November 15, 2021

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More than 40 entrepreneurial athletes are backing Patricof Co. in its Virgin Voyages investment. The investors — which include Venus Williams, Travis Kelce, and Blake Griffin — will help shape future cruise experiences. 🚢

Disney+ Set to Become Metaverse Platform

Marvel/Epic Games/Design: Alex Brooks

Disney already boasts an enormous, growing library of intellectual property — but now, the company is working on its own metaverse.

CEO Bob Chapek said during last week’s earnings call that “our efforts to date are merely a prologue to a time when we’ll be able to connect the physical and digital worlds even more closely,” allowing for “storytelling without boundaries in our own Disney metaverse.”

Chapek elaborated [[link removed]] in an interview with CNBC, saying, “My vision is to use Disney+ as the platform for the metaverse.”

The company has been active in using its characters and narratives in video games, providing a base to build from should it join Meta, Microsoft, Epic, and Roblox in incorporating gaming into its planned metaverse.

Disney has worked with Epic Games to bring characters from “Star Wars” to “Fortnite.”It collaborated with game studio Rare to add “Pirates of the Caribbean” content to the “Sea of Thieves” franchise.Square Enix recently released “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Avengers” games.

If Disney envisions sports content in its metaverse, ESPN holds a plethora of sports media rights — from the major U.S. leagues to La Liga — for The Mouse to work with.

Disney+ and ESPN+ each grew [[link removed]] their subscriber bases more than 60% year-over-year to 118.1 million and 17.1 million respectively in the latest fiscal quarter.

Premier League Clubs Unanimously Oppose FIFA’s World Cup Plan

Premier League/Design: Alex Brooks

Premier League clubs have unanimously opposed FIFA’s push to double the frequency of the World Cup to every two years.

“The Premier League is committed to preventing any radical changes that would adversely affect player welfare and threaten the competitiveness, calendar, structures, and traditions of domestic football,” said Richard Masters, the league’s chief executive.

A biennial World Cup was first brought to the table in September after FIFA released results of a 15,000-person survey indicating global support for the change from every four years to two.

Since then, several entities have been outspoken in opposition.

In September, the European Club Association, a body representing 234 clubs, issued [[link removed]] a statement condemning the proposal.Adidas CEO Kasper Rørsted voiced [[link removed]] his own opposition in October, citing a crowded soccer landscape. The company is the official ball supplier for the World Cup.The IOC believes FIFA’s plan would put additional strain on athletes and could affect sponsorships of the Olympics. UEFA and CONMEBOL also oppose the idea.

A biennial World Cup would essentially double FIFA’s profits. The governing body pockets roughly [[link removed]] $4.6 billion in a four-year cycle, with nearly all of that made during a World Cup year.

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PGA Tour Eyes Events Aimed at Thwarting Saudi-Backed League

Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

The PGA Tour is reportedly [[link removed]] creating a series of international tournaments that offer guaranteed money in an effort to push back against a proposed Saudi-backed rival league.

Last month, LIV Golf Investments — a firm owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund — announced a $200 million investment in a 10-year partnership with the Asian Tour and named [[link removed]] Greg Norman its CEO.

Like the Asian Tour, the PGA Tour’s new tournaments would take place across several countries.

The plan is to host four to six events in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.Competitions would run in conjunction with existing PGA Tour events.The fields are expected to be limited to 50 or 60 competitors, with potential teams.

In May, a Saudi-backed group of investors attempted [[link removed]] to lure top golfers with eight-figure bonuses to a breakaway tour of 15-to-18 cities. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan threatened an immediate ban and lifetime suspension for players who joined the league.

The new international tournaments that the PGA Tour appears to be developing would begin play in either 2023 or 2024.

MLB Owners Propose WAR-Based Salary Arbitration

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

Major League Baseball owners made an unusual proposal in their ongoing labor talks with the MLB Players Association: replace the current salary arbitration system with a formula based on wins above replacement.

The proposal would use WAR as calculated by baseball analytics site FanGraphs.

WAR attempts to estimate how many wins each player is worth over a full season compared to a generic “replacement level” player — such as one in the team’s minor league system or available via trade for a nominal return.

Under the current collective bargaining agreement, MLB players typically make league-minimum salaries in their first three years, followed by an additional three years in which salaries are determined by arbitration.The current arbitration system does not rely on a precise formula but typically leans on stats like batting average, stolen bases, runs batted in, earned run average, and saves.Owners have also proposed having free agency start when a player reaches the age of 29½.

Projected arbitration salaries for the 2022 season range from $600,000 to $19.8 million for the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Trea Turner, according to [[link removed]] MLB Trade Rumors.

The proposal is reportedly unlikely to gain traction with the MLBPA. The two sides are scheduled to continue negotiations on Monday.

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Conversation Starters Entain unveiled [[link removed]] a diversity and inclusion initiative focused on education and bringing underrepresented populations into the technology industry. The San Antonio Spurs are working [[link removed]] with Legends Global Partnerships to find a new naming partner for its arena. AT&T is ending its 20-year relationship with the team after this season. Health and fitness company iFIT is suing [[link removed]] Victoria’s Secret for using its trademarked “SWEAT marks” in exercise apparel. The company also accused Victoria’s Secret of purposefully selecting someone who looks like SWEAT app founder Kayla Itsines in its advertisements. In their inaugural year as a PGA TOUR Champions event, Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS set the standard for taking a local community effort to the national stage. Read more about how Jim and Tabitha Furyk brought their vision to life here [[link removed]].*

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Today's Action

NHL

07:08 PM

Islanders (+115) at Lightning (-135)

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07:10 PM

Kings (-200) at Pistons (+170)

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08:15 PM

Rams (-180) at 49ers (+155)

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*All times are EST unless otherwise noted.

*Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See [[link removed]] for details.

Question Of The Day

Are you excited about the metaverse?

Yes [[link removed]] No [[link removed]]

Friday’s Answer

17% of respondents bet on sports at casinos; 26% online; 19% use both; 38% use neither.

Written by Owen Poindexter [[link removed]], Justin Byers [[link removed]]

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