June 7, 2023

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The PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and the DP World Tour have announced that they will be merging into one single entity. On the latest Front Office Sports Today, FOS writer Doug Greenberg breaks down the bombshell announcement and what it could mean for the future of golf. Plus, former Miami Marlins president David Samson returns to give us an update on the latest twist in the Oakland A’s relocation saga.

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

MLS Wins Big With Messi’s Move to Inter Miami [[link removed]]

Sipa USA-USA TODAY Sports

Major League Soccer should enjoy new levels of prestige and relevance with Lionel Messi deciding to sign with Inter Miami.

On Wednesday afternoon, the club officially welcomed [[link removed]] the 35-year-old icon on social media.

Soccer fans around North America will have the chance to see the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner — and arguably the greatest player of all time — work his magic in new markets like South Florida’s DRV PNK Stadium.

Messi’s Inter Miami debut may come as soon as July 21 for a Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul in Miami. Before the news was even official, TickPick data showed the get-in price of that game skyrocketing to $329 on Wednesday — a 1,034% increase from Tuesday’s price of $29.

Inter Miami has matches in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Orlando, Chicago, and Charlotte after July 21. This season, the club will visit 17 away venues.

Inter Miami added 1 million Instagram followers Wednesday as word spread that the legendary soccer player could join the squad — doubling the team’s audience on the platform in one day.

Messi reportedly turned down nearly $400 million from a Saudi Arabian club to join Inter Miami, but through his Inter Miami deal, Messi will receive a percentage of all new subscriptions to MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+, according [[link removed]] to the Wall Street Journal.

The streaming service is in the first year of a 10-year, $2.5 billion media rights deal that is now much more valuable with Messi playing games it exclusively broadcasts worldwide.

The Athletic reported [[link removed]] the deal could also include profit-sharing from Adidas, which renewed its apparel deal with MLS before this season.

Messi owns a home in Miami and has ties with Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham — whose own MLS move in 2007 famously bumped the league’s profile.

McIlroy: ‘I’ve Made My Peace’ With PGA Tour-LIV Golf Deal [[link removed]]

Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Many PGA Tour players remain at the second stage of grief regarding the bombshell PGA Tour-LIV Golf merger [[link removed]]: anger.

But Rory McIlroy — one of Tour commissioner Jay Monahan’s staunchest allies — has moved straight to the final stage of acceptance.

McIlroy, the current No. 3 men’s golfer in the world, said Wednesday at the Canadian Open in Toronto that he’s resigned to the massive wealth and power of Saudi Arabia that has fundamentally transformed the men’s game.

“I’ve made my peace with it. I’ve seen what’s happened in other sports and businesses,” said [[link removed]] McIlroy, who is attempting to defend his tournament title there and described himself as a “sacrificial lamb” in his first comments on the deal.

“I’ve just resigned myself to the fact this is going to happen. How do you keep up with people who have more money than anyone else?”

McIlroy’s stance differs from many other PGA Tour players, who remain upset [[link removed]] with Monahan for various reasons. Players berated him at a meeting late Tuesday, characterizing the merger as a complete reversal of the Tour’s prior opposition to the Saudis’ involvement in golf — one informed by the latter’s notorious human rights record.

Monahan described [[link removed]] the session, which lasted more than an hour, as “ intense [[link removed]], certainly heated.”

“I recognize everything I’ve said in the past,” Monahan said. “I recognize people will call me a hypocrite. Anytime I’ve said something, I’ve said it with the information I’ve had.”

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Smoke From Canadian Wildfires Affecting MLB, MiLB Games [[link removed]]

Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

Game cancellations could soon domino across sports — particularly in the Northeast U.S. — due to a thick wave of dangerous smoke from Canadian wildfires.

Hundreds of fires spanning from British Columbia to Nova Scotia have blanketed large swaths of the Midwest and Northeast U.S. in a haze of yellowish-gray skies, creating air-quality levels officially deemed unsafe by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The New York Yankees played Tuesday night at home against the Chicago White Sox despite New York City officials issuing an official health alert for all five boroughs and Yankee Stadium shrouded in the smoky haze – which prompted a social media frenzy [[link removed]].

New York City’s air quality ranks [[link removed]] among the worst in the world.

The Yankees’ top minor-league affiliate, the Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders, postponed [[link removed]] their home game in Pennsylvania on Tuesday. The Syracuse Mets, the top affiliate of the New York Mets, similarly postponed their game Tuesday and moved [[link removed]] a special Wednesday morning Education Day game to 6:35 p.m.

A NWSL match between NJ/NY Gotham FC and the Orlando Pride set for Wednesday was also shifted [[link removed]] to August.

Air quality is projected to worsen late Wednesday, and the smoke is expected to remain in some form for at least the rest of this week, likely creating further issues for MLB and Minor League Baseball. The situation remains under close watch [[link removed]] by the league, MLB Players Association, and MiLB.

In 2020, MLB postponed two Seattle Mariners home games due to air-quality issues related to California wildfires.

Conversation Starters EA Sports has unveiled [[link removed]] its Madden 24 cover athlete: Josh Allen. The quarterback will be the first Buffalo Bills player ever featured. The Jacksonville Jaguars stadium released renderings [[link removed]] for the stadium plans they’ve been working on for three years. The “Stadium of the Future” will include a concourse four times bigger than the current one, a “subtropical park” entrance, and a 62,000 capacity — with an expansion potential of 71,500. This week, Indiana State was supposed [[link removed]] to host its first-ever NCAA Super Regional, but a lack of hotels in town due to the Special Olympics forced the Sycamores to play at TCU. In a show of support, TCU fans have donated over $25,000 to the Special Olympics of Indiana.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS TODAY

Listen Now: FOS Today Podcast 🎧

Interested in the latest storylines that are influencing the business of sports?

Listen to FOS Today. Each day, Owen Poindexter, Senior Writer, breaks down the biggest stories across sports and business, comments on cultural trends in the space, and interviews influential athletes and industry-leading executives.

Listen to some of our recent episodes, including Breanna Stewart, Ricky Williams, and Mike Tyson. With new episodes released daily, Monday through Friday, you won’t want to miss out.

Listen now [[link removed]].

If you or someone you know is an athlete, celebrity, or business leader, reach out [[link removed]] to be featured on an upcoming episode.

Editor's Picks South Florida Is Having Its Moment in the Sports Sun [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]

“One plus one is four here" — Panthers president and CEO Matthew Caldwell.

Apple Adds Frank Thomas to Friday Night Baseball Broadcasts [[link removed]]by Andrew Cohen [[link removed]]

Thomas is joining Apple after a 10-year stint at Fox Sports.

NHL Uses Roblox to Recreate Stanley Cup Final Goals in 3D [[link removed]]by Andrew Cohen [[link removed]]

The Roblox activation leverages the NHL's puck and player tracking system.

SPONSORED BY SLING TV What to Watch

The Denver Nuggets take on the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday at Kaseya Center.

How to watch: 8:30 p.m., ET, ABC/ESPN3 with Sling TV [[link removed]]

Gaming odds: Nuggets -3 || ML Nuggets -145 || O/U 215

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