2026-07-17
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Finance & Investments
The streaming giant aims to hit $3B in ad revenue this year by spending 5% of its total content budget on live events.
Netflix drew 5.3M viewers for Major League Baseball's Home Run Derby and will air five live professional football games to boost viewership.
Securing rights to the 2027 and 2031 Women's World Cup allows Netflix to pair live matches with original documentaries to attract fans.
The event drew 15.9M viewers on streaming service Paramount+, setting a peak audience record of 8.3M concurrent fans.
The Las Vegas fight card generated a historic $25M in ticket sales, making it the highest-grossing event in UFC history.
McGregor lost in 69 seconds due to injury, creating a massive financial windfall for betting companies after fans wagered heavily on him.
Saudi wealth fund subsidiary SURJ holds a majority stake in the venture alongside global entertainment companies Live Nation and Oak View Group.
The new firm, radia, will manage and book events for dozens of facilities being built ahead of the 2034 World Cup to ensure profitability.
This strategy supports the national shift toward tourism by creating local jobs and establishing the Middle East as a major destination for global tours.
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Media, Broadcasting & Sponsorships
The NBCUniversal-owned network will air 100+ matches per season on TV and Peacock streaming, in a deal reportedly worth $10M annually.
It follows this week's English-language deal with Versant, an NBC spin-off, giving the German soccer league US coverage in both languages.
The Bundesliga says its US fanbase has grown 43% in five years, making America a key target market for the league.
Mexico's top soccer league suspended promotion and relegation in 2020 to shield clubs from Covid-19 losses, and has now ruled it out again.
Fines of up to $4.6M on bottom-finishing teams, previously redistributed to second-tier Liga Expansion clubs, are also eliminated.
The changes mirror the US's franchise-style MLS; joining Liga MX now requires buying an existing club's license, as newcomer Atlante did.
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Teams & Leagues
The US President will watch Sunday's championship game between Argentina and Spain and is expected to present the trophy to the winning team.
This appearance follows a long tradition of host nation leaders, like the Emir of Qatar in 2022, participating in the final trophy ceremony.
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Miscellaneous
The former player was initially suspended for almost two years for fixing matches tied to a massive corruption ring involving over 1.5K conspirators.
He appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, while tennis integrity officials counter-appealed to seek a harsher six-year penalty.
The court rejected his appeal and extended his suspension to exactly three years, keeping him banned from the sport until May 2028.
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