Let's Give Them Something To Talk About
Sunday Funday is back thanks to ESPN: The Ocho, a bold move to proclaim one's love and Shaq never ceases to surprise us. #sportscurious
You made it – the first WFH week is nearly behind us.
Social distancing like a champ,
The Last Night’s Game Team
NFL (National Football League)
The wait is over. Tom Brady, the biggest name in free agency, announced this morning that he will be the newest quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ironically, when the Brady-Bucs rumor started, the Bucs fielded calls from players who wanted to play for team alongside Brady.
Make sure you catch our Instagram story where we give you the quick rundown of how COVID-19 is impacting NFL free agency in an unexpected way in this week’s Sports Curious Question of the Week.
Overtime
Online learning doesn’t hold a candle to the classroom but some first graders in Georgia were in for a huge surprise when NBA (National Basketball Association) Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal crashed their online classroom. Shaq welcomed the students, greeted them all by name and told them to be good to their parents. LEARNING IS FUN
Sideline stat
Sunday Funday is back thanks to ESPN. Normally reserved for August 8th, they’re bringing back ESPN: The Ocho for 24 hours starting Sunday. The “Dodgeball: The Movie”-inspired programming features seldom-seem sports like cherry pit spitting, sign spinning championships and axe throwing. BOLD STRATEGY COTTON
Coaches’ corner
When a global pandemic sent their season into a downward spiral, NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) decided to make the best of it. A combination of high-profile NASCAR drivers will be racing this Sunday, but virtually. The racing league created the NASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series, where fans can watch their favorite drivers like Dale Earnhardt Jr. compete on iRacing, the motorsports racing simulation platform that is used by NASCAR drivers to prepare for a race. The live racing season is slated to return on May 3. REFUELING WITH CHEETOS NOT GASOLINE
In Other News
Less COVID-19 and more stuff you actually want to talk about. Don’t worry we washed our hands before sending this.
For the past 36 hours all you’ve heard about is the coronavirus, how you should buy more toilet paper and of course, save Tom Hanks. Sure, we’re bringing you a quick update on sports that have been cancelled but primarily stories about other things happening in the world of sports.
You’re welcome,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Coronavirus vs. The World
By now you’ve heard that just about every sport in the world is suspended or cancelled. Yesterday we learned that the NHL (National Hockey League), MLS (Major League Soccer), MLB (Major League Baseball) and the PGA (Professional Golfers Association), NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), Formula One Racing and Premier League (soccer) joined the NBA (National Basketball Association) in suspending their seasons. But there it at least one sport that will proceed at this point - the big UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) fight on Saturday but it will be closed to fans. A LOT OF NETFLIX TIME ON OUR HANDS
Overtime
U.S. Soccer has its first ever female president. Cindy Parlow Cone, a member of the 1999 World Cup winning team, stepped into the role after previous president Carlos Cordeiro resigned for misogynistic marks the organization made about the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team in a legal filing. U.S. Soccer claimed that there was “indisputable science’” that the women lacked the “skill” of male players. It also said the women did not face the same “responsibilities” because the global game is not as developed as the men’s. Sponsors are mad and the USWNT showed their distaste by wearing their jerseys inside out in Wednesday’s game to hide the U.S. Soccer logo. R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Sideline stat
Sadly, there will be no March Madness this year so that means no bracket challenges. Normally not having the distraction of brackets would’ve made for a more productive workplace but since everyone is now working from home, it’s a wash. The NCAA couldn’t have made this decision lightly as they bring in 80% of their revenue from this tournament. Last year’s tourney brought home $933 million. THAT’LL HURT
Coaches’ corner
Your heart goes out to players in the leagues where games are being cancelled but Dallas Mavericks’ (NBA) owner Mark Cuban isn’t worried about his players paying their bills. He is worried about the hourly event staff that works in their arena. He had a team run the numbers and is working on a deal to make sure everyone who works at the stadium gets paid for the time the league is suspended. SHARK WITH A HEART
One For The Ages
Coronavirus = cancelled games, a real-life beer snake and the contest that calls for chicken wings and binge watching for 2 days straight.
No good story started with eating a salad and neither did an epic weekend.
Here’s to sports and coffee,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Sports vs. Coronavirus
Sporting events across the globe have one eye on revenues and the other on the coronavirus. All sporting events in Italy will be played without fans until April 3. Back across the pond, the first sporting events in the U.S. have been cancelled with both Chicago State and UMKC (University of Missouri – Kansas City) cancelling their road games at Seattle University. The NCAA (governing body of college sports) told reporters that they are planning for all options for March Madness, which could include postponing/cancelling games or not allowing fans at games. The college basketball tournament brings in more than 80 percent of the NCAA’s annual revenue, which was more than $1 billion in 2018. INTO THE UNKNOWN
Overtime
The D.C. Defenders (XFL) return home this weekend after rough road trip. Their head coach Pep Hamilton is encouraging fans to show up with the same appetite for football and beer that they had in previous home games when they created “12-pack” the beer snake. Defenders’ fans drank so much beer that they made a beer cup snake (stacked beer cups) that stretched the length of a section. Normally we aren’t into reptiles but let’s hope these fans bring their A-game this weekend. SERIOUS COMMITMENT
Sideline stat
Have you ever wanted to eat chicken wings and watch March Madness basketball for two days straight? It’s your lucky day. Buffalo Wild Wings has created a contest where the winners get to live inside a restaurant for the first two days of the March Madness tournament. They set up a living space that includes bunk beds, flat-screen TVs and in-room dining. But if you wish to mingle with the common folk, you can wander out into the restaurant to watch the games too. DREAMS DO COME TRUE
Coaches’ corner
In honor of International Women’s Day on Sunday, the Chicago Blackhawks – St. Louis Blues telecast will have an all-female broadcast crew, studio crew, and production crew, something that’s not been done before. A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
Take four minutes and meet five women changing sports for the better in this week’s podcast. LISTEN
What to watch
Soccer’s David Beckham being scared by Justin Bieber on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" is the funniest thing you’ll see today. SCARY SPICE