Closing Bell

Kroenke Sports and Entertainment reached a deal with Comcast on Tuesday that will see Nuggets and Avalanche games return to the cable giant's Xfinity platform, "ending a blackout of nearly six years." Altitude, the regional cable channel that airs the Avs and Nuggets, "will begin re-airing on the Comcast-owned Xfinity" starting Tuesday evening. Altitude had been off Xfinity since the contract between the two sides expired in September 2019. KSE debuted Altitude+ -- its new DTC streaming service for the two teams -- in October, and a total of 20 Nuggets games and 20 Avs games this season are to be televised over the air for free on KTVD-20. Half of those games will also air on KUSA-9, the Denver-area NBC affiliate (DENVER POST, 2/4).

President Trump will attend Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, becoming the “first sitting president to attend” the game (CBSNEWS.com, 2/4). The guest list is “still being prepared … though House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana native, is in talks to join him.” There is always a “significant security presence around the Super Bowl, with or without a presidential visit.” A source described “heightened preparations ahead of Trump’s attendance” (CNN.com, 2/4). Three sitting VPs – Spiro Agnew (1971), George H.W. Bush (1982) and Al Gore (1994) – have attended the Super Bowl (N.Y. POST, 2/4).

Super Bowl LIX on Sunday will mark the first time since February 2021 that “End Racism” is “not included as a message in the back of a Super Bowl end zone,” according to sources. Instead, “Choose Love” and “It Takes All of Us” will be “stenciled onto the back of the end zones at the Caesars Superdome.” The switch, “conveyed internally to high-level employees earlier this week,” could be “perceived as a nod to the current political climate.” However, NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy indicated that the decision was “based on sensitivity to recent tragedies,” including the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans, the L.A. area wildfires and the fatal air collision near D.C. The change follows NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell expressing “strong support for the league’s policies designed to promote diversity at the club-employment level" (THE ATHLETIC, 2/4).

Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said that Fox Sports' Super Bowl analyst Tom Brady will "be allowed to take part" in the Chiefs' production meetings before Sunday's game. This will be a "change to the rules" for Brady, a minority owner of the Raiders, who has been prohibited from criticizing officials, being in another team's facility, witnessing practice or attending broadcast production meetings. Brady will "still be barred from Chiefs practices," though the remainder of the crew "will be allowed to attend." Sources said that "when the ' Brady Rules' were implemented," Hunt was one of the team owners "instrumental in wanting the restrictions put in place," not wanting the AFC West rival Raiders to "gain any advantage" (THE ATHLETIC, 2/4).

RELATED: Roger Goodell suggests guideline changes possible for Brady after first year in Fox booth

New Lakers G Luka Dončić said it was a "big shock" to learn he had been traded from the Mavericks to the Lakers. Dončić said, "Everybody was surprised, so you can imagine how surprised I was." He added he was "almost asleep" when he got the call, and noted he "had to check" if it was April 1. Dončić admitted that hearing he was traded brought "hard moments for me," stating Dallas "was home," but he's "excited for this new journey." Dončić said there was "absolutely not" a concern he wouldn't agree to sign the super-max extension with Dallas, responding to reports the Mavs traded him over concerns he wouldn't sign the extension when eligible this offseason. Dončić: "It's an easy answer." Dončić described reports the team had concerns over his conditioning as "a motive" (SBJ).

Turner Sports NBA analyst Charles Barkley has "provided what sounds like a definitive update" on negotiations for his future in TV, saying he is "informing NBC that I will not accept their offer" and that he's "going to cancel future meetings with Amazon." Barkley made the comments on colleague Ernie Johnson's "Steam Room" podcast, adding his "heart is always and will be at Turner Sports." Barkley kept alive the idea of remaining with TNT and ESPN, saying, "I'm hoping that this thing comes together and I can stay with TNT and ESPN but as I've said, it's all going to be dictated on my workload. I'm not going to work more as I get older. I'm going to sit down with ESPN and TNT more because I just need to know if I'm going to continue working, how much I'm going to work" (SI, 2/4).

Chiefs owner Clark Hunt blessed the NFL's plans for a professional flag football league today, and sketched out his vision of teams playing under established NFL team names and brands.

“I do believe it's an incredible growth opportunity for the NFL,” Hunt said, citing the potential among women and in international markets. He did not say whether the league would sell franchises as a business model, but invited fans to consider a future where teams called the Chiefs and Eagles might face off in flag.

“You could certainly envision on both the men's and women's side, if you wanted to sort of think into the future, every NFL team has their own men and women's flag team that perhaps plays in the offseason and uses some of the branding of the parent team,” said Hunt, who chairs the league’s powerful finance committee.

