Welcome back to the Spotlight! To those who were hoping that Tom Brady’s retirement (the second time around) meant that his winning ways in the NFL were over, you might want to sit this one out. Indeed, the future Hall of Famer, widely thought to be the greatest quarterback of all time (except for when he plays my New York Giants in the Super Bowl) has managed to work a pretty sweet deal for himself. For one thing, he’s in the first year of a 10 year, $375 million broadcasting deal with FOX Sports to handle commentary on NFL games. Now, he’s using a substantial portion of his salary to fund his purchase of a minority ownership stake in the Las Vegas Raiders franchise. In so doing, finds himself restricted by the NFL from having to do some of the more labor-intensive aspects of sports broadcasting—attending production meetings and meeting with players and coaches—all while collecting his same paycheck. In sum, Brady has gone from owning NFL teams (not the Giants) on Sundays, to owning an NFL team everyday. Brady’s detractors can take solace in the fact that the Raiders don’t win many games—for now.
- Famed singer-songwriter Randy Newman sells his publishing and recorded music catalogue to Litmus Music. Although the terms of the deal have not been publicly disclosed, rest assured that the dollar figure involved is enough for people to come out of the woodwork to tell Newman, “You’ve Got a Friend in Me.”
- Golf legend Jack Nicklaus finds himself embroiled in an effort to reclaim commercial rights to his name, image and likeness from his old company that has since developed an A.I. version of Nicklaus and attempted to restrain the real Nicklaus from using his name in a commercial setting. In other words, Nicklaus wants to take a mulligan to prevent the commercial value of his NIL from being nickel-less.
- The New York Knicks jersey patch sponsorship will shift from Sphere Entertainment Co. to Experience Abu Dhabi coinciding with an announcement from Sphere that it will be bringing another immersive entertainment venue comparable to its Sphere in Las Vegas to Abu Dhabi, bringing things full circle (or (4/3)πr3 divided by (3/4)r)
Endorsement Deals, Sponsorships & Investments
New York Knicks trade Sphere for Experience Abu Dhabi jersey patch partnership
October 18, 2024 via Sports Pro Media
Shaq adds DraftKings to his long list of endorsements
October 16, 2024 via Awful Announcing
Forest Road, Ares Billionaire Co-Founders Buy Formula E Team
October 15, 2024 via Sportico
Gorjana signs LA Sparks forward Cameron Brink as brand ambassador
October 15, 2024 via Retail Dive
NBA Star Wembanyama Sues ’El Wemby’ Retailer Over NIL Misuse
October 15, 2024 via Bloomberg Law
Billionaires, celebrities, and CEOs like Bob Iger are investing in U.S. soccer—and the beautiful game’s American gold rush is just beginning
October 11, 2024 via Fortune Magazine
USC's JuJu Watkins signs NIL deal with Gatorade
October 11, 2024 via SmartBrief
Sports
Report: NFL targeting multibillion dollar rights package for international games
October 16, 2024 via Awful Announcing
Tom Brady Raiders Stake Approved by NFL Owners in Vote
October 15, 2024 via Sportico
Jack Nicklaus fighting to reclaim NIL rights after new AI replication
October 12, 2024 via Awful Announcing
Why Every Athlete Should Think Like a Startup Founder
October 11, 2024 via Entrepreneur Magazine
Music Biz
Who will get Grammy nods?
October 17, 2024 via The Columbian
Carlyle-backed music venture buys rights to Randy Newman's recorded catalog
October 17, 2024 via Reuters
The year of the music licensing legal wars
October 16, 2024 via Verge, The
Film & TV
Tom Brady Isn’t a Journalist. Does His Raiders Deal Impact His TV Gig?
October 17, 2024 via Sportico
Kenny Smith: Entire ‘Inside the NBA’ cast ‘coveted’ by other broadcasters
October 16, 2024 via Awful Announcing
New Pro Women’s Basketball League Reaches TV Rights Deal With TNT
October 16, 2024 via New York Times
I, Robot Director Slams Elon Musk As Tesla Unveils Latest Designs
October 14, 2024 via Huffington Post UK
Netflix One Of The Key Beneficiaries Of $60B Anime Boom, Says Jefferies — Here Are The Others
October 14, 2024 via Benzinga
Gravitas Ventures Acquires ‘Kitty To Cooperstown,’ Doc On Beloved Major League Great Jim Kaat
October 11, 2024 via Deadline
NFL Gifts ABC a Bonus Six-Pack of ‘Monday Night Football’ Simulcasts
October 11, 2024 via Sportico
