March 8, 2023
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For International Women’s Day, an all-woman crew [[link removed]] of more than 70 will call, produce, and lead ESPN’s broadcast of the Mavericks-Pelicans game tonight. Doris Burke, Beth Mowin, Malika Andrews, and Chiney Ogwumike are among the headliners.
Markets Adidas Could See $1.27B Sales Loss From Yeezy Fallout [[link removed]]
Adidas
Adidas has a long road to recovery from its breakup with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.
The athletic apparel and footwear retailer’s split from Ye — which came in October after the rapper and designer made antisemitic comments — could lead to the company’s first [[link removed]] annual loss in three decades. Analysts estimate the Yeezy brand accounted for as much as 7% of total sales.
The end of the relationship cost [[link removed]] Adidas $633 million in fourth-quarter sales and could reflect a $1.27 billion sales loss in 2023 “from potentially not selling the existing stock.”
If Adidas decides to not sell the remaining stock, the company’s operating profit for 2023 would be lowered by $527.1 million. With another $210.9 million in one-off costs, Adidas could report a loss of $738 million in 2023, compared to 2022’s $268 million of net income from continuing operations.
The company’s 2022 net sales increased 6% to $23.8 billion, but operating profit fell 66% to $705.4 million.
Adidas expects currency-neutral revenues to decline at a high-single-digit rate in 2023.
“2023 will be a transition year to build the base for 2024 and 2025,” said Bjorn Gulden, Adidas CEO. “We need to reduce inventories and lower discounts. We can then start to build a profitable business again in 2024.”
Gulden also said the company will invest in more sports because it’s the “DNA” of the company.
World UK Providing $710.4M Toward Equal Sporting Access for Girls [[link removed]]
Peter van den Berg-USA TODAY Sports
After winning the women’s Euro in July 2022, England’s national women’s soccer team landed another victory off the pitch as the world celebrates International Women’s Day.
Responding to an open letter written by the team, the U.K. government is providing [[link removed]] roughly $710.4 million over the next two years to create equal school opportunities for girls — including requirements to offer equal sporting access and a minimum two hours of physical education per week.
“The success of the summer has inspired so many young girls to pursue their passion for football,” said Leah Williamson, captain of the 2022 Euro champs. “We see it as our responsibility to open the doors for them to do so, and this announcement makes that possible.
“This is the legacy that we want to live much longer than us as a team.”
Only 46% of schools provide the same extracurricular opportunities as boys, according [[link removed]] to the FA, while 67% of all schools and 41% of secondary schools offer equal soccer opportunities in PE lessons.
ESPN reported that an additional $67.5 million will go toward open sport facilities outside school hours, with another $26 million made available to the School Games Organisers network.
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Sports Betting Georgia Strikes Down Legal Sports Betting Again [[link removed]]
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Once again, the state of Georgia has nixed sports betting legislation.
Monday was Crossover Day at the Georgia state capitol — the deadline for bills to be included in the current legislative session — and Senate Resolution 140, Senate Bill 172, and House Bill 380 did not advance [[link removed]] to a vote.
This comes just days after the Georgia State Senate rejected [[link removed]] Senate Bill 57, which would have permitted the state lottery to oversee legal sports and horse betting. The bill had advanced out of committee in February [[link removed]].
Sports betting legalization is now very unlikely to happen for Georgia in 2023 — and likely won’t be discussed again until 2024.
Since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) was overturned in 2018, Georgia [[link removed]] had sports betting bills on the docket in 2021 or 2022, neither of which passed.
SB57’s chief sponsor, Sen. Billy Hickman, claims sports betting could generate $300 million to $400 million annually for the state, as well as create $1 billion in state economic impact and more than 8,500 jobs.
Gov. Brian Kemp would likely be game to sign a potential bill after changing [[link removed]] his stance on sports betting in the runup to the 2022 gubernatorial election — he had previously opposed it.
Conversation Starters ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro is on the short list [[link removed]] of executives to possibly succeed Disney’s chief executive officer, sources told Front Office Sports. Pitaro famously snared Troy Aikman and Joe Buck to cover “Monday Night Football” for Fox Sports. Hot new trend [[link removed]]? From Patrick Reed to Brett Favre, current and former pro athletes have sued over 30 media personalities or outlets for defamation over the last 12 months. Michael Irvin compared [[link removed]] Marriott’s handling of a hotel employee’s misconduct allegation — which got him suspended from NFL Network — to a lynching in a Wednesday news conference in Dallas. “This sickens me,” Irvin said.
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What to Watch
The Chicago Blackhawks (22-36-5) take on the Detroit Red Wings (28-26-9) on Wednesday at Little Caesars Arena.
How to Watch: 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT
Bettings Odds: Red Wings -1.5 || ML -240 || O/U 6
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