February 23, 2023

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Mac McClung’s triumph at the NBA Slam Dunk Contest is generating a business boost [[link removed]] for the Philadelphia 76ers’ G League team. Tickets to see the Delaware Blue Coats are going for five times the daily average since McClung — whose two-way contract with the Sixers allows him to bounce between leagues — helped make this year’s edition the most-viewed Slam Dunk Contest ever.

Leagues MLS Expands Playoffs As League Strikes Major Deals [[link removed]]

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

It’s been a busy week for Major League Soccer.

Since Tuesday, MLS has announced plans to expand its playoffs and made deals with Audi, Adidas, and RBC Wealth Management.

The Audi MLS Cup Playoffs — which is named under Audi’s new deal extension — will add [[link removed]] two more teams per conference for a total of nine each. The 2023 postseason will also add two single-elimination wild-card matches for a best-of-three series in the first round.

Audi will also remain the league’s official automotive partner and presenting sponsor of the MLS Golden Boot Award under the extension agreement, which is reportedly for three years and will “pay a multimillion-dollar fee annually,” according [[link removed]] to Forbes.

This week, Adidas renewed [[link removed]] its deal with the league, reportedly worth $830 million through 2030 — the company’s largest investment in North American soccer. Its current contract, which is valued at $700 million, was signed in 2017 and expires next year.

MLS also announced [[link removed]] a multiyear deal with RBC Wealth Management on Tuesday.

The deals follow the league’s landmark broadcasting deal [[link removed]] with Apple in June, which is worth at least $2.5 billion over 10 years.

Companies continue to invest in the league as its franchises prosper — since 2019, the average team value has increased [[link removed]] 85% to $579 million, per Forbes.

The league added a 29th team — St. Louis City SC — for this season, which starts on Saturday, and hopes to [[link removed]] announce a 30th team by the end of the year.

Media Sinclair Revenue Plunges Under Diamond Sports Burden [[link removed]]

Shutterstock

Weighed down by Diamond Sports Group, Sinclair missed estimates in the fourth quarter.

The broadcast giant’s total revenues dropped 35% from the same period last year to $960 million. Its stock was down 6% on Wednesday.

Removing Diamond, which owns the 19 Bally’s regional sports networks, from the calculations, Sinclair’s revenue increased by 18% year-over-year due to strong spending on political advertising prior to the November elections.

In March, Sinclair deconsolidated Diamond, separating the company from its financial accounting despite still owning it. Diamond removed [[link removed]] Sinclair as an operator of its sports networks in December.

Diamond missed a $140 million interest payment and owes around $2 billion in media rights, namely to MLB, the NBA, and NHL, this season. The company — which is widely believed to be headed toward bankruptcy — is currently in a 30-day grace period in which it can negotiate with leagues and creditors.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said last week that if the company is unable to pay, the league would take control of the local rights of the 14 teams under contract with Diamond and produce games through its MLB Network.

Manfred added that the affected MLB teams would take a revenue hit in the short term, but he would seek to negotiate the right to stream games locally as part of any new deal for local broadcasts.

SPONSORED BY WENDY'S

Start Your Day With a Better Breakfast

Wendy’s Homestyle French Toast Sticks [[link removed]] are so good, some are saying they’re better than their Mom’s French Toast.

They are perfectly crispy on the outside. Perfectly fluffy on the inside. And perfectly perfect in every way. Wendy’s Homestyle French Toast Sticks might be the best thing to ever happen to breakfast.

You’re going to want to set your alarm a little earlier. Tell your boss you’re going to be a little late. Move a little closer to your nearest Wendy’s. Whatever it takes to start your day the right way with these sweet and crispy delights.

The bar for breakfast hasn’t just been raised, it’s been completely replaced. Choose wisely. Choose Wendy’s Homestyle French Toast Sticks [[link removed]] today.

Available during breakfast hours only, until 10:30 a.m.

Media IPL Games Will Stream for Free Under $2.7B Rights Deal [[link removed]]

IPL

Viacom18 is banking on advertising sales to bring in revenue as it streams the “Super Bowl of Cricket” for free.

