March 15, 2022

Read in Browser [[link removed]]

POWERED BY

The first pitch of the 2022 MLB regular season isn’t until April 7, but if it began today, unvaccinated Mets and Yankees wouldn’t be able to play home games due to New York City COVID-19 vaccine rules.

UEFA’s Ban on Russian Teams Upheld In Court

RFU/Design: Alex Brooks

The Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld UEFA’s ban on all Russian club and national teams on Tuesday following an appeal from the Russian soccer federation.

FIFA, which also placed a ban on Russia’s teams after the country’s invasion of Ukraine, has not yet been granted a verdict by CAS on a separate appeal. The ruling reportedly [[link removed]] could be decided this week.

Russia was scheduled to play in the World Cup qualifiers against Poland on March 24.Poland was granted a bye from FIFA, as the Polish soccer federation refused to take the field against Russia. CAS said the ruling over Russia’s other FIFA appeal to give Poland a bye is also “likely to be issued at the end of this week.”

Russia’s appeal included naming the soccer federations of Belarus, England, France, Portugal, and Spain — all its future opponents — as active parties.

The decision to uphold the ban for UEFA is an interim ruling. A full appeal hearing is expected to take place in the upcoming weeks.

Soccer Sanctions

UEFA and FIFA also announced in late February that Spartak Moscow would be removed from the Europa League. The Russian women’s team, which qualified for Euro 2022, is currently barred from playing, but legal cases are expected to be resolved before the event begins on July 6.

Lawmakers Criticize NCAA Gender Equity Progress

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY/Design: Alex Brooks

Federal lawmakers aren’t satisfied with the gender equity improvements the NCAA has made to Division I women’s basketball and other sports.

Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), and Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) sent NCAA President Mark Emmert a letter [[link removed]] on Monday stating the NCAA has “failed to take meaningful steps to correct deficiencies.”

The letter criticized improvements across sports, noting it “appears to have prioritized implementing recommendations related to higher-visibility college sports.”The NCAA has made numerous fixes [[link removed]] for basketball, but the letter called them “short-term steps to avoid repeating the public relations catastrophe.”It criticized the NCAA’s lack of commitment acting on several big-picture structural changes recommended by the 2021 gender equity review [[link removed]].It obtained emails providing new detail about how NCAA officials declined outside companies’ help during the 2021 tournament, as Front Office Sports previously [[link removed]] reported regarding weight rooms.

Last year, lawmakers [[link removed]] demanded that the NCAA ameliorate failures. This group followed up in July 2021.

Status Update

“Although our work is not done, we are focused on the many improvements made since [last year] that provide students across all our championships with a lifelong memorable experience,” the NCAA said in a statement to FOS.

One recommendation, hosting both Final Fours in the same city, is off the table until 2031. As for several other major changes, “no doors are closed at this point,” NCAA VP of women’s basketball Lynn Holzman told FOS in late February.

SPONSORED BY JOBSOHIO

Life is Just Better in Ohio

Have you ever been late to a meeting because the traffic was terrible? Have you ever spent $20 on coffee and a sandwich? Have you ever asked yourself, “Why am I here?” Everyone has had a last-straw moment, but there’s a better life waiting for you—in Ohio.

But why Ohio? In Ohio, you’ll be able to live the life you’ve always dreamed about. It’s the most affordable [[link removed]] state in the U.S., ranking No. 3 in Moody’s Housing Affordability index.

And thanks to its unique business climate, you’ll also be able to make your career dreams come true. Ohio ranks No. 13 in the Top States for Business.*

You are one step closer to a better life. Find out more [[link removed]] about the state of Ohio today.

*Source: CNBC – America’s Top States for Business in 2019

Panthers’ $800M Facility Project Remains In Limbo

Carolina Panthers/Design: Alex Brooks

The uncertainty around the future of the Carolina Panthers’ new $800 million training facility wasn’t made any clearer at Monday’s city council meeting.

About 400 construction workers had their duties paused [[link removed]] in Rock Hill, South Carolina, last week after the city missed a payment as part of an agreement to cover $225 million for infrastructure costs.

Mayor John Gettys [[link removed]] conceded that “the world has certainly changed since 2019,” when discussions of the project began, and that the city will push for a new agreement. The Rock Hill city manager claimed [[link removed]] the Panthers told the city to not issue bonds.

The city’s failure to fund the project has frustrated Panthers leadership, and the back-and-forth finger-pointing has put completion of the project in potential jeopardy, a source with knowledge of the city’s thinking told Front Office Sports.

