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📺 ESPN talks deals with NFL, NBA, MLB
Illustration of the ESPN logo with eyes in the S and P shifting from side to side as an eyebrow raises
 

Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios

 

ESPN faces an existential crisis as it seeks to secure a streaming future while the cable TV bundle is in terminal decline, Axios' Tim Baysinger writes.

Why it matters: The "worldwide leader in sports" being partially owned by a major league would raise a bevy of conflict-of-interest questions.

No deal is close. But multiple sources say ESPN, owned by Disney, has been discussing equity stakes with the NFL, NBA and MLB.

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🏀 Hoops' winningest coach
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Tara VanDerveer celebrates in Stanford, Calif., yesterday. Photo: Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP

Tara VanDerveer, the Stanford women's basketball head coach, passed retired Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski with her 1,203rd career victory yesterday.

  • No. 8 Stanford won at home in Maples Pavilion, beating Oregon State 65-56.

Why it matters: A head coach since age 24, the 70-year-old VanDerveer now stands atop major college basketball as the winningest coach of all time, AP reports.

She's now 1,203-267. In 45 seasons at Stanford, she's had 14 Final Fours.

  • Video tributes from Billie Jean King, Steve Kerr, Dawn Staley and Coach K himself (age 76) played on the big screen.

Watch the video ... Go deeper ...

phkrause

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David Rubenstein = new Orioles owner
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The Baltimore Orioles celebrate after a walk-off RBI at Oriole Park in September. Photo: Patrick Smith/Getty Images

David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group, reached a deal to buy the Baltimore Orioles for $1.725 billion.

  • The Baltimore native is leading an investment group that includes fellow private equity mogul Mike Arougheti, Puck's John Ourand reported.

The Orioles are coming off a 101-win season and their first AL East title since 2014.

  • With young stars like Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson, the future looks bright for a team that hasn't won a World Series since 1983.

Keep reading.

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🏈 NFL coaching carousel is now complete
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Dan Quinn at an NFL wild card game against the Green Bay Packers on Jan. 14 in Arlington, Texas. Photo: Perry Knotts/Getty Images

The Washington Commanders have an agreement to hire a new head coach: Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.

  • The team's new owners want a coach who can provide some leadership for a team that hasn't been consistently good in a long time, ESPN reports.

Eight NFL teams have hired new head coaches this year, as some of the most legendary coaches in the sport's history stepped aside.

phkrause

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🏈 Super Bowl ads: $7m for 30 seconds
Illustration of a television with $100 bill on the TV screen
 

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

 

A quarter of all Americans who plan to watch the Super Bowl say they're more interested in the ads than the game itself, Axios' Eleanor Hawkins writes.

  • Why it matters: Brands increasingly rely on sports events — especially football games — to advertise on TV as traditional spots become less effective.

The Super Bowl is expected to attract more than 110 million viewers, making it one of the last remaining spectacles that pretty much all Americans watch together.

  • National ads are selling for $7 million on a 30-second spot.

Marcus Collins, marketing professor at the University of Michigan and author of "For the Culture," told us: "People saw the Bud Light debacle and said: I don't want any of that smoke. ... Expect a very humor-driven Super Bowl."

ps:What a waste of money! Just like political money fund raising!!

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Winter sports sadness
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Melted ice in an outdoor skating rink arena in Alberta, Canada, in March 2019. Photo: Todd Korol/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images

Warming winters pose an existential threat to seasonal activities and sports — and the economies that depend on them, Axios' Ivana Saric reports.

  • Cold-weather communities across the U.S. have been forced to cancel or modify some events and traditions because of unusually high temperatures, driven in part by human-caused climate change.

🏂 Details: The snowmobiling and cross-country skiing seasons in parts of Wyoming and Montana are expected to shrink by 20%–60% by the end of the century.

  • Colorado's Evergreen Lake describes itself as the "world's largest Zamboni-groomed outdoor ice rink," but its ice wasn't thick enough for skating until late December, and it couldn't support the Zamboni for another two weeks beyond that.
  • The annual Pond Hockey Classic in Syracuse, New York, had to be moved into a human-made rink.
  • The ice on the only ice runway in the Lower 48 states has been too thin for planes all season.

