The National Football League and the American Cancer Society are teaming up to support the fight against cancer for the tenth straight year via Crucial Catch: Intercept Cancer. The initiative addresses early detection and risk reduction efforts for multiple cancers. Funds donated through Crucial Catch this season will be directed toward support of three screenable cancers: breast, colorectal and cervical. Funding will continue to support the American Cancer Society Community Health Advocates implementing Nationwide Grants for Empowerment and Equity (CHANGE) Program. In addition, the NFL will work with ACS and CHANGE grant recipients to host education sessions and/or screenings in their communities, and many NFL teams will participate in these educational activities. As part of the campaign, the NFL and ACS created The Defender, a digital tool, which provides consumers with personalized tips to reduce their cancer risk. This year’s campaign also includes new digital features where NFL players talk about cancer’s impact on their lives. Players including Vikings quarterback Kirk cousins, Lions linebacker Eli Harold and Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson.
Qatar Airways is partnering with the Brooklyn Nets and the Barclays Center in a multi-year deal that marks the brand’s first NBA sponsorship. The deal will see the Barclays Center’s Courtside Club become known as the Qatar Airways Club while, the airline will also receive branding on all courtside seats.
DraftKings opened the doors to the 2019 Sports Betting National Championship, which will see contenders test their knowledge for a piece of $2.5 million in prizes, with the champion walking away with $1 million. The event will run from Jan. 11-13 out of Jersey City, with qualifiers open in the DraftKings lobby. The top five places are all guaranteed a six-figure payday, and there will be prizes all the way down to 25th.
The Players’ Tribune and The CW are joining forces for an original video starring current Detroit Lions wide receiver Marvin Jones. The video, Against All Odds, spotlights Jones as he opens up about his childhood and his drive to chase his dreams of playing in the NFL. Mirroring themes of The CW’s new show All-American, which debuts on Oct. 10, the video will live on TPT social channels and represents the first-ever collaboration between TPT and The CW.
UFC partnered with VFT Solutions, a leader in the content consumption and protection field, to monitor piracy across live streaming social media sites to prevent illegal streaming for UFC 229 last Saturday. VFT’s platform identifies and records the participants on both ends of the piracy.
Facebook picked up rights for the 2019-2022 Copa Libertadores. Under the deal, 46 matches a year — 27 of them exclusively — will be broadcast online in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Las Vegas will play host to the League of Legends All-Star 2018 this year, locking in on Esports Arena Las Vegas from Dec. 6-8 this year. This year’s event will draw from a pool of around 64 All-Stars including: a pair of pros from each competitive region, as voted by fans; two or three League Partners (streamers, prominent LoL community members, etc.) from each region, selected from the League Partner Program; and four pro player “All-Star Invitees”, chosen by Riot after the conclusion of the fan vote.
Riot reportedly locked in another team for the company’s upcoming franchised European League of Legends Championship Series. According to ESPN, the company has accepted Astralis as a franchise partner, where they will pay just over $12 million for the slot and join other reported organizations that include G2 Esports, Fnatic, Misfits, Schalke 04 Esports and Team Vitality in the league. On Friday, according to the report, Riot notified Splyce and H2K Gaming that their applications for franchise slots had been declined.
Red Sox/Yankees on TBS at 7:30p.