Weekend Rap

The Illinois state legislature is in its final scheduled session Sunday and “finding agreement on a plan to keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois appeared to be back at square one.” Talks on a Bears proposal “hit a critical juncture in a closed-door meeting of Senate Democrats on Saturday night when some Chicago Democrats led the rejection of a long-discussed megaprojects proposal to allow the team to negotiate local property taxes for a site it purchased in the northwest suburb of Arlington Heights.” Some Chicago “lawmakers want the state to leave open the option of keeping the team in the city,” something Gov. JB Pritzker and the team had ruled out. State Sen. Bill Cunningham, a Democrat from Chicago and the Senate point person on stadium negotiations, said, “The same sticking points are there that have always been there. Discomfort in the caucus with the Bears’ proposal regarding property tax breaks. ... We also have members of the Chicago caucus who would like to find some sort of path where the city of Chicago would also have the ability to compete for a stadium.” Cunningham hoped to come up with a new plan Sunday morning that “would satisfy lawmakers from Chicago who want the city included as an option” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/31). With “little more than 24 hours left on the legislative clock, it wasn’t clear what alternative incentives the state might offer, or how Chicago could figure into the mix” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 5/31).

The NBA Finals matchup is set with Spurs-Knicks, as the Spurs look for their sixth title, while the Knicks look for their first championship in 53 years. Game 1 is Wednesday in San Antonio. Spurs-Knicks is an “appealing matchup for so many reasons -- among them, it’s a rematch” of this season’s NBA Cup championship game won by the Knicks. It has “appeal of a global capital like New York, it has the international element with a French superstar” like Spurs C Victor Wembanyama and it “extends an era of parity the likes of which the league has never before seen.” No matter who wins this series, it will be the eighth different franchise to win a title in the last eight seasons (AP, 5/30).

The matchup features the “close-knit ‘Nova Knicks, captained by Jalen Brunson, versus the league’s future (and present?) in Victor Wembanyama.” It is the NBA’s largest media market vs. its fifth-smallest, and a rematch of the 1999 NBA Finals (THE ATHLETIC, 5/30). The NBA “must be licking its chops, what with New York, its largest media market, and Wembanyama, a 7-foot-4 self-described ‘alien,’ who has a chance to be one of the most special talents the game has ever seen, headlining its championship series” (YAHOO SPORTS, 5/31).

Wembanyama and a young Spurs team are “attempting to crash the championship party far quicker than history suggested feasible.” The Spurs became the first Finals team with its two top scorers -- Wembanyama and G Stephon Castle -- age 22 or below and the second-youngest Finals team based on weighted minutes played (ESPN.com, 5/31).

The Stanley Cup Final matchup is set with the Golden Knights set to face the Hurricanes in a matchup that begins Tuesday. Both are “well-built hockey teams with high-end players throughout their lineups, and each has spent the last seven weeks laying their conferences to waste.” For sports-business folks, Hurricanes-Golden Knights “may not be a marquee matchup,” with broadcast execs across the continent “crying in their beds” over market sizes and warm weather teams. But that is “their problem” (THE ATHLETIC, 5/31).

Ticket prices “seem to be reflecting high interest in Southern Nevada as of Friday,” with the highest-priced ticket listed on StubHub at $22,323 per seat in Section 1. The lowest-priced ticket to T-Mobile Arena for the first home game of the series costs $620, including fees (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 5/29).

Paris Saint-Germain won back-to-back Champions League titles after beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties in a “dramatic final in Budapest” that ended 1-1 after extra time on Saturday. The club is only the second team to retain the trophy in the modern era after Real Madrid. Having waited 22 years to “get its hands back on the Premier League trophy, Arsenal’s wait in Europe goes on.” Saturday’s match marked the club’s 226th game in the European Cup or Champions League without lifting the trophy. No other team has played so many without being champion (AP, 5/30). The game was played in front of 61,035 at Puskás Aréna (SBJ).

