Sports & Entertainment Beat

Welcome back to the Spotlight! Allow me to be among the first to wish you happy Fall, y’all. If I close my eyes while typing, the keystrokes almost sound like crunching crisp leaves. With the start of my favorite season—made that much better with the Yankees set to play October baseball, we also bid farewell to Emmys season. In case you missed it, the awards show rose (Johnny and David, to be exact) to its best ratings since 2021, all on the backs of father-son duo Eugene and Dan Levy. Their performance was such a success, it makes me wonder whether I should give my sons a platform in the Spotlight (it would arguably improve the quality of the jokes). As it stands, I don’t have time to work through the logistical challenges of onboarding a 6 year-old and 3 year-old, so you’ll just have to be content with me.

• • The University of Tennessee Football program announced that they will be increasing ticket prices by ten percent to finance revenue sharing with its collegiate athletes. For a team whose name is the Volunteers, it’s rich to volunteer its fanbase to subsidize the cost. Then again, if they brand the increase as “Ten-to-see,” I might just come around.
     
  • YouTubers MrBeast, Logan Paul and KSI unveil grab and go packaged lunch kits called Lunchly to rival Oscar Meyer’s Lunchables. While the modestly improved nutritional values and the celebrity backing of Lunchly may set it apart, the allure of a hot dog shaped vehicle still makes Lunchables a wiener/winner in my book. 
     
  • Popular beverage brand Liquid Death and NASCAR are taking a different tact to sports marketing—offering the fans, rather than the drivers sponsorship deals. Not surprising given how undesirable having the word “death” emblazoned on your car while traveling at 150 mph must be. 

For inquiries and/or unabashed compliments, please feel free to contact me at josh.bloomgarden@foster.com or add me on LinkedIn.