#❝ — persona 》 the navigator ; ryder

[andscene-if]

AND SCENE—an 18+ slice of life plunges you, a nepotism baby, into the major spotlight as the lead in a highly anticipated movie, navigating swarms of hate, swirling scandals, dating rumours, false tabloid reports, and invasive paparazzi.

Breaking news—the love interest role in Claire White's latest blockbuster finally has a star, and it's none other than [MC], pictured above, the youngest offspring of Hollywood moguls. Brace yourselves for a wild ride as [MC], usually seen in their parents' flicks, takes on a meatier role in one of next year's most hyped movies.

But hold the popcorn��whispers on the red carpet suggest [MC]'s previous filmography is more "meh" than marvellous.

Is this casting coup the pinnacle of Hollywood nepotism, or will [MC] flip the script and prove they're a force to be reckoned with? Love them or hate them, one thing's for sure: this star-studded spectacle is about to kick off, and only time will spill the juiciest deets straight from the set.

So, grab your shades, folks, because this Hollywood rollercoaster is just getting warmed up and PinkCelebTea will report every step of the way—you know how it is!

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NEXT UP: Our insiders spill the tea—L Alvarez ain't exactly doing cartwheels about acting alongside what they're dubbing an 'untalented and undeserving' co-star. Trouble behind the scenes already?

# Choose the movie genre & title + those of your previous 4 films. # Customise your MC & public persona. # Navigate drama in front and behind the screen. # Shoot the movie cover & go on press tour. # Prove you're more than just a nepo kid...or don't. # Romance one out of four love interests. # Maybe even snag a few nominations by the end!

THE CO-STAR [M/F]—Louis/Luana Alvarez.

Appearance: 6'0. Brunette with curly hair (short for m, chest-length for f), pale skin and dark brown eyes. Signature style includes a white shirt/blouse, top buttons undone, and loose pants. Always impeccably dressed, with a flair for full-on glamour on special occasions, such as the red carpet. Personality: Reserved and quiet. While not everyone can pull off that demeanour, they do it flawlessly. Fans absolutely adore their composed exterior, noting, "it adds to their mystique."

THE MAKEUP ARTIST [F] — Red.

Appearance: 5'7. Long ginger hair, tanned skin adorned with freckles, and green eyes. Often dressed in skintight black or dark attire, with a scarlet shade coating her lips. Personality: Red exudes calm confidence with a soft-spoken demeanour, yet she's not one to be underestimated. She holds herself in a thoughtful, sensual, and quick-witted manner.

THE BARTENDER [M/F] — Zayn/Zara Lao.

Appearance: 5'11. Brunette with wavy hair (short for m, just below shoulders for f), tan skin, brown eyes, and a distinctive left brow slit. They've also got tattoos all over their body. Since the club gets hot quickly, you'll usually find them in something small and non-constricting, like a vest top and a pair of jeans. Personality: Unapologetically outspoken, they don't hold back. Blunt yet surprisingly charming, they've become somewhat of a local favourite in the area, rubbing shoulders with the right kind of people.

THE RIVAL [M/F] — Phoenix Ryder.

Appearance: 5'11. Black tightly curled hair (short for m, long for f & often styled differently), dark skin, and brown eyes. They sport a 90s-inspired style—often seen in loose-fitting denim jeans, a breezy shirt/crop top, and adorned with silver rings. Personality: Suave, charismatic, confident, and a touch cheeky—checking all the Hollywood boxes. As noted by many, "a legend in the making."

++contains mentions of alcohol and drug use, violence, explicit language, and optional sexual content++

DEMO TBA | CHARACTER INTROS

reblogs are appreciated :) thanks for reading!!

[thewcllingtons]

💥 (Ryder)

Send 💥 for a headcanon I’ve always wanted to talk about, but haven’t had the chance to yet.

Ryder’s initial training for the Manor was to work in the field. His outgoing personality makes it seem that he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. Even he would agree with the statement, but when the manor chose placements, he was chosen for the field. He didn’t past the courses of what to do in case things went south. However, his marksmanship is impeccable, and his planning skills were virtually seamless if he planned the mission. Ryder’s choice was often engaging in long-range activities like sniper, and things of that nature. There was a point where he planned a lot of ambushes. For a while, it seemed that he would be the main field guy until a brief slip up occurred. One of the men on his team decided to attack a civilian against his orders. Ryder knew that he couldn’t be responsible for people’s actions, but it weighed on him enough that he wanted out. It was then that he made the switch to being the manor’s supply chain operator for most of the machinery and weaponry that would come through. He doesn’t like to talk about this period of his life since it was only two full years of being a mission leader. He has put significantly more time and energy coordinating in hopes that the shift and time makes up for all the hurt he’s caused.

[manantrivedi]

The Best Tv Shows 2020, So Far | Viewchat

ViewChat App is a discussion platform that allows live TV audience to join the chat rooms for ongoing TV shows.

