June 20, 2023

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Good afternoon. Eric Fisher [[link removed]] here. More big moves on the ownership front today from one of sports’ most reserved executives.

Josh Harris often prefers to stay out of the public eye, but his actions continue to speak volumes. The managing general partner of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment added to his separate purchase of the Washington Commanders by leading HBSE’s acquisition of a minority stake in Joe Gibbs Racing — putting Harris on a short list with the likes of Stan Kroenke, Jerry Jones, and Robert Kraft as the most influential team owners in sports.

After Deal For Commanders, Josh Harris Invests In NASCAR Team [[link removed]]

Aaron E. Martinez / American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Soon-to-be Washington Commanders owner [[link removed]] Josh Harris is strengthening his ties with the franchise’s legendary three-time Super Bowl champion coach, Joe Gibbs.

Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment — the billionaire’s holding company that owns the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils — is buying a minority stake in Joe Gibbs Racing.

Gibbs, 82, will also join HBSE as a limited partner pending approval from the NBA and NHL. The Hall of Fame football coach hasn’t been named as a member of the Harris-led group purchasing the Commanders — which is separate from HBSE — despite such speculation following Gibbs’ vocal support [[link removed]] for the ownership transition.

Financial details of the investment aren’t available, but just before the pandemic in 2020, Forbes valued [[link removed]] JGR at $230 million, making it the second-most-valuable NASCAR team behind Hendrick Motorsports.

While Gibbs will keep full operational control, HBSE will aid in boosting the marketing and business side of the racing team, according to The Athletic. JGR is based just outside Charlotte, North Carolina, while HBSE is headquartered in Camden, New Jersey.

Arctos Expanding Sports Footprint

As part of the deal, Arctos Sports Partners — a private equity group that invested [[link removed]] in HBSE last year at a $3 billion valuation — is also getting a minority stake in JGR, marking the firm’s first foray into NASCAR.

Arctos has minority team investments across the NHL, NBA, and MLB.

The company is also reportedly [[link removed]] interested in investing in French soccer team Paris St. Germain.

Paris 2024 Olympic Headquarters Raided By Police Amid Corruption Probe [[link removed]]

Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

Troubled preparations for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics hit another low Tuesday as French investigators searched organizers’ headquarters as part of an ongoing corruption probe into Olympics-related contracts.

The investigation is related to a web of scandals that also impacted the 2016 Rio and 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Multiple raids were reportedly [[link removed]] centered on a pair of “preliminary investigations” into alleged improprieties, conflicts of interest, and favoritism with construction contracts and public funds dating back to 2017 and last year.

The two Paris 2024 investigations had not previously been made public. Paris 2024 organizers said they were “cooperating fully” with investigators.

The raids also coincide with the start of a two-day IOC executive board meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, in which Paris preparations will be discussed.

The probes add to a series of woes surrounding the Paris Games — which are set to begin July 26, 2024 — as well as blunt prior efforts by organizers to set a new tone for the Olympics after the prior corruption issues.

In recent weeks, Paris 2024 organizers have been dogged [[link removed]] by fan outcry over high ticket prices, suburban rebuke of planned relocation of homeless people from Paris during the Games, and infighting and resignations among French athletics officials.

Additionally, the planned opening ceremony — which includes an elaborate parade along the River Seine — presents unprecedented logistical and security challenges, pushing the escalating budget by another third since 2017 to around $9.6 billion.

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MLB To Play First Game At Historic Negro Leagues Field in 2024 [[link removed]]

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

Major League Baseball’s ongoing series of commemorative games is heading to America’s oldest professional ballpark next year.

On June 20, 2024 — a day after next year’s Juneteenth — the league will stage a game between St. Louis and San Francisco at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, a park that opened in 1910 and hosted Negro Leagues games for decades.

The event marks MLB’s first game at a historic Negro Leagues field and extends a recent run of games held at nontraditional locations, including the “Field of Dreams” movie site in Iowa, the Little League complex in Pennsylvania, Fort Liberty in North Carolina, and the College World Series site in Nebraska.

“I never thought I’d see in my lifetime an MLB game being played on the very field where I played baseball as a teenager,” said Baseball Hall of Famer Willie Mays.

MLB’s Rickwood Field plans are announced on the eve of a new documentary on the Negro Leagues, which will debut [[link removed]] next month.

Attendance Surge Continues

MLB drew some of its best attendance totals in years over Father’s Day weekend.

The league drew 1.6 million for its June 16-18 games, its best pre-July weekend total since 2017. The June 18 draw (603,303) was the best Sunday showing since 2008. MLB also posted its first consecutive weekends with at least 1.5 million fans since August 2017.

The league projects [[link removed]] an attendance lift of 6% to 8% for the entire season as fans embrace rule changes designed to shorten and enliven games.

Conversation Starters In Mat Ishbia’s first five months [[link removed]] as owner of the Phoenix Suns, the team traded for Kevin Durant, fired head coach Monty Williams and hired Frank Vogel, traded Chris Paul, and traded for Bradley Beal. Check out an aerial view [[link removed]] of what to expect from the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix. The A’s plan to fulfill their lease and play in Oakland through 2024 — but the team’s Vegas ballpark won’t be ready [[link removed]] until 2028. The Las Vegas Review-Journal mentions Reno, Sacramento, Vegas itself, and other Bay Area sites as potential temporary hosts.

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Editor's Picks Upping The Ante: Shannon Sharpe In Talks With FanDuel [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]

Free agent Shannon Sharpe is likely in talks multiple suitors.

Lionel Messi Could Make $25 Million Off Saudi Tourism Deal [[link removed]]by Andrew Cohen [[link removed]]

Messi's Saudi tourism deal pays up to $25 million over three years.

EA Sports Hit With Lawsuit Over College Football Video Game [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]

The controversy over athlete compensation has escalated to bonafide litigation.

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