Closing Bell

It will cost around $55.7M for Tropicana Field to be repaired “in time for the Rays’ 2026 season,” according to a damage assessment report sent to the St. Petersburg City Council. The report stated that Hurricane Milton caused around $39M in damage and an additional $16M in costs. Repairs to the roof account for around $23.6M of the damage. The “big question is whether the city will want to spend that much for two seasons of use” since the Rays are scheduled to open a new ballpark in time for the 2028 campaign (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 11/12).

LIV Golf has only officially revealed four tournament sites and dates for 2025, but more locations are coming into focus with next season just a few months away.

LIV will play 14 events in 2025, with eight expected to be played outside the U.S. The first four events on the schedule already announced: Saudi Arabia, Australia, China and Singapore.

Sources said LIV plans to release another portion of its 2025 calendar in the coming days. International events expected to be included feature stops in Spain at Valderrama and another U.K. tournament, both of which were on the 2024 schedule.

RELATED: With season complete, LIV eyes momentum for 2025

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The Alpine F1 team "will use engines and gearboxes from Mercedes starting in 2026" after parent company Renault cuts its in-house F1 engine program. With new engine rules coming at the end of next season, Alpine said today that Mercedes will be its power unit supplier "for the duration of the new regulation era, from 2026 until at least 2030." Alpine also said that Renault is "converting" its factory at Viry-Chatillon on the outskirts of Paris "into an engineering center focusing mostly on other projects." Alpine is "still planning to use Renault power units in 2025" (AP, 11/12).

Leeds United has partnered with Fanatics in a deal the club says will "enhance the retail experience for Leeds fans both in the city and across the world." Fanatics will become the "exclusive operator of the club's online store and official retail locations across the city of Leeds" starting in the summer of 2025. The retail company will distribute the club's official Adidas range "but also have the rights to manufacture 'a wide variety of fanwear and accessories.'" Leeds believes the partnership will "transform the club's online shop" (YORKSHIRE EVENING POST, 11/12).

The Rockets and PNC Bank announced a multiyear sponsorship extension, continuing naming rights for the PNC Club. In addition to the PNC Club, the sponsorship includes hospitality events for PNC clients and Rockets fans, and establishes a significant brand presence for PNC Bank with digital signage throughout the arena. The club, located behind the team benches on the east side of the Toyota Center, now offer an enhanced experience with a refreshed interior design, with elevated food and beverage selections and more convenient access to the arena (PNC Bank).

Sapphire Sport has led a $19M Series B funding round for luggage storage platform Bounce. The company, launched in 2019, offers luggage storage services in over 4,000 cities worldwide, and its network of 13,000 locations includes storage centers near Madison Square Garden, Yankee Stadium and Wrigley Field, among other sports venues. Bounce said that its revenue is up 20x since the company closed a $12M Series A in 2022 (in fact, Inc. recently ranked Bounce as the nation’s eighth-fastest-growing company).

"With Sapphire Sport’s network of LPs across major U.S. pro leagues, global football, and entertainment owners and operators, we’re excited to help Bounce expand its reach and bring its leading solution to an even larger audience,” Sapphire Sport partner David Hartwig and principal Rico Mallozzi told SBJ in an email. “Fans travel long distances to enjoy their favorite teams and events at venues worldwide, many of which have strict bag policies. We believe Bounce makes it easy and convenient to safely store personal items nearby, enhancing the overall fan experience.” Sapphire’s investors include City Football Group, Madison Square Garden Sports and Arctos Partners, among other industry heavyweights.

The Series B was backed by existing shareholders Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst, as well as new participation from VC firms including Thayer Ventures, FJ Labs, 20VC Growth and Shilling.

Genius Sports continued its positive 2024 trendline, reporting a third quarter revenue of $120.2M, which represents an 18.2% YoY increase. Yet again betting led the way, with its betting technology, content and services category providing the biggest boost to that figure with $85.6M (a 29.9% YoY jump). That category has seen YoY increases in every quarter of 2024 -- 14.1% in Q1 and 18% in Q2.  

The company now projects $511M in revenue for 2024. Genius Sports also saw a Q3 net income of $12.5M, a drastic improvement from the $11.6M loss in the same quarter last year.  

Q3 featured a long-term deal between Genius Sports and ESPN for enhanced broadcasts around the NBA, WNBA and NCAA. Genius also found a new CTO during the three-month period, hiring former Google Cloud exec Mark Kropf.  

Genius Sports was recognized as one of SBJ’s 10 Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies earlier this year. The third class of honorees will be announced on Dec. 6.

The NHL has hired Hockey HOFer Ken Holland as a consultant in its Hockey Operations department. Holland was most recently the President of Hockey Operations & GM for the Oilers before leaving the club in June (NHL).

The Pistons announced Huntington National Bank will be the new official bank of the team as part of a multiyear corporate sponsorship. As part of the partnership, Huntington will be prominently featured as part of the team's National Pan-Hellenic Council and HBCU Night and the Pistons' annual Black History Month scholarship event (Pistons).

Gillette Stadium will host the 2026 Notre Dame-Navy game. It will be the 99th matchup between the two schools (Patriots).

The Lakers and UCLA Health are expanding their longstanding partnership with a multiyear global deal that will designate UCLA Health as the Official Global Health Care Partner and Health Care Provider of the team (Lakers).

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Hull City FC announced a three-year partnership with Hytro, the blood flow restriction wearable brand, as the club's official BFR sponsor. As part of the agreement, Hytro's BFR wearables will play a role in optimizing player performance and recovery, starting with this season (Hull City FC).

F1 Race Director Niels Wittich "has stepped down from his post with immediate effect." He will be replaced by F2 and F3 Race Director Rui Marques (THE GUARDIAN, 11/12).

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin and other officials made "extensive use" of a $25.5M private jet during Euro 2024 "despite asking competing teams to limit air travel as part of a climate change initiative." The jet "made 16 flights between June 15 and July 9, with the jet undertaking a 14-minute journey between Dusseldorf and Dortmund on June 18 when the 48-mile trip can be completed by car in less than an hour" (London TIMES, 11/12).

Sprite released a new holiday campaign featuring T'Wolves G Anthony Edwards, which sees Edwards step in for an injured Santa.

$44M  -- The V Foundation for Cancer Research this year gave out 76 new grant awards totaling over $44M, the highest amount granted in its history in a single year (V Foundation).