Unlock a new world of social networking with ViewChat application that engages users to discuss live and the most popular US TV shows. Find out the most popular TV shows with a single tap on your ViewChat App and join the first-ever Mobile TV Club.

Play Store:

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Here is one of the blog on

The Best Tv Shows 2020, So Far

TV and streaming series and motion pictures have performed a huge service so greatly this year in providing some much-needed escapism in a world crippled by wellness.

To help viewers still restrained to their homes navigate the latest offerings, we assembled all of the Certified Fresh series and upcoming tv programs 2020 — the season premieres that occurred January through the present that is Fresh with at least 20 critics reviews (five of those being from Top Critics).

From 1999 on, viewers were lucky enough to be treated to what many referred to as “The Golden Age of Television.” Shows like The Sopranos, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Game of Thrones brought a previously unheard-of level of quality to the small screen, and things like Lost DVD box sets and Stranger Things on Netflix taught people how to binge-watch.

We’re not even a quarter of the way into 2020 yet, but given the sheer volume of new TV releases out there on a weekly basis, we are coming up with the discussion platform that allows live TV audiences to join the chat rooms for ongoing TV shows.

THE YEAR’S SURPRISES SO FAR AMONG THE BEST TV OF 2020:

THE PLOT AGAINST AMERICA (HBO)

THE PLOT AGAINST AMERICA, a limited series based on the acclaimed Philip Roth novel of the similar name, imagines an alternate American history during World War II, told through the eyes of a common laborers Jewish family in New Jersey as they endure the political rise of Charles Lindbergh, a pilot saint and xenophobic populist, who captures the presidency and turns the country toward one-party rule. Made by visit associates David Simon and Ed Burns (HBO’s “The Wire” and “Generation Kill”), the six-part limited series exclusively on HBO.

Creators:

Ed Burns, David Simon

Stars:

Winona Ryder, Anthony Boyle, Zoe Kazan | See full cast & crew

Taglines:

Freedom is Never Completely Won. But It Can Be Lost.

Discuss The plot against America on our mobile application

FOX & FRIENDS (FOX NEWS)

A morning news show that includes interviews, features, and banter among the hosts.This weekday morning news show is hosted by Fox News Channel stalwarts Steve Doocy and Brian Kilmeade, alongside later expansion Ainsley Earhardt. Regular features include medical contributors, reports from entertainment journalists, and interviews with newsmakers. Throughout the mid-year, “FOX and Friends” has an open-air show arrangement like other network morning shows.

Creators:

Fox News

Stars:

Steve Doocy, Brian Kilmeade, Ainsley Earhardt

Discuss Fox & Friends on our mobile application

MANIFEST SEASON 2 (NBC)

Manifest is an American supernatural drama television series, created by Jeff Rake, that premiered on September 24, 2018, on NBC. The series centers on the passengers and crew of a successful airliner who suddenly reappear after being presumed dead for more than five yearsAfter being considered dead, 191 passengers of the Montego Air Flight 828 try to reintegrate into the society. However, painful realities come to light which unsettles them.

Creators:

Jeff Rake

Stars:

Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, Athena Karkanis, J. R. Ramirez, Luna Blaise, Jack Messina, Parveen Kaur

Discuss Manifest Season 2 on our mobile application

BRIARPATCH (USA NETWORK)

A senator’s aide responds to her small corrupt hometown of San Bonifacio, TX near the U.S.-Mexico border to examine the death of her sister – a local cop killed by a car bomb. She unravels a complex web of lies, crimes, and plots.Based on the Ross Thomas novel of the same name, “Briarpatch” follows Allegra Dill, a dogged investigator who returns to her border-town home in San Bonifacio, Texas. What begins as a search for her sister’s killer turns into an all-consuming fight to bring the corrupt town to its knees. “Briarpatch’ celebrates a unique blend of crime, thriller, mystery, and pulp fiction.

Creators:

Andy Greenwald

Stars:

Rosario Dawson, Jay R. Ferguson, Edi Gathegi

Discuss Briarpatch on our mobile application

BETTER CALL SAUL (SEASON 5) (AMC)

The trials and tribulations of criminal lawyer Jimmy McGill in the time before he built his strip-mall law office in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Better Call Saul

is an American television crime drama series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. It is a prequel and spin-off of Gilligan’s prior series Breaking Bad. Set in the early to mid-2000s, the series follows the story of con-man turned small-time lawyer Jimmy McGill (played by Bob Odenkirk), starting six years before the events of Breaking Bad and showing his transformation into the persona of criminal for hire Saul Goodman. McGill becomes the lawyer for former police officer Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks), whose skills allow him to enter the criminal underworld of drug trafficking in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The show premiered on AMC on February 8, 2015, airing five seasons to date. A sixth and final season is scheduled to air in 2021.

Creators:

Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould

Stars:

Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Jonathan Banks

Discuss Better call saul on our mobile application

ANIMAL KINGDOM: SEASON 5 (TNT)

Centers on a Southern California family, whose excessive lifestyle is fueled by their criminal activities.

