According to iSpot.tv at press time at the end of the game, leading the pack in creating the most buzz on Sunday (scoring tops in digital share of voice generated by the commercial compared to all others, both good and bad) was Bill Murray’s return to Groundhog Day in a spot for the 2020 Jeep Gladiator, landing 16.45% percent of the online activity, with 12,412,118 online views, and 49,058 social actions. Rounding out the top ten were:
· Facebook’s “Ready to Rock?” ad featuring Sylvester Stallone and Chris Rock, generating 9.51% on online activity with 7,282,556 online views and 27,303 social actions.
· GMC’s “Quiet Revolution” featuring LeBron James with 8.50% of online activity, comprised of 7,514,119 online views and 14,234 social actions.
· Donald Trump’s “Criminal Justice Reform” ad generated 5.05% online activity, with 30,410 views and 53,523 social actions.
· Trailer for Black Widow drew 4.42% of online activity, with 166,591 online views and 45,540 social actions.
· The Google Assistant spot, ‘Loretta,’ drew 4.29% of online activity, with 1,751,370 online views and 27,650 social actions.
· Pepsi Zero Sugar’s ‘Zero Sugar. Done Right.’ Spot featuring Missy Elliott, H.E.R. won 3.83% with 2,772,738 online views and 12,321 social actions.
· Doritos’ ‘The Cool Ranch’ with Sam Elliott, Lil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus had 3.41% of online activity with 1,487,069 online views and 18,554 social actions.
· Olay’s “Make Space For Women” with Taraji P. Henson, Lilly Singh, Katie Couric, Busy Phillips, and Nicole Stott had 3.34% online activity, 226,492 online views and 33,143 social actions.
· Planters’ ‘Tribute’ commercial with Wesley Snipes and Matt Walsh had 3.21% of online activity, with 8,412 views and 34,065 social actions.

PROGRAMMING

Fresh off of the Super Bowl, FOX Sports also revved up its NASCAR plans over the weekend, with its upcoming 20th consecutive season of coverage from Daytona Speedweeks. The new season will see driver Clint Bowyer expand his FOX NASCAR on-air contributions in 2020, adding more NASCAR XFINITY Series races to his plate alongside Adam Alexander along with a rotation of Cup Series drivers to be announced. Additionally, Bowyer contributes to NASCAR Raceday and NASCAR Race Hub multiple times throughout the year. The DAYTONA 500 on Feb. 16 at 2:30 on FOX will see play-by-play announcer Mike Joy calling the race with Jeff Gordon. Longtime race analyst Larry McReynolds continues to partner while the pit road reporting team will be made up of Matt Yocum, Jamie Little, Vince Welch and Regan Smith. Shannon Spake returns to host network race coverage of all NASCAR Cup Series races, as well as prerace coverage on NASCAR RACEDAY, alongside analysts Jamie McMurray (first) and McReynolds.

The NFL Players Association are set to meet to conditionally vote on a potential 17-game regular-season schedule that could begin in 2021 as part of a new collective bargaining agreement. ESPN reports that all 32 team player representatives, along with the NFLPA executive board, will meet to review a 10-year labor contract for the second time within a week.

Meanwhile, Major League Soccer and the MLS Players Association extended their current collective bargaining agreement through Friday in a move to lock in a new deal. The current CBA was set to expire on Jan. 31.

The NBA, NBPA and Nike announced that the 2020 NBA All-Star uniforms will pay tribute to the late Kobe Bryant, as well as his daughter Gianna and their seven friends and teammates who tragically passed away in last Sunday’s helicopter accident. The 2020 NBA All-Star Game will feature Team LeBron wearing the No. 2 and Team Giannis (Antetokounmpo) wearing the No. 24 – Gianna and Kobe’s basketball jersey numbers, respectively. In addition, both teams will wear jersey patches displaying nine stars, representing those who lost their lives in the crash, including John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah and Payton Chester, Christina Mauser and Ara Zobayan. The game takes place on Feb. 16 at 8p.

College GameDay Covered by State Farm heads to Chapel Hill on Saturday when Duke comes to town. Host Rece Davis and analysts Jay Bilas, LaPhonso Ellis, in his first season, and Seth Greenberg will be live from Dean E. Smith Center, beginning at 11a on ESPN.

