May 10, 2023

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Just when it looked like the Oakland A’s situation was clearing up, the team threw another curveball. Former Miami Marlins president and CEO David Samson joins Front Office Sports Today to add some clarity to the saga. Plus, we hear from Front Office Sports reporter Amanda Christovich on the recent gambling scandals in college sports.

Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

NFL Schedule Features First Black Friday Game, Five in Europe [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL is expanding its calendar — and strengthening its growing connection to Europe.

For the first time, the NFL will have a game on Black Friday, and it will be broadcast by a company already associated with the unofficial holiday: Amazon.

The game will feature the New York Jets, who are enjoying a boost in interest after trading for star quarterback Aaron Rodgers, taking on the Miami Dolphins.

The league, which will release its full schedule on Thursday evening, announced [[link removed]] select games on Wednesday.

The NFL will play five games in Europe, which will give the Jacksonville Jaguars an extended two-game stay in London – another first for the league. They’ll take on the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 1, then face the Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium one week later.

Tottenham will host a third NFL game in London on Oct. 15, when the Tennessee Titans play the Baltimore Ravens.

The league will also stage a pair of games in Germany’s Frankfurt Stadium — yet another first — with the Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs heading there on Nov. 5, followed by the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts a week later.

The games are likely to stoke more speculation that the league will launch one or more teams in Europe — a concept commissioner Roger Goodell has floated publicly.

The league is also placing certain marquee matchups on holidays, with the Philadelphia Eagles hosting the New York Giants on Christmas and the Chiefs hosting the Cincinnati Bengals on New Year’s Eve.

NWSL Keeps Expanding, Plans Two More Teams By 2026 [[link removed]]

Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

The National Women’s Soccer League plans to expand even more, commissioner Jessica Berman said.

Berman told [[link removed]] The Washington Post that the league intends to add two more teams in 2026, bringing its total up to 16 teams.

The NWSL has been on somewhat of an expansion frenzy since 2022, when it added the wildly successful Los Angeles’ Angel City FC and the San Diego Wave.

The league has already committed to two more teams starting in the 2024 season: The Utah Royals will rejoin the league, while an unnamed team in San Francisco will launch as well.

There have also been discussions about adding a team in the Boston area, according [[link removed]] to a Wall Street Journal report.

The process for securing investors for expansion teams in 2026 will start later this year. Berman noted there’s still an “incredible amount of interest” from potential investors.

“We’re still really early in our process in terms of our growth and where we think this league is going to be in three-to-five-to-10 years,” Berman said. “A lot of investors are recognizing that and are excited to begin that process of mutual due diligence with us.”

Current Teams for Sale

There could also be movement among existing teams. The OL Reign [[link removed]], Chicago Red Stars, and Portland Thorns are all up for sale. The Red Stars and Thorns sales were driven by allegations uncovered in a misconduct investigation by the NWSL.

The Red Stars in particular appear to be popular among investors — who have been offering double digits, sources previously told [[link removed]] Front Office Sports.

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Endeavor Posts Record Quarter Amid UFC-WWE Merger Plans [[link removed]]

Craig Kidwell-USA TODAY Sports

Endeavor’s plan to merge UFC and WWE is showing early returns thanks to a new quarterly revenue record.

The company’s $1.59 billion Q1 2023 revenue total marks a new first-quarter record for the entertainment giant, which drew $1.47 billion in revenue for the first quarter last year [[link removed]].

Endeavor’s sports properties segment, which is expanding to include WWE [[link removed]] after the acquisition announced last month, generated $353.3 million in the first quarter, up 19% compared to the first quarter of 2022.

Sports Data and Technology was Endeavor’s biggest growing segment in Q1 with $100.9 million in revenue, a 124% increase compared to last year’s first quarter.

The segment’s surge was driven by last year’s $1.2 billion acquisition of sports betting company OpenBet [[link removed]] and the growth of Endeavor’s sports betting data distribution arm IMG Arena [[link removed]] — which has deals with leagues such as MLS, the NWSL, the PGA, and LPGA Tours, and the ATP Tour.

While Endeavor bought WWE in April, it also sold [[link removed]] its IMG Academy for $1.25 billion to the private equity firm BPEA EQT.

IMG’s preparatory school for top youth and high school athletes is expected to continue running alongside private equity firm BPEA’s Nord Anglia Education institution.

Once the IMG Academy sale is finalized, Endeavor expects to repurchase up to $300 million worth of company shares to help pay down its debt, which sits above $5 billion.

Conversation Starters The NBA is appointing [[link removed]] legendary Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski as its Special Adviser to Basketball Operations. He’ll begin next week during a meeting with GMs in Chicago. Cardinals QB Kyler Murray donated [[link removed]] to a GoFundMe account for 6-year-old William Cho, whose parents and brother were killed in the mass shooting in Allen, Texas. Murray, who grew up in Allen, has helped the fund surpass $1.6 million so far. On Tuesday, the cheapest tickets [[link removed]] for a potential Game 6 between the Lakers and Warriors in their semifinals series cost $458 on StubHub. You could go to Games 5 and 6 of the Celtics-76ers series for that much — and still have $100 left over. What does NIL mean for brands and advertisers in 2023? In their latest report [[link removed]], Opendorse analyzed 100,000+ deals to share examples, inspiration, and best practices for businesses of all sizes.*

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What to Watch

The Los Angeles Lakers take on the Golden State Warriors in Game 5 of the NBA Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday at Chase Center.

How to watch: 10 p.m. ET, TNT

Gambling odds: Lakers +7.5 || ML +260 || O/U 225

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