September 8, 2022

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The late Queen Elizabeth II reigned for 70 years, during which time England hosted an Olympics and a World Cup, revolutionized modern soccer with the Premier League, and brought several American sports leagues — most notably the NFL — across the pond. Before she died Thursday at the age of 96, she got to see one more groundbreaking development when English women’s soccer won the Euro 2022 amid record crowds and viewership.

NFL Is Back, and Super Bowl Ads Already Selling at Record Prices [[link removed]]

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL season kicks off tonight in Los Angeles — and it’s already creating buzz around February’s Super Bowl.

Fox Sports has sold 30-second Super Bowl commercials for more than $7 million each — a record [[link removed]] for the big game — and has sold “north of 95%” of available inventory, according to Mark Evans, head of ad sales at the network.

Evans said the prices are rising partially due to other shows and events moving to commercial-free streaming services, leaving companies with fewer places to advertise. But the Super Bowl can guarantee brands some exposure.

The 2022 Super Bowl generated approximately $434.5 million in ad spending.Companies received an estimated $170 million worth of “in-game exposure,” according [[link removed]] to a report by Hive and Elevate.Super Bowl LVI had an estimated [[link removed].] total viewing audience of more than 208 million, averaging [[link removed]] 99.2 million viewers on NBC.

Fox last broadcast the Super Bowl in 2020 and sold out of inventory by November 2019. Fox is reportedly on pace with NBC’s sales last year.

Super Switch

Some of the Super Bowl’s biggest advertisers are shrinking their footprints on the game.

Pepsi will no longer serve as the presenting partner for the Super Bowl halftime show as it looks to transition [[link removed]] more of its media spend toward digital audiences.

Anheuser-Busch did not renew its exclusivity deal [[link removed]] for Super Bowl LVII, clearing the way for other alcohol brands to advertise during the game. Shortly after the June announcement, Molson Coors purchased [[link removed]] its first spot in more than 30 years.

College Athletes Can Finally Get Paid for Jersey Sales [[link removed]]

Gary Cosby-USA TODAY Sports

Before NIL rules were passed, schools could only sell generic jerseys that didn’t represent actual players. Customizable jerseys have been one of the most highly anticipated products of the new NIL era.

On Thursday, Fanatics launched what is likely the largest customizable jersey program in the country.

The company now has an online college football store selling jerseys for more than 4,300 players across the country from 40-plus schools.The shop was facilitated by the OneTeam Partners group licensing program — athletes can opt in to have their NILs featured on official school merchandise. Players will receive a cut of sales, though the specific percentage wasn’t disclosed.

Some college sports officials previously questioned whether group licensing deals would be possible. In professional leagues, group licensing is negotiated by players’ unions — and there’s no official union at the intercollegiate level to bargain on behalf of athletes.

But the Fanatics program proves group licensing can be done at scale without a union, as companies like OneTeam Partners can simply set terms and allow athletes to opt in if interested.

Easy Money

There’s a benefit for athletes, too, as opting into group licensing deals allows for “passive” NIL income.

While some deals require major time and effort on the part of athletes — attending events or creating social media content — group licensing deals often require none at all.

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Stream the NFL on CBS Live With Paramount+

The regular season is finally here! Football’s back and Paramount+ [[link removed]] has you covered every week with the NFL on CBS.

Catch 10 national doubleheaders, highly-anticipated rematches from last year’s playoffs, feature holiday matchups on Thanksgiving and Christmas, and three postseason games, including the AFC Championship on Paramount+.

Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson lead CBS’s 63rd year of NFL coverage [[link removed]], setting up football fans for the best one yet.

Score on game day and stream your local NFL on CBS game live all season long on Paramount+. Try it FREE [[link removed]]!

GameStop Reports Underwhelming Results in Q2 [[link removed]]

Mickey Welsh / Imagn

GameStop failed to meet expectations in its latest earnings report.

The video game retailer posted [[link removed]] net sales of $1.13 billion in Q2 2022 — missing Wall Street estimates [[link removed]] of $1.3 billion and down from $1.18 billion for the same period last year.

GameStop reported a net loss of $108.7 million in Q2, up from $61.6 million in Q2 2021.Selling, general, and administrative expenses reached $387.5 million during the quarter.The company’s hardware and accessories segment generated $596.4 million in sales.Its software segment saw sales reach $316.4 million — making up 27.9% of total sales.

GameStop, which has reported significant losses over the past calendar year, has made recent changes to its business to expedite profits.

The Texas-based company launched [[link removed]] a digital asset wallet in May that allows consumers to send, receive, and use cryptocurrencies and NFTs across decentralized apps. In July, GameStop launched its first NFT marketplace where members can buy, sell, and trade NFTs.

The company saw its collectibles segment, which includes the NFT marketplace, generate $223.2 million in sales in Q2 2022, up from $177.2 million for the same period last year.

Big Deal

On Wednesday, GameStop announced [[link removed]] that it has secured a deal with cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The two companies will collaborate on e-commerce and online marketing initiatives, which will include GameStop carrying FTX gift cards at select brick-and-mortar stores.

In January, FTX raised [[link removed]] $400 million in Series C funding, valuing the company at $32 billion.

Conversation Starters Today’s Leadoff is all about changing fortunes: The NFL is looking to attract international fans and streamers, women’s sports skyrocket in popularity, Aston Martin raises a huge sum, and Ubisoft takes a hit amid a Tencent investment. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. On Thursday, Clemson announced [[link removed]] that it signed head football coach Dabo Swinney to a new 10-year contract for $115 million that begins this season. Former Las Vegas Raiders president Dan Ventrelle has been hired [[link removed]] as WWE’s executive VP of talent, the wrestling promotion announced on Thursday.

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The NFL on CBS Returns on Paramount+

Week 1 [[link removed]] is finally here! Football’s back and Paramount+ has you covered all season with the NFL on CBS.

Teams are almost ready to kick off their pursuit of the Lombardi Trophy. Who will get off to a hot start?

Check out the NFL on CBS [[link removed]] schedule below for Week 1 and review your local listings for the games in your area.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11

1 p.m. ET

Browns @ Panthers Steelers @ Bengals Colts @ Texans Ravens @ Jets Patriots @ Dolphins

4:25 p.m. ET

Chiefs @ Cardinals Raiders @ Chargers

Stream your local NFL on CBS game live all season long on Paramount+. Try it FREE [[link removed]]!

Market Movers

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

DIS [[link removed]]

Walt Disney Co (The)

[[link removed]]

$112.32

[[link removed]]

+0.37%

[[link removed]] RCI [[link removed]]

Rogers Communications Inc.

[[link removed]]

$41.58

[[link removed]]

+0.65%

[[link removed]] ARMK [[link removed]]

Aramark

[[link removed]]

$36.95

[[link removed]]

+2.54%

[[link removed]] DKS [[link removed]]

Dicks Sporting Goods, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$113.36

[[link removed]]

+3.32%

[[link removed]] PLNT [[link removed]]

Planet Fitness Inc

[[link removed]]

$69.84

[[link removed]]

+4.33%

[[link removed]] T [[link removed]]

AT&T, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$16.78

[[link removed]]

-0.65%

[[link removed]] (Note: All as of market close on 9/8/22) What to Watch

The Buffalo Bills face the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night at SoFi Stadium for the 2022 NFL Kickoff Game.

How to Watch: 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC

Betting Odds: Bills -2.5 || ML -140 || O/U 52

Pick: Expect the reigning Super Bowl champs to make a statement. Take LA to cover.

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Written by Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]], Amanda Christovich [[link removed]], Justin Byers [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Brian Krikorian [[link removed]]

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