Sports Business Journal

Whose holiday is it? The National Basketball Association (NBA)’s or the National Football League (NFL)’s? Basketball got to Christmas first, football last. But it’s more complex than that. My piece for Sports Business Journal:

As the Curry Brand looks ahead to the coming year, head of marketing Nana Dadzie aims to elevate the brand beyond just being another sportswear label, but rather into a lasting legacy similar to Jordan Brand, which has grown well beyond its namesake’s playing career. Dadzie says that to achieve this goal, the brand will focus more on activations, expand its athlete roster beyond just basketball and further drive its globalization efforts. https://lnkd.in/e-3x-vHv

It's USC vs. UConn. JuJu vs. Paige. It could be the most watched regular season women's college basketball game of the 2024-25 season. And Fox is going prime time Saturday night. https://lnkd.in/e64MChA6

PNC has signed a long-term extension of its title sponsorship for the PNC Championship, a deal that now runs through 2032 https://lnkd.in/e8f277DH

The Super Bowl is heading back to New Orleans, a classic location beloved by #sportsbiz industry insiders for its walkability and cultural charm. But bring your wallet (or your company's wallet.) The Super Bowl keeps getting bigger and bigger, and expectations for corporate hospitality grow, but New Orleans is the smallest city to regularly host the big game. It's simple: High demand, limited supply = big prices. Terry Lefton and I collaborated on this first deep look at Super Bowl LIX party planning across the biz in the Sports Business Journal: https://lnkd.in/eehcM5xJ

Roger Goodell says all new NFL sponsors will have to commit to international activation: “When your intention is to be global, you need your partners to be global with a focus on how you continue to expand the game,” he said. In 2024, the NFL put to rest any notion that its international expansion was experimental or contingent; it’s now clear this is the dominant strategy for long-term league growth on Goodell’s list. SBJ's Ben Fischer on private equity, international and a mega-verdict that wasn’t https://lnkd.in/eZ5kv5sJ

"There's always going to be payroll challenges. We're never going to be spending the most money in our division. But we don't look at it as a negative. It's just the reality of the business we're in." Sports Business Journal

Tonight marks the first time yet that the NFL used its flex scheduling power to move games within the "Thursday Night Football" package (giving us a Chargers-Broncos game that has AFC Wild Card implications). So how do flex decisions get made? NFL league scheduling guru Onnie Bose joined the Sports Media Pod this week to break it all down.

Charles Barkley can't help himself. He's under contract at TNT this year and beyond and knows exactly how often he'll appear on ESPN next season. But that hasn't stopped him from flirting with NBC and Amazon, he says ... “We got traded to another network. I want to know exactly what's going on," he said on the Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday. "I'm not going to be doing five shows. I'm not going to be working four days a week on any network, either NBC or Amazon. That's not going to happen." https://lnkd.in/eimdGdbX

Uzma Rawn is MLB's new chief marketing officer. Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the change to MLB staffers early this afternoon during a town hall gathering. Rawn, a two-time SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree in 2020 and 2024, will continue to serve as SVP/Global Corporate Partnerships, but add CMO duties. Story: https://lnkd.in/eTWHQsgN