March 26, 2021

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Fitness+ for indoors. “Explorer Edition” watch for outdoors. Apple wants the whole pie.

A ‘Rugged’ Apple Watch for Extreme Athletes?

Apple/Design: Alex Brooks

Apple already owns 40% of the smartwatch market, but the tech giant wants to be more than  a market leader. Internal discussions suggest the company is considering a new watch that comes with casing sturdy enough for extreme athletes, per Bloomberg.

The first Apple Watch launched in 2015, and its improved models continue to grow in adoption among athletes — a 2020 study found 75% of customers are first-time buyers — but Apple wants another option for those looking to go off the beaten path. 

According to Bloomberg, the watch has been referred to as the “Explorer Edition,” and the main difference would be impact-resistance, similar to that of Casio’s popular G-Shock watches.

Current Apple Watches are water-resistant up to 50 meters — more than most smartwatches — but Apple would aim to make the Explorer Edition more “rugged” by using a rubberized exterior. 

Apple doesn’t disclose specifically how much money Apples Watches bring in, but the company’s overall wearables/home/accessories segment recorded $30 billion in sales during its last fiscal year.

New Apple Watch models are typically launched in September, but the progress of the latest model is unknown, and could be canceled at any point, according to people familiar with the matter. If it is released, it may be late this year or in early 2022.

MLB Valuations: Wins Don’t Equate to Dollars

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

What does coming within a few innings of winning the World Series get you? When it comes to team value, nothing. 

The Tampa Bay Rays, defending American League Champions and one of the more successful and innovative teams of the last decade, was the only club to show no year-on-year gain in Forbes’ annual MLB team valuations. 

Contrast that with the Red Sox and Cubs: each struggled through lackluster seasons and recently traded star players to cut back on payroll, but both gained 5% in value over the previous year. They were the third- and fourth-most valuable teams, respectively. The World Series-winning Dodgers were second at $3.57 billion, and the Yankees continued their reign at $5.25 billion, nearly equal to the combined value of the bottom five teams.

The more valuable teams have negotiated more lucrative TV deals, but a handful of mid-market clubs punched above their weight. The White Sox, the 14th-most valuable team at $1.69 billion, trailed only the two L.A. teams in 2020 TV money. The Mariners, just behind the White Sox at 16th, had the 7th-most lucrative TV deal.

With contentious collective bargaining negotiations on the horizon, the list highlights a core source of tension between players and owners: wins have little apparent correlation to team value. Even in a year without fans, 29 out of 30 teams saw their value rise, regardless of how they did in the standings.

SPONSORED BY H-PROOF

Your New Favorite Nightcap

With springtime on the horizon, it’s feeling warmer and looking brighter. We’ve all spent the past year enjoying our favorite beverages at home, and our livers have been working overtime. Do something good for your liver and stock up on H-PROOF – “The Anytime You Drink Vitamin”

Founded by board-certified surgeon Dr. Linda J. Kaplan, MD, H-PROOF is loaded with B Vitamins that power alcohol metabolism. It also contains Liver Supporters, Electrolytes, and Vitamin C and Zinc to support the immune system. Chew two tablets before bed anytime you drink and wake up feeling… better than you should. 

But don’t take our word for it, order a bottle and try H-PROOF yourself. It’s backed by a 30 day money back guarantee. Cheers to more feel-good days ahead!

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OBJ Jumps Into Snowballing SPAC Space

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

Cleveland Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr. became a strategic advisor to a SPAC launched by investment firm Tribe Capital. A filing earlier this month said that Tribe was seeking “top-decile private technology companies that are exhibiting inflection points in their growth.”

The Securities and Exchange Commission is getting increasingly antsy about athlete and celebrity-backed SPACs, going as far as to release a warning letter to investors, and many expect a formal investigation into the investment vehicle. Athletes are often brought in to bring attention to a SPAC but then step away once it acquires a company to take public, according to the New York Times. SPACs have raised over $90 billion this year, already breaking the record set in 2020.

