Infantino touts WWC success heading into the final, Messi's message, Kliavkoff's role in PAC-12's next steps, and the Phillies look to improve fan entry.
If you're going to be in New York City for the first week of the US Open, let me know. I'll be out there Wednesday and Thursday at Flushing Meadows and I'd love to say hi.
Also, did you know this? I didn't. Men and women will use the same Wilson tennis ball this year at the Open. The US Open had been the only one of the four grand slams that used a different ball for men and women. The change to one uniform Wilson ball comes after some women complained last year they were hitting an inferior product, but this year, men and women using the same Wilson tennis ball at the open.
And yes, we hinted on it yesterday, the NBA will tip off Tuesday, October 24th with a doubleheader on TNT. First game, the defending champ Nuggets playing the Lakers. Second game, Suns-Warriors. And yes, the following day, Wednesday, October 25th, that'll mark the NBA debut of Victor Wembanyama at home against the Mavericks on ESPN. So a good way to tip off the NBA in October.
And this is your Morning Buzzcast for Friday, August 18th. I'm Abe Madkour. Thanks for listening to the Buzzcast on a Friday. Hope you're doing well.
The Women's World Cup final is Sunday, 6:00 AM Eastern Time, England taking on Spain in Sydney. And yes, there are talks about allowing pubs and bars in England to open earlier than usual for fans as the game will kick off at 11:00 AM UK time. The UK government also said there are no plans for a public holiday if England wins the World Cup. So those fans who are hitting the pubs early better drink responsibly because you likely won't get Monday off even if you win.
Meanwhile, FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, declared the Women's World Cup has broken even after generating more than $570 million in overall revenue. Now, this is important because this edition of the Women's World Cup marked the first time FIFA sold separate broadcast and sponsorship rights to the Women's Tournament instead of bundling those deals as part of the Men's World Cup. So that the revenue figure hitting $570 million and breaking even, that is a positive good sign because I believe it's a signal FIFA will continue to keep those rights separate and just continue to build on each individual tournament.
Like he's known to do, Infantino also took a few shots. He took a few shots of critics of FIFA saying the decision to expand the Women's World Cup to 32 teams was the right one. He also brushed aside critics who didn't love the idea of the event being held in Australia and New Zealand, fearing the location and the time zone difference would be a detriment. But he praised the host, as he should. They've done a great job. And he also praised himself and FIFA. In the end, Infantino showed his confidence in FIFA telling the media, "FIFA was right. FIFA was right. As it happens quite often in the last few years, FIFA was right once more." Ah, such grace from Infantino, but it should be a great match on Sunday.
Let's move on, but stay with soccer. Lionel Messi finally met the media on Thursday. There have been a number of requests for him to speak publicly since joining Inter Miami and he spoke Thursday before the League's Cup final on Saturday. And his words were that of a man very happy with his decision to play in MLS and very confident in the future growth of MLS and soccer in America. He said that MLS is ready to take the next step and reach the same level of competition as other leagues around the world. And he said it's a perfect time for the game to grow in America, considering the competitions that will be played in the US such as the Copa America in '24 and the FIFA World Cup of course in '26.
In music to the ears of MLS leadership and ownership, he said everything is in place to witness top level football at MLS because of the country, the structure and a number of other elements. He believes the US men's national team is already very competitive and is held its own against top levels of competition. He pointed to the League's Cup where he noted there is no Mexican team in the final.
And another key point from Messi is that despite speculation, he said he would be fine playing on artificial turf once MLS resumes later this month. Miami is scheduled to play on two turf fields, Atlanta and right here in my hometown of Charlotte. There were some concerns that he would not play in those two games because they have artificial turf. But Messi said he spent his entire youth playing on artificial turf and he has no problems adapting. Now, that will be big news to both Atlanta and Charlotte. That'll mark major ticket sale numbers at both of those NFL stadiums. I bet those two games will easily draw north of 65,000 fans likely far more at both of those games. And with the games and tickets dynamically priced, the teams will see a big boost in revenue. But the bottom line is Lionel Messi continues to do and say all the right things and playing for Major League Soccer.
