April 11, 2023
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From Michael Phelps to Naomi Osaka, athletes are speaking out to raise awareness for people struggling with their mental health. Front Office Sports Today speaks to RealResponse founder David Chadwick about his time as a college athlete and how it motivated him to start an organization that helps address and communicate mental health issues.
Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].
Media Masters Scores Massive 16.3M Viewers on Sunday [[link removed]]
Syndication: Arizona Republic
The Masters’ TV partners seemed to go out of their way to not say the letters L-I-V, but numbers indicate Sunday’s final-round duel between the PGA Tour’s Jon Rahm and LIV Golf’s Brooks Koepka drew massive viewership for CBS Sports.
With rain shortening Saturday’s third round, CBS aired the remainder and final round on Sunday, a 29-hole marathon as Rahm chased down [[link removed]] and beat Koepka and fellow LIV Golf superstar Phil Mickelson by four shots.
The two rounds generated 16.3 million viewers for CBS — the most-watched golf telecast on any network since the Masters’ 2018 final round averaged 13 million. CBS’ final-round coverage alone averaged 12.1 million viewers, up 19% vs. last year. Viewership peaked at more than 15 million viewers as Rahm, the PGA Tour’s leading money-winner, slipped on his first Green Jacket. Sunday’s final round was the most-streamed ever on Paramount+, which recorded double-digit growth in households, minutes, and average minute audience over last year’s final round. CBS also benefited from strong out-of-home viewing on Easter Sunday.
The 2023 Masters was important for LIV, too. Kopeka, Mickelson, and Patrick Reed showed they could trade blows on golf’s biggest stage with the PGA Tour’s Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, and Rory McIlroy (who missed the cut).
The 52-year-old Mickelson produced some of the biggest crowd roars Sunday as he became the oldest golfer to finish in the Top 5, charging to a closing-round 65.
AWARDS
The Front Office Sports Rising 25 Award [[link removed]], presented by Anheuser-Busch, celebrates the careers of the brightest young stars in the business of sports. Established in 2017, the Rising 25 Award has become one of the most competitive and prestigious awards in the industry.
Know someone who deserves to be recognized? Nominate [[link removed]] them today! Nominations are open NOW through Tuesday, May 2. Winners will be announced in June.
Media YouTube TV Unveils NFL Sunday Ticket Rates [[link removed]]
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
YouTube TV is making it easier for fans to watch NFL games.
The channel’s pricing tiers for NFL Sunday Ticket make it cheaper to purchase the out-of-market games package with a YouTube TV subscription.
After $100 presale discounts expire, YouTubeTV subscribers can pay an additional $349 for Sunday Ticket and $389 for a package including NFL RedZone.
Those without a subscription must pay $449 to access Sunday Ticket through YouTube PrimeTime channels, a hub that also streams movies, TV, and other events. The added RedZone option will cost $489.
DirectTV charged $300 for Sunday Ticket this past season and $400 for its RedZone add-on.
The streaming service’s pricing model lacks single-game or team-specific purchasing options, focusing on the “simplicity” of two tiers that encourage subscribing to YouTube TV.
“One of the things we really wanted to do is introduce a much greater level of simplicity and clarity in the pricing for users,” Christian Oestlien, YouTube’s vice president of product management, told [[link removed]] The Athletic.
Viewers can sign up now through June 6 to receive $100 off their base subscriptions to Sunday Ticket. Other Sunday Ticket features for YouTube TV subscribers include split-screen camera views, unlimited DVR storage, and integration with NFL fantasy data.
Google is reportedly paying [[link removed]] $2 billion annually for U.S. rights to NFL Sunday Ticket over the next seven seasons, starting this fall — replacing DirectTV, which has held the rights since 1994.
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Fitness Tonal Raises $130M After Big Value Drop [[link removed]]
Tonal
Tonal is breaking a sweat trying to keep up its pace.
The high-end at-home fitness company announced [[link removed]] $130 million in new funding and a change of leadership.
The funding round valued [[link removed]] the company between $550 million and $600 million, according to the Wall Street Journal — a steep drop from its $1.6 billion valuation in 2021.
That puts Tonal in the peculiar position of having raised more money — $615 million total — than its current valuation.
The company sells $3,995 workout stations that let users connect virtually to a personal trainer for a monthly fee. Demand surged during the pandemic but has since cooled off, a situation exacerbated by supply chain challenges.
Tonal previously explored [[link removed]] a sale to Peloton that didn’t materialize in part because the latter is facing its own cash flow problems. Peloton’s stock is down 92.7% since the start of 2021.
Tonal’s investors include private equity firms L Catterton and Dragoneer Investment Group, as well as athletes such as LeBron James, Serena Williams, Mike Tyson, and Drew Brees. The two firms led the most recent round, along with Cobalt, Kindred Ventures, and THVC.
The cash infusion also came with a leadership change: Tonal’s president, Krystal Zell, is becoming its CEO, replacing Aly Orady, who is shifting to its Chief Technology Officer.
Conversation Starters USWNT legend Carli Lloyd is joining [[link removed]] Fox Sports as an analyst for the Women’s World Cup this summer. MLB’s new rule changes [[link removed]] are a hit on the field and with TV ratings. FOS Senior Reporter Michael McCarthy crunches the latest numbers. The NBA announced on Monday that the 2022-23 regular season [[link removed]] was the highest-attended in its history, setting new records not only for overall attendance (22.2 million) but also sellouts (791).
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