The NHL is "ready to expand for the first time" since '00, and Commissioner Gary Bettman today in Las Vegas will announce the BOG's decision. A two-thirds vote is "required among the 30 owners to approve expansion." Bill Foley is "prepared to pay" the $500M fee for a Las Vegas franchise. Quebec City also applied for expansion but is "expected to have its bid put on hold." Bettman during the 1:00pm PT press conference also will discuss "other league matters," and NHL Network will televise it live.

Since word of the NHL Exec Committee's approving Las Vegas for expansion "leaked out last week, several hundred" season-ticket deposits have been placed, "pushing the total over 14,000." All 44 suites in T-Mobile Arena "have been sold out and the list of corporate sponsors who are ready to get on board with the team continues to grow" (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 6/22).

A crowd of 70,858 attended Argentina's 4-0 win over the U.S. in last night's Copa America Centenario semifinal at NRG Stadium, "the largest to witness a soccer match in Houston." Attendance surpassed the "70,728 that saw the MLS All-Stars take on Manchester United" in '10. Stadium officials on Monday "officially announced the match as a sellout" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 6/22).

It took "fewer than three minutes" for Argentina F Lionel Messi to "put his otherworldly stamp" on the match. The U.S. will "play in the third-place game Saturday night in Phoenix" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 6/22). One of the "most-hyped soccer showdowns in Houston history felt more and more like a friendly exhibition as each minute passed." Meanwhile, "a combined 183,985" bought tickets to the three Copa America matches in Houston (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 6/22).

Golfer Rory McIlroy today "became one of the most high-profile sports stars to opt out" of the Rio Games because of "concerns about the Zika virus." He said it is "a risk I am unwilling to take." McIlroy: "My health and my family's health comes before anything else." McIlroy, ranked No. 4 in the world, was "scheduled to play for Ireland as golf makes its return to the Olympics for the first time since 1904." The Olympic Committee of Ireland said it was "extremely disappointed" not to have him on the team (AP, 6/22).

McIlroy's withdrawal is "a disappointing decision" for the sport. McIlory: "I trust the Irish people will understand my decision" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 6/22). This marks "another blow" to golf's future in the Games, as McIlroy joins fellow golfers Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel and Vijay Singh "on the sidelines." The IOC "may not be keen to continue" with golf, "especially if more of the game's top players or major winners decide not to go" (IRISHGOLFDESK.com, 6/22).

The Chicago City Council today is "expected to approve" rules for "how and when alcohol is sold at the outdoor plaza" the Cubs are building next to Wrigley Field. Vendors would be "allowed to sell beer and wine, but only on days when games or special events like concerts are held – with strict limits on the hours when it can be dispensed." The Ricketts family "did not agree to all the limitations and sought permission to serve alcohol every day, all year." Cubs Exec VP Michael Lufrano said of the ordinance, "We hope we can keep working on it" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 6/22).

Up to 500,000 people are "expected to participate in Cleveland's parade" today to celebrate the Cavaliers' first NBA championship. The festivities begin at 11:00am ET. The city "warned that the event is family friendly and the consumption of alcohol is prohibited." The city of Akron and the LeBron James Family Foundation "will hold an Akron celebration" at 7:00pm tomorrow in that city's downtown (OHIO.com, 6/22). FS Ohio "will provide extensive coverage" of today's parade, and "will also partner" with several local TV stations. Cleveland.com "will carry a live feed" (CLEVELAND..com, 6/21).

Meanwhile, the Cleveland PLAIN DEALER profiles former Cavaliers broadcaster Joe Tait. The Cavs' championship run "has him in a very good mood" despite his recent cancer diagnosis (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 6/22).

Women In Sports & Events today holds its annual Women of the Year Awards Luncheon at the N.Y. Marriott Marquis. This year's recipients are NFL Senior VP/Sponsorship & Partnership Management Renie Anderson, NBA President of Social Responsibility & Player Programs Kathy Behrens and WME-IMG President of Business Affairs Karen Brodkin. They will be introduced by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and WME-IMG Chief Content Officer Mark Shapiro, respectively. ESPN Exec VP & CFO Christine Driessen will introduce ESPN President John Skipper as this year's Champion Award winner.

Also today in N.Y., the Cynopsis Sports Business Summit will feature the induction of ESPN Founder Bill Rasmussen, ISC CEO Lesa France Kennedy, MLB VP/Social Responsibility & Inclusion Billy Bean and NBC Sports Group Chair Mark Lazarus into its HOF in a 12:30pm ET awards ceremony (THE DAILY).

The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association announced a sponsorship with Clif Bar, making it the official energy food of the Ski, Snowboarding and Freeskiing teams. The partnership runs through the '18-19 season (THE DAILY).

The Univ. of Pennsylvania has selected Spectra by Comcast Spectacor to provide ticketing and fan engagement services. Penn is Spectra's first Ivy League client (Spectra).

Nashville's USL expansion franchise will announce its name and logo on July 1 during a public event at Bridgestone Arena (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 6/22).

Univ. of Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari tomorrow is set to do ESPN's "'Car Wash' through various avenues of programming" to coincide with the NBA Draft (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 6/22).

