News

Artificial intelligence has dominated headlines and advancements in nearly every industry globally. Sports is no exception. As data grows more dynamic and accessible, so do its applications, and the effect is vast...

Today, 10 enterprise-ready companies were chosen for the fifth class of Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech. This R&D program, powered by Boomtown Innovation, identifies and cultivates emerging companies from around the world to drive their growth and shape the sports industry while creating a space for Comcast and its partners to test and pilot new solutions. The 2025 program launches this week in Atlanta with an immersive kickoff designed to foster collaboration and facilitate deep customer discovery through experiential learning and behind-the-scenes access to world-class sporting events.

Sauna House, the Asheville-based bathhouse known for its communal saunas and cold plunges, opened its first Charlotte location in Wesley Heights over the weekend.Why it matters: Hot and cold therapy is one of Charlotte's fastest-growing wellness trends...

Autograph, the NFT company co-founded by Tom Brady, is merging with the digital fitness company Future. As part of the merger, Brady will join the board of directors of Future and serve as co-chair of the company...

Telestration has long been the tool of choice for football analysts to explain actions on the field, but sometimes overhead annotation can’t match in studio visualization. For the past three weeks, ESPN has introduced a weekly segment during Tuesday’s airing of NFL Live in which Dan Orlovsky puts on a Meta Quest headset and enters virtual reality to recreate key plays from the previous weekend. He’s able to shift the immersive video to the points of view of any player on the field and then telestrate within that environment.

Three athletes whose lawsuits have prompted the pending $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement are calling for major structural changes beyond those established through the pending settlement, including enabling college athletes to bargain collectively through an independent players' association. The three athletes -- Grant House, Sedona Prince and Nya Harrison -- issued their request in a Dec. 2 letter to U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken, who is overseeing the settlement.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James’ entertainment business, SpringHill Co., has agreed to a merger of equals with Fulwell 73, the British television, film and music production company behind shows including “The Kardashians” and “Carpool Karaoke.” The deal was spearheaded by SpringHill co-founder Maverick Carter and Fulwell 73 co-founder Ben Winston, who have been friends for a decade after veteran TV producer Tom Werner introduced them, the two said in an interview with CNBC. Carter will be co-CEO of the combined company along with Leo Pearlman, Fulwell’s managing partner.

In the upscale neighborhood of professional basketball, where the influential and zeitgeist-touched stretch their legs as the action gallops past, the SLAM cover T-shirt has been an increasing sight, visible on everyone from Teyana Taylor to Rich Paul. And, yeah, players have donned the duds.

Briarcliff Entertainment has acquired North American distribution rights to director Rob Edwards’ sneaker-themed animated movie Sneaks, voiced by Anthony Mackie, Martin Lawrence, Oscar nominee Laurence Fishburne, Chloe Bailey, and Grammy-winning producer Mustard. Pic also features Grammy winners Roddy Ricch, Ella Mai and Macy Gray, with five-time nominee Swae Lee, Quavo and NBA star Chris Paul also joining the cast. Paul plays himself, hosting a Met Gala-like event for avid sneakerheads seen in the film.

NEW YORK, NY – Front Office Sports, the leading multi-platform media and news organization covering the business of sports, announced its investor RedBird IMI has taken a majority stake in the company. Led by CEO Jeff Zucker, RedBird IMI is a joint venture between RedBird Capital Partners and International Media Investments focused on building high-growth companies in media, entertainment, and sports. RedBird IMI made its first investment in Front Office Sports in November 2023 and has since acquired an additional stake in the company, buying out SC Holdings, FOS’ first investor.

In a sports media landscape where women’s sports receive just 15% of total coverage, The GIST has committed to gender equity in their coverage since their inception. Today, their “bet” on women has paid off, as the digital sports media platform just reached the milestone of one million newsletter subscribers across all of its platforms. The GIST, which is a female-founded, sports media brand that provides equal coverage to women's and men's sports, was created in 2017 by three college friends, Ellen Hyslop, Jacie deHoop, and Roslyn McLarty, who recognized that the sports media landscape was ripe for disruption. At the time, women’s sports and female athletes received less than 4% of sports media coverage and less than 14% of sports journalists were women, so the co-founders set out to create a sports media company that centered women.

As ESPN charts its direct-to-consumer future with the coming launch of Venu this fall and the company’s own streaming service next year, executives are also experimenting with how the sports conversations of tomorrow will be viewed. Last year, Disney CEO Bob Iger teased the ability to watch five ESPN programs at once inside Apple’s Vision Pro device. Bristol has also added a Mandalorian-inspired augmented reality studio capable of dropping hosts into any virtual location. An ESPN-branded experience in Meta Horizon Worlds is due this summer, offering VR highlights.

