Morning Buzz

The Rose Bowl “will not host” a CFP semifinal game over the next six seasons, as it “wants to keep its preferred Jan. 1 timeslot.” The CFP on Thursday revealed the dates and bowl sites for the quarterfinal and semifinal games through the 2031 season. The first quarterfinal game of the upcoming 2026 season will be played on Dec. 30, rather than the traditional New Year’s Eve slot. The change is “likely because New Year’s Eve falls on a Thursday later this year, which means that the CFP would be competing with the NFL for viewers.” There will also be two weeks between the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds in 2026-27 and 2027-28 instead of just one week (CBSSPORTS.com, 7/9). The Rose Bowl will “not be in the rotation” for a semifinal, with the last time it hosted one coming in 2023–24. That was the final season of the four-team playoff (AL.com, 7/9). The 2026-32 dates and locations are based on the current 12-team playoff format, which has “been under heavy discussion” (ON3, 7/9).

Wichita has been “selected as one of two host cities for the newly expanded opening round” of the 2027 and 2028 NCAA men’s basketball tournaments. Wichita and Dayton, the longtime home of the tournament’s introductory games, will each host three games on the Tuesday and Wednesday following Selection Sunday. The selection gives Wichita a “recurring and more prominent place on the March Madness calendar” as the NCAA prepares to expand its tournament field from 68 to 76 teams. Wichita’s central location was “one factor working in Wichita’s favor,” as opening round participants have “little time to travel before playing” after Selection Sunday. Since opening in 2010, Intrust Bank Arena has hosted first- and second-round games in the men’s tournament in 2018 and 2025 (WICHITA EAGLE, 7/9).

CBSSPORTS.com cited sources as saying that Wichita “beat out seven other finalists” including “Albuquerque, New Mexico; Des Moines, Iowa and other cities west of the Mississippi River.” Sources indicated that Wichita’s “hotel capacity and passionate local fan base were also major selling points.” Sources said that the “bid process was competitive” with several finalists “putting on a big push in recent weeks.” Meanwhile, West Coast Conference Commissioner Stu Jackson was elevated to vice chair of the Men’s Basketball Committee for the 2026-27 season, meaning he should be the chair of the NCAA Tournament for 2027-28 (CBSSPORTS.com, 7/9).

An Ohio judge on Thursday “granted a temporary injunction” to 15 D-I college basketball players whose eligibility ran out after this past season, “allowing them an opportunity to return for another season.” The players had argued that the NCAA “unfairly excluded them from its new age-based eligibility rule.” The injunction “grants players represented in this case the chance to enter the transfer portal, despite the specified portal window closing in mid-April.” The NCAA in a statement said that the “decision is ‘wrong’” and that the association “will seek a reversal.” It “remains unclear whether any of these players have roster spots waiting for them at the Division I level, with most schools having assembled their teams and set their budgets for 2026-27.” Two similar lawsuits have been filed in Tennessee and Georgia, and attorneys for the plaintiffs said that “two more will be filed in North Carolina and California” (THE ATHLETIC, 7/9).

Fever coach Stephanie White was asked on Thursday about the letter sent by several members of Congress to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert about the treatment of Caitlin Clark by other players and whether it is racially motivated. White said, “Our team made a statement yesterday, so you can find that statement.” She added, “That’s not something we can control. We’re not affiliated with those groups” (X, 7/9).

The Fever’s statement stated: “Our organization nor Caitlin have had any interaction with anyone in this congressional group and we were unaware of their letter. We have been clear in our public comments and in our ongoing dialogue with the League about the priority of player safety. Our players and our fans know where we stand on those issues and we will continue to stick up for our team and a standard of excellence across the league” (X, 7/8).

In Indianapolis, Gregg Doyel wrote the “Caitlin Clark culture war has spun completely out of control” now that the “politicians have gotten involved, doing much of the talking and none of the listening.” A mixture of “elected officials and her self-appointed representatives are pushing an ugly narrative of Us vs. Them.” Clark “didn’t ask for this.” Last week she defended “any WNBA player subject to the harassment, the hate, coming from certain corners ... claiming to be supporters of Caitlin Clark.” Doyel: “Has she done all she could to stop it from happening? No, if we’re being honest, she hasn’t done all she could.” There are “stronger statements she could make, but she’s just 24 and has been swept up in cultural currents beyond her control” (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 7/9).

