U.S. Drivers Make Up One Third Of Indy 500 Field

The Indianapolis 500 being won by any of the 11 American drivers entered into Sunday's race could "deliver a needed jolt to an Izod IndyCar Series," whose popularity "still lags well behind NASCAR," according to Nate Ryan of USA TODAY. Crowning a U.S. winner "would cement a resurgence for homeg ...

Tags: Leagues and Governing Bodies, IndyCar

FS Midwest Not Changing MLB Telecasts

FS Midwest for this year has "killed the idea" of adding some elements to MLB Cardinals games that would "bring viewers closer to the game, such as chatting with players not in the immediate line of fire while play is in progress," according to Dan Caesar of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Concepts dis ...

Tags: Media, MLB, St. Louis Cardinals

No Heisman Campaign For Bridgewater

Univ. of Louisville QB Teddy Bridgewater has been "billed as a Heisman Trophy candidate since the end of last season," but he has asked that the school "not mount a Heisman Trophy campaign for him," according to Eric Crawford of WDRB.com. He instead wants to have "any emphasis or publicity include t ...

Tags: Marketing and Sponsorship, NCAA

SBJ In-Depth: World Cup: One Year Out

All eyes are on Brazil as preparations continue for the '14 FIFA World Cup. The global dominance of the event has sponsors working overtime to craft activation plans and make the most of this major marketing opportunity. While we look at plans among sponsors and media partners, we’ll also high ...

Tags: Classified Advertisements

Names In The News

In Milwaukee, Lori Nickel notes former Packers Chair & CEO BOB HARLAN is a "10-year survivor of melanoma," and he has "immersed himself in projects that help the community." The Madeline & Robert Harlan Humanitarian Fund helps "cover the expenses like babysitters, lodging, food and gas for ...

Tags: People and Pop Culture

Chesney Tour Still Proving Valuable For Stadiums

Country musician Kenny Chesney is “considered such a valuable off-season moneymaker” for sports venues that “when word got out that Mr. Chesney intended to lay off stadiums this summer to focus on sites with half the capacity, managers of some of the NFL’s biggest buildings t ...

Tags: Facilities

NASCAR Struggles With Last-Minute Ticket Buyers

As NASCAR and Charlotte Motor Speedway “continue to deal with falling ticket revenue,” they also are concerned about a trend of fans “waiting to buy tickets until days or hours before the race, instead of planning trips in advance,” according to a front-page piece by Dunn &am ...

Tags: Leagues and Governing Bodies, NASCAR, Motorsports

Yankees, Mets Seeing Big TV Ratings Drops

YES Network is averaging a 2.52 local rating in N.Y. for Yankees games to date, down 38.7% from the average "after the same number of games last spring," according to Neil Best of NEWSDAY. Yankees games on the RSN finished last season with a 3.9 local rating, which was their "lowest in a decade." Th ...

Tags: Media, New York Mets, New York Yankees, YES Network

Brian Urlacher's Marketability Stays Strong

While former NFLer Brian Urlacher's career "may be over ... he's well-positioned to launch a second career in Chicago, if he so desires: marketing," according to Danny Ecker of CRAIN'S CHICAGO BUSINESS. The eight-time Pro Bowler had the "highest 'N-Score' among active Chicago athletes" in '12. As of ...

Tags: Marketing and Sponsorship, NFL

Weekend Events....

FRIDAY Memphis Mayor A.C. Wharton has declared the day "Grizzlies Friday," encouraging residents to wear team attire and colors ahead of Game 3 of their Western Conference Finals Series against the Spurs. SATURDAY MLB Giants President & CEO  Larry Baer will deliver the ...