A real estate holding company run by Panthers owner Dave Tepper invested more than $170 million into the development, which would also serve as the team’s headquarters.

Panthers’ Land Grab

While there’s no indication that the Panthers are abandoning Rock Hill, Tepper has bought land near Bank of America Stadium, where the team has played since entering the league in 1996.

Tepper’s holding company purchased 4.6 acres for $15 million. There are no plans yet [[link removed]] to develop the site.The Panthers have the eighth-oldest stadium in the NFL.

Tepper Sports and Entertainment said “work will continue with [its] partners to find an economically acceptable solution for all parties to continue this project in Rock Hill.”

Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, sports betting on the men’s NCAA tournament could reach $10 billion, Todd Boehly and Rob Walton emerge as potential bidders for the Denver Broncos, Formula 1 is close to securing a five-year deal worth $150 million, and 777 Partners buys a controlling stake in a Belgian soccer club. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. Softbank’s semiconductor and software company Arm is planning to cut [[link removed]] 1,000 jobs following the collapse of its $40 billion sale to Nvidia. Currently, Arm employs about 6,400 people, which amounts to roughly 15% of its workforce that is expected to be cut. The NBA will play [[link removed]] the first two games of the 2022 preseason schedule in Japan. The league announced on Monday that the Golden State Warriors will play the Washington Wizards in Saitama on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2. The contests will mark the first NBA games outside North America since January 2020. Jacksonville Jaguars fans mocked GM Trent Baalke last season by wearing clown wigs to games. Now, he’s attempting to buy their loyalty with a massive spending spree. By Tuesday morning, Baalke had reportedly given out three of the five most lucrative contracts [[link removed]] in 2022 NFL free agency. Subscribe to Scoreboard for more [[link removed]] on Jacksonville’s new signings.

SPONSORED BY NIELSEN

The Impact of Digital Connection on Fan Engagement

In September 2021, U.S. consumers spent 32% of their TV time using TV-connected devices, and as these devices gain momentum as the great amplifier of content, access to sports-related content continues to expand.

The demand for content related to live events is almost as high as it is for the event itself, due in large part to the rise of TV-connected devices but also the expansion of OTT, the increase in multi-screen viewing and the continued expansion of social media and influencer content.

In Nielsen’s latest report [[link removed]], brands and rights holders can learn more about the impact of digital connectivity on fan engagement and how they can capitalize on this shift to engage consumers in more meaningful ways.

Learn more [[link removed]].

Market Movers

U.S. stocks experienced gains across all three major indexes on Tuesday. Here’s a look at how sports-related stocks performed:

PLNT [[link removed]]

Planet Fitness Inc

[[link removed]]

$82.95

[[link removed]]

+0.95%

[[link removed]] NKE [[link removed]]

Nike, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$119.82

[[link removed]]

+1.12%

[[link removed]] VFC [[link removed]]

VF Corp.

[[link removed]]

$55.01

[[link removed]]

+1.36%

[[link removed]] LYV [[link removed]]

Live Nation Entertainment Inc

[[link removed]]

$111.80

[[link removed]]

+2.45%

[[link removed]] DIS [[link removed]]

Walt Disney Co (The)

[[link removed]]

$134.20

[[link removed]]

+3.43%

[[link removed]] FL [[link removed]]

Foot Locker Inc

[[link removed]]

$31.24

[[link removed]]

+4.76%

[[link removed]] (Note: All as of market close on 3/15/22) What to Watch

The Indiana Hoosiers (20-13) face the Wyoming Cowboys (25-8) on Tuesday at UD Arena.

How to Watch: 9:10 p.m. ET on truTV

Betting Odds: Indiana -4 || ML -190 || O/U 132.5* ( Bet on DraftKings [[link removed]])

Pick: Expect the Hoosiers to overwhelm the Cowboys. Take Indiana to cover.

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

Written by Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]], Amanda Christovich [[link removed]], A.J. Perez [[link removed]]

MORE FROM FRONT OFFICE SPORTS:

The Leadoff [[link removed]] - Daily business of sports podcast

Front Office Sports Insights [[link removed]] - The most promising opportunities where sports meets industry

Front Office Sports Scoreboard [[link removed]] - The biggest stories in sports and the numbers behind them

Copyright © 2022 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.

80 Pine Street Suite 3202 New York, NY 10005

If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here [[link removed]].

Advertise [[link removed]] / Update your preferences [link removed] / Unsubscribe [link removed]