Welcome back to the Spotlight! Please accept my sheepish apology—I had planned to use this week’s Spotlight to announce Taylor Swift’s latest album, “The Life of a Showgirl” but Jason and Travis Kelce beat me to the punch on their “New Heights” podcast. It seems having a top rated podcast, several Super Bowl rings and a high-profile romantic relationship with said recording artist, puts you higher in the pecking order than having a middling newsletter, a few legal profession awards and (checks notes) no prior contact with said recording artist. I’m not mad, Taylor. I’m just disappointed. Granted, we will never have a basis for comparison, but I will give credit where credit is due, as Swift’s appearance and announcement of her new album on the podcast has yielded a record for the most viewed podcast in history within the first 24 hours of posting.
It all boils down to yet another example of the melding of sports and entertainment coming together to launch to…new heights. As for me, I still have an announcement, after all: the Spotlight is going on hiatus during a period in which many — myself included (“The Life of a Lawboy”?) — will be on vacation. I hope to see you all back here in September.
- The Estate of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is selling ownership of the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers to an ownership group led by Tom Dundon. Dundon brings to the table not only sports ownership experience as majority owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, but also a last name that sounds like an episode of “Law & Order.”
- With news of Paramount’s $7.8 billion media rights acquisition for UFC, the mixed-martial arts event promotion company may be abandoning its pay-per-view distribution model about 33 years after first rolling it out, and about 30 years after I learned the distribution model was not “paper view.”
- After his translator was convicted for illegal gambling last year, Los Angeles Dodgers All-Star Shohei Ohtani is again courting controversy, this time on the receiving end of a $240 million lawsuit alleging he sabotaged a luxury real estate deal in Hawaii. Clearly, the highest paid player in baseball is finding out “Mo’ Money, Sho’ Problems”
- The International Olympic Committee is allowing event organizers for the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics to allow sponsors to secure naming rights for competition venues, abandoning long-standing tradition against the practice in favor of long-standing tradition of generating as much revenue as possible.
Endorsement Deals, Sponsorships & Investments
Los Angeles Olympics Will be First to Sell Venue Naming Rights
August 14, 2025 via Front Office Sports
Popup Bagels Targets Big Growth With PE Owner, Celebrity Investors
August 13, 2025 via Franchise Times
NBA Approves Boston Celtics $6.1B Sale to Chisholm Group
August 13, 2025 via Sportico
MrBeast Sued by Spalding Over Basketball’s Mark of ‘The Beast’
August 13, 2025 via Sportico
Adidas To Replace Nike as University Of Tennessee Outfitter in Ten-Year Deal
August 13, 2025 via SGB Online
Dawn Staley Details How South Carolina Women’s Basketball Deals with NIL, Rev Sharing
August 13, 2025 via Charlotte Observer
Tom Dundon to Buy Portland Trail Blazers From Paul Allen’s Estate
August 13, 2025 via Sportico
These Women’s Sports Leagues Offer Great Opportunities for Brand Support
August 13, 2025 via The Drum
Dodgers Star Shohei Ohtani and Agent Accused of Sabotaging $240M Hawaii Real Estate Project
August 12, 2025 via ABC News
Aaron Rodgers-Backed Startup Aims to be the IMDb for Pro Athletes
August 12, 2025 via CNBC
Tom Brady Questions Priorities in College Football’s NIL Era
August 12, 2025 via MassLive
Shohei Ohtani, Agent Accused of Exploiting Celebrity Status to Force Partners Out of $240 Million Realty Deal
August 12, 2025 via Fox News
College Football 2025: More NIL Nonsense?
August 10, 2025 via Forbes
Sports
Wrexham Not Slowing Down With $27 Million Transfer Spree
August 14, 2025 via Front Office Sports
Baba Oladotun Follows Top Basketball Recruits In Reclassifying And Earning Money Sooner
August 11, 2025 via Forbes
Stanford Alum Cameron Brink Relishes Return to Bay Area, Her “Second Home”
August 10, 2025 via Mercury News
Music Biz
Taylor Swift’s ‘New Heights’ Podcast Earns 13 Million YouTube Views in 24 Hours as She Unveils ‘The Life of a Showgirl’
August 14, 2025 via Variety
Universal Music Korea Inks Lim Kim-Exclusive As K-Pop Roster Broadens
August 14, 2025 via Digital Music News
Spotify Strikes Licensing Deal with Kobalt that 'Unlocks New Growth' for Songwriters
August 14, 2025 via Music Week
Eminem’s ‘Stans’ Sets Streaming Date
August 13, 2025 via Hollywood Reporter
Signed: Lanie Gardner Is on the Right TRACK; ONErpm Inks Daya, G. Love & Special Sauce
August 12, 2025 via Billboard
Film & TV
Oct. 7 Documentary ‘The Road Between Us’ to Screen at TIFF After Fest Resolves Concerns
August 15, 2025 via Variety
Skydance Completes $8B Paramount Merger, Acquires $7.7B UFC Rights
August 13, 2025 via Web Prone News
Dana White Not Ruling Out UFC Still Doing Pay-Per-Views Under Paramount Deal
August 12, 2025 via Awful Announcing
