Morning Buzz

An undermanned USMNT “emerged with an ultra-intense” 2-0 victory Wednesday over Bosnia and Herzegovina in a World Cup Round of 32 game at S.F. Bay Area Stadium. The “next stop is Seattle for a July 6 date against Belgium” in the Round of 16. The USMNT advancing is “historic, seeing how it won only one of its previous eight knockout-phase games in World Cup history.” But USMNT F Folarin Balogun’s 64th-minute red card “forced his teammates to play a man down for the remainder” of the game. The USMNT “will also be without him” against Belgium, as “no appeal is possible under FIFA rules.” As for the crowd at the stadium, there were a “couple thousand Bosnian fans, most in royal blue shirts, wedged into the south stands.” They were “otherwise surrounded by red-white-and-blue beaming U.S. fans, who accounted for roughly 95% of the stadium’s 68,827 capacity” (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 7/1).

There were 68,827-plus souls -- “a fire hazard of a sellout” -- stuffed into the stadium, and when the U.S. went down a man, “that suffocating sea of American fans didn’t panic.” It “simply got louder.” The crowd “didn’t just watch,” it “grabbed the 10 remaining Americans by the scruff of the neck and hurled them across the finish line” (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 7/1). Among those in the crowd for the game were FIFA President Gianni Infantino, FIFA VP Victor Montagliani and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick (SBJ).

The U.S. team now finds itself “on a historic run at this World Cup.” The win over Bosnia “marked America’s third of the tournament -- more than it had notched in any previous edition.” What has fans “especially excited now ... is the path opening up ahead of them.” After the Belgium match, the U.S. could draw possible matches against Spain in the quarterfinal and France in the semifinal. The “temptation to look ahead has rarely been stronger” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 7/1).

U.S. Soccer officials have confirmed that the USMNT “cannot appeal” F Folarin Balogun’s red card and ensuing suspension for the Round of 16 match against Belgium. Broadcast commentators and fans “immediately questioned the decision” after Balogun was shown a red card when he “crashed into Bosnia’s Tarik Muharemović, landing his foot on top of Muharemović’s during the physical match." Muharemović “hit the pitch, howling in pain, and was treated on the field.” The referee “used the video assistant referee to review the play and determined it merited a red card” (L.A. TIMES, 7/1). In “real time it looked like an innocuous collision,” but a slow-motion replay “made the contact appear much worse than it was.” There were “parallels” with a challenge from Argentina F Lionel Messi against Aissa Mandi of Algeria in the group phase, “but unlike Messi, Balogun was sent off for serious foul play” (London TIMES, 7/2).

USMNT MF Tyler Adams, when asked about there being no way to appeal, said, “Typical FIFA.” USMNT MF Weston McKennie said it was a “bit bogus” that the U.S. cannot appeal, while F Christian Pulisic “was also unimpressed.” Pulisic: “[That] he misses the next game is ridiculous for something like that.” USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino added, “For me it’s never a red card. Watching it after on TV, it was never the intention, to step on to the player” (London TELEGRAPH, 7/2).

The decision “quickly became a talking point” after Fox analyst and Soccer HOFer Alexi Lalas shared footage of a challenge by Messi against Algeria earlier in the tournament. Lalas “argued the incidents were comparable, yet Messi escaped without any disciplinary action.” Lalas: “It should be said that if his name was Messi, as we have seen earlier in the tournament, he would still be on the field and he would still be able to play in Seattle on Monday” (GOAL.com, 7/2).

The London INDEPENDENT looked at the red card under the header, "One rule for Messi, another for Balogun? USA striker sees red in World Cup after controversial VAR call."

“CBS Mornings” led Thursday’s episode with a recap of the game, including the on-air headline “U.S. Secures Win Despite Red Card.” CBS’ Nicole Valdes reported live from Santa Clara and said, “While last night’s victory was expected, it didn’t make it any less sweet.” CBS Sports’ Nigel Reo-Coker then appeared in studio to discuss U.S. F Folarin Balogun receiving a red card and said, “It’s a very harsh red card. I don’t believe it’s a red card.” CBS’ Vladimir Duthiers noted, “I saw [Argentina F Lionel] Messi do the same thing.” Reo-Coker later explained there is no appeal process for Balogun and previewed the U.S.-Belgium round of 16 match (“CBS Mornings,” 7/2).

