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Coast to Coast

AUBURN, ALA.
Auburn names interim COO

Former Texas A&M Athletic Director Eric Hyman will take over as Auburn COO on an interim basis, according to a Birmingham News report. Hyman takes over for David Benedict, who left Auburn to become athletic director at the University of Connecticut.

BLOOMINGTON, IND.
IU sets $170M fundraising goal

Indiana University announced plans for a $170 million fundraising campaign, meant to be split evenly between scholarships and capital improvements, according to an Indianapolis Star report. Those improvement projects include the ongoing renovation of Assembly Hall, enclosure of the south end zone of Memorial Stadium and construction of a 3,000-seat arena.

CANTON, OHIO
Hall adds Legacy Global to effort

Legacy Global Sports has signed on with the Hall of Fame Village complex at the Pro Football Hall of Fame to attract events, camps and leagues to the youth sports complex that will be a key component of the overall $500 million development of the hall’s campus. The complex will include a football-sized concourse area and a championship field with 1,500 seats.

CLEVELAND
Students attend Cavs workshop

The Cleveland Cavaliers, in partnership with Hennessy, teamed with the Marcus Graham Project last month to host the second annual Sports Marketing Workshop as part of the 12th annual Black Heritage Celebration. The workshop provided 20 Northeast Ohio students and young professionals with the opportunity to learn, network and collaborate with people in the sports marketing, media and advertising industry.

The WISE launch event in the Diamond Club of Minute Maid Park was sponsored by the Harris County Houston Sports Authority.
Photo by: AMITABHA BHAKTA / WISE HOUSTON

HOUSTON
Teams represented at WISE launch

Houston became the 12th chapter of WISE: Women in Sports and Events at an official launch event on Feb. 29 at Minute Maid Park. Nearly 100 new members joined WISE that night, with nearly 175 people in attendance overall. The event featured a panel discussion of Houston sports executives, with Reid Ryan, Astros president of business operations; Texans President Jamey Rootes; Dynamo President Chris Canetti; Rockets CEO Tad Brown; and Harris County Houston Sports Authority CEO Janis Burke.

LOS ANGELES
Hamilton joins new Ring of Honor

The LA Galaxy unveiled its Ring of Honor, with former team president and general manager Doug Hamilton among the first inductees, according to an Los Angeles Daily News report. Hamilton was MLS Executive of the Year three straight years, from 2003-05.

NASHVILLE
Sounds still playing The Game

ESPN 102.5 “The Game” (WPRT-FM) will continue as the Nashville Sounds’ flagship radio station for 2016, the fifth year of their partnership. The station will air the majority of the Sounds’ 144 games, with select games airing instead on sister station ESPN 94.9 FM “Game 2.” The Sounds are the Class AAA affiliate of the Oakland A’s.

NPF draft set for CMA Theater
The National Pro Fastpitch College Draft presented by Bownet will take place April 14 at the CMA Theater. The draft will see player selections being made by representatives of the league’s six teams.

2012 Olympian Sam Mikulak placed fourth in the men’s all-around at this year’s event.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES
NEWARK
Gymnastics event returning in 2017

USA Gymnastics’ American Cup will return to Prudential Center next year following the success of this year’s event earlier this month. The decision marks only the second time since 2002 that the international invitational will be held at the same arena in consecutive years. The 2017 event is scheduled for March 4.

NEW YORK
Nikon going big at Citi Field

The New York Mets signed an expanded three-year sponsorship extension with Nikon, making the camera giant the club’s official digital camera partner. Nikon will have the largest static sign at Citi Field, located just below the main videoboard. Nikon also will set up an activation space on the ballpark’s field-level concourse.

Delta takes off with Chelsea Piers
Delta Air Lines signed on as the official airline of the Chelsea Piers sports and entertainment complex, with locations in New York and Stamford, Conn. Delta will be the exclusive presenting sponsor for Chelsea Piers’ adult soccer, basketball and hockey leagues, including logo placement on team jerseys. Delta also will host SkyMiles Member Days at each complex.

ORLANDO
Magic dons ties and tennies, raises $650K

The Orlando Magic Youth Foundation’s Black Tie and Tennies Gala raised $650,700 earlier this month, with matching funds at 50 cents on the dollar provided by the McCormick Foundation. The proceeds will benefit nonprofit organizations offering youth-based programs. The 26th annual gala at Amway Center on March 5 was presented by Levy Restaurants in partnership with Lee Wesley.

PHOENIX
PIR, O’Reilly extend partnership

Phoenix International Raceway extended its longtime partnership with O’Reilly Auto Parts. O’Reilly has played host to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at PIR for many years and has been the official auto parts partner since 2010.

SACRAMENTO
River Cats, Giants renew affiliation

The Sacramento River Cats and San Francisco Giants agreed to a four-year extension of their affiliation deal. The agreement means the River Cats will remain the Class AAA affiliate of the Giants through 2020, renewing a two-year deal signed in 2014.


SAN FRANCISCO
Niners mark 70th anniversary
    
To begin a yearlong celebration of the San Francisco 49ers 70th anniversary, the organization released a commemorative logo that will be featured on a uniform patch, as well as team retail and promotional items. Design elements include five squares in the upper left corner of the shield representing each of the franchise’s Super Bowl victories.