Paris police “detained dozens of people after violence disrupted celebrations late Saturday,” as “around 20,000 people gathered on the Champs-Elysees.” Paris police said that by 10:00pm local time, “45 people were taken into custody” (AP, 5/30). French police “detained 780 people involved in violent clashes in Paris and other French cities.” French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said that “57 officers were wounded, with most suffering minor injuries.” Nuñez said that “incidents took place in 15 cities across France” (London TELEGRAPH, 5/30).

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, Paris Saint-Germain President Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Fanatics founder & CEO Michael Rubin hosted a summit on the business issue of soccer in Budapest on Saturday. The event drew leaders from Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal, who “dined with bankers, sovereign wealth funds and celebrities to debate football’s commercial future” ahead of the Champions League Final. Soccer’s “most powerful figures met Fox, Nike and giants from the world of finance in Budapest in the first summit of its kind.” Sources said that the dinner “prompted talks ‘on the future of the global sports business landscape.’” Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis, Fulham owner Shahid Khan and Sunderland part-owner Juan Sartori “joined elite clubs” including Juventus, Barcelona and AC Milan. Manchester City Chair Khaldoon al-Mubarak and Chelsea co-owner Behdad Eghbali were also in attendance. The dinner took place at Felix Kitchen, a Mediterranean restaurant alongside the Danube River (London TELEGRAPH, 5/31).

The Portland Thorns and Fire staged a “unique women’s sports doubleheader Saturday in the first collaboration between the NWSL and WNBA teams.” The Thorns drew 20,053 fans to Providence Park for their match against the Utah Royals on Saturday afternoon. The Fire then hosted Caitlin Clark and the Fever in the evening before a sellout crowd of 19,437 at Moda Center. The teams “hyped Saturday’s matches,” selling a ticket package to both events for $80. T-Shirts were sold that exclaimed “Portland Loves Women’s Sports.” The Thorns and Fire share the same owners, Lisa and Alex Bhathal, who operate the teams under the entity Raj Sports (AP, 5/30).

Fans “packed into the Moda Center to watch” Fever-Fire, putting it “just above the team’s top attendance” of 19,335 for their home opener on May 11. That was a WNBA record for an expansion team’s attendance in its home opener. In just a few weeks, Moda Center has “become one of the WNBA’s newest hostile environments” (Portland OREGONIAN, 5/29). The Fever matchup was “always going to be the most in-demand home game” of the Fire’s inaugural season. In a 100-84 win, the Fire “reduced Clark to a background character” (Portland OREGONIAN, 5/29).

Security zones will be in place around World Cup match venues and those without tickets are being urged to “avoid traveling to match venues” and instead “attend designated fan events if they can’t get tickets to the matches.” The Federal Aviation Administration is also imposing “temporary flight restrictions around all U.S. World Cup venues.” The FBI said that there are “no specific credible threats at this time, but warned of ongoing cyber scams targeting ticket buyers” (MIAMI HERALD, 5/29). The FBI has been preparing for the “potential for violence, explosives or any hoax threats that may be called in or made online.” They are also “looking out for any signs of human trafficking.” FBI-Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Marlo Graham said that “there will be a ‘heavy law enforcement presence,’ particularly downtown near the stadium and Centennial Olympic Park” when the games come to the city (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 5/29).

Defending World Cup champion Argentina will be the “first international soccer team to arrive” in K.C. for the tournament. Argentina is one of four squads that will have a World Cup base camp in the K.C. area, along with the Netherlands, England and Algeria. Argentina F Lionel Messi and his teammates will be traveling on Aerolineas Argentinas in a plane labeled as the “most Argentinian plane in the world.” It has blue-and-white stripes on the tail with Messi’s No. 10 (K.C. STAR, 5/30).

Dozens of Haitians, Haitian Americans and soccer fans “crowded together waving flags, beaming expectantly at North Miami’s Moca Plaza” on Saturday to meet players on the Haitian national soccer team (MIAMI HERALD 5/30).

