June 14, 2024

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This year’s College World Series holds the potential to set more attendance and viewership records thanks to the hefty presence of SEC and ACC schools. … The Rays move another key step closer to making their long-awaited ballpark development a full reality. … The U.S. Open’s Lemon Wedge is just the latest entry in a rising tide of signature beverages connected to major sporting events. … There is significant money on the line this weekend in both golf and NASCAR. … Plus: More on USA Cricket, Trevor Lawrence, the U.S. women’s national team in soccer, and the UFL.

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

College World Series: Record Crowds and TV Viewership Anticipated [[link removed]]

Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

The College World Series is underway in Omaha, with the popular postseason event eyeing more records around both game attendance and TV viewership.

Last year, the CWS drew its highest-ever total attendance [[link removed]] of 392,946. That represented an average of 24,559 fans per game across the 16 contests. It was the third consecutive year the CWS broke its previous spectator record.

This year, the eight-team bracket has four schools each from the ACC and SEC, whose fan bases support [[link removed]] their baseball teams as well as, if not better [[link removed]], than any others in the country. All games take place at the 24,000-seat Charles Schwab Field, the $130 million ballpark that opened in 2011.

All Eyes on Omaha

College World Series media rights are tied to ESPN through 2032, thanks to the network’s recent eight-year, $920 million extension [[link removed]] for NCAA championships. Last year’s CWS was the most-watched ever on ESPN, with an average audience of 1.65 million viewers. That figure was up 48% from ’22.

The final eight teams enter with plenty of momentum already. Super Regional games averaged [[link removed]]501,000 viewers on ESPN, representing the most-watched round since 2009 and up 22% from last season. The championship series is set to get a bigger platform, too, with one of the potential three games moving from ESPN to network TV on ABC.

Sticking to Their Roots

During a recent appearance on Front Office Sports Today [[link removed]], College World Series executive director Amy Hornocker said that even though getting to Omaha is a “bucket list item for a lot of people,” the annual event still has roughly 3,000 season-ticket holders from all but four states.

The Nebraska city has hosted the CWS since 1950 and is under contract with the NCAA to do so until 2036. With its growing popularity, though, other cities may try to poach the championship if the NCAA were to consider creating a traveling road show like the Final Four. “I’d like to think that even when we get close to the contract that, if there’s other cities involved, that we have a fair shot,” Hornocker said.

Rays Nearing $1.3B Stadium Deal, Clear Path to St. Pete Commitment [[link removed]]

Tampa Bay Rays

The long and winding road toward a new Rays ballpark may at last be approaching a definitive conclusion, giving the MLB club a clear and full sense of its future for the first time in nearly two decades.

The St. Petersburg, Fla., city council on Thursday preliminarily approved by a 5–3 margin a development agreement and zoning changes relating to a new Rays stadium—marking the first time that the public body has made any sort of actual vote on the club’s proposed $1.3 billion stadium [[link removed]] and mixed-use development.

Those preliminary decisions set the stage for larger votes on the stadium financing and overall project approval that are now scheduled for next month. The Rays’ plan for the new ballpark calls for the club paying $700 million plus cost overruns, with the public sector contributing the remaining $600 million. If approved, the stadium deal would finally end years of relocation rumors and talk centered on the team’s low attendance [[link removed]] at Tropicana Field.

Nearly nine months after the Rays first unveiled their plans to become a centerpiece of St. Petersburg’s redevelopment of its Gas Plant District, confidence within MLB is rising that formal agreements and legislative approvals are near.

“I feel a good deal of confidence that they’re going to be able to get it done,” said league commissioner Rob Manfred to the Tampa Bay Times [[link removed]]. He was in town meeting with Rays and Cubs players Thursday as part of an annual tour to see clubs in person but did not attend the council session.

“We think the Tampa Bay region is really important to baseball. Getting a concrete agreement with respect to what the future of the stadium is going to be is just absolutely the top of the list for us,” Manfred said.

The Rays released [[link removed]] updated renderings late last month on the planned stadium, and they hope to break ground early next year in advance of a 2028 facility opening.

More Hurdles to Clear

Despite that hopeful sentiment, there are still hurdles to clear before those final approvals. A new lobbying group, No Home Run, recently formed in opposition to the public financing, a move advancing a broadly rising sentiment around the country against taxpayer support of new and renovated facilities for pro teams. The group last week released results [[link removed]] of a new poll of local voters finding 72% of respondents in favor of renegotiating the public funding.

