May 19, 2023
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The WNBA returns tonight, and Front Office Sports Today kicks off the new season with the New York Liberty’s new forward Breanna Stewart. The two-time WNBA champ, two-time Finals MVP, and regular-season MVP talks about the transition from Seattle to New York, her new signature shoe with Puma, and the WNBA’s future.
Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].
With Bay Area Locked In, Cities Vie To Host Future Super Bowls [[link removed]]
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
The Super Bowl will likely head back to the Bay Area — a decade after Levi’s Stadium hosted the final game of Peyton Manning’s career.
Multiple reports are now confirming that the league will award the San Francisco 49ers hosting rights to Super Bowl LX in 2026.
The move is expected to become official at next week’s NFL owners meetings in Minneapolis.
In 2016, a study [[link removed].] found that Super Bowl 50, which saw the Denver Broncos defeat the Carolina Panthers, had a net positive economic impact of at least $240 million on the Bay Area.
Super Bowl LVIII will be played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas before the Big Game in 2025 heads to New Orleans for the 11th time. With the next three Super Bowl hosts set, the NFL can shift its focus to finding cities for Super Bowl LVI and beyond.
The Los Angeles Rams want to bring it back to SoFi Stadium in 2027 [[link removed]] after becoming the second team to win a championship in their home venue in 2022.
The Tennessee Titans are building a new stadium [[link removed]] that could open in 2027, but the NFL typically waits to play a Super Bowl at a new venue after its second season, which could give Nashville the chance to host as early as February 2029.
Miami and Phoenix will likely continue to host Super Bowls on a regular basis, as well.
Questions Surround Preakness With Field Down to Seven [[link removed]]
Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
The second-leg race of the Triple Crown is set for its smallest field since 1986.
Preakness Stakes contender First Mission was scratched Friday due to a left-hind issue, leaving just seven horses set to race on Saturday. First Mission had the second-best odds to win the Preakness behind Kentucky Derby winner Mage.
Saturday’s race at Pimlico will be the first Preakness since 1948 to feature just one entrant from the Kentucky Derby, notes [[link removed]] The Athletic. The tragic side of horse racing’s $400 billion industry [[link removed]] has been front-and-center since seven horses died leading up to the Derby, while an eighth [[link removed]]horse died at Churchill Downs last Sunday.
This month’s 13-horse Kentucky Derby was the race’s lowest field this century, with five horses scratched due to injuries and the suspension of trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr., whose Derby horse was scratched amid an investigation into the deaths of two horses under Joseph’s care.
In response to the mayhem, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority announced that it’s relaunching [[link removed]] its Anti-Doping & Medication Control program intended to serve as a national standard for equine safety.
Mage, the lone Kentucky Derby entrant racing Saturday, is favored with 8-5 odds to win the Preakness. The horse’s ownership group includes the fractional sports investment app Commonwealth [[link removed]], whose $170,000 stake in Mage could rise to $25 million should he win the Triple Crown.
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Big Gap Remains Between A’s, Nevada Lawmakers [[link removed]]
Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
The Oakland A’s are negotiating with Nevada legislators in an attempt to bridge a significant gap in stadium funding.
The team seeks $395 million in public funds to construct a $1.5 billion stadium on the Tropicana lot owned by Gaming & Leisure Properties Inc. and managed by Bally’s. In turn, Bally’s would give the A’s a free 9 acres of the lot — which they estimate at a $180 million value — contingent on the team striking a deal with the Nevada legislature.
On Thursday, the Las Vegas Review Journal said [[link removed]] that $320 million has been promised thus far, and that the A’s are negotiating with Clark County over the remaining $75 million. But the same day, the Nevada Independent reported [[link removed]] legislators only promised $150 million to $195 million.
Fox5 Las Vegas reported [[link removed]] that state legislators will only commit $195 million, but the state could mandate that Clark County supply a $125 million bond.
A funding bill has been delayed by the ongoing negotiations and the A’s switch from the 49-acre Red Rock Resorts site to the Tropicana late in the process.
Nevada’s legislative session ends on June 5. It’s unclear whether the governor would call a special session to continue negotiations past that date.
Oakland mayor Sheng Thao reiterated this week that the city’s negotiations with the A’s were close to a deal when the team pivoted to Las Vegas — and that an agreement could come together quickly if the team returned to the negotiating table.
Conversation Starters Have suggestions or feedback on how Front Office Sports can continue to improve? Take our survey [[link removed]] for a chance to win a $250 Visa gift card or FOS merch. Submissions are now open through May 21. Fresh off completing one of the largest interactive live sports viewing experiences on record, up-and-coming StreamLayer [[link removed]] is attracting significant interest from major participants across the sports streaming and betting industries.* NBPA president and Pelicans star CJ McCollum will deliver Lehigh’s undergrad commencement address [[link removed]] this weekend 🎓
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The Key to Growth at the ACC Digital Network
“WSC Sports has been a key driver in our ability to put out more content in an efficient manner.” – Matt Carstens, Executive Producer and General Manager of the ACC Digital Network in a recent interview [[link removed]] with Front Office Sports.
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The Miami Heat will take on the Boston Celtics on Friday in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals at TD Garden.
How to watch: 8:30 p.m., ET, TNT with Sling TV [[link removed]]
Gambling odds: Heat +9.5 || ML Heat +330 || O/U 215
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