January 23, 2023
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Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford plans [[link removed]] on sticking around one of Southern California’s most exclusive, affluent areas — and apparently at a discount. After selling their Hidden Hills estate for $21 million in June, Stafford and his wife Kelly purchased a property in the same gated community for $10.5 million — at $3 million less than the asking price.
Media Pickleball Picks Up Two New TV Deals From CBS and ESPN [[link removed]]
Andy Abeyta/ USA TODAY NETWORK
America’s fastest-growing sport has upped its television presence.
The Association of Pickleball Professionals announced TV deals with CBS and ESPN for the APP Tour on Monday.
Terms were not disclosed, but APP stated the twin deals guarantee a combined 20 hours of TV coverage for its tour events this year across CBS Sports Network and ESPN2. The deals include:
Twelve hours of live matches and highlight-driven programs on CBS Sports Network. Eight hours of event recap telecasts on the ESPN2 cable network. Over 200 hours of live streaming coverage on ESPN+ and APP TV. A Growth Spurt
In 2022, Pickleball ranked [[link removed]] as the country’s fastest-growing sport for the second year in a row. The sport saw more than 36.5 million people in the U.S. play between [[link removed]] August 2021 and August 2022.
There are 16 APP Tour events on the schedule for this year. Founded in 2019, the tour kicked off its 2023 season in Punta Gorda, Florida. The APP Daytona Beach Open is next in Holly Hill, Florida, from Feb. 8-12.
Sports Betting Fanatics Reportedly in Talks to Buy Online Sportsbook [[link removed]]
Fanatics
Fanatics is reportedly exploring an acquisition to accelerate a move into sports betting.
The major sports merchandise and collectibles retailer is in talks to buy BetParx, a sportsbook launched last year, according [[link removed]] to CNBC.
Fanatics opened its first sportsbook on Friday, located inside the Washington Commanders’ FedEx Field. The company has said it aims to be in every state where sports betting is legal by September. BetParx, which offers online sports betting and iGaming, is active in New Jersey, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Ohio.
While the report notes that a letter of intent has been signed, there is no guarantee that a deal will come to pass. Fanatics has reportedly looked into buying [[link removed]] Tipico and [[link removed]] PointsBet, among others, before ultimately passing on those acquisitions.
Fanatics did not immediately return a request for comment.
Public Play
Fanatics has been considering a public listing for a long time and it may opt to first secure a sportsbook acquisition, according to reports.
Fanatics was last valued at $31 billion after raising $700 million in December with an eye toward mergers and acquisitions. The company said at the time it projects $8 billion in 2023 revenue across its commerce, collectibles, and betting and gaming divisions.
Fanatics said earlier this month that it was divesting from its 60% in NFT business Candy Digital, with CEO Michael Rubin saying “NFTs are unlikely to be sustainable or profitable as a standalone business.”
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Teams Juventus Slapped With Penalty After Doctoring Financial Reports [[link removed]]
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Juventus is starting the second half of its season with a point cut in the domestic standings.
The Federal Appeal Court of the FIGC, Italy’s football federation, penalized [[link removed]] the Serie A club with a 15-point reduction for fixing their balance sheets with false gains from player transfers between [[link removed]] 2019 and 2021.
Prosecutors reportedly initially requested only a nine-point reduction. Eight other clubs that were investigated were acquitted in the appeal ruling.
The point reduction moves [[link removed]] the club — which Forbes last valued [[link removed]] at $2.45 billion — from third place to ninth in the Serie A rankings, which means it likely won’t qualify for European tournaments.
Juventus, which has been owned by the Agnelli family since 1923, announced [[link removed]] that it plans to appeal the ruling to the Sport Guarantee Board, which can’t amend [[link removed]] the penalty, but can order the case to be rerun if there were procedural issues. The penalty will be removed [[link removed]] if the appeal is successful.
Board Bans
Eleven top managers at the club have been temporarily banned, including a two-year ban from Italian soccer for former Juventus president and chairman Andrea Agnelli and a 30-month ban for Fabio Paratici, Juventus’ ex-sporting director and Tottenham’s current managing director of football.
Agnelli and Juventus’ entire board of directors resigned [[link removed]] last November following allegations of wrongdoing associated with the club’s financial statements.
Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, the WNBA is planning to test the Canadian waters, the Big 12 legacy schools could benefit from early exits by Texas and Oklahoma, Nintendo is ramping up production of the Switch console, and LAFC secures a record $100 million naming rights deal. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. The University of St. Thomas is in the process [[link removed]] of becoming the first NCAA school to ever jump directly to Division I from Division III. NBC Sports NFL analyst Tony Dungy reposted [[link removed]] an apology on Twitter for promoting a debunked anti-trans trope.
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What to Watch
The Kansas Jayhawks (16-3) face the Baylor Bears (14-5) on Monday night at the Ferrell Center.
How to Watch: 9 p.m. ET on ESPN
Betting Odds: Baylor -2.5 || ML -128 || O/U 148.5
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