Some St. Petersburg council members—having already pushed [[link removed]] for greater emphasis of the city by the Rays—are also still seeking greater disclosure around the deal.

“We are making decisions based on graphs and not final documents. I cannot emphasize that more,” said council member Lisset Hanewicz, one of the three “no” votes. “It is our duty to do our due diligence and we can only do that appropriately with final documents and not being rushed through the process.”

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ONE BIG FIG Golf’s Other Wedge

FOS image

$12

Price of the U.S. Open’s official cocktail, the Lemon Wedge, for fans on the course at Pinehurst No. 2 this weekend. Made with Dewar’s Scotch whisky, club soda, and lemonade, the drink follows in the footsteps of several other signature adult beverages at premier events and is actually much cheaper:

US Open tennis: The Honey Deuce [[link removed]], $22 Kentucky Derby: The Mint Julep [[link removed]], $22 The Masters: The Azalea [[link removed]], cannot be purchased individually—available only at all-inclusive hospitality offerings

The drinks could be flowing in North Carolina, with temperatures forecasted to be in the 90s on Saturday and Sunday.

WEEKEND PRIZE POOL McIlroy Looks to End Drought

Katie Goodale-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:

U.S. Open, Pinehurst, N.C.

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $21.5 million First place: $4.3 million

NASCAR Cup Series, Iowa Corn 350

When: Sunday Purse: $8.8 million First place: Individual payouts are no longer disclosed

LPGA Tour, Meijer Classic, Michigan

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $3 million First place: $375,000 STATUS REPORT Two Up, One Down, One Push

Florida Times-Union

USA Cricket ⬆ The team is advancing in the International Cricket Council Men’s T20 World Cup for the first time. Friday’s victory over Ireland has qualified the U.S. for the Super 8 stage of the tournament, which brings another set of round-robin games to determine four semifinalists.

Trevor Lawrence ⬆ The Jaguars have signed [[link removed]] the franchise quarterback (above) to a five-year, $275 million extension. With $200 million guaranteed and $142 million in cash at signing, Lawrence is now tied with the Bengals’ Joe Burrow for the highest annual salary, $55 million, and total contract amount in the league.

USWNT ⬇ The soccer team has dropped [[link removed]] from fourth to fifth in the latest FIFA ranking, its lowest mark since the system began in 2003. Before ’24, the U.S. women had never been ranked below No. 2 in the world.

UFL ⬆⬇ Ticket prices for the new spring football league’s debut championship game Sunday in St. Louis are as low as $4 [[link removed]] on some secondary marketplaces. That’s good news for fans of the Birmingham Stallions and San Antonio Brahmas, but perhaps not the type of demand UFL officials would hope to see.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS AWARDS

Final Call: Most Sustainable Award

It’s not easy being green 🌱.

Companies recognize the importance of operating sustainably, especially as new generations of fans have demonstrated their fandom aligns more closely than ever with their values, and have adopted practices making an impact in the fight against climate change. Front Office Sports has teamed up with Sports Innovation Lab to honor organizations that have been leading the sustainability movement.

The deadline to submit is June 16 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Submit your organization [[link removed]] today.

Conversation Starters Got some curly fries? Ohio State grad Neal Shipley is showing his sense of humor during his final amateur event at the U.S. Open by sporting an Arby’s clubhead cover. Check it out [[link removed]]. High school biology teacher and former Division II golf star Colin Prater, who last month juggled a tournament and baby shower before finishing second at a 36-hole qualifier in Oregon, is now among 73 out of 9,522 entrants competing [[link removed]] in this week’s U.S. Open. Think you can make a dynasty out of a small school? We’re giving away two copies of the highly anticipated EA Sports College Football 25 video game. Enter here [[link removed]] for a chance to win. See rules here [[link removed]]. Editors’ Picks IOC Proposes Holding Separate Olympics for Esports [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]The organization’s executive board has proposed a separate Olympics for online gaming. NFL Declined ESPN Offer to Drastically Reduce Sunday Ticket Price [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The NFL’s prospects aren’t looking good in court. WNBA Could Quadruple Media-Rights Fees to $240 Million Annually [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]Caitlin Clark is a force multiplier for attendance, TV ratings—and now WNBA media-rights fees. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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