☃️ "People are sad," said Claire Wilson, the executive director of Minneapolis' Loppet Foundation, a nonprofit that organizes outdoor activities for the public.

  • "They're bereft, really, because it's part of our culture. It's how you get through the long winter, through the dark days."

Go deeper.

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Super Bowl 2024 - Highlights from Chiefs' win vs. 49ers

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are still in their Super Bowl champions era.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/39480722/49ers-chiefs-live-super-bowl-lviii-updates-moments-highlights

phkrause

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🏈 Super Bowl is most-watched show ever
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Data: Nielsen. Chart: Axios Visuals

Sunday's Super Bowl in Las Vegas was the most-watched telecast in history — with 123.4 million viewers across CBS, Univision and streaming platforms, Axios' Sara Fischer writes from preliminary Nielsen figures.

  • Why it matters: A nail-biter that ended in an overtime victory — combined with Taylor Swift sightings — drove massive ratings at a time when few events can pull together big swaths of the country.

🧮 By the numbers: Ratings were up more than 7% compared to last year's game, which held the previous record at 115.1 million viewers, CBS Sports said.

  • 120 million watched the game live on CBS, marking the largest audience ever for an event on a single TV network.
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Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes celebrates with the Vince Lombardi trophy while being interviewed by CBS' Jim Nantz. Photo: Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images

A record 202.4 million watched at least part of the game across all networks, a 10% jump over last year's 183.6 million, Nielsen said.

  • Univision drew 2.2 million viewers — the biggest Super Bowl audience ever for a Spanish-language network.

Explore the data ...

phkrause

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️ Play ball!

Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani participates in spring training baseball workouts at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix today.

  • This was the public's first glimpse of Ohtani in a Dodgers uniform since he signed a record-breaking 10-year, $700 million contract, which begins this season.

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Caitlin Clark of Iowa breaks the NCAA women’s career scoring record with a signature ‘logo 3'

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Caitlin Clark wasted no time becoming the NCAA women’s career scoring leader Thursday night, taking less than three minutes to score the eight points she needed to break Kelsey Plum’s record.

https://apnews.com/article/caitlin-clark-iowa-12e078352a92fe2effb307888775cdb0?

phkrause

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🏀 New NIL champion

💰 Caitlin Clark is now the top-selling athlete in college sports' NIL era — the new rules that allow players to profit from the use of the names, images and likenesses.

  • Fans scooped up troves of Clark-branded merchandise after she broke the NCAA women's scoring record. She sold more merch in the 24 hours after that game than any other college athlete ever has, according to Sports Illustrated.

phkrause

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Meet Grace Beyer, the small-school scoring phenom Iowa star Caitlin Clark might never catch

On the same night Caitlin Clark was adding to her NCAA women’s basketball scoring record before a packed house in Indiana, and a national audience on television, the Iowa sensation was losing ground to the most prolific active scorer in her sport.

https://apnews.com/article/caitlin-clark-grace-beyer-iowa-cf1668b650f11717b9a00abe0887e1ec?

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Iowa’s Caitlin Clark breaks Pete Maravich’s NCAA Division I scoring record

Caitlin Clark stood alone at the free-throw line on Sunday and made the foul shots that put her atop the all-time NCAA Division I scoring chart.

https://apnews.com/article/caitlin-clark-iowa-ncaa-record-8d2a9bc33a9fdc59177a5ca4fe7221a9?

phkrause

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NASCAR caught Joey Logano wearing an amphibious-like glove in a cheating violation

LAS VEGAS (AP) — NASCAR on Saturday displayed a clearly altered glove that Joey Logano wore in qualifying at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where aerodynamic-deflecting alterations were so obvious it looked as if he was wearing part of an amphibious costume.

https://apnews.com/article/nascar-las-vegas-logano-glove-982d3104c884b0ac202833c1657ec2fa?

phkrause

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NFL owners unanimously approve a rule that bans the hip-drop tackle

NFL team owners on Monday unanimously approved a rule that bans players from using a swivel technique to tackle an opponent.

https://apnews.com/article/nfl-owners-hopdrop-tackle-16f1d16a62e832ed82137aa2d43777af?

phkrause

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Sports betting's dark side
Illustration of a metal bingo ball cage full of small basketballs, baseballs, tennis balls, and footballs
 

Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios

 

Gambling's sudden takeover of American sports is already racking up predictable consequences, Axios' Sam Baker writes.

