Jan. 1
An armed man drives a speeding truck into a New Year’s Eve celebration on Bourbon Street in New Orleans’ French Quarter in the early morning hours, killing 15 and injuring more than 30 before being shot and killed by police in what the FBI called a terrorist assault. The Sugar Bowl, which was to be played that night at the Caesars Superdome, was postponed until the next day.
Jan. 28
The Home Depot signs a multiyear sponsorship with U.S. Soccer as the official home improvement retailer of the federation’s 27 national teams. It also becomes a supporting level partner of the $200 million Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Fayetteville, Ga.
Jan. 30
The NWSL awards an expansion franchise to a Denver-based investment group led by IMA Financial Chairman/CEO Robert Cohen for a record-setting fee of $110 million. In July, the club chooses the name Denver Summit, which will begin play in 2026 alongside the Boston Legacy.
Feb. 1
The Dallas Mavericks trade guard Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for forward/center Anthony Davis. The move sparks a wave of protest from Mavs fans, who greeted Doncic with cheers when he and Lakers played the Mavericks in April. Mavs GM Nico Harrison, who orchestrated the trade, is fired in November.
Feb. 4
Comcast’s Xfinity telecommunications brand will end its title sponsorship of NASCAR’s second-rung series after 2025, but it renews its broader premier partnership of the sanctioning body for multiple years.
Feb. 5
Horizon Sports & Experiences is acquiring sponsorship marketing and experiential agency Strategic, which was founded by Peter Stern in 1997.
Feb. 6
Raj Sports is building a dual practice facility for the Portland Thorns and its WNBA expansion team, the Portland Fire, which begins play in 2026. Nearly two weeks later, the Thorns sign the most lucrative front-of-kit sponsorship in NWSL history, with Amazon-owned smart home security company Ring.
Feb. 13
Super Bowl LIX garnered over $800 million in advertising sales for Fox Corp. across its broadcast and online outlets. The matchup featuring the Eagles and Chiefs set a record for single ad sales, with prices topping $8 million for a 30-second spot. The game also scored record viewership with more fans streaming the game. About 14.5 million of the 127.7 million viewers watched it online, mostly on Fox’s Tubi service.
March 7
ESPN announces it has re-signed Stephen A. Smith to a multiyear deal worth reportedly at least $100 million, marking the largest contract ever given out by ESPN to on-air talent.
March 13
Comcast NBCUniversal has signed a $3 billion extension with the International Olympic Committee, retaining the U.S. media rights for the Games through 2036. The four-year extension keeps the rights for NBCU through another domestic Games, with Salt Lake City to host in 2034.
March 20
IOC members elect Kirsty Coventry president, the first woman in the group’s 130-year history. The Zimbabwean sports minister and member of the IOC executive board will succeed Thomas Bach. Coventry, 41, becomes the first president to hail from Africa and its youngest since Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympics and the IOC’s second president.
March 31
NASCAR owners Jim France and Lesa France Kennedy promote President Steve Phelps to the newly created position of commissioner, making him the first person in company history to hold that title. COO Steve O’Donnell is promoted to president.
April 2
The NHL announces its 12-year extension with Rogers for Canadian media rights, and the $11 billion (Canadian; $7.7 billion U.S.) deal allows for Rogers to sublicense a portion of those rights.
April 16
Kim Ng is named the first commissioner of Athletes Unlimited Softball League, which will launch its inaugural season on June 7. In November, the AUSL expands to six teams, adding the Oklahoma City Spark and the Cascade. Permanent cities for the other five teams will be announced later.
April 18
The family of late Jazz owner Larry Miller is returning to major professional sports ownership in their hometown of Salt Lake City through the purchase of a controlling interest in MLS’s Real Salt Lake and the NWSL’s Utah Royals.
April 22
USL sells naming rights for its professional women’s soccer league, the USL Super League, to Indiana-based insurance technology company Gainbridge under a multiyear sponsorship. Beginning with the 2025-26 season, the competition will be known as the Gainbridge Super League.
April 23
The PWHL adds an expansion team in Vancouver and, a week later, its eighth league-owned team in Seattle for the 2025-26 season. In November, the league unveils the names and brand identities — the Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes.
April 27
The NFL Draft in Green Bay drew a three-day attendance of 600,000, equaling Nashville in 2019. Attendance in 2024 was 775,000 in Detroit, the record for draft attendance. The 2026 draft will be in Pittsburgh.
May 12-13
Direct-to-consumer streaming services for Fox and ESPN are announced, both of which launch in August. In October, a bundle combining the two services becomes available.