The Ottawa Charge officially will “move to the Canadian Tire Centre” next season. Charge GM Mike Hirshfeld said that the PWHL team and the Senators “signed a multi-year agreement for playing and practising at the arena.” Hirshfeld added that as part of the Charge moving in, the team will “get its own ‘self-contained exclusive locker room space.’” Hirshfeld: “We’ll have a lounge for our players. We’ll have medical space for our players, equipment space for our equipment people, coaches’ offices.” The announcement comes after the Charge confirmed they “won’t play at the new arena being built at Lansdowne Park because that venue will have less seating than the current TD Place Arena,” where the team spent its first three seasons. The Charge played several post-season games at the Canadian Tire Centre earlier this year (CBC.ca, 7/9). The Charge will “also look to expand corporate sponsorship opportunities.” Senators President & CEO Cyril Leeder confirmed that the Charge “will be a part of the plans as the Senators move towards their own goal of moving to Lebreton Flats” (THE HOCKEY NEWS, 7/9).

Fans hoping to catch Spain-Belgium in L.A. will have tickets available to do so. There are 315 tickets available for Friday’s World Cup quarterfinal clash, with the get-in price listed at $1,075, according to TicketData.com. That is a 27% decrease over the past three days, 71% decrease from the past seven and 44% since the start of the tournament. The winner of the match will play France in Dallas on Tuesday. SBJ has partnered with TicketData.com to track get-in prices and trends for upcoming games. For additional information on games, visit the World Cup page at TicketData.com.

FuboTV appointed former Disney exec Alisa Bowen as its next CEO, turning to a “seasoned streaming leader to navigate a complex and changing media landscape.” Bowen will succeed co-founder David Gandler, whose employment as CEO “terminated effective Thursday.” Gandler, who is “also resigning from the board,” has led the company for the past 11 years. Bowen, whose appointment is effective Friday, has nearly three decades of experience in the media industry, including a nearly 10-year stint at Disney where she was most recently president of Disney+. She was also a founding member of Disney’s streaming leadership team, which “oversaw the buildout and scaling of Disney’s other streaming platforms,” including Hulu and ESPN+. The appointment comes after Disney in October completed a deal to combine Hulu+ Live TV streaming service with FuboTV. The deal gave Disney a roughly 70% stake in Fubo. Bowen’s “annual base salary will be nearly” $1.6M, alongside an “annual target performance bonus of 120% her base salary.” Fubo said that it “anticipates, subject to board approval, Bowen will be appointed a member of the board” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 7/9).

Pittsburgh’s Sports and Exhibition Authority, which owns Acrisure Stadium, “approved funds for nearly 18,000 new seats as the Steelers continue to swap out seats original to the stadium.” Steelers affiliate PSSI Stadium LLC requested “replacements for 58,719 of Acrisure Stadium’s 68,400 seats last year.” Nearly all of the seats were original to the stadium, which opened in 2001. The SEA’s facility condition assessment firm found that “many of the seats were detaching from the stadium’s concrete, rusting or deteriorating in some other fashion.” The SEA board is “considering the replacements in phases, and approved 22,236 seats in the east and west sections of the upper bowl last October” for approximately $12.4M. The 17,873 seats approved Thursday are “located in the lower level on the stadium’s east side” and will cost $5.8M. The Steelers expect to “finish replacing the seats with a third and final phase next year” (TRIBLIVE, 7/9).

UFC 329 on Saturday is becoming the “most expensive mixed martial arts event on the secondary market in history.” The event will see the return of Conor McGregor, whose rematch with Max Holloway headlines the 14-fight card. The average ticket price for the card at T-Mobile Arena is $1,537 on secondary ticket marketplace TickPick, beating out the previous record holder, UFC 306 Riyadh Season Noche, that was held at Sphere in 2024 and had an average purchase price of $1,250. The cheapest ticket to UFC 329 on TickPick is $989 as of Thursday afternoon, with 2,150 tickets listed for sale on its website. The most-expensive purchase for the event thus far is two tickets in Section 6, Row E for $8,170 piece, or $16,341 total (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 7/9).

On this week’s Sports Media Podcast, MLB Network’s Matt Vasgersian discusses the biggest issue looming over MLB: labor talks, the possibility of a lockout, the ongoing salary cap debate and what it could mean for the future of the sport.

The Sparks are looking for a Manager/Communications. The L.A.-based position is responsible for writing and distributing releases, media advisories, game notes, media guides and other communications materials (Sparks).

PWHL Detroit is looking for a Game Presentation & Fan Experience Manager. The Detroit-based position is responsible for leading development and execution of game-day production materials for all home games, including run of show documents, host and public address scripts, timing sheets and broadcast coordination notes (PWHL Detroit).

Crimson Brand Partners are looking for a Dir/Ticket Operations. The Salt Lake City-based position is responsible for managing all operational functions for ticketed events, including administration, inventory management, distribution, revenue collection, customer service, box office operations, reporting and event-day execution (Crimson Brand Partners).

Fiesta Sports Foundation is looking for a Manager/Content & Creative. The Scottsdale-based position is responsible for leading social media presence, content strategy and creative execution across all brands, events and initiatives (Fiesta Sports Foundation).

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“This collection begins with a poem not by the credited author but by his rival Ben Jonson, commenting on an engraving.”