T-Mobile locked in a deal to serve as the presenting sponsor of the 2017 NHL Awards and NHL Expansion Draft, which take place on June 21 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. NBCSN and Sportsnet will broadcast the event live at 8p. With the deal, T-Mobile will be featured prominently in the event’s multimedia tune-in campaign, including the NBCSN broadcasts of the event, as well as throughout NHL Network, NHL.com and NHL Social. NHL Awards honorees, presenters and special guests will greet fans on the NHL Awards™Magenta Carpet, with T-Mobile serving as the presenting sponsor of NHL Network’s live NHL Awards and NHL Expansion Draft preview and recap shows.
Meanwhile, t he NHL Centennial Fan Arena tour will continue its road trip this summer, with the interactive fan experience lining up dates that include Buffalo from June 2-3 during the NHL Scouting Combine, Chicago from June 23-24 during the NHL Draft, and Toronto from July 14-16, among other stops.
ASICS America Corporation is offering an assist to to PHIT America by offering Americans the chance to turn their next fitness run into a charitable act. Leading up to Global Running Day on June 7, ASICS is challenging people from coast-to-coast to run a total of 60 minutes through June 6th. By doing so, ASICS will donate $1 to PHIT America , in order to help PHIT America achieve its goal of getting more Americans physically active and fit.
Whistle Sports is adding Nitro Circus to its roster, partnering to create and distribute long- and short-form content throughout Whistle Sports’ network of 350 million fans and followers across social platforms. Through the agreement, Nitro Circus will also facilitate opportunities for Whistle Sports creators to attend and produce content at Nitro events around the world. “Nitro Circus produces electric live performances across the globe, and working together with our creators, we will elevate their brand on the channels where millennials are following sports every day,” said Whistle Sports President Jeff Urban. “Through our partnership, Nitro Circus will be able to leverage Whistle Sports’ ability to sell and integrate brands into existing and new content, and we will expose their brand to new audiences by leveraging our social media influencers, like Guinness World Records, F2 Freestylers, and Paul Rabil.”
FOX Sports announced plans to showcase the UEFA Champions League final in VR, courtesy of LiveLike, which will feature multiple camera angles of the title match, as well as statistics and pre-game VOD features through the FOX SPORTS VR app. The game takes place on June 3 at 2p.
Samsung Electronics unveiled a VR Live Pass on Gear VR, featuring live entertainment partnerships with the UFC, X Games and Live Nation for audiences. The deals will see Samsung stream select live events so fans can enjoy immersive virtual reality broadcasts of their favorite action sports and music events through the Gear VR platform. Among the events to be featured will be UFC 212: Aldo vs. Holloway on June 3, X Games Minneapolis starting July 13 and more.
Bill Simmons has a newer new base of operations, this time taking The Ringer to Vox Media in a new partnership. Ringer had previously been publishing on the Medium platform.
ESPN landed live streaming rights to The Basketball Tournament’s new Jamboree play-in tournament, which will give 16 additional teams a shot at a winner-take-all $2 million prize. The Jamboree games will run June 17-18 at Philadelphia University, with all games streaming live on ESPN3 and the ESPN app.
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval signed Senate Bill 240 into law, opening the doors to legal esports wagering in the state by allowing p arimutuel betting to include competitive gaming and other events like award shows.
Twitter is partnering with Riot Games Oceania to live stream the inaugural League of Legends: League of Origin tournament globally on the platform and connected devices. The tournament takes place this weekend from the ESL Studios in Sydney. “Twitter is one of the most engaging platforms for fans of the OPL and OCS esports leagues, so it made sense to team up for League of Origin,” said Daniel Ringland, Head of Esports at Riot Games Oceania. “The livestream on Twitter will be a shortcut for fans in Oceania and around the world, as they can both watch and engage on the platform at the same time.” To celebrate the inaugural League of Legends: League of Origin, Twitter is also launching special tournament emojis.
Reebok International named Chris Froio as General Manager, Reebok America. Froio will lead the brand’s efforts to grow its business in the US. Market, reporting to Reebok President Matt O’Toole. Froio was most recently Reebok Brand Director in Western Europe.
The Players’ Tribune is tapping Joe Carney as Senior Vice President of Sales and Brand Partnerships, where he will oversee sales and brand partnerships, and work closely with advertising agencies and brands to create multiplatform content and custom advertising experiences. Carney previously served as Vice President of Sales for Major League Baseball.
Game 2 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final at 8p on NBCSN.
