People and Pop Culture
The Market
A measured look at this week’s holdings
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Nice and cold
Anheuser-Busch InBev will be an official sponsor of the NHL again after an eight-year absence, adding the league back to a dominant stable of properties that already includes MLB, NASCAR, the NBA, the NFL and the PGA Tour, among ohers. As for the NHL, while the price of beer rights is declining, it got three brands to pay for them: A-B InBev, Molson and Boston Beer, which also got hard seltzer rights.
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Bear down and out
Russia has been banned from the next two Olympic Games as the result of a four-year ban levied by the World Anti-Doping Agency. In addition to being absent from the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Games, Russia is now ineligible for the FIFA World Cup and any other global event covered under WADA’s code, as one of the world’s most successful sporting nations continues to find itself emrboiled in scandal on the global stage.
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Doubles partners
The ATP is trying something new. With Chris Kermode set to leave his post at the end of the year, the tour is replacing him with two people: Andrea Gaudenzi will be the new chairman and longtime Nike executive Massimo Calvelli will be the new CEO, with both taking over on New Year’s Day. The move highlights the growing influence of Italy on the ATP Tour, but both men will face challenges in smoothing over relationships with the tour’s players.
