Closing Bell

NBC today around its upfront presentation highlighted a number of new and returning sports offerings for Peacock. The streamer will see new features debut as part of NBC’s coverage of the NBA starting this fall.

• The Live in Browse feature will allow fans to begin watching a game as soon as they open the app, with real-time stats on the home page.
• The Catch Up with Key Plays feature on all devices and the Can’t Miss Highlights feature on mobile will give fans access to moments from live games.
• Peacock ScoreCard will give fans the chance to earn points depending on what happens during a game.
• Peacock Performance View will show real-time stats during a game with an on-screen overlay.
• Starting during the second half of the season, the Courtside Live feature for Peacock exclusive games on Mondays will give fans the ability to control how they watch a game.

Peacock will be the exclusive national home of an NFL Week 17 game in primetime on Saturday, Dec. 27. It is the fourth exclusive NFL game for the streamer. The game, which will be selected from a pool of NFL Week 17 Saturday matchups, will also be broadcast on NBC stations in the competing team cities, and available on mobile devices with NFL+.

Peacock will for the fifth year exclusively stream one Notre Dame football game, with this season’s exclusive being the Oct. 11 matchup against N.C. State. Peacock will also simulcast all Notre Dame games airing on NBC, including pre- and postgame coverage. Notre Dame’s 2025 schedule is highlighted by a primetime home opener at 7:30pm ET on Sept. 13 against Texas A&M and the school’s first ever meeting with Boise State on Oct. 4 at 3:30pm (NBC Sports).

Chris Berman has extended his contract with ESPN through 2029, which would make him ESPN’s first employee to celebrate their 50th anniversary with the company. Berman, who has been closely associated with ESPN’s NFL coverage beginning with the 1981 NFL Draft, will contribute to the coverage of ESPN’s first Super Bowl in 2027. The 2027 Super Bowl will be the 45th that Berman will have worked for ESPN. Berman, 70, joined ESPN on Oct. 1, 1979 and is a six-time National Sportscaster of the Year and a member of several Halls of Fame, including the Sports Broadcasting HOF, the National Sports Media Association HOF and Cable HOF (ESPN).

The Seattle Storm have secured a naming-rights deal for their training facility with credit union BECU, the first independent WNBA franchise to land a training site sponsorship. Known now as the BECU Storm Center for Basketball Performance, the deal builds on an earlier partnership when BECU provided financing for construction and permanent debt as the $64M facility was being built in 2023 and opened in April of 2024.

The negotiations were handled in-house, and, as part of the arrangement, BECU will become presenting partner of the Jr. Storm Community Hoops basketball series known as “Together We Rise.” The platform includes basketball skills and clinics for as may as 600 kids annually to benefit Boys & Girls Club of King County and Rise Above. Financial education and resources for families and participants is part of project, and BECU will simultaneously donate $25,000 to the Storm’s Kicks for Equality annual auction to benefit non-profits that are in line with the team’s charitable arm Force4Change.

Amazon unveiled its NBA on Prime logo on Monday, an image that incorporates classic side-by-side branding from the company and the league. The logo was developed by CAA Brand Consulting, using a design inspired by a basketball court to divide the two markings.

Amazon’s $1.93B annual media rights deal with the NBA, which begins with the 2025-26 season, includes 66 regular season games, an opening week doubleheader, a Black Friday game, all Knockout Round games from the Emirates NBA Cup, the title game from the NBA Cup, exclusive coverage of the SoFi Play-In Tournament, first- and second-round playoff games and six conference finals over the course of its 11-year deal. Prime Video’s add-on subscriptions will also be the strategic partner and third-party global channels store for NBA League Pass.

The NBA considered Prime Video’s international reach as a key component to the package, and the company will disseminate its game package to select territories such as Ireland, the U.K., Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Brazil and Mexico as part of the deal.

Olympic runner Sha’Carri Richardson has signed with Wasserman for marketing representation. Wasserman VP/Impact & Inclusion Lindsay LaBennett will be the leader of Richardson’s Wasserman team. Wasserman will focus on Richardson’s cultural crossover, connecting with a global fanbase and spotlighting her athletic performances. Wasserman recently helped Richardson secure a deal with Hyperice and had her sign a deal with Turtles for their “Slow Good” campaign. Wasserman will work with Richardson, as well as the rest of her team, including manager and publicist Ashley Blackwood and her agent Emanuel Hudson (Wasserman).

The NBA Draft Lottery is set for 7pm ET tonight on ESPN, where the league will “find out who gets the No. 1 pick and therefore the chance to draft” Duke F Cooper Flagg. There are 13 teams who “will have representatives attending the lottery on stage as the picks are revealed in Chicago” (USA TODAY, 5/12).

Here’s the full list of the names who will be representing each of those teams:

Baseball HOFer Ken Griffey Jr. will “co-host a new unscripted golf series alongside his real-life friend,” ESPN analyst Michael Collins. The duo will host “Caddie & the Kid,” co-produced by content studio Bark Bark and Hartbeat, the entertainment company created by comedian Kevin Hart. The show will debut on Hartbeat’s LOL Network on YouTube, and will “see Griffey and Collins tee off with celebrity guests.” State Farm is the “sponsor of the launch episode,” with Jake from State Farm making an appearance in the first episode, though “other brands will be featured in future episodes.” The first episode will be released May 15 (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 5/12).

French Football Federation President Philippe Diallo said today that French football “intends to have its own version of the Premier League,” with a club-owned entity “replacing the Ligue de Football Professional” that currently oversees Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. French clubs and private equity firm CVC Capital Partners would “become shareholders in a newly created company responsible for managing and marketing professional competitions,” with the FFF also “holding a stake.” The plan is the result of three task forces “launched in early March as French football faces mounting challenges.” Diallo “emphasized the need to simplify the current structure, which includes the FFF, the LFP, and its commercial arm, LFP Media.” The new structure would be responsible for “organising and promoting the domestic leagues, while the FFF would retain a key oversight role.” A bill addressing professional sports governance in France is “set to be reviewed by the Senate on June 10.” CVC invested $1.67B in LFP Media in 2022 (REUTERS, 5/12).

May 12, 1966 -- Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis opens. Built originally as Civic Center Busch Memorial Stadium until its official name was shortened in January 1982. Just weeks after opening in 1966, the stadium hosted the MLB All-Star Game, followed by a performance by The Beatles. The stadium served as the home of MLB’s Cardinals for its entire operating existence, while also serving as home to the NFL’s Cardinals team for 22 seasons, from 1966-87, as well as the St. Louis Rams during part of the 1995 season. Its final event was the sixth game of the 2005 NLCS between the Astros and Cardinals on Oct. 19. The stadium was demolished in late 2005.

Also happening this week:

• May 13, 1967 -- The octagonal boxing ring is tested to avoid corner injuries.
• May 14, 1972 -- The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down a federal law banning sports gambling in most states.
• May 15, 1965 -- The Canadian Football Players Association organizes.
• May 15, 1991 -- President George H.W. Bush takes Queen Elizabeth II to an A’s-Orioles game.