  • 🏀 The NBA is reportedly investigating Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter in connection with unusual betting activity.
  • Several people wagered huge sums on bets that Porter would put up below-average numbers of points and rebounds in recent games, ESPN reported. He did, and on both occasions, those bets were the biggest moneymakers of the day in online sportsbooks.

🎓 The NCAA is now trying to ban bets on individual player's statistics.

️ And all of this comes amid the scandal surrounding baseball star Shohei Ohtani, whose longtime translator allegedly stole $4.5 million from him to cover gambling losses.

  • The specifics in Ohtani's case are different — his translator was betting illegally, not with the online sportsbooks that have become so popular.

But the confluence has been enough to animate Democratic members of Congress who want to more tightly regulate sports betting, The Wall Street Journal reports.

🎰 The bottom line: Online sports betting is wildly popular, which is why leagues like the NBA have done an about-face to embrace it. But it's all happened remarkably quickly — so teams, players and league officials will have to grapple with its effects on sports in real time.

phkrause

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🏀🏒 Wizards, Caps to stay in D.C. for 25 years
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Ted Leonsis shakes hands with Mayor Muriel Bowser after a signing ceremony in Capital One Arena yesterday. Photo: Jess Rapfogel/Getty Images

The Washington Wizards and Capitals will stay in downtown D.C. at Capital One Arena through at least 2050 with a new $515 million investment from the city, Axios' Cuneyt Dil writes.

  • Why it matters: It's a jaw-dropping pivot by Ted Leonsis, who owns the NBA and NHL teams. In December, he rocked the region by unveiling plans to build a sprawling entertainment district in Alexandria, Va.

The taxpayer-funded plan stalled in Virginia's Democratic-controlled legislature.

  • It's a huge loss for Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R).

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said: "We are going to have a state-of-the-art urban arena."

Keep reading ...

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️ Rangers are undefeated
 
A photo of Texas Rangers rookie Wyatt Langford
 

Rookie phenom Wyatt Langford fist bumps Travis Jankowski. Photo: Cooper Neill/MLB Photos via Getty Images

 

Don't underestimate the Texas Rangers.

Why it matters: The Rangers enter the 2024 season as the reigning world champs, but most sports analysts don't even predict they'll win their division over the Houston Astros.

Yes, but: The 2023 champions are undefeated after a 4-3 walk-off win over the Chicago Cubs in last night's season opener.

  • The teams were evenly matched, staying tied into the ninth inning, when the Cubs scored on what appeared to be a tipped foul but was ruled a wild pitch.

Driving the news: Rookie Wyatt Langford — one of the Rangers' top prospects — had a standout night in his first major league game.

  • He hit a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning, earning his first RBI. Then he got his first major league hit in the sixth inning.

What happened: The Rangers played in front of a sold-out crowd, with fans standing several people deep to catch a glimpse of the champs.

  • Fans booed when the Cubs took the lead in the top of the ninth after the controversial call, which gave catcher Jonah Heim an error. They screamed even louder when Travis Jankowski hit a homer in the bottom of the ninth.
  • And then, with bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the 10th, Heim — in a moment of poetic justice — hit a walk-off single.

Flashback: The Rangers led the division most of last season but slumped in August, ultimately losing the division to, well, the Astros.

  • Texas entered the playoffs as an underdog but continued to exceed expectations, landing in the World Series after beating, well, the Astros in the American League Championship Series.

The bottom line: Sports broadcasters may still look at the Rangers as an underdog, but the World Series winners start the season with a largely intact championship roster and some exciting rookies.

🤩 Rangers fans, you're still not dreaming
 
A photo of the Texas Rangers opening day ceremony
 

This trophy can never be taken away. Photo: Tasha "Opener" Tsiaperas/Axios

 

👋 Axios Columbus writer Tyler Buchanan here, the biggest Texas Rangers fan east of the Mississippi River.

