Minnesota United named former Best Buy exec Shari Ballard the club's new CEO, and she "will succeed Chris Wright at the end" of the '21 season. Ballard is the "first female with the title of CEO in MLS" and is on a "short list of women executives across the league’s 27 clubs." She "doesn’t have experience in professional soccer." Team Owner Bill McGuire said that the "priorities were to find a new leader within the community, someone who wanted to deepen relationships within it while sharing the club’s values." Ballard’s final role at Best Buy before retiring in '19 was "president of multichannel retail, where she headed all U.S. stores" (St. Paul PIONEER PRESS, 8/11).

The season premiere of HBO's “Hard Knocks" aired last night and "did not disappoint." The 52-minute episode was "loaded with several highlights" from the Cowboys’ first two weeks of training camp and preseason opener in last Thursday's HOF Game. Behind-the-scenes footage of coach Mike McCarthy talking to his staff about QB Dak Prescott’s GPS numbers "was interesting but not anywhere close to the material the cameras caught from Prescott the next day in practice." The QB, currently dealing with a shoulder injury, was "not pleased that his workload was being dialed back." The phone conversation between Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones and head athletic trainer Jim Maurer about Prescott’s shoulder "was also excellent," and it "seemed to put Jones at ease as he dove into eating his breakfast sandwich" (THEATHLETIC.com, 8/11).

The Univ. of Missouri's Curators signed off on a "six-year contract with an annual salary of $800,000 before incentives" for new AD Desiree Reed-Francois, who will be formally introduced in Columbia during a news conference this morning. She will make a "base salary of $550,000 plus non-salary compensation of $250,000 per year." She also will earn $150,000 in "deferred compensation for every year she's in office at Mizzou, payable at the end of the contract." The guaranteed annual salary "will make Reed-Francois the highest-paid AD in MU history." Reed-Francois "officially begins at Mizzou on Aug. 15." Her contract runs through June '27 (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 8/11).

A California state appeals court on Tuesday upheld the A’s "right to an environmental review of the Howard Terminal ballpark project that sets time limits on any legal challenges to the review -- a decision that deals a blow to the development’s opponents who say the A’s organization is trying to bypass rules." The decision "upheld a February ruling by an Alameda County Superior Court judge who said the Howard Terminal ballpark project has to go through a full environmental impact review under the California Environmental Quality Act, but any complaints or legal challenges would have to be resolved within 270 days" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 8/11).

The UFC revealed that it is "heading back to Fight Island on Oct. 30." UFC 267 will officially take place in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and "will feature a series of fan events titled Abu Dhabi Showdown Week." The UFC "has not announced a main event for UFC 267." However, sources said that a "light heavyweight title fight between Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira has been discussed." Broadcast plans "have not yet been announced for the numbered event." But UFC President Dana White last week said that the "hope is to air UFC 267 on network television in the U.S." (ESPN.com, 8/10).

While serving as "Jeopardy!" guest host this week, Fox Sports broadcaster Joe Buck explained how his stint will benefit a St. Louis-area charity: “While I'm guest hosting this week, ‘Jeopardy!’ will be matching the total winnings of all the contestants and donating that amount to a charity I've been involved with for many years. It's called KidSmart. KidSmart's mission is to empower children to succeed by providing school-essential learning tools. I've watched this charity do so much good in my hometown of St. Louis, Missouri, and I'm looking forward to earning lots of money for them this week” ( "Jeopardy!" 8/10). The episodes airing this week "were taped in May" (KMOV.com, 8/9).

NBC's “Late Night” staffers Amber Ruffin and Jenny Hagel talked about their time in Tokyo covering the Olympics, where Ruffin in particular was lauded for her interview segments on Peacock. Hagel noted U.S. women athletes alone won more medals than all Great Britain competitors, the “most embarrassing thing to happen to England since the Oprah interview.” Ruffin: “The point we're trying to make is that Team USA did great. But they did so in large part because of the hard work and talent of American women.” Hagel: “And also probably becausewewere there.” But when asked to provide more highlights from their trip to Tokyo, Hagel said, “Sorry, we can't, we have bobsled practice.” Ruffin: “Beijing is in like five months, and the way things are going for American women, we figure we can at least get Bronze” ( “Late Night,” NBC, 8/10).

Online youth sports platform LeagueApps is now the official technology partner of Ripken Baseball, the youth baseball business led by Baseball HOFer Cal Ripken Jr. The partnership will center around delivering a “multi-platform technology experience” for players, coaches, parents and league officials who participate in Ripken Baseball events (Mark J. Burns, SBJ).

Popular Peloton instructor Kendall Toole has joined energy drink brand X2 Performance as an equity partner who will assist in the company’s development of future products (X2 Performance).

The Packers' Titletown development has expanded its park and plaza as a part of the project's Phase 2, adding four more acres of public space that are now open (Packers).

"The citywide mask mandate is in effect. The Dome is in the city" -- Beau Tidwell, Communications Dir for New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell's administration, confirming that masks are being required for Saints games at Caesars Superdome (NOLA.com, 8/10).

ESPN.com notes cup snakes at baseball games are "bringing fans back together." The enthusiasm for beer cup snakes "represents a step in the return toward normalcy after a year of quarantine, when empty ballparks served as a constant reminder of the pandemic's effect." The trend in baseball "started in mid-June, when Chicago opened its restaurants, bars and baseball stadiums back up to full capacity." During the first game packed with fans at Wrigley Field, on June 14, Cubs fans "created a beer snake" that "spanned more than 100 feet, totaling nearly 2,400 cups."

Also:

• An age-old fall Saturday conflict takes on a new tone.

• How Facebook failed England's racially abused soccer players.

• NBRPA holds “Summer Getaway” during NBA Vegas Summer League.

Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Fictional Places.”

“A savage people called Zapoletes are contrasted with the inhabitants of the title place of this 16th-century work.”

"What is 'Utopia'?"