Menu
Download the app

SBJ subscribers – Enhance your experience with the revamped iOS app

Coast to Coast

Bruins' post-parade includes Ace of Spades

BOSTON

BRIAN SPINELLI
Foxwoods President and CEO Scott Butera (right) holds the Stanley Cup with Shawn Thornton (center) and Zdeno Chara.
BRIAN SPINELLI
Shawn Thorton tries the bottle while Zdeno Chara sips from the Cup.
Bruins open some bubbly

After their parade in Boston, the Stanley Cup champion Bruins did some celebrating at MGM Grand at Foxwoods in Mashantucket, Conn. Team owners Ed Kane, Joe Kane and Randy Greenstein hand-delivered a 30-liter bottle of Ace of Spades “Midas” champagne, costing more $100,000. The bottle reportedly was double the size of what Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban purchased for his team after their NBA championship victory earlier this month. The bottle, which was signed by every Bruins team member in attendance, will be raffled off at a later date to benefit the Bruins’ foundation.

Retailer gets Cup showcase
That’s My Ticket, which makes officially licensed NHL products, was set up as a retailer at all three of the Boston Bruins’ Stanley

Game tickets become wall art with That's My Ticket officially licensed NHL offerings.
Cup home games this year as part of the team’s FanFest events. The company specializes in creating displays for fans to show off their game tickets and also converts tickets into wall art.

BUFFALO
Bills cut smoking, tailgate hours

The Buffalo Bills reduced tailgating time in the Ralph Wilson Stadium parking lots and curtailed all smoking at the facility. Parking lots will now open four hours prior to kickoff, down from five hours in recent years. The change is in line with an NFL recommendation to its teams. Additionally, if a person leaves the stadium to smoke during a game, the person will not be allowed to re-enter.

CHARLOTTE
Bobcats help supplier with marketing

The Charlotte Bobcats entered into a marketing partnership with The Supply Room Cos. The partnership provides Supply Room with a digital presence at bobcats.com, email marketing opportunities and hospitality in a suite at the arena. The Supply Room Cos. is an independent office supplier based in Virginia.

HARTFORD, CONN.
ING running through 2012

The Hartford Marathon Foundation extended ING’s title sponsorship of the race through 2012. The partnership began in 2008. The race brings more than 12,000 runners and 30,000 spectators to the city each October.

JACKSONVILLE
Outgoing mayor lists stadium needs

Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver said that outgoing Mayor John Peyton has given his successor, Alvin Brown, a transition statement about needed improvements at EverBank Field, according to a report in The Florida Times-Union. Major items on the statement reportedly include upgrading from analog to digital scoreboards and televisions and improving the stadium’s sound system, but there was no comment from either Peyton or Brown.

MILWAUKEE
Future of June race in doubt

IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard said next year’s Milwaukee 225 is a 50-50 proposition after a crowd of no more than 15,000 came out to the Milwaukee Mile on June 19 for this year’s race, according to a report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The race could move at the request of title sponsor Izod to Chicagoland Speedway, which is without an IndyCar race this year for the first time since its opening in 2001.

NEW YORK
Isles, Red Cross promote blood drives

The New York Islanders and the American Red Cross are teaming up to support blood collections this summer. The community initiative was officially scheduled to begin at the Islanders 2011 Draft Party last Friday, with a blood drive at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The first 200 people who donated blood were to receive a voucher for either an exclusive meet-and-greet with players that night or two tickets to a 2011-12 Islanders weeknight home game.

OTTAWA
NASL team awarded

North American Soccer League Commissioner David Downs gave official word last week that Ottawa will be home to a North American Soccer League team. The yet-unnamed team will begin play in 2013 or 2014, depending on the schedule for a renovation project at Lansdowne Park, which includes Frank Clair Stadium, the team’s home venue. John Pugh has been named president of the new club.

PHOENIX
Taurasi’s points will fill pirate’s chest

Snack manufacturer Pirate’s Booty will donate $10 for every point Phoenix Mercury forward Diana Taurasi scores during the 2011 season to Hoop Heroes, a fundraising initiative that benefits After-School All-Stars. ASAS provides free after-school programs to disadvantaged youth across the country.

PIR forming Fan Advisory Board
Phoenix International Raceway is recruiting current season-ticket holders to become members of its first Fan Advisory Board. The board will comprise 15 season-ticket holders and will be available to all current ticket holders as a resource for questions about attending events at PIR. Board members also will serve as mentors to first-time fans. Members will be chosen through an informal interview process and will be selected by the end of July.

SACRAMENTO
Masters event to bring in $23M

The World Masters Athletics Championships track-and-field event July 6-17 will bring an estimated $23 million to the local economy, nearly as much as organizers figure Sacramento reaped from hosting Olympic trials in 2000 and 2004. The event, hosted by the Sacramento Sports Commission, is expected to attract nearly 5,000 athletes and at least as many visitors.

SANTA CLARA, CALIF.
Stadium group starts with $1.5M budget

The first budget for the newly formed Santa Clara Stadium Authority totals $1.5 million for the fiscal year starting July 1, according to a report in the San Jose Mercury News. Tax revenue from properties around the planned San Francisco 49ers stadium site will provide the money to run the stadium authority, which is teaming with the NFL team to plan, fund and build the project.

SEATTLE
CenturyLink replacing Qwest on stadium

Qwest Field is being rebranded as CenturyLink Field after CenturyLink purchased Qwest in April. A new logo was scheduled to be unveiled at a press conference late last week.

SONOMA, CALIF.
Drift program gets energy boost

Infineon Raceway and NOS Energy Drink agreed to a multiyear partnership that will make the Queens, N.Y.-based company the presenting sponsor of the raceway’s new Sonoma Drift program. Sonoma Drift Powered by NOS Energy Drink will run in conjunction with the raceway’s STP Wednesday Night Drags program, which has been in existence since 1988.

SPARTA, KY.
Aquarius to develop speedway strategy

Aquarius Sports and Entertainment has partnered with Kentucky Speedway to develop a communication plan that includes a social and digital media strategy. The deal comes as the speedway prepares to host its inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, the Quaker State 400, on July 9. Aquarius will be responsible for marketing activities that include conducting on-site research and the development of a plan that will communicate with fans and race teams, among others.

CITY OF TORONTO
At City Hall (left to right): Colin Doyle, Mayor Ford, and Toronto Rock owner Jamie Dawick.
TORONTO
Mayor welcomes NLL champs

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford welcomed NLL Toronto Rock owner Jamie Dawick and team captain Colin Doyle to Toronto City Hall to be honored for winning the Champion’s Cup. Ford has been a vocal supporter of the team via Twitter. The team was officially recognized by the city for its excellence in winning the championship on its home floor at Air Canada Centre on May 15.

WASHINGTON, D.C.
Mystics partner with State Farm

The Washington Mystics and State Farm agreed to an official corporate partnership that includes a yearlong integrated marketing package for the company. The deal provides for an on-site local agent presence along with television, website and arena signage during the 2011 WNBA season.

Send your Coast to Coast news to: CoastToCoast@sportsbusinessjournal.com or phone (704) 973-1436.

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2011/06/27/Coast-to-Coast/Coast-to-Coast.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2011/06/27/Coast-to-Coast/Coast-to-Coast.aspx

CLOSE