Audio Timeline:
0:35 - Feel good stories
* Former Laker makes a big donation and HBCUās on the rise
4:08 - Business of Athletes
* Ā Kevin Durant, Odell Beckham, Jared Goff, and Trae Young invested in fantasy sports app Underdog Fantasyās $35M round.
* LIV Golf is raising its prize money next year to $405M, up from $225M. They are also offering equity in the teams to their players.
* Hall of Famers Mariano Rivera & Barry Larkin are bringing baseball to India and Pakistan through the United International Baseball League.
* Lebron James has made an investment in Canyon Bicycles $30M round.
* Sue Bird and Eli Manning have joined the ownership group of NWSL club NJ/NY Gotham FC, investing at a $40M valuation.
* Former NBA players Baron Davis, Ray Crockett, and Nick Van Exel are helping to launch a new investor club for professional athletes.
* Former Los Angeles Laker Metta World Peace (Ron Artest) is targeting a $1B investment fund for Artest Management Group.
* Kevin Durant invested in Stadium Liveās $10 million funding round to bring fantasy sports to a younger generation.
* The NFL is launching NFL+, its own streaming service starting at $4.99/month.
* The University of Wisconsin is paying its athletes $980/year for academic excellence, along with a bonus up to $25,000 for graduating
7:30 - Name, Image, and Likeness
* The rise of general managerās in college sports
* Alabama and Fanatics partner in an interesting new deal
* A supposedly āunbiasedā study on NIL is taking place
* Some cool deals from this past week
Interesting Stat
I didnāt come across any interesting stats this past week, so I asked the team over at Talkwalker if they had anything for me.
With college football 3 weeks away, they delivered some fan insights for us.
The green represents fans most optimistic about the upcoming seasonā¦
While Georgia and Alabama were the most talked about, the comments werenāt the most optimistic.
But it makes senseā¦
When you are the king of the hill, youāre going to be talked about even if some of the loudest comments come from haters.
Hereās some greater insight into the conversations taking place about Georgia football.
In just July, over 100,000 unique conversations about the Bulldogs took place.
When looking at the graph, you can see people from all over the world are talking about the Georgia Bulldogs ā with a surprisingly high amount coming from England and South Korea).
Who said college football isnāt global?
Short Passage of The Week
Think of the best coach, teacher, or leader you ever had. What can you learn from them?
Think of the worst coach, teacher, or leader you ever had. What can you learn from them?
A coach isā¦Ā
* a thought partner + a supporter
* a sounding board + an accountability ally
* an empathetic space for vulnerable emotions
* an objective perspective + a steady resource
* oneās biggest advocate and unwavering champion
āA good coach can change a game. A great coach can change a life.ā
Passage by Clint Hurdle
Tweet(s)
Former MLB pitcher Jacob Turner recently joined Twitter and released some heatš
When thinking about monetary decisions, ask yourself ādoes that help create financial freedom or debt?ā.
Quotes
I appreciate you tuning in today!
Close out the weekend strong ā look forward to chatting again tomorrow.
Peace,
AP