The NFL should be looking for external investors or operators to get involved, Hunt said, even though he thinks ultimately the league should be NFL-branded.

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Premier League club Newcastle United are "leaning toward building a new stadiumadjacent" to their current home at St James' Park. The club's board are "getting closer to recommending" to the club's owners that the "best option for their stadium expansion" is to construct a  £1.2B (US$1.5B) new home with a capacity of just under 70,000, although the club "remain adamant that a final decision has not been made." The new stadium would be "constructed using an overlapping footprint," meaning it would be built on some of St James' Park's current land. Newcastle are "continuing to explore" another proposal that would focus on expansion of the Gallowgate End and "would be roughly half the cost of building an entirely new stadium" (London TELEGRAPH, 2/4).

On Feb. 12, MLB Network’s offseason morning program “Hot Stove” will be broadcast live from the MLB Flagship Store in N.Y. 

It marks the first time MLBN has produced a studio show from that location. “Hot Stove” primarily broadcasts in Secaucus, N.J. 

MLBN will have about 10 staffers on-hand at the MLB Store. The goal was to spruce things up with pitchers and catchers set to report for 2025 spring training. 

The theme for the show is “Baseball is Back,” and will feature messages from Dodgers SS Mookie Betts, Dodgers 1B Freddie Freeman and Padres 3B Manny Machado. 

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The NHL and NHLPA will hold free fan festivals in both Boston and Montreal ahead of the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off. Boston will host the 4 Nations Face-Off Fan Village, a three-day, non-ticketed fan festival open to the public at City Hall Plaza, Feb. 15-17 from 11am-6pm ET each day. In Montreal, the 4 Nations Fan Festival will be a one-day, non-ticketed fan festival that will take place at Windsor Station on Feb. 15 from 11am-8pm. A 4 Nations Face-Off game ticket is not required for entry to the 4 Nations Face-Off Fan Village or the 4 Nations Fan Festival. Over two dozen 4 Nations Face-Off partners are activating between both fan festivals, including Rogers, Discover, BodyArmor, Fanatics, ESPN Bet, Honda, Ticketmaster, Upper Deck, Verizon and more (NHL).

At Padres FanFest on Feb. 1 at Petco Park, the team and Budweiser welcomed fans of legal drinking age to contribute in a small way to the $7M renovation of the Western Metal Building. Fans 21 and older were offered a complimentary 12-ounce Budweiser as they arrived at the FanFest. Once they finished drinking the beer, they returned the empty bottle so that it can be used in an artistic feature wall in the newly renovated Budweiser Loft, on the Western Metal Building’s fifth floor overlooking left field. Eight-hundred beer bottles were distributed to fans over two and a half hours. The renovation – designed by Gensler and built by Shawmut Construction – is expected to be ready by Opening Day of the 2025 season (March 27).

Prodigy Search announced an alliance with JM Search, designed to bring top executive search services to high-growth sectors of the business, including women's and collegiate sports, sports betting, live entertainment and youth sports (Prodigy Search).

The WNBA, Opill and the Black Women's Health Imperative are teaming up to "Level the Court' by fostering conversations around reproductive health and showcasing the array of available options. As part of "Level the Court," the WNBA launched a dedicated webpage with firsthand accounts, answers to common questions and information about accessing Opill. The league will also collaborate with Opill and BWHI to deliver interactive and informational events at HBCUs during the spring (WNBA).

The World Surf League and LTN are expanding their partnership to add more tailored live events to global audiences in 2025. Through the multiyear collaboration, WSL will deliver more than 1,000 hours of live content annually across its digital platforms, social media and broadcast and streaming partners (World Surf League).

TGL has partnered with Whistlepig Whiskey to make it the official whiskey of the league. Whistlepig's partnership will include national ad spots, in-competition integrations, digital and social content and signature cocktails at the SoFi Center fan experience with its PiggyWagon activation (TGL).

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Aston Villa named eSentire the club's new official cybersecurity partner. eSentire will provide an all-in-one solution to meet the team's cybersecurity needs, combining 24/7 security monitoring and a Security Operations Centre with proactive threat hunting and threat response (Aston Villa).

Sky Sports announced a new five-year deal with the Professional Darts Corporation, keeping the sport on the network after viewing figures "surged in the last 12 months following the emergence" of star Luke Littler  (IRISH TIMES, 2/4).

In a new ad for Uber Eats set to air during the Super Bowl, actor Matthew McConaughey leads a lineup of stars announcing a spectacular conspiracy theory.

$32M -- Estimated amount of money over three years lost by new Lakers G Luka Dončić between California's state income tax and losing supermax contract eligibility (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 2/4).