March 6, 2024

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A highly anticipated set of new stadium renderings from the A’s has many key omissions and hasn’t done much to quell lingering doubts about the planned Las Vegas ballpark. … Jake Paul’s sports- betting start-up receives a big valuation after a new financing round. … Travis Kelce remarks on his new life in and around paparazzi thanks to girlfriend Taylor Swift. … Plus: More on Caitlin Clark, Aston Villa, LeBron James, and the Paris Olympics.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

Missing in Action: New A’s Stadium Rendering Excludes Many Key Pieces [[link removed]]

Oakland A's/Bjarke Ingels Group/HNTB

The newly released A’s renderings [[link removed]] for the club’s planned new stadium in Las Vegas were aimed significantly at quelling rising doubts around the planned franchise relocation and signaling that the much-maligned plan was still on track.

Mission not accomplished.

Instead, the highly anticipated drawings for the planned $1.5 billion facility showed an extensive series of omissions and only heightened questions about whether the stadium will actually become a reality. The latest renderings, developed with veteran architecture and infrastructure development firms Bjarke Ingels Group and HNTB, show a fixed-roof dome with five overlapping layers and a sail-like design similar to Australia’s Sydney Opera House. The A’s insist that the global landmark was not an influence but rather the 33,000-seat stadium design was described by Bjarke Ingels Group as a “spherical armadillo.”

But that design also leaves out many critical elements of any MLB facility such as:

A batter’s eye Bullpens Infrastructure for air conditioning Luxury suites Stadium lighting

Perhaps because of all these issues, the A’s turned off social media comments on X [[link removed]] and LinkedIn [[link removed]] for their posts of the renderings. Other parts of the design were widely mocked online, such as the sun shown setting in the east, only one umpire on the field, a base runner facing away from the depicted game action, and different ethnicities for the player at bat and the same one featured on the scoreboard.

It’s also highly questionable that such an ambitious design can be executed for the stated cost of $1.5 billion. The Sphere, newly opened [[link removed]] last fall near the planned A’s stadium site, cost $2.3 billion and, while highly groundbreaking in its own right, doesn’t have as elaborate a roof design as this facility.

Not the First Time

The saga of the A’s renderings already holds a rather tortured history. An initial set of drawings last fall—developed largely to secure $380 million in public funding toward the project—was later dismissed [[link removed]] by the team as garbage. The subsequent set of renderings was then due in December but delayed following the deaths of two Nevada state troopers in the line of duty.

Many key questions, such as how the stadium will work on a tight, 9-acre site at the location of the current Tropicana Las Vegas resort, still aren’t fully answered considering a planned adjacent hotel is not depicted in the new drawings.

Already, there are serious doubts it can work. Last month, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman said on the Front Office Sports Today podcast [[link removed]] that the current ballpark plan “does not make sense.”

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ONE BIG FIG A Fighting Chance

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

$375 million

Valuation that investors estimate for Jake Paul’s Betr sports-gambling start-up following a $15 million financing round announced [[link removed]] Wednesday. The recent round, led by venture capital firms Harmony Partners and 10X Capital, brings Betr’s total funding to $100 million, according to Bloomberg [[link removed]]. Fuel Venture Capital, Aliya Capital Partners, and Eberg Capital are existing investors in the social media star and boxer’s start-up. Bloomberg notes [[link removed]] the American Gaming Association reported that the U.S. sports-betting industry generated nearly $11 billion in revenue in 2023, marking a 45% increase from the previous year.

LOUD AND CLEAR Not Your Average Offseason Trip

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

“There were full-on helicopters just flying around. They helicoptered us. Well, not us, Taylor.”

—Travis Kelce, speaking on his New Heights podcast [[link removed]], about the paparazzi following him and girlfriend Taylor Swift while visiting a zoo in Sydney. The Chiefs’ star tight end recently made a visit Down Under, where Swift was on an international leg of her Eras Tour. Last fall, Kelce spent $6 million [[link removed]] on a new house, in Kansas City, after photographers easily accessed his old house. The 34-year-old Kelce is expected to count $15,463,422 against [[link removed]] the Chiefs’ cap in 2024. Kansas City will enter the new league year—which begins Wednesday—with $9,683,547 in cap space, according to Spotrac [[link removed]].

STATUS REPORT Two Up, One Down, One Push

Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Caitlin Clark ⬆ The Iowa women’s basketball phenom has signed a groundbreaking deal with Panini, marking the company’s first exclusive partnership with a female athlete that includes trading cards and autographed memorabilia.

Aston Villa⬇ The Premier League club just reported a loss of $152 million after taxes for the year ending May 31, 2023, compared to a profit of $382,000 from the 12 months before. The Athletic has more [[link removed]] on the findings.

LeBron James ⬆ The Shop TV series that the NBA superstar created in 2018 is spinning off from under the umbrella of Uninterrupted—James’s media company—to become its own consumer brand, according to Bloomberg [[link removed]]. The new company will roll out a men’s grooming line and an international version of The Shop based in London.

Paris Olympics ⬆⬇ Organizers announced [[link removed]] that about 326,000 spectators will be allowed to watch this summer’s opening ceremony along the River Seine. Bad news first: That revised total is almost 50% less than the 600,000 initially expected and certainly will shut out some hopeful fans. The good news: It’s a proactive move to address security concerns that have gripped France over the past year, and it still allows for four times the crowd of the Stade de France.

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Conversation Starters New York City FC has revealed plans [[link removed]] for The Cube, an immersive, seven-story entrance to the city’s first soccer-specific stadium, a $780 million venue slated to open in 2027. Check it out [[link removed]]. Super Bowl LVIII attracted sizable audiences [[link removed]] globally, with Canada averaging 10.1 million viewers (up 16%) and the United Kingdom with 1.2 million. Eagles trainer Joe O’Pella, who has taped Jason Kelce’s ankles for 13 seasons, missed Kelce’s final NFL game due to his chemotherapy treatments, prompting Kelce to allow him to tape his ankles [[link removed]] one more time before his retirement press conference earlier this week. Editors’ Picks Report: Peyton Manning Recruiting Old Foe Bill Belichick to Omaha Productions [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The longtime rivals will join forces if Manning gets his way. NFL, MLB, NHL Unions Come to Defense of ‘Sports Illustrated’ Guild [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Union federation on publisher’s guild situation: ‘We will be watching this closely.’ MLS Has a Referee Problem, and There’s No End in Sight [[link removed]]by David Rumsey [[link removed]]MLS is using replacement officials due to a labor dispute. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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