Animal Kingdom

is an American drama television series developed by Jonathan Lisco. It is based on the 2010 Australian film of the same name by David Michôd, who is an executive producer for the series, alongside Liz Watts who also produced the movie. The series features a 17-year-old boy, who, after the death of his mother, moves in with his estranged relatives, the Codys, a criminal family clan governed by matriarch Smurf. Ellen Barkin portrayed the leading role of Janine “Smurf” Cody in the first four seasons, played by Jacki Weaver in the 2010 film.

Creators:

Jonathan Lisco

Stars:

Shawn Hatosy, Ben Robson, Jake Weary

Discuss Animal Kingdom on our mobile application

MRS. AMERICA: SEASON 1 (FX NETWORKS)

Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly led a wonderful fight against the Equal Rights Amendment act during the 1970s.“Mrs. America,” recounts the story of the development to sanction the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and the startling kickback driven by a traditionalist lady named Phyllis Schlafly, otherwise known as “the darling of the silent majority.” Through the eyes of the ladies of the time – both Schlafly and second-wave women’s activists Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan, Shirley Chisholm, Bella Abzug, and Jill Ruckelshaus – the arrangement investigates how perhaps the hardest battleground in the way of life wars of the ’70s helped offer ascent to the Moral Majority and forever shifted moved the political scene.

Creators:

Dahvi waller

Stars:

Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Sarah Paulson, Elizabeth Banks

Discuss Mrs. America on our mobile application

THE LAST DANCE (ESPN)

Charting the beginning of the 1990’s Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, one of the most important dynasties in sports history.In the fall of 1997, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls permitted a film team to follow them as they went for their 6th NBA title in eight seasons. That brought about a dazzling picture of one of the game’s most famous competitors and a commended group. “The Last Dance” follows the Bulls’ 1997-98 season all the way, while additionally covering the remainder of the parts in Jordan’s amazing vocation. The 10-section docu-arrangement follows the Jordan course of events from when he was a rising star in his secondary school group to turning into an overall showcasing the power and social figure.

Creators:

Jason Hehir

Stars:

Phill Jackson, Michel Jordan Devid Aldridge

Discuss The Last Danceon our mobile application Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.viewchat.android

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[scifigeneration]

Stranger Things: inventiveness in the age of the Netflix original

by Arin Keeble

The Netflix series Stranger Things, which shortly returns for a second season, was the surprise TV hit of summer 2016. Fans and critics revelled in its allusions to Hollywood hits from the American 1980s in which it is set. Every haircut, every rippling synth pattern, BMX chase and adolescent gesture of friendship seemed to come from an 80s movie. Its young protagonists communicated through references to Star Wars and Dungeons and Dragons and the first trailer for season 2 shows them trick-or-treating as the Ghostbusters.

So what made Stranger Things feel fresh and new? Was it somehow innovative in its referencing? It certainly wasn’t because of a new kind of aesthetic recycling, as JJ Abrams had already done an 80s Steven Spielberg pastiche with Super 8, and borrowing or referencing has long been prevalent in American cinema. From Film Noir’s adoption of German expressionist techniques in films like The Maltese Falcon or Touch of Evil to the postmodern genre-mashing of Pulp Fiction, Hollywood storytelling has a rich history of pastiche, allusion and homage.

But what happens when serial TV does this? Stranger Things featured eight hour-long episodes developing characters who inevitably cannot exist solely in the stylistic shoes of Spielberg or Stephen King. And though the referencing is there, the immediate pleasures of its clever nods to E.T. or The Goonies evolve into a more sophisticated meditation on the processes of allusion.

Nostalgia and trauma

The achievement of Stranger Things is twofold. It is not just highly referential – it is actually about referencing. The series explores the way people – especially young people – communicate through patterns of reference or allusion. The programme’s retro register is also paired with an ongoing discussion of what we can see as the opposite of nostalgia – traumatic memory.

The casting of Winona Ryder is integral to this convergence of nostalgia and trauma. Ryder’s star power was born in the 1980s, when she was a teenager, through films like Heathers and Beetlejuice. In the 1990s her screen successes were accompanied by extreme tabloid scrutiny of her personal life. This included high-profile coverage of her struggles with drugs and anxiety. Because of this public history, the casting of Ryder was itself referential, as is the casting of any “star”.

As Keith Reader argued in Intertextualty: Theories and Practice: “The concept of the film star is an intertextual one, relying as it does on correspondences of similarity and difference from one film to the next and on supposed resemblances between on and off-screen personae.” So while Stranger Things’ teen drama story, centring on Nancy Wheeler, evokes the high school world of Heathers, Ryder’s performance as Joyce Byers, draws on her real life experiences. Joyce is a loving, thoughtful, single mother and a sufferer of anxiety. This is exacerbated by the disappearance of her youngest son and for much of the first series she is upset and hysterical.

