March 29, 2024

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It’s been a bumpy start to the 2024 A’s season as fans stay in the Coliseum parking lot to protest the club’s planned move to Las Vegas. … Viewership for the women’s NCAA basketball tournament is surpassing the already-lofty expectations for the event. … The MLB commissioner is hoping for a quick resolution on the league’s investigation of gambling allegations surrounding Shohei Ohtani. … There’s big money on the line this week across golf, tennis, and NASCAR. … Plus: More on cornhole broadcasts, sports betting in both Nevada and Georgia, and the New York Jets.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]] and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

A’s Face Uphill Battle: Fans Protest on Opening Day As Vegas Move Looms [[link removed]]

D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports

A’s fans again made their voices heard, and with force, on Opening Day, signaling what a long and difficult year it will likely be for the MLB club.

The A’s drew an announced attendance of 13,522 for their season opener Thursday against the Guardians, easily the smallest crowd of any opener across the league and roughly half of Oakland’s total for its 2023 opener. But while the turnout was sparse inside the Coliseum, thousands of fans gathered in the stadium’s parking lot to voice their displeasure with the planned move of the A’s to Las Vegas. Instead of going inside for the game, many of those fans chose to stay in the lot for a block party, where they watched the game on a projection screen and waved “Sell” flags (above), calling on team owner John Fisher to part with the franchise.

Oakland fans had already established a tradition of activism, staging prior events [[link removed]] such as last year’s “reverse boycott.” But the latest demonstration again showed the deep passion that still exists for the team in the Bay Area, regardless of Fisher’s relocation plans.

“I have not missed an Opening Day in 25 years,” Anson Casanares, vice president of influential fan group the Oakland 68s, told NBC Bay Area [[link removed]]. “[But] why would I spend my money inside? Why spend my passion inside if they are trying to leave here?”

Bumpy Road Ahead

The A’s ranked by far last in MLB attendance [[link removed]] last year, with a per-game average of 10,276. With the poor start to 2024—further shown by the 8–0 loss to Cleveland—and the existing fan unrest, a smaller number this year is all but certain. But there are more hurdles ahead.

The club faces the potentially awkward situation of staying around this fan unrest for another three seasons, as Oakland is a leading [[link removed]] candidate [[link removed]] to host the A’s for the 2025–27 seasons while the new Las Vegas ballpark is built. The Vegas relocation, meanwhile, has its own issues, with plenty of questions emerging about the planned stadium site [[link removed]] along the Strip and a newly released set of ballpark renderings [[link removed]].

Women’s March Madness Viewership Surges. Bigger Numbers Ahead? [[link removed]]

Iowa City Press-Citizen

The women’s NCAA tournament is getting back underway with Sweet 16 action after record viewership in the second round—thanks in large part to Iowa and Caitlin Clark—and more new audience marks are almost certainly on the way.

Games involving No. 1 seeds South Carolina and Texas headline Friday’s broadcasts, which will face competition from the ongoing men’s tournament, but on Saturday two heavyweight matchups will get national spotlights all to themselves. ABC is carrying a doubleheader, beginning at 1 p.m. ET, of No. 3 LSU vs. No. 2 UCLA and No. 5 Colorado vs. No. 1 Iowa, which should play out before the men’s Elite Eight tips off shortly after 6 p.m.

Already, intrigue in Clark led to 4.9 million viewers tuning in to Iowa’s closer-than-expected win over West Virginia on Monday night, making that second-round game the most-watched women’s March Madness telecast outside of the Final Four. For comparison, that’s more than three times what Iowa’s second-round game drew last year: 1.46 million for a win over Georgia, at the time an early-round record for women’s March Madness.

With that huge Iowa boost, round-of-32 games this year averaged a record 1.4 million viewers, up a staggering 121% from last year. All that came on top of 3.23 million people tuning in to Iowa’s 91–65 rout of outmatched 16-seed Holy Cross in the first round. Since advancing to the Sweet 16, Clark has been in the news all week, receiving an invite to Team USA’s Olympic camp, starring as the subject of a 96-page tribute magazine from ESPN, and even getting a $5 million offer to compete in the Big3 basketball league.

Dream Matchup

Ratings for this women’s NCAA tournament were expected [[link removed]] to set records—as long as Iowa remains alive—and now last year’s record 9.9 million viewership number from the LSU-Iowa championship game might be broken, and certainly challenged, sooner rather than later. “The bar has been raised a bit from the performance of the first two rounds,” says TV ratings expert Jon Lewis, founder of Sports Media Watch, predicting up to 9 million viewers for a theoretical LSU-Iowa rematch in the Elite Eight, if they both win Saturday.

SPONSORED BY ACURA

Energy That Drives

[[link removed]]

Acura has been a challenger since its beginning—raising the bar, rebelling against the norms, and redefining what it means to drive since 1986. Now, Acura’s making that same energy, electric.