NHL Network is set to televise the final three 2019-20 Rivalry Series games between the USA Hockey Women’s National Team and Hockey Canada, beginning this evening at 10:30p from Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre in Victoria, B.C. The second game will come from Rogers Arena on February 5 at 10 with the final matchup taking place on Feb. 8 at 10p from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. In addition, “As Fast As Her,” a Blackhawks Originals feature on Chicago’s own Kendall Coyne Schofield, will air on NHL Network on Feb. 5 at 9:30p and Feb. 8 at 12:30p.

The Atlanta Hawks and Entercom announced a new multiyear contract extension of their broadcast partnership with the extension set to include the broadcast of all 82 Hawks’ regular season and all postseason games on 92.9 The Game as well as 30-minute pre- and postgame shows. As part of the agreement, sister stations V-103 (WVEE-FM) and Star 94.1 (WSTR-FM) will provide additional promotional support.

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Authentic Brands Group, owner of the Sports Illustrated brand, inked a strategic partnership with Sentia Wellness to develop, produce and distribute Sports Illustrated and Sports Illustrated Swim-branded CBD-infused topicals. “Sports Illustrated has been at the forefront of sports and culture for over 65 years and is a name that resonates with the athlete and fan in all of us,” said Daniel W. Dienst, Vice Chairman at ABG. “We are excited to partner with Sentia, a leader in the wellness industry, as we continue to expand the Sports Illustrated brand and create trusted, high-quality consumer products.”

DIGITAL, DATA & TECH

Bank of America is projecting sports betting to reach 50% of the U.S. population by 2022, according to CNBC, with sports betting revenue, which hit about $950 million in 2019, scaling to hit the $6 billion to $20 billion levels.

Roku and FOX were able to come to an accord ahead of the Super Bowl, which locked in a last-minute agreement. In a statement, FOX said that “We are pleased to have reached a successful agreement with Roku. Fox’s leading suite of apps will continue to be available on the Roku platform.”

ESPORTS

The Rocket League World Championship is gassing up for a trip to Texas where the event will take place this year at Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas from April 24-26. A dozen teams will compete, with two full playoff bracket and best-of-seven elimination games.

Multiple reports, including VPEsports, have a potential new structure for the 2020-21 Dota Pro Circuit that would see Valve eliminate Minor tournaments and decrease its slate of Major tournaments from five to three, and subsequently open a two-tiered regional league system. The new-look league would then feature a tier-one and tier-two bracket, with relegation and promotion systems in place.

Organizers behind the upcoming league currently known as B Site announced that its qualifiers would feature a $100,000 prize pool, running Feb. 5-17 across North America, Europe and South America. The top two teams from each of the three regions will head to the Global LAN Qualifiers.

INDUSTRY & ROSTER MOVES

WWE confirmed the departures of co-presidents George Barrios and Michelle Wilson. “I am grateful for all that was accomplished during their tenure, but the board and I decided a change was necessary as we have different views on how best to achieve our strategic priorities moving forward,” McMahon, WWE’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement Thursday.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was named Co-Owner and Chairman of NFL FLAG where he will work closely with Reigning Champs Experiences (RCX) President and former NFL safety Izell Reese to support league development and growth worldwide for both boys and girls.

THE MAIN EVENT

76ers/Heat on NBA TV at 7:30p.

In the Know
Which actor introduced the Chiefs and 49ers at the Super Bowl last night? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city).

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question
Who beat the Cardinals in their lone Super Bowl appearance? Answer: The Steelers. Kudos: Denis Barry-CBS/NY; Scott Jenkins-Gracenote/NY; Michael Ritz-Northwestern Mutual/NY; Greg Conner-Tennis Media/NY; Mark Lehman-Braves/Atlanta; Jonny Codalata-CSM Sport & Entertainment/Indianapolis; C.J. Bottitta-Big Picture Productions/Apex; Matt Laramee-Southern New Hampshire University/Manchester; Joe Lyons-ESPN/Dallas; Andy Pittman-TAMU/College Station; Tom Doherty-Starcom USA/Chicago; John Tingue-hulu/Chicago; Bill Robertson-WCHA/Bloomington; Rich Wolfe-Lone Wolfe Press/Scottsdale; Greg Moloznik-GLM Media/Scottsdale; Dave Sikula-San Francisco State University/San Francisco; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; John Baghdassarian-Olympusat/LA; Andy Babb-Super League Gaming/Santa Monica; Larry Hutchings/Nipomo