May 13
Pete Rose, “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and others become eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame after MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred issues a policy decision that permanent ineligibility that permanent ineligibility ends upon the death of the disciplined individual. The decision comes after an application was filed by Rose’s the family.
May 20
TGL is expanding to seven teams, with a Detroit-based Motor City Golf Club joining the tech golf league in 2027. Middle West Partners is the lead ownership group for the TGL team. Sheila Hamp, the Detroit Lions’ principal owner and chairwoman, and her husband, Steve, will be co-owners of the TGL team.
May 22
The LPGA names PGA of America COO Craig Kessler its next commissioner.
June 6
U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken approves a settlement in the House, Hubbard and Carter antitrust cases, opening the door for schools to pay athletes directly beginning July 1.
June 17
The PGA Tour announces the appointment of NFL Chief Media and Business Officer Brian Rolapp as its CEO. Commissioner Jay Monahan will step down from his role at the end of 2026.
June 30
The WNBA announces expansion to 18 teams, with new teams in Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia. The Cleveland team will begin play in 2028, followed by Detroit in 2029 and Philadelphia in 2030. Cleveland will be owned and operated by Rock Entertainment Group, the umbrella entity that houses Chairman Dan Gilbert’s sports and entertainment properties. The Detroit WNBA ownership group is led by Pistons owner Tom Gores. The Philadelphia team will be owned and operated by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment.
July 2
The NHL and NHLPA reach a long-awaited agreement with the International Ice Hockey Federation formalizing the terms of NHL players’ participation in the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Games, which are scheduled to be held in February. However, in December, issues arise around the quality of the ice at the rinks in Milan.
July 8
The NHL and NHLPA ratify a new collective-bargaining agreement more than a year before the expiration of the current contract. The agreement, which begins ahead of 2026-27 season, runs through the 2029-30 season.
July 14
Chelsea beats Paris Saint-Germain in the final of the first expanded FIFA Club World Cup before a tournament-high crowd of 81,188 at MetLife Stadium. The first 32-team edition of the tournament finished with an average attendance of 39,557 for 63 matches.
July 17
NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell resigns after a series of disclosures this summer that raised questions about the union’s handling of several key matters in Howell’s two years in charge, including its decision to not share with members a major arbitration ruling in January.
July 19
During warmups for the WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis, players revealed black T-shirts with a clear message to the league: “Pay us what you owe us.” The action came two days after 40 players met with the league during talks toward a new collective-bargaining agreement.
July 31
Fox Corp. announces it has purchased 33% of IndyCar and Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Penske Entertainment. The transaction price was reportedly between $125 million and $135 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Aug. 2
A group led by Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca reaches a deal with the Mohegan Tribe to move the WNBA’s Sun to TD Garden in Boston, according to sources. The move triggers an effort by the state of Connecticut to keep the team, as well as another offer to move the team Hartford. Any deal must be approved by the WNBA board of directors, which appears opposed to Boston and Hartford.
Aug. 7
AEG and American Express expand their 20-year-old partnership in a new multiyear deal that spans five AEG verticals (venues, festivals, touring, ticketing, and sports) and includes 40 marquee assets across four continents.
Aug. 13
Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon confirms that a group he is heading up has reached an agreement to buy the Trail Blazers from Paul Allen’s estate. In September, the estate announces the formal agreement to sell the team for a valuation of $4.25 billion.
Aug. 14
The NBA board of governors approves the sale of the controlling interests in the Boston Celtics to an investor group led by Bill Chisholm in a $6.1 billion transaction.
Sept. 1
Lee Corso appears on his final episode of ESPN’s “College GameDay,” which is the most-watched episode in the history of the college football traveling road show, averaging 4 million viewers on ESPN and ESPNU, according to data from Nielsen. The show peaked at 5.7 million viewers when Corso made his final headgear selection.
Sept. 3
The NBA is investigating allegations that $28 million in payments from Aspiration Partners to Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard was used by the team to skirt the salary cap. The allegations surfaced on investigative journalist Pablo Torre’s podcast. Under terms of the NBA CBA, the Clippers could be fined up to $4.5 million and stripped of a first-round draft pick for a first offense if they were found to have circumvented the salary cap.
Sept. 4
American Express will replace Visa next season as the NFL’s corporate sponsor in the credit card/payment card category.
Sept. 22
UW Health signs a deal to become the University of Wisconsin women’s sports title sponsor, the only such partnership in NCAA athletics. The sports included in the sponsorship include volleyball, hockey, basketball, soccer, golf, track and field, cross country, softball, tennis, swimming and rowing.