Netherlands-based Altice completed a $17.7B acquisition of Cablevision. With its previous purchase of Suddenlink, Altice is now the U.S.' "No. 4 cable operator" (DEADLINE.com, 6/21).

Hundreds of fans brought their dogs to Comerica Park last night for the Tigers' inaugural "Bark at the Park" game against the Mariners. Dogs "received treats, spray-painted stencils, played in small plastic tubs of water and posed for photos" (DETROIT NEWS, 6/22).

"It's sort of like the atom bomb. You have it, but the goal is never to use it.  But football would be just fine without this" – Agent Leigh Steinberg, on the NFL's franchise tag (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 6/22).

"The Verizon IndyCar Series belongs at places like Watkins Glen. We are going places where there is great racing taking place and we believe events like this will fire up the fan base" – IndyCar Senior Manager of Editorial Projects Mark Robinson, on the Labor Day weekend race at the New York track, which replaces the scuttled Boston event (Elmira STAR-GAZETTE, 6/22).

"I'm still on the hook, but it makes managing the situation a little bit easier" – Former NFLer Earnest Byner, on how he views his costly fumble for the Browns in the '88 AFC title game in light of the Cavaliers breaking Cleveland's championship drought ("Mad Dog Radio," SiriusXM, 6/21).

"Typically, we advise our athletes to shy away from discussing politics, religion or finances. But this year I'll tell my guys: 'I don't care who you are voting for, keep it to yourself.' It's not the right climate to be aligning yourself with either candidate" – EAG Sports Management CEO Denise White, whose firm has two dozen NFL players as clients (MMQB.SI.com, 6/21).

The BOSTON GLOBE notes Cavaliers F LeBron James has "made it beautifully clear he knows his place in the game and has chosen to stand for more than himself." James "seems to understand his role in helping young black males beat the odds."

The EDMONTON JOURNAL on potential bids by Calgary for the '26 Winter Games and Edmonton for the '22 Commonwealth Games: “Since it is highly unlikely the province and Ottawa would support two Alberta bids of that financial magnitude in the same year, the more reasonable option is a regional bid, and it really ought to be the Olympics.”

Also:

• A petition is circulating to name Louisville Int'l Airport after Muhammad Ali.
• The BOSTON GLOBE goes "behind the scenes with the Celtics' draft strategists."
• The USGA "deserves heat" for the Dustin Johnson rules debacle at the U.S. Open.
• Golf startup uses smartphone, sensors to add "data technology to ancient game."
• 10 ways college athletes can "get paid and remain eligible for their sport."

With Rory out, 2nd Irish spot goes to GMac whose wife is pregnant/due in Sept. Just speculation, but won't be shocked to see him skip, too.

— Will Gray (@WillGrayGC) June 22, 2016

While respecting reasons behind McIlroy's decision, I wonder how out of line golf will be on Zika absentees compared with other sports?

— Iain Carter (@iaincartergolf) June 22, 2016

Don't watch soccer and not watching #FS1 but it's not hard to sync video and audio on a feed. Like, really not hard. #FOXSports

— John Daly (@TheDalyPlanet) June 22, 2016

Dueling home games don't happen often but #Mets outdrew #Yankees 40,122-34,769 tonight. I'm guessing that hasn't happened in 25 years.

— Mike Vaccaro (@MikeVacc) June 22, 2016

Las Vegas as a hockey town? It's in the cards. It's a gamble yes, but with their poker-faced owner, I see this thing coming up aces in end

— Adrian Dater (@adater) June 22, 2016

Tencent and its partners have agreed to pay $8.6B for an 84.3% stake in Finland-based video game company Supercell, a deal that "will catapult the Chinese internet company to the top of the white-hot market" for mobile gaming. The deal for the "Clash Of Clans" developer "Tencent’s biggest-ever acquisition." Tencent is also a "global e-sports player" thanks to its '11 acquisition of "League of Legends" maker Riot Games (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/22).

Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Beatles Songs.”

“Later a book title, the two-word title of this 1968 song is a British name for a spiral slide seen at fairgrounds.”

Last night’s edition of “Jeopardy!” featured the category “Take Me Out of the Ball Game.”

For $200: “He retired in ’93, then came back to lead the Bulls to three straight titles; retirement and comeback No. 2… could’ve gone better.”
For $400: “On May 2, 1939 Babe Dahlgren (not Ruth) took over for this man who sat down for the first time in 2,130 games.”
For $600: “After winning a Super Bowl with New York in 2008, this defensive end hung it up; he soon began co-hosting a morning show.”
For $800: “His last match was a 1977 exhibition game between the New York Cosmos and Brazil’s Santos; he played for both sides.”
For $1,000: “In March 2016 he said, ‘Eighteen is a good number and’ after 18 years ‘today I retire from pro football.’”

“What is ‘Helter Skelter’?”

Correct responses to the “Take me Out of the Ball Game” category.
$200: “Who is Michael Jordan?”
$400: “Who is Lou Gehrig?”
$600: “Who is Michael Strahan?”
$800: “Who is Pelé?”
$1,000: “Who is Peyton Manning?”