SEATTLE
Pac-12 tourney staying through 2019

The Pac-12 Conference reached an extension with Force 10 Sports Management, the Seattle Sports Commission and Seattle Center to keep the women’s basketball tournament at KeyArena through 2019, according to a Seattle Times report. The tournament came to Seattle in 2013 on a three-year contract, with a one-year deal last year.

ST. LOUIS
Cards having fun with fans

The St. Louis Cardinals have created an honor called the For Really Entertaining Digital Award, nicknamed the FRED award (#CardsFREDaward). The effort aims to recognize fans for what the team considers extraordinary achievement in online video, mobile-based entertainment, and social media posts that celebrate and promote the team. The team plans to bestow the award on a recipient each week through the season, announcing the winners through TV, digital and social media outlets.

TEMPE, ARIZ.
Coyotes eye ASU for arena deal

The Arizona Coyotes are hopeful that an arena deal with Arizona State University could happen by the end of the season, according to an Arizona Republic report. The Coyotes have also had discussions with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and Phoenix about a possible shared facility with the Phoenix Suns. The efforts aim to solve the arena lease issues that have plagued the club.



      COAST TO COAST — BEYOND THE COASTS


GLASGOW, SCOTLAND
Ricoh plays rugby with Warriors

Technology company Ricoh signed on as an official partner of Scottish Pro12 side Glasgow Warriors. In addition, Glasgow fullback Peter Murchie will become the company’s brand ambassador.

HONG KONG
UCI event heads to velodrome

Hong Kong will host the 2017 UCI Track Cycling World Championships. The event, scheduled for April 12-16 next year, will take place at the Hong Kong Velodrome. It will be just the second time in track cycling’s history that Asia has hosted the event.

This storefront in Chengdu, Sichuan province, is one of 9,000 Adidas locations in China.
Photo by: GETTY IMAGES

Ambitious Adidas aims

for 12,000 in China

    Adidas plans to open 3,000 stores in China over the next five years, shrugging off concerns that a slowdown in the Chinese economy could hurt consumption, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Colin Currie, head of Adidas China, said the company is expanding to 12,000 stores in China from its current 9,000 and aspires to more than double the number cities in which it sells its running gear and tennis shoes to more than 2,200. Currie said Adidas is catering to China’s economic upsides, such as new government policies to foster the football industry and population growth. Currie: “The company will zero in on China’s smallest cities, expecting continued urbanization even in the face of economic challenges. We are cautiously optimistic, but we’re far more on the optimistic side.”

JINAN, CHINA
Credit check for Super League team

Chinese Super League club Shandong Luneng Taishan signed a sponsorship deal with international consumer finance provider Home Credit Group. The company, founded in the Czech Republic in 1997, signed a three-year deal with the club.

KOLKATA, INDIA
No TV blackouts for Twenty20

Fox Sports and Nine Entertainment brokered a late deal to broadcast the Twenty20 World Cup, according to a report in The Age. The deal averted a blackout of the matches in Australia for the tournament, which is being played in India and began last week. Fox Sports will air all 35 matches from the event, and Nine will broadcast all matches featuring Australia as well as the April 3 final.

MADRID
Real Madrid eyes roof addition

Real Madrid has begun discussions with Madrid City Council officials on a renovation of the club’s Santiago Bernabéu stadium, according to an El Mundo report. The outline is still in an early phase, with renovation plans having been discussed in years past as well.

RIO DE JANEIRO
Refugee athletes to compete

The International Olympic Committee said Olympic officials have identified 43 candidates for a team of refugee athletes who will compete in this year’s Summer Games in a message of hope for millions of refugees around the world. IOC President Thomas Bach said he expects between five and 10 athletes to be selected for a team that will compete under the Olympic flag as Team Refugee Olympic Athletes.

GE to manage medical records
The IOC selected GE Healthcare’s Centricity Practice Solution as the official electronic medical record to be used by the medical teams of the Rio 2016 Olympics. This marks the first time that all athletes and spectators at the Olympic Games will have their health interactions managed by an electronic medical record.

Liberty Mutual to insure U.S. medals
The U.S. Olympic Committee is working with Liberty Mutual to insure each gold, silver and bronze medal won by U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes competing in the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. A USOC sponsor, Liberty Mutual is also presenting sponsor of the USOC’s Road to Rio Tour, which will travel to eight cities leading up to and through the Rio Games.
 
SANDHAUSEN, GERMANY
Brothel gets sideline ads with team

Second Bundesliga club SV Sandhausen reached a partnership with local brothel Bienenstock, according to a Bild report. The deal runs until the end of the club’s current season. Bienenstock gets ad space on sideline boards along with a half-page ad in the club’s stadium magazine.

TOKYO
National Stadium lacks cauldron

The designers of the new National Stadium for the 2020 Summer Games did not include a cauldron in their plans for the Olympic flame, according to a Kyodo report. Adding to the complications is the fact that the interior of the venue is largely lined with wood. Officials are blaming a lack of communication but say they will fix the problem.

For more international news, visit www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/global.

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.

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