T’Wolves, Lynx execs stepping down ahead of ownership change

T’Wolves and Lynx CEO Ethan Casson and COO Ryan Tanke are “stepping down from their roles, the biggest front-office changes so far as the organization prepares to enter a new era” under new ownership led by Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore. The two leaders, who have spent more than 20 years combined with the organizations, announced their plans to step down “in a joint letter sent to staff members” Friday. Neither announced plans for “where they will go next,” and the new ownership team “has not publicly identified any possible successors for their roles.” Casson — a 2014 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree — has served as CEO since 2016, while Tanke has been COO since 2019 and was CRO for seven years before that. Casson and Tanke “will continue in their roles until the sale of the organization … officially closes” (MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL BUSINESS JOURNAL, 6/20).

The Univ. of Wisconsin and its NIL collective “filed a complaint in state circuit court” today against the Univ. of Miami over “alleged tortious interference,” according to court documents. In a “first-of-its-kind and, perhaps, a precedent-setting move,” Wisconsin is “seeking unspecified damages, transparency and accountability from Miami for allegedly interfering with a binding revenue-sharing contract” between Wisconsin and CB Xavier Lucas, who left Wisconsin in January to play for Miami. The Big Ten “is supporting the suit against Miami. The case is ”poised to set precedent in the ability for schools to enforce tampering clauses within revenue-sharing agreements” that were contingent on the House settlement’s passage (YAHOO SPORTS, 6/20).

The Arizona Senate last night “passed a bill” that will “redirect tax dollars generated at Chase Field” to help renovate the ballpark. The bill that passed “now limits the amount of tax dollars” that can go toward the renovation — $500M — and it is “more specific about which taxes will be used to fund stadium renovations and how much will go towards it.” The bill would “also penalize” the team if they relocated and requires team ownership to “put up” $250M. There are “still several steps that need to take place before the bill becomes law.” The bill needs to go back to the House for a “final vote on the changes made to the bill” and then needs to be signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs (PHOENIX BUSINESS JOURNAL, 6/20).

The ATP Tour has extended its global sponsorship deal with Emirates through 2030. Emirates, a sponsor of the ATP since 2013, retains its designations as Premier Partner and Official Airline of the tour and will become the ATP’s first umpire sleeve patch partner beginning in 2026.

Emirates will continue to host premium hospitality at nearly 60 ATP tournaments and receive branding on the net at events, as well as begin integrating ATP stars into its digital promotional campaigns.

In addition to its high-profile sponsorship of other sports properties including the NBA, SailGP and World Rugby, Emirates sponsors all four of tennis’ Grand Slams (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, U.S. Open).

Financial terms of the renewal with the ATP were not disclosed. The ATP negotiated in-house.

UFC President & CEO Dana White said the property’s media rights talks could wrap up anytime from the near future to September and said it is likely the fighting circuit will have multiple partners in the new cycle. The Las Vegas-based MMA property is in the final year of a deal with ESPN that pays it around $300M a year, and it has been reported by Bloomberg to be seeking $1B annually moving forward. ESPN’s exclusive negotiating window lapsed in April and at the time chairman Jimmy Pitaro told SBJ an extension is still possible and desired by the Disney-owned network.

TKO execs have acknowledged that they expected robust interest in the rights from others in the marketplace, and Puck reported this month that ESPN was the closest to striking a renewal but that at least four companies were in the mix for what would likely turn out to be two packages. Netflix, which already has multiple deals with TKO, is in the mix, as is Prime Video and WBD, Puck said.

Asked by SBJ how talks were going, White said: “Everything is going well — we’re happy with all the discussions we’re having.” Pressed on whether UFC would most likely end up with multiple partners, White said: “I don’t know — I don’t know yet, but yes, it’s likely.”

Netflix has a relationship with TKO with its WWE and Zuffa Boxing properties, but it has yet to be seen whether that will get the California-based streaming giant a leg up for UFC rights. Staying with ESPN in some capacity while also aligning UFC with a mega streamer could help amplify the property to an even greater potential universe of viewers. White mentioned how working with Netflix on the Zuffa Boxing promotion of the upcoming Canelo Alvarez–Terence Crawford fight helps fulfill a lifelong dream of sorts, indicative of how much respect he has for the global reach of the streamers. Netflix has been reported to have around 280 million subscribers, while Amazon has said that Prime Video has more than 200 million.