Ryder’s performance was widely acclaimed – including by Rolling Stone journalist, Noel Murray, who suggested Stranger Things “brought her back”. Murray notes that the performance is powerful because the show takes advantage of what we already know about Ryder: that she is a “likeable celebrity who’s fallen on hard times”. Joyce’s hysteria certainly carries the power and authenticity of experience and it sharply juxtaposes the nostalgic innocence of Eggo waffles and BMX chases.

Joyce’s experiences are also echoed by other strands of the story. We learn that Chief Hopper is still struggling with the traumatic loss of his daughter and it is inferred that mystery child Eleven, who is the subject of sinister experiments, was taken as an infant from her now-institutionalised mother. Ultimately, Stranger Things’ nostalgic frame magnifies the intensity of its traumatic realism and stories of loss and psychosis.

Navigating an ‘upside down’ world

But Stranger Things is also invested in how its characters communicate through allusion. The boys, Dustin Henderson, Mike Wheeler, Lucas Sinclair and the missing Will Byers use these references to map out and understand their world – and that of The Upside Down (a dark alternate dimension existing in parallel to the human world). In the first episode we learn that they have renamed the streets of their small Indiana town using references to The Hobbit and in episode three, puzzling over the mysterious Eleven, Dustin asks his friends: “I wonder if she was born with her powers like the X-Men or if she acquired them like Green Lantern?”

Sometimes references serve as a code that adults and other kids won’t know – which is important as the boys are outsiders (geeks before geeks were cool). Sometimes references are charged with imaginative and emotional meaning. For example, Mike cites his missing friend’s boldness and bravery in a Dungeon’s and Dragons “campaign” as a reason for him and his friends to be brave in trying to find him in real life.

Literature academic and blogger Aaron Bady has pointed out that what makes Stranger Things’ allusions unique is that it has no “anxiety” over its gratuitous borrowing. This subverts the need “to play authenticity detective.” This is undoubtedly the case and it is striking in the world of “Netflix originals” where everything seems to be an adaptation or re-imagining, like House of Cards or Daredevil. But I believe what sets the show apart is its clever use of allusion to amplify the impact of its depictions of anxiety, trauma and loss and its exploration of allusion as a mode of communication.

Arin Keeble is a Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and Culture at Edinburgh Napier University.

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

[rickhorrow]

15 TO WATCH/5 SPORTS TECH/POWER OF SPORTS 5: RICK HORROW’S TOP SPORTS/BIZ/TECH/PHILANTHROPY ISSUES FOR THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 1

with Jamie Swimmer & Jacob Aere

Amidst Paris Fashion Week, the biannual Ryder Cup was the most fashionable ticket in town. Tournament organizers at Le Golf National near Paris anticipated the “biggest crowds ever," with nearly 60,000 fans a day "expected to show up in full voice," according to Morning Read. New were huge grandstands around the first tee, with over 6,900 seats – although this seemed to be an overreach, as the stands often seemed half empty. French Ryder Cup Committee President Pascal Grizot noted 44% of tickets for the sold-out event went to fans from France. About 35% of those who bought tickets were British or Irish, while 14% were American.  Sponsors capitalized on the event as well. Cincinnati-based uniform and business products company Cintas served as "co-presenting sponsor" of "Golf Central Live from the Ryder Cup," Golf Channel’s news program airing from Le Golf National, along with the network’s live stream. A Cintas spokesperson said the company signed on because "business decision makers are strong viewers of golf as are C-suite leaders who help inform decisions." Since the American squad fared poorly in Europe once again, failing to retain the Cup in a blowout loss, the focus immediately after the last putt dropped was Whistling Straits in 2020, not a French champagne soaked celebration.

The MLB playoff push is heating up as October is here. In the AL, the New York Yankees and Oakland Athletics have clinched the two Wild Card spots, while the Los Angeles Dodgers secured the final NL Wild Card spot behind the Milwaukee Brewers. One team that will not be featured in the playoffs is the Detroit Tigers, though the club is making headlines due to a potential takeover from Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert. According to the Detroit Free Press, Gilbert noted his interest in buying the team, with others saying that negotiations are already underway. Asked whether he is working to buy the team, Gilbert "didn't deny it." Gilbert only said that his organization "doesn't comment on speculation.” The Tigers are currently valued at $1.225 billion by Forbes and sit at 19th place on the MLB’s club valuation list. While that is up $25 million from the year before, Gilbert would have to make some significant structural changes in the club to curb last year’s $46 million operating loss. The Tigers’ valuation is significantly less than the still-in-it Yankees and Dodgers, valued at $4 billion (No. 1) and $3 billion (No. 2) respectively.

As America’s political discourse marks perhaps its most combative moments in our modern history, MLB is once again working with ESPN on its Shred Hate bullying prevention campaign. According to SportsBusiness Daily, the league has enlisted many of the sport’s biggest stars for a pair of new postseason PSAs. One spot highlights last year’s World Series MVP George Springer, a victim of childhood bullying due to his stuttering long before he joined the Astros. A second spot features stars including Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Javier Baez, Justin Verlander, and Aaron Judge. The spots also coincide with October being National Bullying Prevention Month. The PSAs will run throughout the month on multiple ESPN and MLB platforms. “We knew that utilizing players like this was where we could really elevate this program’s potential,” said MLB Vice President and Special Assistant to the Commissioner Billy Beane. “This is a really important message, something that’s very personal for me, and the players have done a great job lending their voices to it and giving power to that message.” The league has seen encouraging progress with this initiative thus far, and is confident it will make more inroads this October.

