BUFFALO
Sabres foundation supporting project
A partnership between two nonprofit agencies, Saving Grace Ministries Inc. and True Community Development Corp., will see an existing three-story facility transformed into new affordable housing for single mother military veterans. The $2.7 million Patriot Heights Apartments project is supported in part by the Buffalo Sabres Foundation.
CHARLOTTE
NBA All-Star Game awarded
The 2017 NBA All-Star Game will be played at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte. Bojangles’ Coliseum will host the celebrity game traditionally held on the Friday of All-Star Weekend, while the weeklong Jam Session event is expected to be held at the Charlotte Convention Center. The NBA All-Star Game was last held in Charlotte in 1991.
FULLERTON, CALIF.
New video board set for stadium
Daktronics has partnered with California State University Fullerton to design and manufacture a new LED video display for Titan Stadium this summer. The main display measures approximately 19 feet high by 40 feet wide, and a weatherproof design will safeguard the display from the elements.
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The price for non-student lower-level seats will increase from $945 to $1,140.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
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LEXINGTON, KY.
Wildcats increasing ticket prices
University of Kentucky fans will pay 13 percent to 21 percent more for men’s basketball season tickets in Rupp Arena next season, according to a Lexington Herald-Leader report. No changes were made to student ticket prices.
LOS ANGELES
South Korea backs out of Dodgers plan
South Korea’s sovereign wealth fund abandoned its plan to buy a stake in the Los Angeles Dodgers, according to sources cited in a Yonhap report. The Korea Investment Corp. had been in talks since last year to buy a 19 percent stake in the team from Guggenheim Partners, a deal estimated at $361 million.
MILWAUKEE
Naming rights could fetch $6M annually
Milwaukee Bucks President Peter Feigin said the team anticipates signing an arena naming-rights deal worth between $4 million and $6 million annually for the franchise’s proposed new home.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL
City Council OKs stadium study
The Minneapolis City Council voted 12-1 to create a working group examining infrastructure needs, development sites and tax implications of a proposed stadium that would house an MLS team, according to a (Minneapolis) Star Tribune report. MLS has given NASL club Minnesota United FC until this week to develop a firm plan for building a stadium.
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The red alternates will still read “SIXERS.” Home and aways will now sport “PHILA.”
Photo by: PATRICIA MADEJ
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PHILADELPHIA
Sixers unpack new uniforms
The Philadelphia 76ers unveiled the team’s new uniforms at a public event at Wells Fargo Center. The three new jerseys — white for home games, blue for away games and red alternates — were designed to pay homage to the uniforms worn by some of the team’s legendary players.
PHOENIX
Raceway to honor Gordon
Phoenix International Raceway will be renamed Jeff Gordon Raceway on Nov. 15, when the track hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quicken Loans Race for
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Gordon has four career wins at PIR, including three in NASCAR-sanctioned races.
Photo by: PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
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Heroes 500. The race will be Gordon’s last Sprint Cup Series race at the track as a full-time competitor. PIR also will release a series of five trading cards featuring Gordon’s image and key moments from his 24-year career at the track.
Coyotes fans boost tax revenue
Glendale’s monthly reports on Jobing.com Arena show the degree to which the city pulls in more in sales taxes during hockey season than during the other months of the year, according to an Arizona Republic report. The city during the 2013-14 NHL season took in $951,000 in sales taxes inside the arena during the eight months with hockey games, and it collected $1.1 million during the 2014-15 season. By contrast, the months without hockey brought in $259,000.
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A photo shoot will result in a team calendar to benefit Animal Rescue League.
Photo by: TERRY JACOBY
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PITTSBURGH
Pens renew with animal shelter
The Pittsburgh Penguins and the Animal Rescue League Shelter & Wildlife Center reached a one-year renewal agreement for the 2015-16 NHL season. The partnership provides for print, online, hospitality and logo rights, as well as official partner status. The team also will hold a game-day pet supplies collection to benefit the shelter.
SONOMA, CALIF.
Track signs official rental firm
Hertz Equipment Rental Corp. reached a multiyear agreement with Sonoma Raceway to serve as the official equipment rental company of the facility. Sonoma Raceway will make use of Hertz products and services for its events and day-to-day operations. Hertz also will have promotional rights, trackside signage, hospitality and other assets during major event weekends.
TAMPA-ST. PETERSBURG
Rays sign technology partners
The Tampa Bay Rays signed deals with Kitman Labs and Kinatrax to use cutting-edge technology and high-speed cameras that capture 3-D images of pitchers’ biomechanics in real time, according to a Tampa Bay Times report. Rays officials have declined to discuss details or the potential benefits of the deals, according to the report.
COAST TO COAST — BEYOND THE COASTS
LEEDS, ENGLAND
Leeds United to wear Kappa
League Championship club Leeds United signed a five-year kit deal with Italian sportswear company Kappa. The team will wear the new kit for the first time in its preseason friendly with Harrogate Town on July 10.
LONDON
Stadium conversion cost rises
Converting Olympic Stadium into the new home of West Ham United will now cost $432 million, meaning overall spending on the venue will reach $1.1 billion, according to a BBC report. West Ham negotiated an agreement to pay just $23.8 million toward the conversion costs.
Chelsea FC revealing stadium plan
Chelsea FC could be forced to find a new home for up to three years if the club pushes ahead with plans to expand Stamford Bridge, according to a (London) Telegraph report. The team will reveal its proposals for the venue at a meeting with local residents and supporters at a Stamford Bridge exhibition this week.
RIO DE JANEIRO
Rio mascots get cartoon series
The Rio 2016 organizing committee closed a partnership with Cartoon Network to transform the Olympic and Paralympic mascots, Vinícius and Tom, into characters for a cartoon series, according to a Globo Esporte report. The 32-episode series will begin Aug. 5.
SÃO PAULO
Corinthians using new software
Brasileiro club Corinthians began using management software from TOTVS with the intention of leaving its accounts more transparent for sponsors, investors and members, according to a Máquina Do Esporte report. TOTVS software has been adopted by 14 other Brasileiro clubs.
TWICKENHAM, ENGLAND
Fans to reveal Rugby World Cup shirt
Canterbury and England Rugby have put the launch of the England Rugby World Cup shirt in the hands of supporters, giving them the exclusive chance to reveal the shirt on July 6. Fans will be able to tweet and post images of the new kit on the morning of the launch day, ahead of when Canterbury and England Rugby unveil the shirt later in the day.
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