Sept. 22
The group led by Jacksonville real estate developer Patrick Zalupski is approved by MLB as the new owners of the Tampa Bay Rays. The group purchased the team from Stu Sternberg for $1.7 billion.
Oct. 5
President Donald Trump says that a previously announced UFC event at the White House will take place on June 14, 2026, Trump’s 80th birthday. UFC President and CEO Dana White has said that the UFC will spend $700,000 to replace the South Lawn grass after the event, which is also part of the nation’s 250th birthday celebration.
Oct. 13
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam announce an agreement that clears the way for a new $2.4 billion domed stadium in Brook Park and ends months of legal and political wrangling over the team’s plan to leave the downtown lakefront.
Oct. 15
League One Volleyball will expand with an L.A. team launching in 2027, with Alexis Ohanian and Seven Seven Six signing on to lead the ownership group. A month later, LOVB announces expansion to Minnesota, also expecting to begin play in 2027, which will be its eighth team.
Oct. 27
LSU fires head football coach Brian Kelly, a move that triggered a $54 million buyout clause. Roughly a quarter of a billion dollars is owed to Division I football coaches who were fired this season.
Oct. 28
The WTA names Valerie Camillo as its next chairperson, effective Nov. 17. Camillo, an SBJ Game Changers honoree in 2016, succeeds outgoing chair Steve Simon, who served in the role since 2015 and is retiring at the end of the year.
Nov. 11
AMB Sports and Entertainment is awarded an Atlanta-based NWSL expansion franchise that will begin playing at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2028. The $165 million expansion fee represents a 50% increase from the $110 million the league received for its 16th franchise, Denver Summit FC, earlier this year. The league intends to add another expansion team in 2028, which will be the league’s 18th franchise.
Nov. 13
MLS owners formally vote to adopt a summer-to-spring schedule, a change that is expected to go into effect in 2027. The regular season will begin in mid-July and run through April, with the playoffs taking place in May. A winter break will begin in mid-December, with the season resuming in early February.
Nov. 19
MLB unveils short-term national media rights deals with ESPN, NBC and Netflix. Fox, TBS and Apple TV will remain as partners over the next three seasons.
Nov. 22
The NWSL sets an all-time single-game TV audience record during its championship game Saturday, as NJ/NY Gotham FC’s 1-0 win over the Washington Spirit delivered an average of 1.184 million viewers in the prime-time window on CBS.
Nov. 24
Saudi Arabia’s Fund for Development will provide up to $1 billion in stadium-financing loans for developing countries, according to an agreement it reached with FIFA. SFD and FIFA said the subsidized loans would be offered to member football associations to build or revamp stadiums.
Nov. 24
Sinclair proposes acquiring rival E.W. Scripps Co., offering up a deal for stock in Scripps that it does not already own. The combined Sinclair-Scripps company would have a market capitalization of $2.9 billion.
Dec. 2
President Donald Trump pardons Oak View Group co-founder Tim Leiweke. Leiweke faced a single federal felony charge of restraining trade, relating to OVG’s successful pursuit of the RFP to develop the University of Texas’ Moody Center arena in Austin.
Dec. 5
Netflix agrees to buy Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal valued at $72 billion with the enterprise value of the deal at $82.7 billion. With the purchase, Netflix would become owner of the HBO network. The deal is expected to close in the next 12-18 months.
Dec. 6
The Big 12 Championship Game between Texas Tech and BYU draws a record crowd of 85,519 to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. According to the Big 12, that is the largest crowd ever for a Power Four football title game.
Dec. 8
UNLV and Learfield’s UNLV Sports Properties name Acesso Biologics the official jersey patch partner for football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball and baseball as part of a five-season partnership. Acesso Biologics becomes the first official multisport corporate jersey patch and on-field logo partner in NCAA athletics after having served as the on-field logo partner for UNLV football this season.
Dec. 9
Bank of America agrees to a front-of-kit deal with the Portland Timbers for their home and away uniforms. The deal is Bank of America’s first jersey placement in professional sports.
Dec. 9
The University of Utah board of trustees unanimously approves a measure to create a for-profit company in partnership with New York-based equity firm Otro Capital that could help infuse more than $500 million to the athletics department.
Dec. 11
NASCAR settles the federal antitrust lawsuit brought by 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, ending an eight-day trial. NASCAR agreed to grant its teams the permanent charters they wanted.