CBS Earns 42.6/64 Fast National Rating For Super Bowl XLI
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ESPN2’s “NASCAR Now” Daily News Show Debuts Tonight
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ESPN Launches Second Phase Of Busch Series Marketing Campaign
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Speed TV Inks Deals with BFGoodrich, Alltel Wireless, Sunoco
CBS EARNS 42.6/64 FAST NATIONAL RATING FOR SUPER BOWL XLI
CBS earned a 42.6/64 fast national Nielsen rating for Super Bowl XLI yesterday, up 2% from a 41.6/62 for Steelers-Seahawks last year on ABC. The 42.6 makes Colts-Bears the highest-rated Super Bowl since a 43.3/63 for Rams-Titans in '00. CBS also says last night's game was the second most-watched Super Bowl of all time, averaging 93.15 million viewers. Super Bowl XXX, which matched the Cowboys and Steelers, drew 94.08 million viewers (THE DAILY).
ESPN2’S “NASCAR NOW,” A DAILY NEWS SHOW, DEBUTS TONIGHT
By Michael Smith, Staff Writer, SportsBusiness Journal
ESPN's quest to become the authority on NASCAR begins tonight with the debut of "NASCAR Now," the net's first daily news program dedicated to the sport, at 6:30pm ET on ESPN2. The 30-minute, live show will have a "Baseball Tonight" feel, using analysts and insiders to debate, offer opinions, break news and break down highlights. Host Erik Kuselias, formerly of ESPN Radio's "SportsBash," will be joined in the debut episode by ESPN's lead motorsports analyst, Rusty Wallace, and former crew chief Tim Brewer.
"NASCAR Now" is the first shoulder programming born out of ESPN's eight-year rights deal, which begins this season with 17 Nextel Cup races and the entire Busch Series schedule. The program airs from Daytona, Florida, where the crew will stay through the February 18 Daytona 500, before moving to its permanent base in Bristol, Connecticut. Former late-night “SportsCenter” producer Jack Obringer will produce the show.
ESPN LAUNCHES BUSCH SERIES MARKETING CAMPAIGN
ESPN today announced the launch of the second phase of its NASCAR Busch Series multimedia marketing campaign, which will feature Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Stephen Leicht and 17 other drivers during the season. Three 30-second spots, via Wieden+Kennedy, N.Y., feature a character named Sergeant Doren who tries to standardize rules on the race track. The campaign will continue to run ESPN’s new NASCAR tagline, “NASCAR On ESPN: It’s The Life” (ESPN).
SPEED TV INKS DEALS WITH BF GOODRICH TIRES, ALLTEL WIRELESS, SUNOCO
Speed TV today announced ’07 sponsorship deals with BFGoodrich Tires, Alltel Wireless and Sunoco. BFGoodrich will sponsor “The Speed Report” and the inaugural “Speed Performance Awards” show, which airs Thursday at 9:00pm ET. Alltel will be presenting sponsor of “Wind Tunnel With Dave Despain,” and Sunoco, the official fuel of NASCAR, will sponsor a pit strategy feature in network pre-race coverage. Speed TV has also re-signed The Home Depot, Wrangler and Sprint Nextel for second seasons (Speed TV).
ITALY BANS SOCCER FANS FROM MOST STADIUMS AFTER VIOLENCE
Following fan violence at a soccer game in Sicily last Friday, Italian Interior Minister Giuliano Amato today said that soccer fans “will be allowed to attend matches only in stadiums that meet security requirements” such as having “entrance turnstiles, video surveillance and stewards to control seating.” Only about a third of the 18 venues used by Serie A teams meet the requirements. Matches could resume as early as Sunday, but there will be a fan limit of 5,000-7,000 for the games (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 2/5).
PGA TOUR DEBUTING ENHANCED ONLINE STREAMING COVERAGE
The PGA Tour and Turner Sports this week will roll out an enhanced three-channel, ad-supported broadband player at PGATour.com that provides additional coverage to fans free-of-charge. The enhanced service, part of PGATour.com’s LIVE@ franchise, debuts during the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with live coverage of the par 3 No. 7 hole at PebbleBeach.
LIVE@ viewers can select from one of three video streams: One shows every shot at a specific par 3; a second provides coverage of press conferences, highlights, player profiles and pre-recorded content; the final channel offers golf tips. LIVE@ is scheduled to cover at least ten tournaments, including The Players Championship, the PGA Championship and all four FedExCup playoff events. TNT’s Billy Kratzert, Jim Huber and PGATour.com’s Brian Katrek will call the action.