The joint venture between Paramount Global and Mukesh Ambani’s conglomerate Reliance Industries beat out Disney and Sony to purchase [[link removed]] Indian Premier League rights for $2.7 billion last year.

Disney, which won the IPL’s TV rights for $3 billion over the next five years, previously carried TV and streaming rights through Disney+ Hotstar. The Board of Control for Cricket in India sold the rights separately for the first time in 2022.

Viacom18’s move to stream games for free — any amount of games for any length of time — hasn’t been announced. Bloomberg reported that the company is trying to offer games to as many people as possible to generate advertising sales.

Company executives have predicted that more than 550 million people will tune into the IPL games, which start on March 31 and last nearly eight weeks.

Women’s Competition

Viacom18 also recently purchased [[link removed]] media rights to the new Women’s Premier League for $117 million over the next five years — before the new league’s teams were even announced.

The BCCI generated roughly $572.7 million from sales of the teams.

“I believe that with a record media valuation earlier and now these high bids, the league will be a commercially independent and self-sustaining property,” said cricket board secretary Jay Shah.

Deals Microsoft Says $69B Merger Without ‘Call of Duty’ is Game Over [[link removed]]

Adam Cairns/USA TODAY NETWORK

Microsoft has remained optimistic about its deal to acquire Activision Blizzard — but it won’t go ahead without its signature title.

After a British regulator suggested [[link removed]] that Microsoft may need to divest “Call of Duty” to go forward with its $69 billion acquisition, company president Brad Smith shot down the idea that the franchise could be removed from the deal.

It is not “feasible or realistic to think that one game or one slice of this company can be carved out and separated from the rest,” Smith told reporters.

Regulators in the U.S., U.K., and European Union have been scrutinizing the deal over concerns that it could give Microsoft too much power in the gaming sector.

Microsoft recently reached deals with both Nvidia and Nintendo to put “Call of Duty” on their platforms.

The company has made the argument that the deal would benefit gamers and also pointed to Sony as a more dominant company in gaming, noting that it sells more consoles.

Smith described the choice now before regulators: “Do you want to kill a deal and cement Sony’s position and its 80% share in the European Economic Area, or do you want to let the future go forward with behavioral guardrails and remedies and bring this title to 150 million more people?”

SPONSORED BY WENDY'S

The Perfect Note of Nostalgia

Everyone has a sports memory that takes them back to their childhood. Front Office Sports and Wendy’s [[link removed]] teamed up to share some of their unforgettable sports memories.

Senior writer AJ Perez summed it up with five words — do you believe in miracles?

“I remember watching the 1980 Winter Olympics as a young kid and as the final seconds ticked off the clock in the U.S. versus Russia gold medal game, Al Michaels had arguably one of the best sports calls of all time. It was a classic underdog win and the moment where I became a hockey fan.”

Like unforgettable sports moments etched in our memories, Wendy’s Homestyle French Toast Sticks [[link removed]] make you feel like a kid again. Start your day with nostalgia and syrupy goodness!

Conversation Starters From the wildest passes and the biggest dunks to the final serve, Atmosphere Sports is streaming sports back to the center with live scores, highlights, and more. Learn more [[link removed]].* ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro and Disney CEO Bob Iger were added [[link removed]] as defendants in an amended complaint filed by three former ESPN employees who claim the network’s COVID vaccine requirement violated their religious freedom rights. Beasley Media Group has suspended [[link removed]] sports radio personality Tom Massarotti for making a racist joke about Black Americans. Front Office Sports Today They Said What?

MLR

“The light at the end of the tunnel … is the Rugby World Cup, the third-biggest sporting event in the world after the Olympics and the World Cup, is coming to the U.S. in 2031.”

— Harry Hardy, the chief commercial officer of Major League Rugby, on the league’s bright future and the sport’s growing popularity during the latest episode of Front Office Sports Today.

Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

Today's Action

NBA

07:00 PM

Pistons (+220) at Magic (-260)

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Sabres (+195) at Lightning (-230)

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07:30 PM

Pelicans (+175) at Raptors (-205)

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Question Of The Day

How many times a week do you buy food / drinks from gas stations?

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Wednesday’s Answer

39% of respondents use a rideshare app 1-4 times a month; 9% use a rideshare app 5+ times a month.

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