As baseball’s best prepare for the pennant races, the sport’s minor leagues are making fun plans. Minor League Baseball has announced an expanded roster of 72 teams that will participate in its “Copa de la Diversión,” or “Fun Cup,” a season-long event series in 2019. The cornerstone of MiLB's U.S. Latinx fan engagement initiative, "Copa de la Diversión" established an innovative new platform connecting MiLB teams with their diverse communities. From adopting culturally-relevant on-field personas – such as the Albuquerque Isotopes transforming into the "Mariachis de Nuevo México" – to integrating more local flavor into game day experiences, the 33 teams that dedicated 167 games as "Copa de la Diversión"-designated events reported a 12.6% attendance increase compared to similar dates in 2017. Retail sales of “Copa”-specific licensed merchandise via MiLB ballparks’ team stores and online far exceeded participating teams’ preseason goals, with sales projected to be more than 500% higher than pre-campaign estimates. MiLB will report comprehensive "Copa de la Diversión" results at the Baseball Winter Meetings in Las Vegas this December.

When it comes to the booming market for corporate sports sponsorships in North America, companies are looking past ROI to justify a potential investment. According to JohnWallStreet and the World Advertising Research Center (WARC), companies will spend a whopping $65.8 billion (+4.9% YoY, $24.2 billion spent in North America) on sponsorship deals this year — most of them coming from sports — though research revealed that only 19% of the 500 corporate sponsorship executives surveyed indicated that they had a way to measure sponsorship investment returns. Of those interviewed, 73% said that brand awareness, not ROI, was the main objective of a sponsorship. Apart from the 19% that calculate ROI, 37% of the executives are monitoring the sponsorship’s impact, “often with a form of digital or social media analysis.” One name that consistently remains one of the most visible brands in sports sponsorship is Anheuser-Busch, which has begun using shorter incentive-laden contracts for its tie ups, as opposed to signing long-term deals with fixed fees.

In pro sports deficient San Diego, LeBron James takes the floor in a Los Angeles Lakers jersey for the first time. The Lakers played their first preseason game against the Denver Nuggets before a sellout crowd of 13,565 at San Diego’s Valley View Casino Center, with James front and center in the game’s appeal despite his limited minutes. As ESPN noted afterward, “the excitement for this Lakers group that is clearly a work in progress was palpable from the start on Sunday. Close to 300 fans attended the team's morning shootaround in Temecula, about an hour from San Diego. And there was such a crowd of cameras in the Lakers' locker room before the game that the Nuggets defenders weren't the only bodies James found himself navigating.” For the NBA, James’ move gives the league added West Coast star power and brand cachet outside of the Golden State Warriors. For San Diego, however, the electric preseason exhibition was yet another reminder of the woeful state of sports in “America’s Finest City,” and perhaps a boost for the Soccer City stadium initiative on the ballot next month that is critical to landing an MLS franchise and hosting other major sporting events.

The new NBA season is right around the corner and business continues to boom for the league across the globe. According to the South China Morning Post, the recent Red Card Report revealed that Kobe Bryant remains the most popular player in China on social media. Despite retiring in 2016, Bryant has used his platform to grow his brand in the basketball-crazed country of nearly 1.4 billion people. Current Atlanta Hawks guard Jeremy Lin and the Golden State Warriors “were declared 2018’s big winners” by Shanghai-based sports agency Mailman, the company that conducted the survey of Chinese social media. Lin’s 5.4 million followers on Sina Weibo trailed only Bryant’s 6.6 million. In terms of on-court action, the NBA will head to China October 5-8 when the Dallas Mavericks play two exhibition matchups against the Philadelphia 76ers, one in Shanghai and the other in Shenzhen.   Another critical facet of the NBA’s international outreach is Basketball without Borders, the league’s global basketball and community development initiative with FIBA that unites young basketball players from Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Africa to grow the sport and encourage positive social change.

Houston Rockets Owner Tillman Fertitta is poised not to let high luxury taxes stop him from building a championship team. According to the Houston Chronicle, the Rockets will enter the new NBA season with the club’s highest payroll in franchise history — roughly $143 million. In buying the club back in 2017 for $2.2 billion Fertitta showed off his deep pockets, but excessive spending on players without winning a championship is not a viable  business plan due to the "punitive nature of the NBA's rules for teams repeatedly paying luxury taxes.” “We're in it a lot this year,” said Fertitta of the luxury tax. “It's a horrible hindrance. It's just brutal. You can take $5 million and look up and it cost you $20 million.” At the same time, the businessman stated that he is committed to winning above anything and that he is “not going to let five or 10 or 15 or 20 million dollars make the difference.” Under NBA rules, teams that have been in the luxury tax for three out of four years are put in the repeater tax, resulting in heavy fines to be paid – a not always successful effort by the league to maintain parity.