Slam, a basketball magazine and lifestyle company, has acquired college basketball apparel company 19nine. The deal merges Slam’s merchandise team with 19nine, which has licenses with more than 80 colleges and universities. It also allows for expansion into a new facility in Indiana. Slam’s parent company, sports and entertainment private equity firm JDS Sports, made an investment in 19nine back in 2020 to expand business operations and sell 19nine products on its online store.

Brent Montgomery’s Wheelhouse counts Jimmy Kimmel as a partner, makes legacy TV, streaming fare and social-media content—and aims to turn stars into brands. Times are tough for much of Hollywood. For Brent Montgomery, it has been a banner year. The founder of an entertainment company with ABC late-night star Jimmy Kimmel on board as a partner, Montgomery produces content for traditional TV networks and streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. He also backs internet celebrities and manages talent.

Creator subscription platform Patreon has acquired Moment, which provides a platform for hosting and ticketing livestreamed events. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Moment (formerly known as Moment House) touts itself as the top digital events platform for artists and creators, including Justin Bieber, Tame Impala, Kygo, Pod Save America and the “Good for You” podcast hosted by comedian Whitney Cummings.

Brandon Copeland remembers having $343 in his bank account. He remembers not wanting to answer his phone until after 4 p.m. on Tuesdays — the time at which your NFL roster spot becomes guaranteed for the week, thus ensuring another paycheck...

Venture capitalists have had a love-hate relationship with adtech in recent years, but the buzz around artificial intelligence, plus the rapid growth in nascent areas like retail media and streaming TV, has reinvigorated interest in the sector...

UFC, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization, and Slate Milk, an eco-friendly, high protein drink brand, today announced a multi-year marketing partnership that names Slate Milk an Official Partner of UFC...

Investment bank LionTree led a “group to take a majority stake” in Transmit.Live, betting that live sports is “going to continue to migrate to streaming services and that advertising will follow,” according to Jessica Toonkel of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Transmit.Live is a five-year-old company that “helps insert ads into sports programming.” Andrew Olinick, Managing Partner of LionTree's asset-management division, said, “Advertising always sells out in sports, even in economically difficult times.” Toonkel noted high-profile sporting events are “increasingly making their way” to such platforms, and Transmit “allows entertainment companies and leagues not only to insert ad breaks into their content, but also to make incremental ad revenue by offering the capability of running on-screen ads while play is under way..."

Amagi, the global leader in cloud-based SaaS technology for broadcast and connected TV, today announced that it has acquired Streamwise, an early stage data aggregation and reporting platform for content distributors. Streamwise specializes in automating and standardizing data collection across streaming platforms. The acquisition will help Amagi to enhance its data solutions capabilities with comprehensive, more streamlined reporting and dashboards...

The Detroit Pistons unveiled their Nike NBA City Edition uniforms exclusively for the 2022-23 NBA season, an ode to the historic St. Cecilia’s gym in Detroit. "St. Cecilia’s for decades served as a beacon of hope for Detroiters and a safe haven for basketball players to play,” said Alicia Jeffreys, Detroit Pistons, Chief Marketing Officer. “Our City Edition uniform offers the opportunity to tell the story of the gym known as ‘The Saint’ while also joining our great partners at JDS Sports and the Knight Foundation in kickstarting the revitalization of the iconic Ceciliaville facility for generations to come.”

Software company VidMob Inc. said it closed a Series D funding round for $110 million as it seeks to expand its offerings that help marketers make and improve their digital advertising. The round was led by Shamrock Capital and included new investors eGateway Capital Advisors and venture-capital firm Proof. Existing investors including ID Funds and Drive by DraftKings also participated in the round.

Lemon Perfect—a hydrating lemon water brand based in Atlanta, Georgia—has announced it has closed its $31 million Series A funding today with the help of unlikely investor Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. “We are honored and humbled that Beyoncé has become a part of the Lemon Perfect family,” says founder and CEO Yanni Hufnagel. “She is a worldwide icon whose talent, character, and positivity are unsurpassed.

Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment has unveiled a deal to acquire the assets of film studio 1091 Media as part of a $15.6 million cash and stock deal. The deal, subject to closing conditions, offers 1091 Pictures $8 million in cash, $2 million in newly issued preferred NASDAQ shares valued at $25 each, and another 375,000 shares of Class A common stock valued at $14.80 each.