The Women’s World Cup is getting more primetime real estate than ever before.

The tournament, which runs from July 20 to Aug. 20, will have a record 29 games on Fox’s main broadcast network.

The 35 group stage matches will all appear on FS1. The quarterfinals, semifinals, third-place match, and finals will all be on the network’s main channel. Five of those matches will air on primetime and 12 will air on the weekends.

The 2023 Women’s World Cup, hosted by Australia and New Zealand, will be the first with 32 teams, up from 24 in 2019.

The 2015 Women’s World Cup final had 25.4 million primetime viewers as the U.S. defeated Japan. The 2019 edition saw the final drop to 14.3 million viewers on Fox, but the game, played at France’s Parc Olympique Lyonnais aired at 8 a.m. ET in the U.S.

This will be the first Women’s World Cup under the new revenue sharing agreement between the U.S. teams. The USWNT received more money from the USMNT making it past the group stage in the 2022 World Cup than they did from their two consecutive World Cup victories combined.

The men’s team will take in half of the women’s team’s prize money as they seek to become the first team with three consecutive World Cup championships.

With third-round bids for Manchester United due on Friday, the bank managing the sale is looking for more than just a number.

Manchester United bidders are being asked to show where their money comes from, who would be in charge of the team if the bid is successful, specifics on debt financing related to the bid, and future financing plans, according to Bloomberg. 

The data request from the Raine Group, which is managing the sale, came in recent days, with bidders preparing third-round offers. The leading contenders to purchase the team are the INEOS Group, led by billionaire and lifelong Manchester United fan Jim Ratcliffe, and Qatar’s Sheikh ­Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani. 

Offer Split

The biggest difference between the two offers may be in how much of the team they are offering to buy. While Sheikh Jassim is seeking to buy 100% of the club in an all-cash offer, Ratcliffe is reportedly looking to purchase just enough to claim a majority, and could allow the Glazer family to retain a minority stake.

That proposal could appeal to Joel and Avram Glazer, who, unlike their siblings, are reportedly reluctant to let go of the team. Previous reports indicated that they could only sell off minority shares to buy out their siblings while retaining control of the club.

With its future sale to Microsoft up in the air, Activision Blizzard reported strong first quarter 2023 financial results.

The “Call of Duty” game publisher reported that net income for the three months ending March 31 rose 87% to $740 million, while revenue rose 36% to $2.38 billion.

The positive results were driven by growth across three of its segments, according to Video Game News.

“Every one of our key intellectual properties continues to grow year-over-year, with ‘Call of Duty’ once again a key driver of growth,” said Bobby Kotick, chief executive officer of Activision Blizzard

Based on strong pre-sales for “Diablo IV,” Activision Blizzard also projected positive results for the second quarter ending June 30.

“We expect Activision Blizzard second quarter GAAP revenue to grow at least 10%, net bookings to grow at least 30%, and total segment operating income to grow at least 40%, in each case on a year-over-year basis,” read a statement from the company.

$69B Deal Blocked in U.K.

On Wednesday, Britain’s top competition regulator stepped in to block Microsoft’s proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The Xbox maker will appeal the decision. 

“The CMA’s decision rejects a pragmatic path to address competition concerns and discourages technology innovation and investment in the United Kingdom,” said Microsoft president Brad Smith. 

“We have already signed contracts to make Activision Blizzard’s popular games available on 150 million more devices, and we remain committed to reinforcing these agreements through regulatory remedies”