The U.S. Men’s National Team could be set for a major payday after making it to the knockout stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Even if the U.S. loses to the Netherlands on Saturday in the round of 16, it will earn at least $13 million, with each advance earning a bigger purse. In the final match, the runner-up will earn $30 million, and the winner will receive $42 million. The tournament’s total prize purse is $440 million.

The 23 members of the U.S. team will take home a $10,000 stipend for each game played in the tournament. In addition, 90% of the FIFA bonus will be split between the men’s team and the women’s national team thanks to the equal-pay collective bargaining agreement signed this year.

After beating Iran on Tuesday, each player on the U.S. team will take home at least $294,000, and if the team keeps advancing, that figure will increase significantly.

• Quarterfinal loss: $383,000
• Fourth-place finish: $559,000
• Third-place finish: $696,000
• Second-place finish: $794,000
• First-place finish: $892,000

To compare, Denmark’s max player payout is $688,000, Germany’s was $415,000, and South Korea’s is $390,000.

Women Win, Too

If the U.S. beats the reported 1% odds of winning the entire tournament, the women’s team would earn $822,000 per player.

The men will also split earnings from the women’s 2023 World Cup, which has a prize pool of just $60 million — around 15% of this year’s men’s edition.

A state senator wants the New York Jets back in the actual state of New York.

Sen. Joseph Addabbo, whose district includes parts of Queens, wants the NFL team to return to the borough where they played from 1964-83 at Shea Stadium. The Jets won Super Bowl III in 1969.

• Both the Jets and New York Giants have played in MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, since 2010. 
• The Jets previously played in Giants Stadium (1984–2009), Shea Stadium, and the Polo Grounds (1960–1963) in Manhattan.
• MLS team NYCFC is building a $780 million, 25,000-seat stadium at Willets Point in Queens near the New York Mets’ Citi Field. Addabbo wants the Jets to build a 70,000-80,000-seat stadium there or perhaps expand on NYCFC’s project.
• The Jets and Giants can opt out of their current lease in 2025 if they provide the state of New Jersey 12 months notice.

“If you’re building a stadium — and I know it’s only 25,000 seats — but if you’ve got that kind of incentive to build a stadium, if the opportunity is there with the land and the expiring leases, we can connect the dots, why miss this opportunity?” Addabbo said. 

Gambling Upside

Addabbo, who chairs the state senate’s racing, gaming, and wagering committee, sees additional opportunity in the possibility of a casino in the area.

With three gambling licenses for downstate New York set to be distributed, Mets owner Steve Cohen has pushed for a Hard Rock casino in the Citi Field parking lot.

LIV Golf is pushing further into the PGA Tour’s turf.

The Saudi Arabia-backed league announced three new venues for its 2023 season, all of which are used regularly by the PGA Tour or DP World Tour.

• In February, LIV Golf will come to El Camaleón in Mexico’s Mayakoba resort area. The course, designed by Greg Norman prior to his role as LIV Golf CEO, was the PGA Tour’s first course in Latin America.
• In April, LIV will travel to Sentosa in Singapore, which has hosted the Singapore Open.
• In June, the tour will make its trip to Spain’s Real Club Valderrama, whose history includes the Ryder Cup and DP World Tour events.

LIV is also adding The Grange Golf Club in Adelaide, Australia, as it grows to 14 events next year.

The PGA Tour, which is under investigation by the Justice Department over antitrust concerns, hired lobbyist and major Republican fundraiser Jeff Miller to improve its standing in Washington.

Bank Shots

LIV golfers Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia responded to Tiger Woods after the latter called for Norman’s ouster due to his pugilistic stance toward the PGA Tour.

“Greg Norman is our CEO, and we support him,” said Garcia. “We all wish we could come to an agreement. There are people who could have done wrong in both places, but it seems that there are only bad guys on one side.”

Mickelson responded to a comment by Woods that the PGA Tour had to take out a huge loan to survive past the pandemic by tweeting out financial information from the Tour’s public documents.

The Women’s Indian Premier League begins in March — and teams are pricey.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has reportedly set a base price of $49.1 million for a WIPL franchise, with the belief that each of the five franchises will fetch between $122.9 million and $184.3 million at the upcoming auction.

• The base price for a WIPL franchise will reportedly equate to what the men’s franchises cost ahead of their inaugural season in 2008.
• The cost would be paid over five years.
• The BCCI is reportedly likely to send out tender documents to interested parties.

Jay Shah, secretary for the BCCI and president of the Asian Cricket Council, previously said he was hopeful owners of the men’s 10 IPL teams would bid for a women’s team. The Rajasthan Royals, Punjab Kings, and Mumbai Indians previously expressed interest.

Media rights to the 22-match competition, which will take place over a month, will be sold in a closed auction in January. 

Cricket Mania

Cricket is feeling the love across the board. The women’s side may just be starting, but the men’s side is outpacing other major leagues.

The Indian Premier League secured a record $6.02 billion for streaming and TV rights in June and is third to only the English Premier League and the NFL in viewership, per BCCI estimates. 

IPL club valuations are also growing at a faster rate than NFL and NBA teams.