More World Cup headlines:

• Wall Street Journal: How FIFA’s biggest world cup unleashed a summer of price gouging
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Worried about World Cup traffic? Planning, technology should help ease jams.
• K.C. Star: KC Metro boosts public transportation for the World Cup. But will it stick around?
• Seattle Times: The U.S. likely won’t contend at FIFA Men’s World Cup. Here’s why
• L.A. Times: U.S. and Canadian refs to have a record-sized presence at World Cup

The 76ers are “set to hire” Cavaliers GM Mike Gansey as President of Basketball Operations. Gansey has been GM under Cavaliers President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman since 2022. Before that, Gansey was GM of the G League’s Cleveland Charge and was named the 2016-17 G League Executive of the Year. Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment President of Sports Bob Myers “led the search” after former President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey was fired May 12. It is “unclear what Gansey’s hiring means for” Sixers Assistant GM Jameer Nelson, who reportedly “was the top internal candidate” (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 5/29).

In Philadelphia, David Murphy noted Gansey “doesn’t really have” a track record as an executive. At least, “not one that compares to the guy he’ll be replacing” as President of Basketball Operations. Nor one that “compares to the guy who hired him.” The “tough part about evaluating Gansey’s hire is that we don’t know exactly what he is being hired for.” Gansey is Myers’ guy, but “what, exactly, does that mean?” (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 5/30).

The Vikings have “agreed to terms on a contract with Seahawks assistant GM Nolan Teasley” as the team’s new GM. Teasley has “risen through the Seahawks’ front office” through a 13-year run that spanned both of the team’s Super Bowl titles. He will partner with coach Kevin O’Connell and EVP/Football Operations Rob Brzezinski, who will “remain in his role with the team after interviewing for the GM job.” The Vikings finished in-person interviews with a “group of five finalists this past week,” wrapping things up with Broncos Assistant GM Reed Burckhardt on Wednesday and Rams Assistant GM John McKay on Thursday. O’Connell and Brzezinski will “retain strong voices in the team’s decisions” (MINNESOTA STAR TRIBUNE, 5/30).

Many believed Brzezinski “deserved the opportunity.” Others suggested the team would “benefit the most from infusing a tenured front office with a well-regarded external voice.” Neither Vikings owner the Wilf family nor the team’s chosen firm, TurnkeyZRG, “tipped their hand.” Sources said that Teasley “won out because of his ‘strong football acumen.’” A bevy of NFL evaluators and agents “praised Minnesota’s choice.” Brzezinski, “who deftly managed the team through a newsy stretch this spring, will continue to offer his salary cap expertise and negotiating savvy” (THE ATHLETIC, 5/30).

The Big 12 is becoming the first Power Four conference to have “each of its members sign participation agreements with the College Sports Commission.” Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said the conference “wants rules and enforcements, and we want to be a leader in that area.” The agreement requires schools to “waive their right to file lawsuits against the enforcement agency and gives it wide latitude to sanction programs for violating rules that outline how players can be paid after the House settlement last year.” But all 68 Power Four schools “must sign the 11-page document for it to become valid.” All schools had initially been asked to review and sign the document by last December. Yormark said, “I can’t speak for the other conferences. I mean, obviously they all say they want rules and enforcement, but they haven’t signed the participation agreement” (AP, 5/29).

More headlines around college sports:

• St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Not so fast on that whole idea that Congress saved college sports
• USA Today: SEC’s most important move this week was doing nothing
• CBSSports.com: Inside the SEC’s spring meetings: A 9-game schedule and a growing frustration with the CFP

NBC’s MLB coverage “starts to hit its stride this week as ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ begins its summer stint on the network’s primetime schedule.” Beginning with Sunday night’s Cubs-Cardinals game, there will be a game on NBC every week until Labor Day. The “only exception is July 12 because of the start of the All-Star break.” This is the first of a three-year deal for NBC to have Sunday night games. There were two early-season Sunday night games on NBC as well as an opening-day doubleheader. The rest were streamed on Peacock. The format of “Sunday Night Baseball,” where play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti is joined in the booth by analysts from both teams, has “proved to be a success.” This week’s analysts will be former Cardinals OF Albert Pujols and former Cubs P Jim Deshaies (AP, 5/30).

