NBA and NBPA officials resumed mediation for a third straight day "as several smaller issues in the labor talks are starting to fall into place," according to sources. The two sides reportedly are "nearing a compromise on the annual midlevel exception starting at $5 million with a maximum length of three years." The owners also have "proposed a 'bonus pool' of money for high-achieving young players with performance-based incentives" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 10/20).

NBA Commissioner David Stern is “not present” at the meetings today, as he was “sent home this morning by his doctor with the flu.” Stern will be in “constant contact” with Deputy Commissioner & COO Adam Silver either through his Blackberry or “maybe they’ll put him on speakerphone.” ESPN’s Chris Broussard said, “It would be highly unlikely they’d complete a deal without David Stern present. … The feeling overall is that they won’t get a deal done this week, so you may see Adam Silver or David Stern cancel the rest of November in terms of the regular season at some point next week” (“OTL,” ESPN, 10/20).

ESPN, Fox and NBC returned to FIFA's Zurich offices today to submit second bids for the '18 and '22 FIFA men's World Cup events. The second bids were submitted at 6:00pm local time, and a network source said the winner should be announced tomorrow. The three English-language U.S. nets submitted their original bids on Wednesday. Sources said they were surprised to be asked to submit new bids today. ESPN has long been believed to be an overwhelming frontrunner to retain the rights. It is not known why FIFA asked for another round of bids, but it suggests that the bids were closer than many had predicted.

ESPN in '05 paid $100M for an English-language package that included rights to the '10 and '14 World Cups. FIFA also accepted bids for Spanish-language rights from Univision and Telemundo. It is not known if those broadcasters were asked to submit second bids. Bidding will cover all FIFA events from '15-22, including the men's World Cup in '18 and '22; the women's World Cup in '15 and '19; and all U-20 and U-17 games.

FIFA today announced the schedule for the '14 World Cup in Brazil and the 64 matches will be played in 12 cities across the country. Sao Paulo will host the opening match on June 12 and Rio de Janeiro will host the final on July 13. Most group stage matches will kick off at 11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm and 8:00pm ET. The round of 16 and quarterfinals will be at 11:00am and 3:00pm and the final will be held at 2:00pm (FIFA). The tournament's opening match will feature Brazil "playing at a 65,000-seat arena being built at Itaquera" in Sao Paulo (GUARDIAN.co.uk, 10/20).

The PGA Tour today announced details for PGA Tour Latinoamerica, an 11-event circuit that will run from September to December next year with stops in Mexico, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Peru. A complete schedule is expected to be released soon. The new circuit is the PGA Tour's "largest step into the Latin American market" and will "provide players a new way to qualify for the Nationwide Tour." The PGA Tour is "searching for an umbrella sponsor for the circuit, similar to the sponsorship of the Nationwide Tour" (GOLFWEEK.com, 10/20). 

EPL CEO Richard Scudamore has refuted talk of scrapping relegation and promotion in the league, insisting there was "absolutely no appetite" for such a change. League Managers' Association CEO Richard Bevan earlier this week claimed that some American and Asian EPL team owners "would be keen on a franchising model" in lieu of the current promotion/relegation system. Scudamore: "I could never see it; and there's been no serious debate about it at all. It's just a nonsensical starting point. ... It's scare-mongering of the worst order in my view" (UKPA, 10/20).

The MLS Philadelphia Union has signed a deal with CBS Radio's WIP-AM, giving the team its first-ever radio partner. The radio station will broadcast live 17 Union matches next season, as well as partner with the team to produce a weekly one-hour soccer show that will run through season's end in November. The games and weekly show will also be available on www.cbsphilly.com and via the Radio.com app. WIP-AM also serves as the flagship station for the Eagles, Flyers and 76ers (WIP-AM).

The NHL Kings have announced that they will "become the first pro sports team to add full game elements to their website and social networks." The team has partnered with gamification company Bunchball to create "The United Kings Family," an initiative in which fans can "earn points by watching videos, posting on the Kings' website, sharing news on social networks ... and participating in a variety of other online and offline activities." Users will earn online badges and trophies while "working their way up a digital fan leaderboard." Earning points will also "unlock exclusive rewards" such as signed merchandise, personalized messages from the players, behind-the-scenes videos and private arena tours (MASHEABLE.com, 10/20).

Saints Owner Tom Benson, Superdome Commission Chair Ron Forman and SMG Senior VP Doug Thornton tonight will host "a free-to-the-public lighting ceremony ... to showcase the capabilities" of the $1.6M LED lighting system that illuminates the outside of the venue. The event, in which the lights "will be set to a musical soundtrack," is part of a rebranding effort of the facility since Hurricane Katrina in '05. Thornton: "With the new imaging of the facility and all the renovations that have been done here we basically have a new stadium now" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 10/18).

Fox earned an 8.7 fast-national Nielsen rating (14.2 million viewers) for last night's Rangers-Cardinals World Series Game One, down 2% from an 8.9 rating (15.0 million viewers) for the Giants-Rangers opener last year. The telecast was the highest-rated and most-viewed program in primetime (Austin Karp, THE DAILY).

Clemson Univ. has joined the list of colleges and universities with online stores administered by TeamFanShop. The Jacksonville-based e-commerce provider and retailer also runs team stores for more than 45 other colleges and universities, including perennial top-sellers like Alabama, Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State and USC (Terry Lefton, THE DAILY).

Papa John’s has expanded its official sponsorship of the NFL and the Super Bowl to Canada, Mexico and the U.K as part of a multiyear deal. The company also will serve as the official pizza maker of the NFL’s Int’l Series games played in the U.K. (Papa John’s).

"I am very optimistic. I think there will be some good proposals and we will see what those proposals are on Friday" -- Transparency Int'l sports advisor Sylvia Schenk, on FIFA President Sepp Blatter's reform plans during executive committee meetings today and tomorrow in Lausanne (AP, 10/19).

"It's a league that pretends to be 'reinventing' itself when, really, it hasn't done any real innovation other than how it's embraced the digital world and its business relationships in Europe and China" -- GRANTLAND.com Editor Bill Simmons, on the NBA (GRANTLAND.com, 10/19).

SB Nation’s Tom Ziller: “Compare the Gumbel outrage to the lack thereof about @sportsguy33 saying NBA players lack ‘intellectual capital’. Stunning double-standard.”

The Guardian's David Conn: "Group stage matches in Brazil World Cup will involve teams flying huge distances for different matches - what will fans do?"

The N.Y. Times’ Howard Beck: “Key difference between Stern/Silver: When Stern mentions NYT in press conf, it's usually a barb. Silver praised feature on George Cohen.”

MLS Sounders announcer Arlo White: “Conducting Kasey Keller 1-on-1 for Saturday's pre-game show. Will grill him like a ginger Piers Morgan.”

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn: “Paging John Lackey . . . cleanup on I-80. RT @Slate 2,500 dead chickens on Vacaville, California highway”

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com. 

Nike PR exec Heidi Burgett tweets that with the loss of games due to the NBA lockout, the company is using 2K Sports "NBA 2K12" to debut Heat F LeBron James' new shoe, the LeBron James 9.

Pro Football HOFer and NFL Films Founder Ed Sabol will be profiled on NFL Network's "A Football Life" series at 10:00pm ET.

Humor site Jest.com has produced a satirical video for an NBA Lockout Fundraiser, because the NBA season "rests on the kindness of strangers."

1,388 -- Number of Gilbert rugby balls needed for the 48 matches of the '11 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand (FORTUNE, 10/17 issue).