I was catching up on some reading from the day last night and one must read for you is Richard Deitsch's excellent interview with ESPN's Burke Magnus in the Athletic. There are great questions. Deitsch kept it moving, and there was smart insight from the always intelligent Magnus. One question we're sharing with all of you, Richard Deitsch asked, "What sports have the greatest growth potential in the next three to five years?" Magnus focused heavily on women's sports, women's college sports specifically. He targeted women's college basketball. He thinks softball and volleyball have just started to scratch the surface. He's also very bullish on gymnastics, as are many of my sources. He believes college gymnastics is prime to have a huge growth run. Finally, he believes the LPGA could be "a sleeping giant." So it's a really good read worth your time as Burke Magnus touches on a lot of worthwhile topics.
Another day, another key sponsorship for the Washington Commanders. We touched on one yesterday that Verizon had signed with the team and now another win for Josh Harris and landing Anheuser-Busch who will return as a team sponsor. Verizon and AB's Bud Light are both NFL sponsors, league-wide sponsors. And as my colleague Ben Fisher noted in his SBJ football newsletter on Thursday, a team signing AB and Verizon shouldn't be considered a big deal because those brands have a number of NFL team deals, and like I said, they are an NFL League sponsor. But for the Commanders, these are seen as big wins and it shows how far the team had fallen under Dan Snyder. Fisher reported that both Verizon and Bud Light started negotiating with the Commanders after Snyder had announced his intention to sell the team but months before Josh Harris closed the deal. Both wanted back into the highly desirable Washington DC market, but they couldn't deal with the negative headlines around Snyder's ownership. So with him out, they are back in. And like I suggested yesterday, sources said the NFL nudged both brands back to the Washington NFL franchise because there is a lot at stake to make the Commanders under new owner Josh Harris a big hit.
One very insightful comment from Oregon State athletic director Scott Barnes, who talked about the steps the Pac-12 conference, is taking to regroup after all the departures of other schools. Barnes said that as the conference is working through various scenarios on its future, its newly hired consultant, Oliver Luck, has been the one working closely with them. And Barnes surprisingly acknowledged that Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff has not been involved in the path forward. That comment was the talk of a number of my sources and meetings I had yesterday and indicates that Kliavkoff may be really marginalized going forward. Barnes said they are hopeful for some clarity on the future of the Pac-12 conference in a matter of days.
And finally, let's touch on this. One of the biggest issues teams face continues to be ingress and egress, getting fans in and out of their facilities quickly for games. So many new technologies have worked to address this. And one interesting one is of course, facial recognition. A program to watch is in Philadelphia where the Phillies, starting on Monday, will be the first MLB team to have what's called Go-Ahead Entry. And that means any fan who completed registration for the Go-Ahead Entry program on the MLB ballpark app, which includes a facial scan, will be able to walk through and have their tickets automatically scanned and it will be present at one gate at the Phillies Ballpark, Citizens Bank Ballpark, starting on Monday.
Now, the Go-Ahead entry program is completely voluntary and available to anyone 18 and older. The Phillies will watch how this expedites and quickens the pace of entry for fans, and the team plans to expand the offering beyond the first base gate next season. MLB said it plans to have Go-Ahead Entry at additional parks in 2024, but this is an important innovation that many believe will be a huge fan benefit and also a big breakthrough for the ballparks and facilities. I know, I think it could be an incredible benefit in terms of getting into very crowded facilities with this type of facial recognition program. So that's one very innovative story to keep your eye on.
And so that is your Morning Buzzcast for Friday, August 18th. I'm Abe Madkour. Thanks for listening to the Buzzcast. Have a great weekend. Stay healthy, be good to each other. I'll speak to you on Monday.