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SBJ Unpacks: Dodgers Co-Owner Expects MLB To Be "Back To Normal" In 2022


Tonight in SBJ Unpacks: Dodgers co-wner Todd Boehly expects the baseball industry will not return to normalcy until 2022. 

  • A World Series like no other gets under way tonight.
  • ESPN's Seth Markman on producing "College GameDay"
  • WTA nears end of turbulent 2020 season
  • Sue Bird leads WNBA social value with playoff run
  • No end to make good season for sponsors and their agencies
  • Opendorse launches new products ahead of NCAA's NIL vote

 

DODGERS CO-OWNER PREACHES PATIENCE FOR RETURN TO NORMALCY

  • Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly ahead of tonight's World Series Game 1 said the baseball industry likely will not return to normal until at least 2022, per the L.A. Times.

  • Boehly, speaking on a panel at the Milken Institute Global Conference, said, "We’re looking for 2022 to start to feel normal again, while we work through this in 2021."  He added that the Dodgers are considering how to be proactive in working with public health officials and helping to lead a community response, rather than just waiting for guidance. 

  • Boehly: "We’re starting to think a lot about, come March, what are the proper testing protocols, and how are we going to get fans back into stadiums, and how can we test at scale? How can we have testing protocols that get people safely back into the seats, even if we have a vaccine? We think this is now going to be in our backpack of risks, and we’re going to have to figure out how to deal with it. Hopefully, quick, cheap testing is going to be one of the many tools that we have, and we’re seeing that develop faster and faster.”

 

RAYS-DODGERS WORLD SERIES GETS UNDER WAY

  • The Rays and Dodgers begin the World Series tonight in Arlington, and it marks the "most unique" in history, played on a "neutral site, with sparse attendance, mixed in with canned crowd noise, between two teams who didn't play a regular-season game in the Central Time zone all season," per USA Today. This season was the first with no fans in the stands until the NLCS, making the World Series the "first time the Rays will see fans all year, and with the capacity limited to less than 11,500, it may feel like a home game at Tropicana Field." The environment will be "like no other, but it will be a real World Series."

  • The L.A. Times writes the MLB season "came out right, after all." A season that "required an extraordinary effort to pull off is about to crown a credible champion."

  • Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman had a "major hand in transforming the Rays from among baseball’s worst to one of the best, and now they’re playing in the World Series against a Dodgers team he took over in late 2014 and has run incredibly successfully," per the Tampa Bay Times. Rays Principal Owner Stuart Sternberg said, "I understand why he left, but I don’t understand why anybody ever doesn’t want to be part of what we’re doing."

  • SBJ's Eric Prisbell will be on hand for Game 1 tonight from Globe Life Field. Check back tomorrow night for his recap of what it's like to attend a World Series game amid a pandemic.

 

ESPN’S SETH MARKMAN TAKES DEEP DIVE INTO "GAMEDAY" PRODUCTION

  • ESPN VP/Production Seth Markman said out of all the shows that ESPN has, none have been "more affected" by the pandemic than "College GameDay." Today, Markman -- who oversees the show’s production -- sat down with SBJ’s Andrew Levin to discuss producing “GameDay” broadcasts at present, with “half of the usual number” of personnel working on-site. Among key takeaways from the conversation:

    • On COVID testing: “I had concerns about testing … which we have to do on site every week. Your nervous when things like that are out of your control. We had some stumbling blocks along the way on testing, whether it was a couple false positives we had, inconclusives that we were getting.” 

    • The importance of taking “GameDay” on the road: “Traveling to college campuses is really part of ‘GameDay’s’ DNA. We’ve been doing it since 1993. We wanted that to continue. We wanted to stay true to what the show was. This show is not made to be made in a studio.”

    • On eventually hosting fans for a broadcast this season: “We’ve explored some ideas down the road, if there’s any way to have limited fans safely with distancing. We’re open to that. We’re not there yet.”

    • On production advancements that will last post-pandemic: “Some of the access we’ve been able to get this year has really been special and I think that’ll last way past the pandemic. We’ve been able to dial into interviews with coaches in their hotels, on the field before games, things that we couldn’t do that technology has actually allowed this year.”

    • An area the “GameDay” crew would love to go but hasn’t yet: “Las Vegas, for instance, is something that we’ve brought up from time to time would be a cool place to take ‘GameDay.’ I could see that happening someday with their great new stadium. But I think this year, unfortunately, it’s just probably not realistic to take a whole lot of risks.”

