Closing Bell

LPGA Commissioner Craig Kessler held his “first state-of-the-tour session” at Tiburón Golf Club in Naples, Fla., and among the topics discussed, Kessler had a “short but affirmative answer to the question of could a women’s major one day land in Asia.” He said, “Absolutely. ... there’s a massive opportunity, and now it’s on us at the LPGA to figure out how to capitalize on that.” On the schedule released Wednesday, the Chevron Championship, the first major of the year, was the lone course listed as “to be determined.” Kessler said, “What Ricki [Lasky, the LPGA chief business and operations officer] and the team, along with the Chevron team have been focused on, is making sure we maximize the impact of that major.” On creating audiences outside of the broadcast, Kessler said, “That’s an area where we haven’t done a whole lot yet at the LPGA, but certainly represents enormous opportunity for us” (GOLF DIGEST, 11/19).

NFL Network this season delivered its best audience yet for a package of international games. The package of six games -- Dublin, Berlin, Madrid and three in London -- averaged 6.2 million viewers in the 9:30am ET window, and without including OTA viewership in local markets. That package is up 32% from last year.

NFL Net wrapped its package with the debut Madrid game on Sunday from Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, with Commanders-Dolphins averaging 5.9 million viewers, marking one of the channel’s top five international games yet. That’s just below the 6 million that the debut game in Berlin drew the week prior (Falcons-Colts). The big winner this season abroad was Vikings-Browns on Oct. 5, which drew 6.4 million viewers, marking the best NFL Network game yet from London.

Should the NFL-ESPN equity deal be approved by this spring, NFL Network would continue to have a package of around seven games next season, and likely be programmed around international again -- including the league’s debut in Paris.

The PTPA and group of professional tennis players engaged in an antitrust lawsuit against several of tennis’ governing bodies -- the men’s and women’s tours and organizers of the four Grand Slams -- today filed a letter to the judge overseeing the case in the Southern District of N.Y. that suggests it may soon reach a settlement with Tennis Australia, which owns and operates the Australian Open.

Penned by the plaintiffs’ counsel, Andrew Tulumello of Weil, Gotshal and Manges, the letter seeks a stay of proceedings against Tennis Australia, as the two sides “are engaged in substantive and productive bi-lateral settlement discussions and believe that a settlement as to Plaintiffs’ claims against Tennis Australia is likely in the near future.” The stay request encompasses “all proceedings and deadlines in the case that pertain to Tennis Australia while the parties finalize their agreement.” A source familiar with the talks said such an agreement could be reached by the start of the Australian Open in January.

Tennis Australia, the USTA (U.S. Open), All England Lawn Tennis Club (Wimbledon) and French Tennis Federation (French Open) were added to the suit as defendants in September and are due to respond to the plaintiffs’ amended complaint by Dec. 22. The letter makes clear its stay request applies only to Tennis Australia and not the other defendants. The PTPA declined to comment. Tennis Australia said in a statement to SBJ: “Tennis Australia today confirmed that plaintiffs in the Professional Tennis Players Association’s US lawsuit have sought to stay the litigation against Tennis Australia, due to productive settlement discussions. If the New York court approves a settlement between the parties, Tennis Australia will exit the litigation.”

Univ. of Virginia Athletics announced a new sponsorship deal with digital infrastructure platform Upstack that is highlighted by the first corporate sponsor logo to appear on David A. Harrison III Field at Scott Stadium. The deal was put together by Playfly Sports. Upstack’s logo will appear in between the 20- and 30-yard lines at each end of the field as part of a one-time placement debuting during the UVA’s regular-season finale against Virginia Tech on Nov. 29. Upstack Founder & CEO Chris Trapp played linebacker at UVA from 2001-03 (Virginia Athletics).

UC Davis unveiled Aggie Ascent, a new athletics facilities master plan. The plan, developed in partnership with ELS Architecture and Urban Design, outlines a $265M phased, gift-driven approach. UC Davis Health Stadium will see new premium seating, suites and a hospitality concourse as part of a $50M expansion. That also will include a special event space to be used year-round by the university community.

The Woody Wilson Track & Field Complex will be a new eight-lane facility with spectator seating, integrating all events into a single venue with an option to add team spaces and restrooms with a total cost of $14.5M. A new Golf Training Center will include a 350-yard driving range with short game and putting greens for an anticipated cost of $18.7M. Future phases will expand baseball, soccer and the University Credit Union Center venues. A new softball stadium will join the golf training center on south campus as softball’s current venue, LaRue Field, has been designated for redevelopment after 2035. Aggie Ascent will move forward as private support and partnerships are secured (UC Davis).

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The Mariners will celebrate the club’s 50th season throughout 2026, headlined by 50 Seasons Celebration Weekend from Aug. 7-9 at T-Mobile Park as the team faces the Rays in a three-game series. That weekend will feature 50 Seasons Celebration Night on Aug. 8, where the Mariners will honor the Top 50 Greatest Mariners Players in a pregame ceremony. A full lineup of 50 Seasons giveaways and promotions will occur over the 2026 season. The Mariners will wear a “50 Seasons” patch on their jerseys during the 2026 season, which will replace the primary logo on the sleeves (Mariners).

WWE is “building out a specialized YouTube channel devoted to” The Undertaker. The channel went live today and serves as the “new home for the ‘Six Feet Under’ podcast,” which The Undertaker co-hosts with his wife and former WWE star Michelle McCool. New episodes will “now drop every other Wednesday on the Undertaker channel.” The new channel will feature a “wide range of content focused on The Undertaker, including full-length classic matches and compilations covering historic rivalries and storylines.” The Undertaker will “take part in vlogs and reaction videos in which he will watch major moments from the wrestling world.” The channel will also feature “full-length documentaries and home video releases from the WWE archives, including the acclaimed ‘Last Ride’ docuseries” (VARIETY, 11/19).

FloSports co-founder & CEO Mark Floreani sits down with SBJ’s Austin Karp to talk about the company’s biggest year yet and what’s next. From major wins to bold growth plans, Floreani shares how FloSports is changing the game heading into 2026.