This Week's Newsmakers: Horse Racing Takes Another Big Hit
THE DAILY each Friday offers our take on the performances over the past week of people and entities in sports business. Here are this week’s newsmakers.
 |
David Stern's Effort To Expand NBA Globally
Takes Another Step Forward With AEG Deal |
WIN: NBA -- DAVID STERN and Co. manage to steal some headlines this week despite being in the midst of the MLB playoffs and the NFL season in full stride. The league provides further evidence it possesses a much better plan for int'l growth than most other properties -- it formally unveils the long-anticipated plans for top-notch basketball facilities throughout China, and preseason games in Europe dazzle sellout crowds. Meanwhile, the Nuggets-Suns game at Indian Wells, the first outdoor game in 36 years, receives strong reviews, even if it may have gotten a tad chilly. Also, HP is intrigued by the NBA enough to sign its first sponsorship deal ever with a major pro league.
LOSE: BREEDERS' CUP -- Event organizers had spent months hyping a potential matchup of thoroughbreds Big Brown and Curlin in the Breeders' Cup Classic, hoping to breathe life back into the sport. But the '08 Kentucky Derby champion's retirement Monday is yet another setback in a series of devastating recent occurrences and leaves the sport without a name-brand attraction for an event that needs all the attention it can get. It's been a tough year for horse racing -- with the struggling economy leading to decreased handle at almost all horse tracks -- and one wonders if events outside the Triple Crown, such as the Breeders' Cup, will ever resonate with fans again.
DRAW: MLB PLAYOFFS -- Despite the economic crisis and upcoming Presidential election dominating the news, the MLB playoffs have held their own in some respects, with TBS posting significantly higher numbers than last year for its ALCS coverage. However, due in part to the final OBAMA-MCCAIN debate, Fox fails to see the same success for the NLCS. Now, pending another miraculous LCS comeback from the boys in Boston, the net seems poised to face its worst nightmare -- a Phillies-Rays World Series.
|
