January 5, 2023
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In a Front Office Sports exclusive, Dana White’s New Year’s Eve altercation with his wife is already affecting his business. TBS has removed the first two events of Power Slap — the UFC promoter’s slap-fighting league — from its January schedule, leaving the new program in limbo. Read the full story by FOS senior reporter A.J. Perez here [[link removed]].
Markets Amazon Cuts 18K Jobs with Big Sports Decisions Looming [[link removed]]
CLIFFORD OTO/ USA TODAY NETWORK
As Amazon looks to grow its sports presence, it’s cutting back in other areas.
The e-commerce and technology giant is laying off [[link removed]] more than 18,000 employees as it adjusts to uncertain economic times, CEO Andy Jassy said in a letter to the company’s employees.
The reduction will be concentrated among corporate workers, representing around 5% of that group and 1.2% of Amazon’s 1.5 million total workforce. Amazon said in November it would trim around 10,000 jobs, mostly in devices, recruiting, and physical stores — cuts included in the 18,000 total. With a small dip to start the new year, Amazon’s stock is down 49% over the past 12 months. It has lost around $1 trillion in market cap since its July 2021 peak. Sports Spending
Despite the layoffs, Amazon shows no signs of slowing its growth in sports.
Its priciest sports property is its $1 billion-per-year deal for “Thursday Night Football,” but it also recently inked [[link removed]] a three-year pact for Overtime Elite, adding to deals with the Premier League and UEFA Champions League, among others.
The company is also a potential contender for NBA media rights after losing out on “NFL Sunday Ticket” to Google’s YouTube TV.
Amazon is reportedly working on a dedicated sports app.
Leagues 9/11 Families Pulled Further Into LIV Golf-PGA Tour Dispute [[link removed]]
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
There could be an ulterior motive for LIV Golf’s U.S. lawsuit against the PGA Tour’s public relations firm, Clout Public Affairs.
On Tuesday, Clout accused [[link removed]] LIV — backed by Saudi Arabia’s $676 billion sovereign wealth fund — of using the lawsuit to “build an intelligence file” on the families of 9/11 victims that have criticized the kingdom and the rival golf league.
Clout also has 9/11 Justice as a client, which is involved in a separate suit against Saudi Arabia related to the attacks in 2001 and other cases, including the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. LIV Golf demanded Clout hand over internal documents and communications with the PGA and sued to enforce the subpoena in December.
LIV Golf has argued that the PGA Tour hired Clout to run a “smear campaign” and arranged for the families to protest at LIV-related events.
“LIV has brazenly hired a firm in the United States to track and monitor the activities of these 9/11 victims and families, while simultaneously, through the underlying lawsuit, using antitrust discovery to now sift Clout’s communications with these families, even if they have nothing to do with LIV, golf, or golfers,” the filing reads.
Clout and 9/11 Justice fear [[link removed]] that disclosing the internal communications “will provoke retaliation.”
Suspension Suit
LIV Golf sued the PGA Tour after the latter suspended players for defecting to the new competition. The PGA Tour countersued, alleging damages.
Clout pointed out that the subpoena isn’t needed, as the PGA Tour already handed over documents in the antitrust case.
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Deals Manchester City Lands Deal With World’s Richest Team Owner [[link removed]]
MCFC
Manchester City is joining forces with the world’s richest sports team owner.
The Premier League club has secured a deal [[link removed]] with Jio Platforms — a tech conglomerate owned by Mukesh Ambani, owner of the Indian Premier League’s Mumbai Indians.
As part of the pact, Manchester City’s streaming subscription service CITY+ will be included in the JioTV Platform. It will provide fans with access to live women’s matches, highlights, and other exclusive content.
Ambani has a net worth of $88.7 billion, per [[link removed]] Forbes, ahead [[link removed]] of Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer ($74.3 billion). Manchester City is the sixth-most-valuable soccer team [[link removed]] in the world at $4.25 billion. The club is owned by City Football Group, which also owns New York City FC.
The energy and tech entrepreneur has also expressed interest [[link removed]] in a takeover deal for Liverpool.
Potential Upgrades
Manchester City plans to conduct studies [[link removed]] to determine the viability of a new development project centering on Etihad Stadium, the club’s home field since 2003.
The stadium has a capacity of 53,400, and potential development plans would increase it to more than 60,000. A development project would also include a hotel, a new club shop, and a museum. CFG has spent [[link removed]] more than $834 million on infrastructure projects in Manchester.
City will hold formal consultations about the project in the coming months.
Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, the Ottawa Senators’ sale hits a speed bump, esports are reclassified as an official sport in India, the NCAA could expand March Madness to 90 teams, and Tampa Bay releases proposals for a ballpark-centered development. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. The New Year’s Six bowls have returned [[link removed]] to their pre-pandemic popularity — averaging 13 million viewers, according to ESPN. Here’s a look [[link removed]] inside NBA superstar Luka Dončić’s $2.7 million Dallas home, which features an outdoor pavilion, fireplaces, and a movie projection screen.
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What to Watch
The Boston Celtics (26-12) face the Dallas Mavericks (22-16) on Thursday night at the American Airlines Center.
How to Watch: 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT
Betting Odds: Celtics -3 || ML -145 || O/U 232.5
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