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Suns F Kevin Durant has “expanded his relationship” with Qatar Sports Investments, investing directly into French Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain as “part of a strategic partnership that will also see Durant consult on the club’s ‘potential plans’ to expand into basketball.” Sources confirmed PSG’s ambitions in basketball “relate to NBA Europe and indicated that it would be for the NBA and EuroLeague to thrash out what happens in Paris,” where there is already a EuroLeague team. Durant has taken a direct minority stake in PSG through Boardroom “in tandem” with business partner and former agent Rich Kleiman. PSG is “not disclosing the precise sum” of his investment, though it’s “roughly the same” as his previous investment. The partnership means Boardroom and QSI will “team up on commercial, investment and media content initiatives, as well as advising on PSG’s growth in the U.S.” The release also said Durant will “consult ‘on Paris Saint-Germain’s multi-sports strategy, including potential plans for basketball’” (THE ATHLETIC, 6/20).

The Panthers’ Stanley Cup championship parade is set for Sunday in Fort Lauderdale, but who will pay for the event remains “a mystery for now,” as the city “is still negotiating the details on who pays what.” Last year, Fort Lauderdale initially agreed to pay $100,000 of a “nearly $400,000 tab for security costs provided by the city’s police and fire departments.” In the end, Fort Lauderdale “kicked in $200,000 — then waited nearly a year for the Panthers to pay the rest,” city officials say. In January, the Panthers “asked the city to waive the remaining fee for last year’s parade,” but the commission “responded with a resounding no” (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 6/20).

A Dairy Queen in Sunrise, Fla. is “paying tribute” to Panthers F Brad Marchand by “offering customers a special ‘Brad Blizzard’” today only. Marchand “showed up at the restaurant,” which had a “line around the block to get the unique menu item, specially flavored ‘Chocolate Chirp Cookie Dough.’” Marchand had previously “expressed his love for Dairy Queen, which has caught on with teammates and fans alike” (DAILY FACEOFF, 6/20). Marchand, while wearing a DQ shirt, “did the famous upside-down ‘Blizzard test’ to see if the Blizzard would stick when turned upside down” (MIAMI NEW TIMES, 6/20).

The Black Women’s Player Collective’s mission is “front and center this weekend” as the NWSL and its clubs celebrate Juneteenth. The BWPC, as part of its ‘Get Girls to Games’ initiative, has “teamed up” with Angel City FC, Racing Louisville, Gotham FC, Washington Spirit and Bay FC, who have “designated their June home fixtures as Juneteenth games.” The partnership “brings young girls, especially from underrepresented communities, to their first professional matches” through partnerships with organizations like Girls Inc. and PowerPlay NYC. The BWPC also “created a special shirt,” designed by Cortney Herron, “for players to wear before matches.” The organization is also collaborating with the U.S. Soccer Foundation to “build more mini-pitches and work toward long-term goals that include subsidizing club fees and challenging” the pay-to-play model (THE ATHLETIC, 6/19).

New CivicScience data shows that F1 commands notable interest among U.S. fans, including that one-quarter of U.S. adult respondents report they follow F1 at least somewhat closely. Those who follow are most likely to be Gen Z (aged 18-29), Millennials (30-44), middle-income households (earning $50,000-$100,000 annually) and residents living in the Midwest and South. A deeper dive finds that the majority (77%) of F1 fans report having a more general interest that is not tied to specific drivers or teams, while 23% — led by fans aged 30-44 — say they follow the sport for a particular driver or team.

The success of F1 docuseries “Drive to Survive” on Netflix has helped redefine how fans discover and engage with sports. The data shows that 42% of Americans who have watched a behind-the-scenes docuseries about a sport they don’t typically follow say it encouraged them to start watching. Only 14% said the series pushed them away from the sport, while 45% said it had no impact (CivicScience).

SBJ and CivicScience are partners on the Sports Consumer Insight survey project.

In this SBJ/Leaders in Sport at Cannes video, CEO & Commissioner of Grand Slam Track and 4-time Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Johnson joins Leaders in Sport’s James Emmett to discuss where the league stands after canceling the final event of the first season. Johnson also explains Grand Slam Track’s media strategy and how they are leveraging social to engage with their audience. Johnson also explains why track must be more prevalent in non-Olympic years to enhance the athlete’s overall brand value. Finally, Johnson lays out plans for year two of Grand Slam Track. The duo spoke at this year’s SPORT BEACH at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.