ANCHORAGE, ALASKA
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The Nanooks and Seawolves will take to the skies in March with paint schemes on Alaska Airlines Bombardier Q400 aircraft.
Rendering: COURTESY OF ALASKA AIRLINES
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Airline to sport schools’ colors
Two Alaska Airlines planes in March will begin sporting logos for the two main campuses of the University of Alaska — Anchorage and Fairbanks, according to an Anchorage Daily News report. Each aircraft will be painted with the respective school’s colors.
BALTIMORE
O’s raise ticket prices, add price levels
The Baltimore Orioles are increasing season-ticket prices on all plans by an average of 5 percent, the team’s first increase since 2008, according to a Baltimore Sun report. The Orioles also will institute single-game dynamic pricing, with the team’s 81 home dates divided into five pricing levels.
BOSTON
Mayo signs mayo at Shaw’s
New England Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo signed bottles of his new mayonnaise at Shaw’s grocery store in Brockton, Mass., according to a Boston Herald report. Variations of Jerod’s All-Pro Mayo include Kickin’ Buffalo, Bruisin’ Bacon and Crushin’ Chipotle.
HOUSTON
Dickies titles hoops doubleheader
Workwear brand Dickies will title sponsor this Saturday’s college basketball doubleheader in Houston. Rice will play Houston in the first game, followed by Texas A&M against Oklahoma. The event, previously known as the Lone Star Showcase, has been renamed the Dickies Shootout presented by Target.
LOUISVILLE, KY.
Churchill Downs files to raise funds
Churchill Downs plans to raise funds through an offering of $250 million in senior notes due in 2021, the company disclosed in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The unsecured obligations would be issued through a private offering that is exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933.
MIAMI
Heat partners with GovX
The Miami Heat partnered with GovX to provide ticket savings to active, reserve, veteran and retired U.S. military personnel and first responders. In addition, GovX purchased hundreds of Heat tickets that it will donate to local service members throughout the remainder of the 2013-14 season.
Jeweler accepts Heat proposal
The Heat reached a partnership deal with jeweler Mayors. A contest called “Shoot for Happily Ever After with Mayors and Miami Heat” gives couples shopping at Mayors the opportunity for an experience during a Heat game that would include a live, in-arena broadcast of their proposal.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL
Vikings, Wells Fargo OK signage
The Minnesota Vikings and Wells Fargo reached an agreement in principle that will allow rooftop signage on the office towers that Ryan Cos. US plans to build for the bank adjacent to the team’s new stadium. The deal limits the size of each “skyview graphic” to 56 square feet. Team officials had expressed concern that the signage could conflict with their efforts to sell stadium naming rights.
ORLANDO
Magic, GovX partner on ticket effort
GovX and the Orlando Magic partnered to launch an online verification ticketing service exclusive to members of the U.S. military and government first responders. GovX is also the presenting sponsor of the Magic’s Guns and Hoses event, a basketball tournament for local police and fire departments set to take place this spring.
OXFORD, OHIO
Sports center construction OK’d
Miami University signed off on construction of an indoor sports center. The school’s board of trustees approved a plan for the $13 million, 91,000-square-foot building, which will be funded mostly by donors and school capital funds. The project will break ground in March with a completion date in late 2014 or early 2015, a spokesperson said.
PHILADELPHIA
Temple cutting sports programs
Temple University is cutting cut seven of its 24 intercollegiate sports programs to boost funding for the remaining sports. About 150 student athletes and nine full-time coaching positions will be affected when baseball, softball, men’s gymnastics, men’s crew, women’s rowing, and men’s indoor and outdoor track and field are eliminated in June.
Commission OKs Frazier statue
The Philadelphia Art Commission approved plans for a statue honoring Philadelphia boxer Joe Frazier. The statue by sculptor Stephen Layne will feature the image of Frazier knocking down Muhammad Ali in their 1971 fight. The plan is to have the statue erected at the Xfinity Live entertainment complex by the end of 2014.
SEATTLE
Storm partners with Special Olympics
The Seattle Storm reached a deal with Special Olympics Washington to provide a Unified Basketball program for girls. The organizations were set to hold their first tournament this past weekend at Seattle Pacific University.
TAMPA-ST. PETERSBURG
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The Captain Morgan party deck in left field will have drink rails and open gathering space.
Rendering: TAMPA BAY RAYS
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Rays plan Tropicana Field renovation
The Tampa Bay Rays are planning a major upgrade to Tropicana Field, including 360-degree pedestrian circulation around the venue’s lower seating bowl. About 3,000 seats will be removed as part of the effort. The Rays partnered with Populous on the project, which is expected to cost $750,000 and slated for completion before the 2014 season.
TULSA
Oral Roberts returns to Summit League
The Summit League added Oral Roberts University as its ninth full-time member. ORU’s membership officially begins July 1, and all 16 Golden Eagles athletics programs will compete in the conference starting with the 2014-15 academic year. ORU was a member of The Summit League from 1997 to 2012 before departing for the Southland Conference.
COAST TO COAST — BEYOND THE COASTS
BARCELONA
Barca signs Intel as tech partner
FC Barcelona and Intel Corp. reached a global sponsorship agreement that will make the company the La Liga team’s official technological partner.
CARDIF, WALES
Stadium generates $212M per year
An independent report into the economic impact of the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, revealed that it generates more than $212 million a year for the city and nation and sustains more than 2,500 permanent jobs. Econactive Ltd.’s report, which was carried out for the Welsh Rugby Union, concluded that the financial benefits delivered by stadium events are highly significant within the context of Welsh tourism.
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND
IOC recognizes American Football
The executive board of the International Olympic Committee voted last week in Lausanne to grant the International Federation of American Football provisional recognition. A vote on football could take place as early as 2017, and, if approved, football could join the Olympics in 2024.
MOSCOW
High security for Sochi documentary
The film “Putin’s Games,” which narrates accounts of corruption behind the 2014 Sochi Olympics, had two sold-out theater screenings this month and will air on television as well, according to a Hollywood Reporter report. The documentary, an effort the Kremlin wanted silenced, was screened at a heavily policed premiere in Moscow on Dec. 6. Both screenings at Moscow’s 600-seat Khudozhestvenniy cinema sold out.
SOCHI, RUSSIA
EU commissioner joins boycott
European Union Commissioner Viviane Reding will not go to the 2014 Sochi Olympics in February over what she said was Russia’s treatment of minorities, according to a Reuters report. Reding joins German President Joachim Gauck in a snub to the host nation.
Protest zones planned for Games
Sochi will have specific protest zones for demonstrators to air their views when it hosts the Olympics, according to a Reuters report. Russia has been under mounting criticism over its human rights record.
For more international news, visit www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/global.
