July 19, 2023

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J.J. Redick, Doris Burke, Richard Jefferson, or Doc Rivers: Who would you pick to succeed [[link removed]] Jeff Van Gundy on ESPN’s No. 1 NBA broadcast team?

In any event, I’m thankful sports broadcasts won’t be affected by the ongoing Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes, which are delaying more big-name projects every day.

Meanwhile, an NFL team moves into a new nine-figure practice center, while an MLB squad considers facility work of its own — and a major global event is looking for a new host after a multibillion-dollar budget hiccup.

— David [[link removed]]

Sports Could Play Hero Role For Media Companies During Hollywood Strikes [[link removed]]

Jay Biggerstaff / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Sports may play a starring role as savior for America’s top media companies during the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes.

Programming from seemingly every major network and streamer will be delayed due to the strikes, whether it’s Disney’s “Star Wars” projects, the final season of Netflix’s hit series “Stranger Things,” HBO’s “The Last of Us,” or even some late-night shows.

It would appear that one of the only types of content spared involves sports — live or otherwise.

“It really does highlight the importance of sports,” former Netflix and Hulu executive Simon Gallagher said [[link removed]] on CNBC, noting games and docuseries are “protected” from strikes.

Gallagher, now a principal at SPG Global, is particularly impressed with Netflix’s sports offerings — the streamer’s stock is up more than 50% this year — and believes Apple is primed for success with the arrival of Lionel Messi in MLS.

Fresh from success with its Formula 1, golf, and tennis content, Netflix just released its new NFL series [[link removed]] — aptly titled “Quarterback” — and won a $50 million bid [[link removed]] to produce a 10-part piece on Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. HBO is following the New York Jets for this season of “Hard Knocks.”

Disney continues to buy live rights for ESPN+ (and Hulu) and fill the service with content from the likes of Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions, and this season, NBC’s Peacock service will exclusively air [[link removed]'s%20Peacock,year%2C%20to%20watch%20the%20game.] an NFL playoff game behind its paywall.

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🎙️ They Said What?

“Right now, we’re just obsessing about his supermarket runs … but as soon as the Miami Heat play and [Messi] is courtside or Jimmy Butler’s at Inter Miami … the noise will go up to 11.”

— Men in Blazers’ Roger Bennett on the impact that Lionel Messi will have on American soccer the second he starts playing. To hear more from Bennet about Messi, the Women’s World Cup, and American soccer, download the latest episode of Front Office Sports Today.

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

Jaguars Unveil $120M Practice Facility [[link removed]]

Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars have officially completed the first phase of extensive development plans by moving into their new $120 million, 125,000-square-foot practice facility and team headquarters next to TIAA Bank Field.

Housing two full-size grass practice fields and one indoor field, the Miller Electric Center is complete with locker rooms, training and medical facilities, office space, and a draft room, while fans can enjoy shaded public viewing stands, concession areas, and a team store.

Jags owner Shad Khan was among the team executives on hand to officially open the building on Tuesday. The facility will host the Jags’ training camp next week.

Christening the state-of-the-art practice center is just the first step in the team’s long-term plan to build some of the best overall facilities in the NFL. Proposed stadium renovations could surpass $1 billion in costs [[link removed]] — adding a canopy and even a shaded roof to the team’s current home.

One loose thread: The Jags still have to sort out the challenge [[link removed]] of where to play games during stadium construction.

Trend Setters

Work on stadium and practice facilities is rampant throughout the NFL.

The Los Angeles Rams want to build [[link removed]] a new team HQ, and the Tennessee Titans [[link removed]] and Buffalo Bills [[link removed]] are each building multibillion-dollar stadiums. On the other hand, teams like the Chicago Bears [[link removed]] and Carolina Panthers [[link removed]] are struggling with the next steps for their facility projects.

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Small-Market Pirates Join MLB Development Push With Planned Plaza [[link removed]]

Barker Nestor and Chase Merritt

One of MLB’s allegedly stingiest owners is making a big move to improve the area surrounding his team’s ballpark.

Pittsburgh Pirates owner Bob Nutting is advancing [[link removed]] on a deal with HiLife Hospitality to build a 30,000-square-foot plaza across the street from PNC Park, a venue on the city’s North Shore perennially ranked as one of the league’s most picturesque ballparks.

The plaza is slated to include a pair of stages, a large LED screen, and a covered beer garden and food stand, along with an adjacent building with ground-floor restaurants, an experiential entertainment venue, and upper-floor residential units.

The HiLife partnership was initially announced early this year, and recent submissions to the Pittsburgh Stadium Authority and the city’s planning commission point toward a projected opening in early 2025.

Cost estimates and funding sources have yet to be finalized. This project, however, adds to a separate, $11 million worth of improvements [[link removed]] inside PNC Park for 2023 and a new videoboard [[link removed]].

The plaza effort mirrors a fast-growing wave of development projects adjacent to MLB ballparks, one inspired in part by the example of the Atlanta Braves [[link removed]], as well as the Chicago Cubs’ programming at Gallagher Way outside Wrigley Field. Teams more recently following the development push include [[link removed]] the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles.

The Pittsburgh plans arrive as the Pirates this year have MLB’s third-smallest payroll [[link removed]] at $76.3 million, and Nutting has faced years of criticism [[link removed]] as the team has no playoff appearances since 2015 and hasn’t joined a rising MLB trend [[link removed]] of small-market success.

Australia Blames $3B Budget Blunder For Pulling Out Of Commonwealth Games [[link removed]]

Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

A $3 billion budget fiasco has left one of the world’s oldest and largest global sporting competitions without a host country — just three years before its next iteration.

The Australian state of Victoria has pulled out of hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games — a quadrennial event much akin to the Olympics involving up to 56 sovereign states around the world, most of them former territories of the British Empire.

Victoria premier Dan Andrews said [[link removed]] the cost of the Games could reach $4.8 billion — a significantly higher figure than the $1.77 billion originally budgeted.

Australia has hosted five Commonwealth Games, most recently in 2018 at the Gold Coast in Queensland. Other recent host countries include England (2022), Scotland (2014), and India (2010).

Next steps for finding a 2026 host country are unclear at the moment.

Cost Cap

Victoria’s decision only highlights the growing difficulty of hosting major international sporting events.

In another case, the International Olympic Committee currently only enters into negotiations with select cities to host the Olympics, then announces a preferred host — compared with years past, when multiple cities would spend millions on bids to attract the Games. The Tokyo 2020 bid alone reportedly cost [[link removed]] $75 million.

The IOC is also stressing that cities have existing infrastructure in place rather than build completely new venues, a move designed to bring down costs for future hosts.

Conversation Starters Netflix released a first look [[link removed]] at the next installments of its upcoming “UNTOLD” sports docuseries. Take our poll [[link removed]] and let us know which series you most look forward to watching. In Nike’s new Women’s World Cup commercial, Brazilian star Debinha shows off some fantastic skills at the supermarket. Take a look [[link removed]]. Leaders in local fandom, Playfly Sports, and Adweek, teamed up to introduce the Forever Fan – a review of how all sports fandom stems from local support and how advertisers can tap into that passion via Playfly’s proprietary platform. More here [[link removed]].*

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Question Of The Day

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Tuesday’s Answer

84% of respondents eat at fast food restaurants.

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