ABC’s “GMA” also began with the match recap, with Whit Johnson reporting live from Santa Clara and under the headline, “U.S. Advances In World Cup Thriller.” He said, “We saw goals, a controversial red card, a bloody shoe and plenty of magic as the American World Cup dream marches on” (“GMA,” ABC, 7/2).

The match was the third news topic on NBC’s “Today,” behind the upcoming record heat wave and the latest involving President Trump. The report came with the on-air headline, “Team USA Wins Big At World Cup,” with anchor Craig Melvin saying the U.S. “kept that magic going in California last night” with “another dominant performance.” NBC’s Steve Patterson said, “It was the kind of victory and atmosphere that U.S. soccer fans have been waiting for years” (“Today,” NBC, 7/2).

The USMNT’s World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium on Monday at Seattle Stadium is “arguably one of the biggest sporting events in Seattle’s history,” and it also “might be one of the most expensive ones to attend.” On Tuesday, fans who “wanted to gamble on the U.S. making it” spent, “at minimum, just shy of $2,000 per ticket to get into the game.” But in the moments after the USMNT’s win Wednesday night, tickets “jumped to about $3,000 to get in the door if you buy from resellers, or $2,300 and up if you buy from FIFA’s resale marketplace” (SEATTLE TIMES, 7/1). The matchup “most fans in the Pacific Northwest hoped would come to fruition” when the tournament started “is coming to pass.” The matchup between the U.S. and Belgium in the Round of 16 is “a repeat of the 2014 tournament” in Brazil, when the teams clashed in the same round (SEATTLE TIMES, 7/1).

According to TicketData.com, the get-in price for the U.S.-Belgium game stands at $2,609 as of Thursday morning -- a 31% increase over the past three days. 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 (SBJ).

On this week’s Sports Media Podcast, SBJ’s Austin Karp and Josh Carpenter break down the World Cup’s massive ratings, the impact of out-of-home viewing and why the tournament has become must-watch TV across America.

Thousands of fans braved the heat in Toronto for “just a fleeting glimpse” of Portugal F Cristiano Ronaldo at the “three locations they knew he’d be” ahead of their match against Croatia. Several fans “went to all three places -- the airport, hotel and practice facility.” The team arrived at the Delta Hotels Toronto where a “large crowd of fans camped outside went berserk when they saw the bus arrive.” Fences “blocked the hundreds of supporters” from watching the one-hour Portugal practice at Centennial Park, and those “pressed against the metal barrier were jockeying for the best position to momentarily see the team enter and exit the practice facility.” Tickets listed on secondary markets such as StubHub for the match “range from $2,643 to $8,689″ while on SeatGeek, they are being “listed from $1,592 to $3,921″ late Wednesday night. This is the first time Ronaldo has played in Toronto since 2009. By 10pm ET, the crowd had “grown so large outside Ronaldo’s hotel, that he popped out to the balcony area to wave to supporters that had packed the sidewalk and spilled on to the street.” Police had to “briefly close” the street for safety concerns (TORONTO STAR, 7/1).

Fans waiting to catch a glimpse of Ronaldo and the Portugal soccer team’s bus “forced a busy city highway to close on Wednesday.” Before 2:30pm ET on Wednesday, as the arriving Portuguese team navigated through the city, traffic “was backed up as a result of the crowd standing outside of their vehicles.” Large crowds are expected in the city Thursday, as Portugal’s and Croatia’s fans “plan marches to the stadium to support their teams” (TORONTO STAR, 7/1).

The World Cup Round of 32 continues Thursday with another trio of games, and two of them are pulling in a lot of ticket demand. The first match of the day, Spain-Austria at L.A. Stadium has seen prices soar 38% in the past three days, with the current get-in price standing at $1,413, according to TicketData.com. While that price is down 21% over the past week, it is up 44% from the start of the tournament. But the biggest draw of the day is the second game of the day, Portugal-Croatia at Toronto Stadium. The get-in price of $1,996 is up 6% over the past three days, but down 6% over the past week -- but up 50% from the start of the tournament. Both of those game have limited to no ticket availability. The final game of the day, Switzerland-Algeria at BC Place has a get-in price of $402 -- which is down 33% over the past three days, down 48% over the past week and down 39% from the start of the tournament. 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.

