Closing Bell

Court listings have revealed that the Pac-12 and Mountain West “have reached a settlement in principle” in the Pac-12’s poaching penalty lawsuit against the MWC. There were “no details, no docs and nothing” was finalized, but a hearing is “scheduled” for June 9 (X, 5/18). The Mountain West had been “seeking upwards of” $150M in exit and penalty fees from schools that left for the Pac-12, including Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Colorado State and Utah State (X, 5/18).

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said that he expects the General Assembly to “pass legislation incentivizing” a Bears stadium and other major development projects “before the end of the spring legislative session,” with a May 31 deadline. Pritzker said that he “expects both chambers to vote on an amended megaprojects bill by the end of the month.” Pritzker also noted that Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has “‘no plan’ to keep the team” in the city. Pritzker said, “I’d love them to be in the city, but we’re three years in now, and he still has no plan.” Johnson earlier this month made a “last-ditch effort to claim the Bears needed to keep playing their home games in Chicago.” Johnson’s office in a statement “pushed back on Pritzker’s assessment and said it’s continuing to work on a solution” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/18). The Bears saga is the “latest example of how the governor and the mayor frequently have differing agendas” (CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS, 5/18).

The NFL is “expected to award the 2028 draft to Minneapolis” during the owners meetings this week. A formal announcement is “likely to come Tuesday following a vote by owners.” Local organizers led by the Minnesota Sports & Events commission submitted a bid in March for the event. This year’s draft in Pittsburgh drew a record 805,000 fans across the three days. MSE EVP/Business Development & Tourism Matt Meunier in March said that U.S. Bank Stadium would be a “‘foundational piece’ of the draft footprint.” There also is a 4.2-acre park adjoining the stadium, known as The Commons. Weather in Minnesota can still be cold when the draft is held in late April, and Meunier said that the league had asked MSE to “‘lean into’ the stadium itself as part of its proposal.” The 2027 NFL Draft is scheduled to take place in D.C. (ESPN.com, 5/18).

CONMEBOL President Alejandro Dominguez is facing an “ethics complaint that he received millions of dollars from the funds that had been recovered” from the FIFA scandal in 2015. The complaint was “made by a whistle-blower who claims to have direct knowledge of the payments.” Sources said that senior FIFA officials have “been aware of the complaint” against Dominguez to its ethics committee “for more than a year.” Dominguez, one of the “biggest power brokers in the sport,” also serves as one of the eight VPs of FIFA. The complaint accuses him, “along with another senior Conmebol official, of receiving more than” $5M from the money recovered by the federation after it secured the return of millions of dollars lost to corruption schemes. CONMBEOL declined to comment, only saying that it “was unaware of an ethics complaint.” The revelation of the complaint comes at a “particularly sensitive time not only” for Dominguez but also FIFA, with the World Cup set to begin next month (N.Y. TIMES, 5/18).

Texas Tech QB Brendan Sorsby, who has sought treatment for a gambling addiction, on Monday “filed for an injunction against the NCAA ... seeking his college eligibility for the 2026 college football season.” The filing, made in district court in Lubbock County, Texas, cites the NCAA’s “deeply hypocritical” position on gambling and a “wholesale abandonment of its obligations and duties to promote the well-being” of Sorsby. The filing says that Sorsby would be “irreparably harmed” if the injunction is not granted. The NCAA “has yet to make any public decisions or declarations on Sorsby’s status.” The filing also claims Sorsby “offered to accept a two-game suspension based on ‘completing his residential treatment’ for his gambling condition.” He also “offered to work with the NCAA to educate others on the dangers of gambling.” The filing claims the NCAA, “in rejecting the offer, disregarded its own policies by not coming to a decision in a timely manner.” Sorsby has “requested a hearing for June 15 so the court can make a ruling before the June 22 deadline for the NFL’s Supplemental Draft” (ESPN.com, 5/18).

The sports industry will gather Monday evening at the Hard Rock Hotel in New York to recognize and celebrate those transforming the industry via tech innovation. SBA: Tech will name winners in each of eight categories, culminating in a Best in Sports Technology award selected from the individual category winners. The newest cohort of 10 Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies will also be invited on stage to take a collective bow. Former NFL WR and current StatusPro co-founder & President Andrew Hawkins will serve as first-time host for the awards ceremony. Hawkins is a member of the SBJ Forty Under Forty Class of 2025.