As the NHL drops the puck on its regular season this week, Seattle continues its push to secure an NHL franchise after the city council unanimously approved of a $700 million renovation of KeyArena. According to JohnWallStreet, the iconic arena’s redevelopment is expected to begin within the next 60 days with the hope of having it completed in time for the 2020-2021 season. The David Bonderman/Jerry Bruckheimer Group still has to present the city’s formal bid to become the NHL’s 32nd franchise; approval is expected from the league’s executive committee on October 2, but a formal vote will not come before December. Despite not yet being formally announced, the city is eagerly waiting for hockey in the Pacific Northwest. The David Bonderman/Jerry Bruckheimer Group received more than 33,000 deposits (at $500 or $1,000) for season ticket packages the day they went on sale. As the largest U.S. market without a winter pro sports franchise, Seattle seems poised to finally get a hockey team – it seems now to be a matter of “when” not “if.”

10.Colin Kaepernick is the face of Nike’s new “Just Do It” advertising campaign, but he was almost dropped by the company last summer following a huge internal debate. As noted by the New York Times and elsewhere, Kaepernick’s political activism and protesting has made him a controversial subject in professional football and with affiliated sponsors. After discussing whether or not to drop the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, “Nike concluded that backing Kaepernick made good business sense despite the risk of angering the NFL.” Nike Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer Nigel Powell was in favor of keeping Kaepernick on the payroll, convincing employees that the company would receive more backlash if it was seen as “siding with the NFL rather than Kaepernick.” Not only did Nike elect to resign him, but they chose to make his face the center of its anniversary marketing campaign. That effort seems to be paying off for the company so far, as apparel sales have surged as has Nike stock.

11.The FA has agreed to terms on a deal to sell Wembley Stadium in London to Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan. According to the Financial Times, the sale will go for $790 million, though it is still subject to a “critical vote” within the country’s soccer governing body. FA CEO Martin Glenn and Chair Greg Clarke "are seeking unanimity from the board to proceed." But a minority representing the amateur game "are yet to indicate their support," according to people close to the talks. The FA is trying to take emotion out of the equation and make this a true business decision, as some important figures with voting rights have “may be voting with pure emotion.” Limitations have been imposed on the transaction to help preserve Wembley’s magic, such as restricting Khan from renaming the stadium or adding a corporate title sponsor. The FA will also hold certain buy-back rights and have the power to veto any sponsor associated with the stadium. While it makes sense to assume that the move would put Khan and the Jaguars one step closer to a permanent move to London, Khan has denied that is his motivation; only time and Roger Goodell will tell.

12.Kerri Walsh Jennings has a goal: to make beach volleyball “more than something that gets noticed once every four years.” According to SportsBusiness Journal, the American Olympian recently launched her new p1440 volleyball series with the first event being staged at San Jose’s Avaya Stadium. In creating this new eight-event tour, Walsh Jennings made the bold move of breaking away from the AVP. She has partnered with FIVB, and next month's Las Vegas p1440 event "will be an Olympic-qualifying tournament, giving participants a chance to earn qualifying points for the 2020 Tokyo Games.” More prize money is also expected to help her tour draw traction among athletes. The San Jose event had a $300,000 purse, which is “bigger than any single stop on the AVP Tour this year.” To compare the two tours, the AVP has awarded $1.46 million in total prize money this year. whereas the p1440 tour will total $1.2 million in prize money through the first four events. Even bigger, Beach Major Series’ Fort Lauderdale Major is always a tour highlight for players as it features one of the sport’s highest prize purses of $600,000 – only the World Championships in Hamburg is higher at $800,000.

FC Cincinnati has set ambitious ticket targets ahead of its first MLS season in 2019. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the club is aiming to sign up over 20,000 season ticket holders while reaching nearly 30,000 total supporters on a per game basis. “That would absolutely put us into an upper-tier category (in MLS), and that's always been the ultimate goal,” noted FC Cincinnati Vice President, Ticket Sales and Services Jeff Smith. The club already has 14,000 season tickets confirmed and is looking to grow that number in the coming months. Another "wave of season-ticket holders is expected" when MLS releases its 2019 schedule. This comes as positive news for the league, which hopes that all expansion franchises will follow a similar path to Atlanta United FC, a club that has consistently set and shattered league attendance records since being added last year.

As the fight continues between La Liga and participating clubs over playing regular season matches abroad in the United States, one thing remains undeniable: the venture would be extremely lucrative for La Liga. According to SPORT, the groundbreaking 15-year contract that La Liga signed with Relevant Sports last month will reportedly be worth a total of $212 million, or around $14.1 million per season. Both the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the Spanish Footballers' Association (AFE) "would have the right to receive a percentage of the revenue from La Liga. The RFEF would reportedly be entitled to 2.5% of the $212 million, which would be $5.3 million.” It still remains to be seen whether Barcelona will square off against Girona at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium this January, for the players have continued their fight against the deal, claiming that they were not consulted by the league at all before the deal was announced. Another benefit of that match to Hard Rock Stadium owner Steve Ross – it would be a solid mega event logistics dress rehearsal before his under-renovation stadium and environs host the Super Bowl in 2020.