ALPINE SKIING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS POSTPONED BY WEATHER
The start of the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Are, Sweden, today was postponed for a third day “because of strong wind and poor visibility.” The event will begin tomorrow with both the men’s and women’s super-Gs, which had been postponed from Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Int’l Ski Federation President Gian Franco Kasper: “We are still not in a crisis. … But we do need a race tomorrow” (AP, 2/5).
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BUZZER BEATERS….
The ABA has selected Spalding to produce the official red, white and blue basketball used in all official games (ABA).
Tickets.com has renewed its ticketing agreement with the MLB Rangers and Hicks Sporting Group’s Mesquite Championship Rodeo (Tickets.com).
CIT Communications, Media & Entertainment is serving as lead arranger and administrative agent in a C$130M refinancing of the Senators and Scotiabank Place. The proceeds will be used to refinance existing debt (CIT Communication, Media & Entertainment).
Bodog reached a multi-year agreement with ION Media Networks, which will make Bodog-produced content available on ION Television. The mixed-martial arts reality show, “BodogFight: St. Petersburg,” will be the first program to be broadcast under the deal on February 13 (Bodog).
QUICK HITS….
“While the NFL has examined all week long the significance of two black coaches appearing in the Super Bowl for the first time, we look at the NBA history of coaching inclusion and wonder how in the world these two sports have existed side by side in the same country the last fifty years” – ESPN’s Michael Wilbon (ABC, 2/5).
“If you’re not wearing the proper bling and your diamonds aren’t real, you’re not getting into the club” – Brandon Powers, Marketing Dir of the OPM club at Caesars Palace, on the demand created by the February 15-18 NBA All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 2/5 issue).
ARTICLES OF INTEREST….
The MIAMI HERALD’s Greg Cote writes, “Somehow, gradually, the Super Bowl got away from the NFL and became a monster, a monstrosity” (MIAMI HERALD).
The TORONTO STAR’s Mark Zwolinski writes of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman’s 15th anniversary in the role, “The league’s initiatives to counter its rapid and dramatic fall in the U.S. have had little effect. … Bettman’s overall influence will now have to include how the game rebounds in the American market” (TORONTO STAR).
The DALLAS MORNING NEWS’ Mike Heika writes of the search for the next NHL Commissioner, “Hockey is a sport that has tried too often to be too many things to too many people. What hockey needs is a hockey person” (DALLAS MORNING NEWS).
Also:
Tampa studies Miami’s hiding of unsightly things for Super Bowl.
ESPN.com contributors debate David Beckham’s value to MLS.
Editorial asks for decision on future of Continental Airlines Arena.
How accurate are Web sites ranking college football prospects?
See the Articles of Interest section for more sports business-related links.
DAILY DOWNLOAD….
A videogame version of Bears CB Devin Hester returning the opening kickoff last night in Super Bowl XLI appears to have been posted on YouTube.com before the game began (THE DAILY).
$TREET WATCH….
The following companies are scheduled to report earnings this week:
See $treet Wrap in Friday’s Closing Bell for highlights of the earnings reports.
CHANNEL SURF….
Former NFLer Emmitt Smith will appear on CBS’ “How I Met Your Mother” at 8:00pm ET.
Basketball HOFer Magic Johnson will appear on NBC’s “Deal or No Deal” at 8:00pm ET.
Former NFLer Jerry Rice will appear on CBS’ “The Class” at 9:00pm ET.
ABC will air “In Style: Celebrity Weddings,” a one-hour special that will include highlights from model Niki Taylor’s wedding to NASCAR driver Burney Lamar, at 10:00pm ET.
SportSouth will debut a new format surrounding its coverage of Atlanta professional sports teams with the Lakers-Hawks game. The new format includes a 30-minute pregame show and expanded postgame coverage that will accompany Braves, Hawks and Thrashers games on SportSouth and FSN South (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 2/4).
Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban will appear on FSN’s “BDSSP.”
HEADLINERS….
Here are tonight’s headline guests on the following talk shows:
“Late Show”
Dr. Phil McGraw
“The Tonight Show”
Clint Eastwood
“Late Night”
Kristin Chenoweth
“The Late Late Show”
Danny Bonaduce
“Jimmy Kimmel Live”
Donald Trump (r)
DAILY DIGIT….
15.3 - Overnight Nielsen rating for a special episode of CBS’ “Criminal Minds” that was shown after the Super Bowl XLI postgame show from 10:30-11:30pm ET. The overnight rating was down 30.5% when compared to a special episode of “Grey’s Anatomy,” which ABC aired immediately after its Super Bowl coverage last year (THE DAILY).
NOTES & QUOTES FROM THIS DAY IN SBD HISTORY….
2004 "This decision is censorship, pure and simple. The NFL didn't like the show so it told ESPN to take it off the air" - "Playmakers" Creator & Exec Producer John Eisendrath, on the net announcing that it will drop the series.
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