World Cup fans have sued StubHub, “accusing the resale ​platform of failing to deliver expensive tickets they bought on the ‌secondary market” for the tournament. In a proposed class action filed late Tuesday night in Manhattan federal court, fans claimed they “did not get what they paid for” ​because StubHub “never delivered their promised tickets.” StubHub said that it “would not ​comment on pending litigation.” Fans have “flooded social media” during the ​tournament, “blaming StubHub for last-minute ticket cancellations and for ‌backing ⁠away from assurances they could get replacement tickets.” The lawsuit “seeks unspecified damages of at least” $5M “for thousands of people in the United States ⁠who ​did not receive World Cup tickets they bought through StubHub, ​for alleged violations of various consumer protection and false advertising” (REUTERS, 7/1).

Under Armour’s new partnership with Georgia Tech brings a new jersey release for football with a “hat tip to their classic look.” The new look “provides up to 12 combinations for game day gear -- with gold or white tops, and options for gold, white or black pants, along with gold or white helmets.” The uniform tops have “Georgia Tech” across the chest, and the pants “have the GT logo on the left hip and the Under Armour logo on the right.” The white jerseys feature “metallic Tech gold numbers with navy trim.” The collar is “gold with metallic and matte Tech gold with navy in the shoulder striping.” The look is an “homage to Georgia Tech’s Kessler Campanile, a prominent campus landmark.” The gold jersey has “white numerals, with metallic Tech gold and navy trimming.” The shoulder striping prominently features “metallic Tech gold and white, matching the white jersey’s design” (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 7/1).

Maryland’s Board of Public Works on Wednesday approved the purchase of the Laurel Park racetrack for $48.5M, “finalizing a deal to make the 229-acre property a year-round training center.” The three-member board, which authorizes state spending, signed off on a deal with track owner Stronach Group that the Maryland Stadium Authority approved unanimously in April. The facility will be “turned into a thoroughbred horse training facility to complement a hub for horse racing at Pimlico Race Course as part of the state’s takeover of Maryland’s horse racing industry.” The purchase will be “funded through Maryland’s racing and community development facilities fund.” The state “estimates the total cost for Laurel Park’s conversion to a training facility, including purchasing the property,” will be $177M. A first phase of upgrades will “focus on replacing outdated living conditions for workers and horses on the track’s backstretch.” Maryland State Treasurer Dereck Davis, a member of the board, “expressed concerns about how much return Maryland will get on its investment.” Davis said that while the Preakness Stakes is a “cultural and economic success,” he is “worried about the rest of the year” (BALTIMORE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/1).

NASCAR will collaborate with the Motorsport Network digital media company in the latest venture to get more tonnage and eyeballs on the programming being created around the stock car racing league. The deal is being announced today with the sides framing it as an opportunity for Motorsport Network to get access to some of NASCAR’s editorial content while the auto racing series receives a newfound distribution channel to grow its brand and online presence.

Motorsport Network controls outlets including Motorsport.com, Autosport, InsideEVs, Motor1 and RideApart and says it reaches 5.6 million monthly users with U.S.-focused information. It also publishes in 14 languages and has 38 million unique visitors every month, according to a press release.

Among the shows that Motorsport Network will now air will be NASCAR Studios’ “Inside the Race” series. NASCAR will also now work with talent from Motorsport Network and use them in various content opportunities. The Daytona Beach-based property has made international growth a key initiative in recent years and has also partnered with several digital media companies to help expose racing to casual fans. Motorsport Network Global CCO Dan Owen in prepared remarks wrote that with this deal, “we’ll be delivering value well beyond traditional media.”

“Among his numerous accolades are 3 Tonys, 3 Emmys, 5 Grammys & a 2016 Pulitzer Prize.”