15.While professional tennis is dominated by the Grand Slam events, administrators are proposing an enticing new event to drum up more interest in the sport outside of the four major tournaments. According to the London Telegraph, the new event would be staged as a 64-man, winner-takes-all tournament with a whopping $10 million purse. The Majesty Cup, a working title, would technically be “an exhibition and would be staged in the week after the U.S. Open.” To put that $10 million purse in perspective, Novak Djokovic earned “only” $3.8 million for winning the 2018 U.S. Open and $10 million “is about $2 million more than the entire purse at an ATP Masters 1000 event — the next-most-prestigious category of tournament after a grand slam.” The Majesty Cup would be permitted to pay the single winner the massive purse because of its exhibition tag, whereas a Masters tournament must follow the ATP’s “carefully delineated pay structure.” If the just-completed, sold out Laver Cup in Chicago is any indicator, tennis fans will enthusiastically welcome any and all new such events, as long as the world’s top players are involved.

Tech Top Five

Hall of Fame NFL quarterback and venture capitalist Joe Montana joins The Fan Controlled Football League as an investor and Chief Strategic Advisor. The league aptly describes itself as the first professional football league where fans call all the shots. According to Cynopsis Sports, the FCFL announced that Montana will be a driving force in the formation and development of the league’s branding, a lead figure in the on-field football and technical innovations, and will provide invaluable front office expertise for fan engagement. This democratic sports league allows fans to be more than just viewers. Player personnel and real-time play calling decisions are all made by viewers via the league’s mobile app – in essence, the fans become the coach and general manager for their team. The FCFL is the combination of on-field football, video game culture, and technological innovation that provides fans an unparalleled opportunity to place bets and change the way football is perceived. Currently, the FCFL has inked a multi-year streaming deal with Twitch to stream its games.

Twitch is banned by the Chinese government. According to JohnWallStreet, the San Francisco based social video game platform was exiled late last month after the August Asian Games led to a download rate 23 times higher than normal for the app. This high download count was due to the esports competition not being broadcast on either state television or domestic gaming live streaming platforms. In the weeks following the ban, the Chinese government removed the service from the Chinese Apple App store and access to the company’s website has been blocked on the mainland. Twitch still heavily underperformed other Chinese domestic social video game competitors such as Douyu, YY, and Huya, all of which have tens of millions of active monthly users. The main assumption for these restrictions on Twitch is that Chinese authorities are unable to control the chat function within the service. Foreign media companies will continue to push the boundaries in China – meanwhile, this ban eliminates a massive Chinese gaming market for Twitch.

ESPN’s new sports business show “The Boardroom” will partner with Kevin Durant’s Thirty Five Media. The show will air on ESPN+, the company's April-debuted streaming service, and will be hosted by ESPN’s Jay Williams. According to Deadline, the six-episode series features Jordan Schultz as a correspondent and will become one of the many pieces in an ESPN+ lineup that has already attracted more than one million subscribers. The show’s goal is to bring fans behind the scenes of the modern business office and showcase the evolution of sports business through the minds of athletes, sports executives, and tech moguls. The Golden State Warriors star and his business partner, Rich Kleiman, will also make regular appearances and serve as the show’s executive producers. Durant has established himself as someone who can play on the court, however the next step in growing his business profile off the court will start by running “The Boardroom.”

Modern-day Brazilian soccer deity Neymar launches his first video game for mobile. According to The Sun, the video game app for smartphones is called Match MVP and features the PSG footballer as a virtual mentor and coach. The game even showcases Neymar’s father as an agent who offers advice on contract offers from clubs – a situation Neymar had actually experienced during his own career. The Like A Boss created game highlights the struggles of on-the-field players as users create their own avatar to work their way up the ranks while testing their skills against other gamers from around the globe. Neymar even makes in-game mention of his charitable arm, the Neymar Institute, which is a multifaceted education complex for children in Praia Grande, Brazil. The facility includes classrooms, playing fields, and a swimming pool, and provides sporting activities for underprivileged children in Praia Grande, most of which is seen in the game that is now available for iOS and Android.

Riot Games esports series League of Legends has cashed in on an industry-revolutionizing deal with Mastercard.  According to Sports Pro, esports has estimated audience figures of roughly 400 million viewers worldwide, and has quickly became a profitable sector for brands, leagues, and businesses. The deal sees Mastercard become the league’s first global partner and marks a significant step for both LOL and the broader esports discipline. Head of Riot Games’ esports partnerships, Naz Aletaha, commented that the ever-growing, passionate esports community has helped transform LOL into the global sport it is today, and that the passion from hundreds of millions of fans has made long-term partnerships with world-class brands like Mastercard possible. Even though Riot’s LOL has signed with Mastercard, Aletaha reinforced that the focus will always be fan-first. Since the United States Supreme Court overturned the 1992 prohibition against sports gambling earlier this year, industries including professional basketball, football, and esports have found ways to stretch profits to maximize revenue and in turn provide fans an ultimate experience.