  • For more insights from Markman on “College GameDay,” check out today’s episode of “SBJ Unpacks: The Road Ahead” podcast.

 

 

WTA NEARS END OF TURBULENT 2020 SEASON

  • The J&T Banka Ostrava Open is underway this week in the Czech Republic, a big achievement for the WTA given the rise of COVID cases in the Eastern European nation in recent weeks, writes SBJ's Bret McCormick.

  • No fans will be in attendance for what is, at the moment at least, the penultimate event on the tour’s 2020 calendar. The pandemic has decimated the WTA’s year, wiping out its lucrative Asian stretch of tournaments in the fall, including the Shiseido WTA Finals in Shenzhen, China. The WTA’s 2020 calendar began with 59 tournaments (counting the Grand Slams), but 45 WTA events (including Slams and combined tournaments with the ATP) have been impacted this season. Thirty-three were canceled outright.
  • As it stands, the Upper Austria Ladies Linz event, set for Nov. 9, is the final entry on the calendar, though a few top players have indicated that their individual seasons are already finished. A third tournament, the Hana Bank Korea Open, still has a “TBD” next to its date. It was originally scheduled for Oct. 6 but its status is unknown. The WTA did not respond to an email seeking more information about the remaining 2020 schedule. 

  • It’s unclear why the ATP was able to put together a 10-event run post-Roland-Garros, while the WTA potentially only has two. Perhaps the women’s tour is done with what has often felt like a game of whack-a-mole to try to dodge the pandemic and safely host tournaments on a global stage. Some within the WTA are already looking to 2021, including the Volvo Car Open, which last week announced that, in addition to commencing major stadium renovations, it will hold its tournament next year – with or without fans -- after canceling its 2020 edition in April. 

 

SUE BIRD LEADS WNBA SOCIAL VALUE WITH PLAYOFF RUN

  • Lebron James was not the only basketball icon to secure a fourth championship ring earlier this month -- Seattle’s Sue Bird led the Storm to a WNBA championship over the Las Vegas Aces, further cementing her legacy as one of the best players in league history. According to data from Zoomph analyzed by SportsAtlas’ Will Cavanaugh, Bird’s success carried over to social media during the 2019-20 WNBA season.

  • An analysis of post mentions of player handles/names and WNBA on Twitter revealed Bird was mentioned in conjunction with the league more than 3,700 times, which resulted in a league-leading $683,834 in social value. Bird’s teammate, Breanna Stewart, finished a close second in social value with $637,115 earned across 4,300 mentions.

  • Rounding out the top five in the league were Aces forward A’ja Wilson ($614,057), Los Angeles Sparks forward and TNT analyst Candace Parker ($464,917), and Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi ($340,669). Zoomph’s social values are calculated using industry-standard cost-per-engagement (CPE) and cost-per-impression (CPM) metrics.

 

NO END TO MAKE-GOOD SEASON

  • As MLB reaches its ninth inning, and the NFL nears its halfway point, one season shows no sign of ending. For sponsors and their agencies, it’s been make-good season since the pandemic began -- and it will be for some time to come, writes SBJ's Terry Lefton. “Since March, we’ve been either negotiating or renegotiating,’’ said Momentum Worldwide Chair & CEO Chris Weil, whose client roster includes heavy sports spenders like American ExpressVerizon and Subway. “Figuring out the current value of any sports venue deal when there are no or few people in them is something none of us have ever done." 

  • Then there’s the not-inconsiderable matter of how many fans will be permitted at venues next year. Adding to that opaqueness is the lack of specificity regarding a schedule, especially after a year in which the NHL and NBA postseasons finished in the fall. Brands that sponsor sports typically make their plans 12-18 months out. "Confusion in the sports calendar is making brands more conservative," said Molly Arbogast, Founder & CEO of POV Sports Marketing.

  • As MKTG Canada Chair Brian Cooper explained: “Companies align with properties because their season matches their peak sale seasons. How will that change?" One agency Senior VP said: “We’ve moved from short-term blocking and tackling to, ‘How can we protect our clients, when we don’t even know when seasons will start?' Some are writing into contracts that a third-party expert will establish valuations later, but that’s like saying we’ll get a weatherman now to tell us the February temperatures."