The Univ. of Utah athletic department began the process to “lay off select employees as part of its restructuring following the soon-to-be finalized deal with Otro Capital.” A spokesperson said that the move is “in preparation for the growth of Crimson Brand Partners.” The official separation date will “not be until June 30.” The spokesperson said, “All impacted employees will have an opportunity to interview for a similar position with CBP.” The select number of employees “expected to be laid off and potentially rehired at Crimson Brand Partners is currently unknown” (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/29).

The Nationals have “fired a team official after a hidden-camera conversation that appeared to show him discussing internal team business, including a player’s religion and the franchise’s relationship with the Trump administration, was posted on social media.” The video was posted by the O’Keefe Media Group. In the video, shared this week, Nationals Dir of Community Relations Sean Hudson appears to allege that the club has “banned their staff from posting pitcher Trevor Williams on their social media page because of his religious beliefs and discusses the team’s relationship with defense contractors and alleged efforts to pander to President Donald Trump.” On the Nationals’ pregame show Friday, President of Baseball Operations Jason Sinnarajah said that the organization is “horrified by the comments made on the video.” He added, “The comments don’t reflect us as an organization, our values and who we are. We took action right away, and the individual is no longer employed by the team.” Hudson also appeared to say in the video that the team “must pander to Trump so that he doesn’t slash the sports and entertainment budget for D.C.” (WASHINGTON POST, 5/29).

President Trump purchased “between $15,000 and $50,000 worth of stock in TKO Holding Group” weeks ahead of a White House UFC event he has promoted for months. The purchase was disclosed in Trump’s May 8 financial disclosures, which are publicly available through the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Those documents do not specify how much stock Trump purchased but say that he “acquired it March 25” -- a little more than two weeks after the Freedom 250 fight card was publicly revealed. UFC is scheduled to hold the first pro sports event on the White House grounds on June 14, Trump’s 80th birthday, to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary (THE ATHLETIC, 5/29).

Suns G Devin Booker on Friday surprised a customer at a McDonald’s drive-thru customer in Sedona, Ariz., when he “cosplayed a McDonald’s cashier at the drive-thru window” and “gave her a pair of limited edition all-turquoise Nike Book 2 sneakers.” During a nine-second video clip posted on social media, Booker “handed her a pair of his turquoise ‘Friends and Family’ Nike Book 2.” The giveaway was “part of an early-access activation at that McDonald’s location that day.” The promotion is “part of a collaboration with McDonald’s for the ‘Sedona’ version of Booker’s Nike signature shoe line’s second installment.” Booker and McDonald’s “held a sweepstakes from May 22-28 for MyMcDonald’s Rewards members to win one of the 50 Friends and Family turquoise shoe pairs.” Members were “given a chance to get those sneaker editions by ordering one of six new McCafé drinks in the McDonald’s app.” The Nike Book 2 Sedona shoe rollout “began on May 19 when McDonald’s released its ad featuring Booker and a Ronald McDonald statue on a hiking trail in the city” (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 5/29).

Almost a year and a half after being fired, former Patriots coach Jerod Mayo “has landed with Fifth Down,” a Boston-based venture capital and private equity firm, as a managing director. He “started in February.” Mayo has “kept a low profile since his firing.” He “hasn’t posted on social media, given an interview about his exit, or made many public appearances.” Before returning to the Patriots as a coach on Bill Belichick’s staff, Mayo was the VP/Business Development for the healthcare company Optum for three years (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/29).

NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy won the 2026 Horrigan Award as voted on by the Professional Football Writers of America. McCarthy “was lauded for his professional dealings with the media who cover the NFL.” He is the seventh member of the NFL’s league communications office to receive the award. The Horrigan Award is given to the league or club official “for his or her qualities and professional style in helping the pro football writers do their job.” McCarthy joined the NFL in 1994 and was named to the league’s chief spokesperson role in 2022 (PRO FOOTBALL TALK, 5/30).