Introducing the all-electric Acura ZDX [[link removed]]. Crafted using the same formula that brought us electrified supercars, the ZDX features a Bang & Olufsen® sound system, DC Fast Charging capability, and a high-performance Type S model with an estimated 500 horsepower, making the ZDX Acura’s most powerful [[link removed]] SUV to date.

Unlock the energy [[link removed]].

LOUD AND CLEAR Wishful Thinking

Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

“I hope short, but I just don’t know.”

—Commissioner Rob Manfred said [[link removed]] Thursday when asked about the length of MLB’s investigation into the gambling allegations surrounding Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, while on MLB Network. The league began its formal investigation last Friday after Mizuhara was fired by Los Angeles. The betting scandal became public last Wednesday as the Dodgers opened the season against the Padres in Seoul, South Korea. Ohtani has since denied any betting on baseball [[link removed]] and accused Mizuhara of stealing $4.5 million for betting with an alleged illegal bookmaker. The IRS is also investigating the matter.

STATUS REPORT Two Up, Two Down

American Cornhole League

Cornhole⬆ Broadcasts of the sport’s biggest professional outlet will remain on ESPN platforms for another two years. American Cornhole League commissioner Stacey Moore tells Front Office Sports that the Worldwide Leader has extended its media rights deal, which initially began in 2016, through ’25. Financial terms of the new deal are unknown, but ACL’s annual presence on ESPN platforms—including ESPN+ and linear channels—will increase to at least 300 hours. Moore says he expects ACL’s sponsor packages to bring in more dollars due to the additional content on ESPN+.

Nevada betting ⬆ Boosted by Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas and an extra day due to the leap year, the state’s casinos reported [[link removed]] record gaming revenue in February of $1.34 billion, up 8.5% from last year.

Georgia betting ⬇ Lawmakers in the state couldn’t agree [[link removed]] on an effort to legalize sports wagering Thursday, the last day of the 2024 legislative session, meaning any further attempts will wait until next year.

Jets drama ⬇ NFL Network personality Colleen Wolfe has apologized [[link removed]] for her report [[link removed]] about New York owner Woody Johnson having a “heated exchange” with coach Robert Saleh during the owners meetings in Orlando. Johnson said the report was false, and Wolfe later said she created an “unnecessary distraction.” Beyond the back and forth, the situation was interesting, considering an NFL Media employee portrayed a team owner in a potentially negative light, only to later retract her initial story.

WEEKEND PRIZE POOL It’s Bigger in Texas

Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Front Office Sports tees up every weekend sporting slate with a ledger of the purses and prize pools at stake. Here’s what’s up for grabs this weekend:

LPGA Tour, Arizona Championship presented by JTBC

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $2 million First place (individual): $300,000

PGA Tour, The Texas Children’s Houston Open

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $9.1 million First place (individual): $1.6 million

NASCAR Cup Series, Toyota Owners 400, Richmond

When: Sunday Purse: $7.8 million First place: Individual payouts are no longer disclosed

ATP and WTA tours, Miami Open finals

When: Sunday Purse: $8.9 million for each tour First place (individual): $1.1 million

SPONSORED BY ACURA

Peak Performance, Electrified

[[link removed]]

With its independent spirit and challenger energy, Acura [[link removed]] has consistently raised the bar. Since 1986, Acura has redefined the driving experience and now it’s doing it again.

Introducing the all-electric Acura ZDX [[link removed]], featuring a premium Bang & Olufsen® sound system, Google Built-In, and bespoke seating. Unlock a new kind of power with DC Fast Charging capability, up to a 313-mile range on a single charge, and a Type S variant with an estimated 500-horsepower motor.

The Acura ZDX. Iconic excellence, reimagined for the future [[link removed]].

AWARD

Every year, Front Office Sports’ awards program recognizes the best and most accomplished in the business of sports.

The 2024 Best Venues Award celebrates the venues that have met and exceeded the evolving demands of fans and that set the new industry standard for success.

🏆 Nominations are open through April 8. Submit your venue [[link removed]] now.

Conversation Starters Toast of the town: Nick Martini, 33, made his Opening Day debut a memorable one: For the first time in his 13-year pro career, he got to start in the big leagues—and promptly hit two home runs for the Reds on Thursday. Check it out [[link removed]]. Another bad look for MLB uniforms: Fanatics’ new jerseys went viral again [[link removed]] on Opening Day, with Yankees fans calling out that players had sweat through them. Clemson coach Brad Brownell spurred his struggling team with a Final Four prediction when it was 4–6 in the ACC. After beating Arizona [[link removed]] on Thursday he earned a $75,000 bonus, and the Tigers are one win away from that goal. Editors’ Picks SMU Reportedly Poaching USC Men’s Basketball Coach With ACC Move Looming [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The move could be perceived as a step down in prestige. NFL to Auction Media Rights to Two Christmas Day Games [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]Bidding is likely to start at $50 million, say sources, but analysts expect the games to go for far more. ‘Good Morning Football’ Beginning Mysterious Timeout Before L.A. Move [[link removed]]by David Rumsey [[link removed]] and A.J. Perez [[link removed]]Friday is the final broadcast of ‘Good Morning Football’ from New York. 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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