesday that showed him arm in arm with Rooney at the Palm Beach International Airport.

NBA

David Stern Says New York Knicks Owner Jim Dolan ‘Gets a Bad Rap’
Eben Novy-Williams and Scott Soshnick, Bloomberg

Former NBA Commissioner David Stern, who once said the New York Knicks were “not a model of intelligent management,” doesn’t think the blame lies solely with owner Jim Dolan. Dolan, who oversees the Knicks as chairman of Madison Square Garden Co., “gets a bad rap,” Stern said on the Bloomberg Business of Sports podcast.

NBA, SAP partner on long-form branded reality TV show
Andrew Blustein, The Drum

Do you ever go over your fantasy basketball lineup and think, “I bet I could be a general manager in the NBA?” Well, the National Basketball Association and SAP are giving four fans a chance at just that with the co-branded reality TV show GM School.

MLB

Angels owner Arte Moreno says he is interested in purchasing Fox Sports outlets
Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times

The Dodgers own a television channel that provides year-round coverage of the team, but that channel is unavailable in much of the Los Angeles market. The Angels soon could get year-round coverage too, on a channel already included on every major cable and satellite provider in town.

Manny Machado Gets His Payday, but It Won’t Quell Free Agency Gripes
Tyler Kepner, The New York Times

If the San Diego Padres had stayed away from elite free agents this winter, people would have understood. They gave out the richest contract on last year’s free-agent market, yet finished with their worst record in a decade.

Is It 1919 or 2019? Baseball Is One of America’s Hottest Sports
Rachel Bachman, The Wall Street Journal

Maybe baseball isn’t dying. The national pastime, pelted with criticism for its long games and sagging attendance, is seeing a resurgence on sandlots, according to new data.

NHL

Snapchat Expands NHL Pact to Add Hockey Highlights, Curated Stories
Todd Spangler, The Associated Press

Snapchat is adding more action from the ice under a new multiyear deal with the National Hockey League. The NHL, in association with Disney Streaming Services, is delivering a new weekly highlights show on Snapchat recapping the top 10 plays of the previous week and will produce Curated Our Stories on the platform for select games and marquee events — making the NHL the first pro sports league to use Snap’s third-party curation tools.

Players brace for moves as NHL trade deadline approaches
John Wawrow, The Associated Press

Thomas Vanek remembers waking up in Edmonton, Alberta, and turning on the TV in his hotel room to find out where he was heading. It was March 5, 2014, the NHL’s trade deadline day, and Vanek’s bags were packed.

Soccer

U.S. Soccer president Cordeiro: Confederations Cup is no more, Gold Cup might be discontinued
Joey Gulino, Yahoo Sports

As part of the annual U.S. Soccer general meeting, federation president Carlos Cordeiro said that the FIFA Confederations Cup won’t be played again, and the reverberations could be felt in the biennial CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Confederations Cup has been contested every summer before the World Cup since 2005, collecting the reigning continental champions along with the current World Cup champion and upcoming host nation for an eight-team tournament.

U.S. Soccer President’s American Ambition
Rachel Bachman, The Wall Street Journal

The president of U.S. Soccer acknowledges the federation doesn’t actually know how many young soccer players it has playing under its umbrella. He does know that participation isn’t growing.

Jurgen Klinsmann received $3.35M settlement from USSF
The Associated Press

Jurgen Klinsmann received a $3.35 million settlement of his contract with the U.S. Soccer Federation, according to the USSF’s tax filing. His replacement, Bruce Arena, was given a $300,000 settlement during the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2018, according to the filing, which was released Monday.

Manchester City hail purchase of Chinese club as ‘exciting new chapter’
Jamie Jackson, The Guardian

Manchester City’s parent company have announced the joint-purchase of a seventh club, Sichuan Jiuniu FC, who play in China’s third tier. City Football Group (CFG) have bought the Chengdu side together with China Sports Capital and Ubtech.

Racing

Daytona 500 Finishes With New Record-Lows
Sports Media Watch

After an increase in the overnights, the Daytona 500 ended up in record-low territory. Sunday’s Daytona 500 earned a 5.3 rating and 9.2 million viewers on FOX, per Nielsen fast-nationals — flat in ratings and down 1% in viewership from last year (5.3, 9.3M) and down 20% and 23% respectively from 2017 (6.6, 11.9M).

Golf and Tennis

Martina Navratilova dropped by LGBT group over trans athletes row
Rob Picheta and James Masters, CNN

An LGBT group has cut ties with tennis great Martina Navratilova after she said it was a form of “cheating” for transgender women to be allowed to compete in women’s sport. New York-based Athlete Ally, which supports LGBT sportspeople, called the comments transphobic and removed the 18-time Grand Slam winner from its advisory board and as an ambassador.

Serena Williams and a group of ‘outsiders’ will present at the Oscars
Kate Feldman, New York Daily News

Serena Williams, who has as much impact off the tennis court as on it these days, is headed to Hollywood next. Or, at least, to a celebration of Hollywood. The world-renowned athlete, who recently appeared in a Super Bowl commercial for Bumble and made a surprise cameo on “Lip Sync Battle” last month to reprise her role from the 2016 music video for Beyoncé‘s “Sorry,” will be one of the eight non-actors to present at the Oscars on Sunday, the New York Times reported.

College Sports

Want tickets to Duke-UNC? Prepare to pay Super Bowl prices.
Des Bieler, The Washington Post

It’s cliche to call some high-interest event the “hottest ticket in town,” but in the case of Wednesday’s Duke-North Carolina men’s basketball game, it’s fair to describe it as the hottest — and priciest — ticket in sports right now. The cost of gaining admission to Cameron Indoor Stadium, at least on the secondary market, has reached Super Bowl levels.

Esports

Royale rumble: ‘Apex Legends’ smashing ‘Fortnite’ records
Jake Seiner, The Associated Press

For the first time since its meteoric rise, “Fortnite” is no longer a no-doubt victory royale atop the video game industry. “Apex Legends” — a battle royale from Electronic Arts — has charged into the market and smashed “Fortnite” records for downloads and viewership since its release three weeks ago. Tyler “Ninja” Blevins and other streaming stars have powered that surge, as has the emergence of an 18-year-old “Apex” superstar.

Overwatch League Season Opens With More Hours Watched, Lower Average Viewership on Twitch
Max Miceli, The Esports Observer

The Overwatch League season kicked off with an increase in total hours watched over last year on Twitch, but it failed to match the previous season’s average viewership totals. Across three official OWL broadcasts (English, Korean, and French), live coverage of week one drew a total of 6.27M hours watched from Thursday to Sunday, up from 5.59M last year.

Opinions, Editorials, Perspectives and Research

With Manny Machado’s deal, reports of baseball’s demise might have been exaggerated
Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post

Baseball always seems to be a danger to itself. Perhaps I’ve covered too many work stoppages, decades of slow play and years of cheap, PED-inflated home run records, as well as the pointless lunacy of canceling the 1994 World Series. So my gut-level reaction seldom centers on what’s best for one team but instead what’s good for a game I’ve enjoyed all my life and hope is preserved intact for the future.

AAF’s reported payroll issues prove why Colin Kaepernick was right to balk at league
Charles Robinson, Yahoo Sports

Five days. Two wins versus professional football leagues. First the NFL. Now the fledgling Alliance of American Football. Not a shabby week for Colin Kaepernick.

19 Sports Media Talents Set to Break Out in 2019
Bobby Burack, The Big Lead

Each year there are a variety of sports media talents that break out and elevate their stature. This past year it was highlighted by Laura Rutledge, Maria Taylor, and Liam McHugh.

Morning Consult