Pickleball is exploding in popularity, and the Front Office Sports team digs into the phenomenon in the latest episode of the Newsroom. Thomas Shields, founder of pickleball media site The Dink, joined the show to delve into the fastest-growing sport in the U.S. Listen on Apple, Spotify and YouTube.
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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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In keeping with the Halloween season, the European Super League is rising from the dead once again.
The project’s newly hired CEO Bernd Reichart said the league will launch within three years. Reichart — who previously worked at German media company RTL Deutschland — now helms A22 Sports Management, the corporate entity continuing to pursue the Super League.
- Reichart’s hiring, announced Wednesday, was a sign that backers of the league had not given up on the project.
- The proposed midweek competition for elite European teams fell apart within 48 hours of its announcement in April 2021 but is still backed by Juventus, Barcelona, and Real Madrid.
- “There is a broad consensus that football needs reform,” said
Reichart, assailing the sport’s financial model. “Football cannot continue as it is designed now.”
It isn’t yet clear if the revamped league will give out cash comparable to the initial effort, which offered up $3.4 billion in entry bonuses and winner’s prize of around $392.3 million.
A22 is awaiting judgment from the European Court of Justice on whether the UEFA can punish the breakaway clubs before launching the league.
Relegation Promoted
A central criticism of the original project was that teams were guaranteed a place in the tournament, regardless of past performance.
“The concept of a fixed placement is not something that we are currently considering,” said Reichart. “Sporting merit will be applied to all members of that Super League.”
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The list of concerns for the roughly 1.2 million people heading to Qatar for the 2022 FIFA World Cup appears to be growing.
Qatar’s government is requiring all foreign visitors to download a pair of apps that provide officials with rights to access data on their phones — which could be considered spyware.
“It’s not my job to give travel advice, but personally, I would never bring my mobile phone on a visit to Qatar,” said NRK head of security Øyvind Vasaasen.
- Qatar is requiring visitors to download Ehteraz and Hayya.
- Ehteraz is a COVID-19 tracking app that can manipulate content on a user’s phone.
- It can also override installed software
and disable a phone’s lock screen.
- Hayya, which tracks matches, has permission to share information on a user’s phone.
The World Cup — which runs Nov. 20 through Dec. 18 — has also had concerns regarding fan accommodations, security, and lack of infrastructure.
Nothing to See Here
Qatar will impose media restrictions on international broadcast crews for the tournament.
Broadcasters will be barred from filming at government buildings, schools, housing for migrant workers, places of worship, and hospitals. Crews will also be restricted from recording at residential properties and private businesses.
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The Professional Fighters League is linking up with DAZN to launch a mixed martial arts league in Europe.
DAZN will replace the PFL’s existing broadcasters in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa on a “multiyear contract” worth “tens of millions of dollars” annually, PFL founder and chair Donn Davis told Front Office Sports.
- PFL Europe will be “the first-ever regional MMA league from a global MMA organization,” Davis said.
- The venture will launch in the first half of 2023.
- Fights will be broadcast across 73 territories.
“All the fighters will be from Europe,” said Davis. “All the fights will be held locally in Europe. All the fights, importantly, will be primetime in Europe. And so really PFL is meeting the European MMA fans where they’re at.”
Deep Into DAZN
The arrangement further extends the relationship between PFL and DAZN.
The sports streamer will broadcast around 25 PFL fights annually between PFL Global, PFL Challenger, and the coming European league. PFL Europe will start at around four-to-six fights per year and grow from there, per Davis.
“The strong markets for UFC [Ultimate Fighting Championship] and PFL overlap,” Davis explained. “MMA is strong in seven main regions around the world: United States, Asia, India, the Middle East, Russia, Latin America, and emerging in Africa. Each one of those has over 50 million fans, and a lot of them have over 100 million.”
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- C.J. Stroud is among the best college athletes in America, with a long list of accolades and NIL deals to prove it. On the latest episode of My Other Passion, we sat down with the Ohio State quarterback to talk about the Heisman Trophy race, his NFL dreams, NCAA conference realignment, his favorite TV shows — and, of course, what it’s like raking in all of that NIL money at just 21 years old. Listen or watch now on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
- The reimagined NBA App — developed with Microsoft — will integrate both of the league’s direct-to-consumer offerings: NBA League Pass and NBA TV.
- On Thursday, lawyers for the NFL will argue to stay the legal proceedings ahead of a planned appeal of a judge’s denial of its motion to compel arbitration in relation to a lawsuit brought by former Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden.
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The New Orleans Saints (2-4) face the Arizona Cardinals (2-4) on “Thursday Night Football” at State Farm Stadium.
How to Watch: 8:15 p.m. ET on Amazon Prime Video
Betting Odds: Cardinals -2.5 || ML -142 || O/U 43.5
Pick: Expect the Cardinals to get back on track. Take Arizona to cover.
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