Power of Sports Five

The 2018 U.S. Ryder Cup Team donates $2.85 million to community outreach and youth golf development programs. According to the Ryder Cup website, Captain Jim Furyk, and the 12-member U.S. Team have continued the tradition of designating funds to the 2018 Ryder Cup Outreach Program. For the previous 10 Ryder Cups, dating back to 1999, the Outreach Program has contributed more than $25.8 million to 200+ charitable organizations. All members of the 2018 U.S. team have designated $100,000 to the charities of their choice with another $100,000 to be directed to youth golf development programs designed to introduce children to the game and deliver world-class coaching and mentoring to advanced juniors who may not otherwise have the financial means. The 2018 Youth Golf Development Programs that will benefit directly include: KPMG Future Leaders Program; Drive, Chip & Putt Championship; and PGA Jr. League. These philanthropic causes add a much needed humanitarian component to one of golf’s grandest events.

Grand Prix of Sonoma Verizon IndyCar Series weekend raises more than $76,000. According to the Argus-Courier, fundraising surrounding the IndyCar weekend raised money for the Sonoma Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities, which has distributed more than $6 million to its nonprofit groups since 2001. The IndyCar Grand Prix Salute kicked off the Verizon IndyCar Series Championship weekend at Andretti Winery in Napa with the Michael Andretti Foundation partnering to host the event. The evening included a star-studded lineup with a question-and-answer session featuring Andretti Autosport drivers Ryan Hunter-Reay, 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi, Rossi’s teammates Patricio O’Ward and Zach Veach – sponsored by Group1001 – and three generations of Andrettis: Mario, Michael, and Marco. The weekend totaled more than $60,000 for Speedway Children’s Charities, and the next event will be the 15th annual Classic Sports Racing Group Charity Challenge October 5-7. Over the past 14 years, CSRG has donated $910,000 to SCC through the Charity Challenge race weekend.

Sports legends arrived in New York for the Buoniconti Fund charity dinner to raise money and awareness for paralysis and spinal cord injuries. According to the New York Post, some of the crowd at the New York Hilton Hotel included two-time NBA champion Ray Allen, Hall of Fame quarterback Bob Griese, former New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez, and renowned jockey Mike Smith. The evening of September 24 marked the Buoniconti Fund’s 33rd annual Great Sports Legends Dinner and this year, tennis legend Chris Evert and Argentinian polo star Ignacio “Nacho” Figueras respectively received the 2018 Humanitarian and 2018 Philanthropist Awards. Legendary broadcaster Bob Costas orchestrated the events of the evening. Marc Buoniconti runs the charitable arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, The Buoniconti Fund, and he said that the event averages 1,300 guests and raises $5 million every year. At the age of 19, Marc became paralyzed from the shoulders down and his late father, Hall of Fame NFL linebacker Nick Buonconti, co-founded The Miami Project to help those in similar situations to his son’s.

On November 3, West Virginia University men’s basketball team hosts a charity exhibition game against Penn State to benefit the American Red Cross’ hurricane relief efforts. This will be the first meeting between the two teams dating back to the 1991 season. The NCAA approved a ruling in May 2018 that allowed universities to use one of its possible two exhibition games against a Division I institution for the purposes of raising funds after a catastrophic event. This one was well timed, as Hurricane Florence ripped through much of the East Coast during the last month and left many people in need of help. According to The Inter-Mountain, the game time for the WVU and Penn State game will be determined after the WVU-Texas Longhorn football game time is set. All proceeds from the game will go to American Red Cross’ hurricane relief efforts just as the Carolina Panthers, Michael Jordan, and college sports teams continue to step up for their communities in need.

2K Games’ charity brings video game inspired basketball courts to cities lacking funding. On September 25, 2K Games announced the assembly of 2K Foundations. The organization’s goal within its first year of operation is to provide community learning centers and reconstruct basketball courts in 12 U.S. cities including Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and L.A. According to Newsweek, Cincinnati's Lincoln Recreation Center courts, the foundation’s first project, were a joint product with court refurbishers Project Backboard and local artist Adrian Gaither who created a unique not-so-blacktop complete with 2K logos and NBA-regulation lines. In addition to refurbishing basketball courts, 2K Foundations will offer communities the resources to host NBA 2K tournaments and encourage learning and diversity through STEM education. Microsoft has also contributed to the Foundation’s efforts by donating Xbox One S consoles to the educational spaces. One of the noteworthy features of NBA 2K19 is its futuristic court designs which have now become reality for America’s neighborhoods who can use a helping hand.

[thewcllingtons]

dropping some tags for the newbies and things that aren’t saved here??