ESPN’s ‘The Last Dance’ helped StockX sell 40,000 pairs of “Flint” Air Jordan 13 sneakers in June, the latest success for the sneaker, collectible, and apparel marketplace. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, StockX reported “double-digit gains” in search interest following coronavirus pandemic-related lockdowns in March according to its mid-year report despite average consumer brand interest dropping 9%, according to Cowen Equity Research. In total, StockX has now surpassed $2.5 billion in lifetime gross merchandise value.

Air Jordans have played a significant part in StockX’s growth, with 3.5 million pairs of the shoes being authenticated by the platform in its history – 900,000 of those within the past six months. Jordan sales grew 38% during ‘The Last Dance’ broadcasts. The combined value of the top 500 sneakers gained 6% in March.

Since launching in 2016, StockX has facilitated more than 10 million trades, with 50% of those coming in the past year. The second quarter of 2020 provided the site with 18 of its top 20 sales days ever, outside of promotions and holidays. May and June were its two biggest buyer months ever.

Based in Detroit, StockX was founded by Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert and Josh Luber, Greg Schwartz, and Chris Kaufman. StockX has raised more than $150 million in venture funding and was valued at $1 billion last year. In December 2019, StockX formalized its first sports partnership, with the Gilbert-owned Cleveland Cavaliers.

StockX said it’s the No. 4 site among “upper-income Gen Z males” with a “69% market penetration among Gen Z sneakerheads” – who spend an average of $503 on sneakers every year. The site also saw the share of its users over 45 grow 30%.

Without fall sports, Iowa State Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard estimates the department would incur approximately $40 million in unfunded expenses, including staff salaries and scholarships. The athletic department’s annual budget is $86 million, and the school as a whole is facing $73 million in revenue losses and costs related to COVID-19 thus far.

Pollard addressed a letter to fans that provided a glimpse into the potential losses Power 5 schools are facing should the fall season be canceled. Pollard’s goal was to “clarify the reasons why we are doing everything in our power to try and safely play college sports this fall.”

The University of Minnesota athletic department is also expected to face heavy losses without fall sports, with some projections suggesting it could lose up to $75 million. That would build upon a loss of $10 million from not having spring sports. If sports are allowed to be played but with no fans in attendance, the school would lose $30 million. Last week, the Big Ten Conference announced it would allow fall sports to have conference-only schedules.

In April, a report found the 65 Power 5 schools could lose a combined $4.1 billion in revenue without a college football season. Power 5 schools had more than $1 billion in ticket revenue alone in 2019.

More College News: 

— “I hope I’m wrong, but I think the season being canceled is a foregone conclusion,” a Power Five coach told Yahoo Sports.

— SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said, “We believe that late July will provide the best clarity for making the important decisions ahead of us.”

— The Patriot League announced its fall sports schedule would be canceled. The Football Championship Series conference follows in the Ivy League’s footsteps, which canceled its fall seasons last week.

The University of Texas said it would make a series of changes after student-athletes called for the school to address racial issues on campus. However, it will not replace its controversial alma mater song.

Texas Interim President Jay Hartzell said that while “The Eyes of Texas” will remain as the school’s spirit song, “aspects of its origin… must be fixed” and the school “can effectively reclaim and redefine what this song stands for.” Student-athletes had called for the school to drop the song, which has links to minstrel shows and was created during segregation.

Other changes include renaming multiple campus buildings, replacing statues, and starting a multi-million dollar outreach program using revenue from the athletics department to recruit, retain, and support Black students.

Student-athletes across the country have been calling on their schools to make changes on campus. That includes:

— Texas A&M athletes have called for the removal of a campus statue of a racist ex-university president. 

— College athletes from the University of Mississippi have pushed for the removal of Confederate statues in Oxford, Mississippi. 

— Mississippi State running back Kylin Hill said he’d quit the team if the Confederate battle emblem wasn’t removed from the state flag. Mississippi’s flag has been at the crux of racial and social justice conversations as the SEC and NCAA threatened to withhold championship events in the state unless the flag changed. The state is currently looking for new flag designs as the old design was retired last month.

Oakley has collaborated with doctors and engineers from the NFL and NFL Players Association to develop the Oakley Mouth Shield. The shield uses the same materials as Oakley’s visors and despite airways and openings, it is designed to not allow the direct transmission of droplets – aiming to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus on the field.

The product is expected to be sent to all 32 NFL teams in the next week – but there is no existing mandate to wear the shield. Safety protocols regarding the coronavirus are currently in the works between the NFL and NFLPA.

Oakley became the NFL’s ‘preferred eyewear provider’ prior to the 2019 season, signing a four-year deal with the league. It’s also the exclusive brand partner for helmet visors – more than 700 NFL players wore the visor last season. The NFL partnership was also viewed as a way to market the brand’s lifestyle products to a large number of consumers.

Along with a variety of action sport, golf and motorsport athletes, Oakley also partners with NFL players Patrick Mahomes, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Derwin James Jr.