Barty says bye-bye; FIFA and NFL take crypto steps and an orange theory around Wilson's basketballs.
A shocker breaking today in the tennis world as Ash Barty has surprisingly retired from tennis at the age of 25. While ranked number one, and just after winning the Australian Open for her third grand slam singles title. Barty announced her decision during a six minute video posted on her Instagram account today, Wednesday, in Australia saying it was time to chase other dreams. Now there's been a lot written about the success of young tennis players, especially on the American side on the men's side. But now the number one player on the women's side at the age of 25 retires.
I certainly remember when Bjorn Borg suddenly retired at the age of 26. In 1983, he shocked the tennis world. Now Ash Barty retires a 25. Tennis is a very mentally and physically demanding game. And if you're going to watch tonight's Toronto Maple Leafs, New Jersey Devil's game, you'll see the Leafs where a Justin Bieber designed alternate Jersey for the game.
The NHL says it's the first reversible sweater ever in North American professional sports. The Jersey is a collaboration with Bieber, who of course is a diehard Leafs fan along with his fashion brand Drew House and Adidas. Check out that tonight.
And today is Wednesday, March 23rd. I'm Abe Madkour. This is your Morning Buzzcast. Good to be with you this morning. Let's start in the world of soccer. FIFA has agreed to a major sponsorship deal with Crypto.com. Giving the cryptocurrency platform marketing rights to of the world cup. The deal was announced today on Wednesday. Crypto.com joins FIFA's existing sponsorships, including Adidas, Coca-Cola, Visa. Now the length and the value of the deal could not be determined, but these deals are massive. And this year's world cup is scheduled to start in November, in Qatar. Crypto.com, has really, we've seen it, poured money into sports. They've got deals with, of course, the facility in Los Angeles. It used to be called the Staple Center has deals with Formula One, and UFC. But Crypto.com continuing to spend in sports with a major sponsorship deal announced today with FIFA.
Staying in the crypto space, SBJ's Ben Fisher reported the NFL now will allow cryptocurrency exchanges to do business or sponsorship deals with NFL teams. But there are a lot of guidelines. The words crypto and cryptocurrency cannot be described in the sponsorships. There are really, really strong guardrails here. While teams are eager to sell this category in the NFL, the league is really looking to minimize brand and legal risk. We know the NFL is generally conservative when it comes to categories like this. Remember how, not slow, but remember how deliberate the NFL was in the category of sports betting?
Now these new rules related to cryptocurrency exchanges limit any new deals to three years or less, and that likely eliminates your massive naming rights deals at NFL venues. And while some teams really wanted to have less guardrails, most see the policy as a good first step, allowing them to develop relationships with the companies. They do expect these rules to be opened up over time. Because we know how much money the crypto space is pouring into sports. So look for some NFL deals coming shortly. But don't expect just deals on the team side, as the NFL at the league level will also be pursuing deals in this category. So look for some cryptocurrency deals in the NFL shortly.
Let's shift to college basketball. Viewers are embracing the NCAA men's tournament. Ratings are higher right now than any time since 2017. The men's tournament, according to our Austin Carp, is averaging just over three million viewers per game through the second round, across CBS, TBS, TNT and True TV. That's up 15% from last year. It's also up 3% from 2019. Remember in 2019, Zion Williamson definitely gave the tournament a boost. But the early numbers are good. We will see if it can keep momentum in the sweet 16 and final eight.
Another interesting storyline is that this year's women's basketball tournament is breaking attendance records, with more fans attending the first and second round games this past weekend than ever before. The games hosted by the tournaments top 16 seats brought in more than 216,000 spectators that topped the previous high of about 214,000 fans. And that was set more than 20 years ago. The NCAA didn't change its schedule or format around the women's game. So this is a good sign of just increased interest in women's basketball. Good to see.
I also love this story that was in our daily edition yesterday. I wasn't sure I noticed it first. So I'd be curious if you've noticed. Did you know that basketball's used during the NCAA men's and women's tournaments are more orange than traditional balls? That's because the NCAA has a new deal with Wilson to use the brand's Evo NXT basketballs. Wilson said it worked with the NCAA and the schools to test and approve the new basketballs and the bright orange color is on purpose. Perhaps to stand out on television hard to say, but I'll be noticing the Wilson balls more, now that I know the color is definitely a brighter orange. I'd be curious if you'd noticed any difference?
Let's shift to baseball as baseball's opening day nears. Baseball and the Players Association have reached agreement. For this season they'll re-institute the runner on second base at the start of all extra innings, beginning with the 10th inning. We saw that last year. Some loved it. Some weren't a fan, but it will continue this year. The League and the Players Association also agreed to a Shohei Ohtani inspired change. In games where the starting pitcher is also the designated hitter, the player will be allowed to remain in the game as DH, even as he exits the game as a pitcher. So, that is certainly called the Shohei rule. That'll be in effect for the entire five year term of the recently negotiated collective bargaining agreement. So Ohtani being able to stay at the plate, even if he's out of the game as a pitcher.
Let's finish up the Buzzcast. We've talked a lot about the boldface names in sports, interested in buying Chelsea. Well, the Ricketts family, the owner of The Cubs is flying to London in a bid to win support from Chelsea fans. The Ricketts are surely looking to be a strong bidder for the team. And they will meet with influential supporter groups in London and outline their plans to rebuild Stanford bridge. The Ricketts know something about deep historical fanbases with Cubs fans, and now they hope to win over the support of Chelsea fans and add that franchise to their family portfolio.
Also continue to keep your eye on Formula One as SBJ's Adam Stern, is reporting that the series is likely to announce its third race in the United States will be run in Las Vegas in November of 2023. An announcement could come within weeks. Once that's announced, F1 would have three races in the US, one on the East Coast, Miami one in the Central Time Zone, Austin, Texas, Dakota, and one in the Pacific time in Vegas. And they are certainly looking to continue to, I would say, grow momentum in the United States.
Now this surge in interest around Formula One continues as F1 saw its second most viewed race on cable last Sunday, as the race drew more than 1.3 million viewers on ESPN. That was the season opener race from Bahrain. That is a good sign for Formula One with a really strong number to start its season.
So, that is your Morning Buzzcast. It is Wednesday, March 23rd. I'm Abe Madkour. I won't be with you for the rest of the week. I'll be in Los Angeles on Thursday and Friday. My colleague David Albright will bring you the Buzzcast. I'll return on Monday when we will know the final four matchups in the men's basketball tournament. Until I speak to you on Monday, take care, be good to each other and have a great rest of your week.