I normally enter each season praying this is finally the year.

  • Except my brain can't comprehend that the dog finally caught the car. We're the world freakin' champions. Now what?

Flashback: Understand, this is not a franchise historically draped in glory. We once had a pitcher get injured by tripping over his dog.

  • A slugger famously had a home run ball bounce off his head. Three days later, he asked to pitch an inning and suffered a season-ending injury.
  • There's also the Josh Hamilton saga ... IYKYK.

Yes, but: Everything is suddenly coming up Rangers.

  • In 2020, we drafted a skinny 17-year-old from Tennessee who later became a surprise playoff hero.
  • In 2023, Texas got a lucky high pick in MLB's first draft lottery. The team selected an incredible college star who rocketed up the minor leagues and debuted yesterday.

The bottom line: The baseball gods are finally smiling on North Texas.

  • No matter what happens from here, that 2023 championship flag will fly forever.

phkrause

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Hijab-wearing players in women’s NCAA Tournament hope to inspire others

N.C. State’s Jannah Eissa and UC Irvine’s Diaba Konate are bringing visibility and inspiration to some Muslim women by wearing hjiabs while they play basketball.

https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-nc-state-hijab-9bd5b9b4ce306eb34ba202f2ec9a26c9?

phkrause

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NCAA says 3-point line drawn 9 inches short at apex for Portland women’s regional by court supplier

The NCAA said Monday one of the 3-point lines on the court used for the women’s basketball regionals in Portland, Oregon, was about 9 inches short of regulation at its apex, a mistake by the contractor that makes the courts used throughout March Madness.

https://apnews.com/article/ncaa-portland-3point-line-d78742b29b8a48fa3f6b5de7899c7844?

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Caitlin Clark leads Iowa back to Final Four, scoring 41 points in 94-87 win over defending champ LSU

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Caitlin Clark put up another sensational performance to carry Iowa to its second straight Final Four.

https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-iowa-lsu-score-clark-6ed84515c128f0d413bc3c28ea79140d?

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All 10 skaters brawl off opening faceoff at start of Devils-Rangers game

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils started Wednesday night’s game with a brawl involving all 10 players on the ice off the opening faceoff.

https://apnews.com/article/rangers-devils-brawl-22e720cebcde0b7578d3458a2f29267a?

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When voters say ‘no’ to new stadiums, what do professional sports teams do next?

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Like a loss in the playoffs, voter rejection of a stadium tax plan will force the Kansas City Royals and Chiefs to reevaluate their approach.

https://apnews.com/article/royals-chiefs-stadiums-taxes-public-funding-f1381c8916144371b3037ebc5b2dcc47?

phkrause

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Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers have been in each other’s orbit for years. The Final Four beckons

Of AAU tournaments and Team USA practices. Of gold medals and deep 3s. Of the girl with the brown ponytail with the unlimited range who always seemed to know what was coming next and the blonde who never got rattled with the ball in her hands, by opponents or the sea of eyes constantly transfixed on her.

https://apnews.com/article/caitlin-clark-paige-bueckers-iowa-c9ee9671b55416dd3a6d4a1cffa87848?

phkrause

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50 years ago: Hank Aaron's 715th
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Hank Aaron brandishes the ball he hit for his 715th career home run, against the L.A. Dodgers in Atlanta on April 8, 1974. Photo: Bob Daugherty/AP

On Monday, the Atlanta Braves will honor the 50th anniversary of legendary slugger Hank Aaron breaking Babe Ruth's home run record, Axios Atlanta's Kristal Dixon writes.

  • "Hammerin' Hank" surpassed Ruth's 714 record when he hit his 715th home run on April 8, 1974, in a city that, just months earlier, elected the Deep South's first Black mayor and was forging ahead with its slogan of the "City Too Busy To Hate."

👓 Flashback: Former Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin, who tells Axios that she was at the record-breaking game when Aaron reached that milestone, says such moments "became a unifying factor ... in the Black community … and in some cases, with the white community, even when they disagreed on politics or policy."

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