ARLINGTON, TEXAS
Ticket holders swing for their seats
Prospective Texas Rangers half- and full-season ticket buyers this past Saturday were invited to win their tickets for free (up to $10,000) by hitting a home run at Globe Life Park, according to a Dallas Morning News report. Fans who placed a 25 percent deposit on half- or full-season tickets were eligible, but they also had to be willing to pay the remainder of their accounts in full by March 4 if they did not hit a home run. Account holders were limited to three swings against a pitching machine.
CHARLOTTE
Knights add protective netting
The Charlotte Knights are adding protective netting around lower-level seats at BB&T Ballpark to guard fans from foul balls and broken bats. The netting will extend 34 feet to the ends of each dugout. Work should be finished by the end of the month. The project will cost $75,000 and be paid for by the Class AAA Knights, who own the stadium.
CHICAGO
White Sox home to host college football
Northern Illinois and Toledo are set to play a football game this fall at U.S. Cellular Field, according to a Chicago Tribune report. The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority has been under pressure to generate more revenue, especially in the wake of Wrigley Field hosting several concerts each year.
CLEVELAND
Budweiser gets more at the Q
The Cleveland Cavaliers reached a new multiyear agreement with longtime partner Budweiser to become the official beer of the team. The partnership includes title rights to the Budweiser Penthouse Suite, which is perched at the top of the arena bowl and offers a panoramic view of the court at Quicken Loans Arena.
DULUTH, GA.
NLL team lands on FS Southeast
Georgia’s first professional lacrosse team is now the first National Lacrosse League team to land a TV deal with a regional sports network. Fox Sports Southeast is airing the Georgia Swarm’s home games via tape delay. The first three games have already re-aired, on Sundays at 11 p.m. with additional re-airs following. The team’s six remaining home games also will be shown.
GREEN BAY
College Classic ticket allotment detailed
LSU fans will be allotted 20,000 tickets for the school’s 2016 football opener against Wisconsin at Lambeau Field, according to a (New Orleans) Times-Picayune report. Wisconsin will get 40,000 tickets, while the Packers organization will get the remaining available 20,000 tickets. The game is being billed as the Lambeau Field College Classic.
LOS ANGELES
LA 2024 logo unveiled
LA 2024 released the official logo for its Olympic bid, with support from a Twitter campaign called #FollowTheSun. Ahead of the unveiling, the bid group was posting pictures of sunsets from around the world with the hashtag. The logo is a joint effort of two Los Angeles-based design agencies: 72andSunny and Bruce Mau Design.
Dodgers ditch paid programs
The Los Angeles Dodgers this season will provide fans with free programs as well as a scorecard, rosters and a glossy 80-page magazine, according to a Los Angeles Times report. The team last year sold a program for $5 and handed out one copy of a smaller program to each car entering the parking lot. The report noted that 11 MLB teams in 2014 did not sell programs, either giving them away or eliminating them altogether.
Dodgers, OVG seek more shows
The Dodgers and Oak View Group signed a multiyear exclusive booking agreement to bring more premium music content to Dodger Stadium. OVG was formed last year by Irving Azoff and Tim Leiweke.
MILLVILLE, N.J.
NJMP group to meet monthly
New Jersey Motorsports Park will be forming an ad hoc group called the NJMP Community Committee. The committee will meet monthly to review and discuss upcoming events, future real estate development, economic growth, and how to showcase Millville to the more than 600,000 fans expected to come to the facility this year.
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Orlando City SC set an attendance record for an MLS expansion team last season.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
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ORLANDO
MLS team aims for another sellout
Orlando City SC last week launched a marketing campaign in an effort to sell out its second home opener. Titled #FillTheBowlAgain, the MLS club is aiming to equal the 62,510 fans it drew for last year’s inaugural home game. The club said ticket sales for the March 6 match against Real Salt Lake were outpacing those in 2015.
PHOENIX
D-backs launch marketing campaign
The Arizona Diamondbacks launched a marketing campaign titled Join the Evolution that includes print, radio, digital and television advertisements and will be seen and heard throughout the state. There also will be traditional outdoor elements including billboards, light pole banners and a fully wrapped light rail train.
ROUND ROCK, TEXAS
Eatery earns spot at Dell Diamond
Ryan Sanders Sports Services, concessionaire at Dell Diamond, home to the Class AAA Round Rock Express, agreed to a partnership with Greenhouse Craft Food to operate a full-service restaurant in the ballpark’s Intel Club for 2016. The space will feature a menu of signature dishes found at the farm-to-table restaurant’s Round Rock location along with a few baseball favorites.
COAST TO COAST — BEYOND THE COASTS
BERLIN
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RAUE
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Chef sets up at Olympic Stadium
Bundesliga club Hertha Berlin agreed to a partnership with chef Tim Raue. The deal calls for creation of a VIP area at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium called Studio Tim Raue. The new area will have a capacity of 200 guests.
GLOUCESTER, ENGLAND
St. Quinton now team’s sole owner
Martin St. Quinton is now the sole owner of Rugby Premiership club Gloucester after buying the Walkinshaw family’s share, according to a BBC report. Club vice chair and businessman St. Quinton bought a 25 percent stake in 2008 and later purchased an additional 15 percent.
LONDON
FA cuts Cup ticket prices
The Football Association last week responded to the recent backlash from fans over ticket prices in the country by reducing the cost of attending the FA Cup final and semifinals, according to a (London) Daily Mail report. Five-pound ($7) cuts across the board for the Wembley Stadium final on May 21 mean the cheapest ticket will start at £45 ($64), while the semifinals will begin at £30 ($43).
MANCHESTER
South Stand to be renamed
Manchester United will rename Old Trafford’s South Stand after one of the club’s greatest players, Bobby Charlton, according to a (London) Telegraph report. The South Stand contains the only original part of the 1910 stadium’s infrastructure. The new name will be unveiled before Man U’s April 2 home game against Everton.
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND
Brewer partners with rugby teams
Premiership rugby club Newcastle Falcons reached a sponsorship deal with Greene King Brewery, according to a Chronicle Live report. The agreement will see Greene King IPA become the Falcons’ principal partner until summer 2017 and the home shirt sponsor of third-tier club Newcastle Thunder for 2016.
For more international news, visit www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/global.