  • For more, check out today's issue of SBJ Marketing.

 

OPENDORSE LAUNCHING NEW PRODUCTS AHEAD OF NCAA'S NIL VOTE

  • Opendorse, the tech company that connects brands with athletes, will launch two new products in late 2020 focused on the developing name, image and likeness marketplace in college athletics, reports SBJ's Michael Smith.

  • With the NCAA preparing to vote on NIL rights in January, Opendorse said that it is forming Opendorse Deals and Opendorse Monitor to better organize its offerings for the college space, while also enhancing oversight and security in a new marketplace of 460,000 college athletes who are expected to have NIL rights next year.

    • Opendorse Deals will essentially create a digital marketplace that provides brands and athletes the ability to find one another and then negotiate each step of an endorsement deal, whether it is an appearance for a fee or a branded social media post on an athlete's account.

    • Opendorse touts Monitor as a tool for college compliance departments to stay on top of NIL activity at their school, making sure endorsement deals are with credible parties and helping the athletes stay within whatever guidelines the NCAA ultimately sets. “The athlete market must be tech-driven, not just for the pros, but soon for student athletes,” Opendorse CEO Blake Lawrence said.

  • For more on Opendorse, see tonight's issue of SBJ College.

 

SPEED READS

  • The ongoing pandemic could impact MLS "far beyond this fall’s playoffs by pushing the start of the 2021 season back," according to the L.A. Times' Kevin Baxter. A source said that MLS "may be hesitant to start a new season in empty stadiums since income is its largest source of revenue." The delay would "presumably last until a majority of teams were given permission by local health officials to allow spectators back into their stadiums." 

  • Former LAFC President Tom Penn, who stepped down in mid-August to become the CEO of new venture Co.Protect, is also no longer a part-owner in the club, a team spokesperson confirmed to SBJ's Mark J. Burns. LAFC bought back Penn’s undisclosed stake around the time of his departure earlier this summer. Penn remains an executive consultant with the club. According to the spokesperson, LAFC isn’t actively looking for investors at this time.
  • Expect to see a lot more of augmented reality in the college sports world via a startup called College Emojis. SBJ's Bret McCormick this week in our print issue writes about how CLC has already begun putting the tech to work, starting with College Colors Day in early September. With the help of Sportsmanias, a company that has partnered with College Emojis, CLC created AR social media filters for 22 schools. For more, check out SBJ College tonight.

  • Hedge fund billionaire Steve Cohen is "one significant step closer to becoming the owner of the Mets." MLB’s Ownership Committee "approved Cohen to be the team’s next owner, with sources saying Cohen received seven of the eight votes on the board." Next up will be the eight-owner Executive Committee, "followed by the full ownership group, when Cohen will need 23 of 30 votes" for his $2.475 billion purchase of the Mets to go through. 

  • Following Doc Emrick's retirement, Mike Tirico, the "face of NBC Sports, figures to be in the discussion when its network executives decide what to do next," according to the N.Y. Post. Kenny Albert "could very well be the next man up," as he is NBC's No. 2 NHL play-by-play man and has done conference finals and the Olympics for years. But Tirico also is a "hockey guy and has called a few games for the network over the past few years."

  • The Tulsa Drillers, the Dodgers’ Class AA affiliate, are allowing fans to watch tonight’s World Series game on ONEOK Field’s 31.5x67.75-foot video board, reports SBJ’s David Broughton. Admission is free, and beer and hot dogs will be for sale. In what was a $1 million makeover, Fair-Play, a division of Trans-Lux Corp, installed the new board and replaced the stadium’s other video displays after the 2019 season. The club brought its food and beverage operations in-house in 2019. Nearly half of the Dodgers’ roster consists of players who played for the Drillers. “Each year we do an annual season ticket member appreciation event,” said Drillers VP/Marketing Justin Gorski. “This year it coincided with the Dodgers making it to the World Series and with COVID eliminating the season we decided to open it up for anyone who wanted to stop by.”
     

 

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Nov. 1 Deadline For Forty Under 40 Nominations Approaching

Sports Business Journal will recognize the next generation of sports leaders with the 2021 Class of Forty Under 40

Do you know a young sports business executive whose work is leading and reshaping the industry? Do not miss your chance to nominate them for this honor.

Visit www.FortyUnder40Awards.com to nominate yourself or someone else. 

Nominations close at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 1.

 

 

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