The SEC alluded to the mixed incentives celebrities may have in its warning letter, noting that “sponsors may have conflicts of interest so their economic interests in the SPAC may differ from shareholders.”

Alex Rodriguez, Serena Williams, Shaquille O’Neal, Steph Curry, Naomi Osaka, Patrick Mahomes, and Justin Verlander are among the numerous athletes who have joined SPACs as board members or advisers. 

As for Beckham Jr., who has invested in technology and cryptocurrency companies through Tribe, as well as wellness, nutrition, and esports companies, he sees himself as more of a strategist than an attention-grabbing name.

“As I look to the future, I know that NFL careers don’t last forever and I’ll need new areas to compete in,” he told the Wall Street Journal. “I feel like I’ve been in training camp for venture capital these last few years, and I’m ready to get out on the field.”

Conversation Starters

Conversation Starters

  • Red Bull Racing has a new partner for data-led fan experiences: Oracle. The Formula One team recently announced the multiyear deal, and the tech giant will provide the racing team with marketing cloud products and customer experience technologies. That, in turn, will allow Red Bull fans access to a bevy of stats and metrics.
  • Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his children-focused 15 and The Mahomies Foundation announced a multiyear partnership with the HBCU Legacy Bowl. The partnership will help the all-star game for NFL draft-eligible HBCU players kick off its inaugural game next February.
  • Sony announced that Sucker Punch Productions’ “Ghost of Tsushima” video game will be the next PlayStation IP to be developed into a feature-length film. John Wick film franchise director Chad Stahelski will lead the project. “Ghost of Tsushima” has sold more than 6.5 million copies since its launch in July 2020.
  • March Subscriber Giveaway: We’re giving away a $500 Airbnb gift card this month for you to use whenever you’re ready to travel again. For every friend or colleague who subscribes to FOS with your custom referral link by the end of March, you get one entry into our giveaway. If you don’t win the $500 gift card, five runners-up will also win an FOS VIP care package.
    • Share in one tap (Email // Twitter // Facebook) or copy-and-paste your custom referral link: [RH_REFLINK]

SPONSORED BY ESPN+

One Knockout Night

UFC 260 presents a night of redemption as “The Predator” Francis Ngannou gets a second shot at a UFC title. 

Ngannou faces Heavyweight Champ Stipe Miocic, who won by unanimous decision when the two last fought three years ago. Stream every moment on Saturday, March 27 exclusively on ESPN+. Prelims at 8pm/ET, Main Card at 10PM/ET. 

Get UFC 260 and an ESPN+ Annual Plan for only $89.98.

Market Movers

Market Movers

U.S. stocks across all three major indexes experienced gains on Friday. Here’s a look at how sports-related stocks performed:

Up:

Genesco Inc. (NYSE: GCO) gained 6.41%

Gravity Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRVY) gained 5.01%

Daktronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: DAKT) gained 4.03%

Down:

ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC) dropped 27.31%

fuboTV Inc. (NYSE: FUBO) dropped 15.49%

Allied Esports Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ: AESE) dropped 8.22%

(Note: All as of market close on 3/26/21)

What to Watch

What to Watch

UFC Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic (20-3-0) will face #1-ranked Heavyweight contender Francis Ngannou (15-3-0) tonight in UFC 260. Miocic, ranked the #5 pound-for-pound fighter, has 15 wins by knockout, while “The Predator” Ngannou has 11. 

How to Watch:

*10 p.m. ET on UFC PPV exclusively on ESPN+

Betting Odds:

Ngannou ML -130 || O/U 1.5

Pick: This will be Ngannou’s second shot at the title against the fighter regarded as the greatest heavyweight in UFC history after breaking the record for most title defenses. Despite Mioicic’s ability to sustain success, Ngannou has been on a roll, winning four consecutive fights in the first round. The top-ranked heavyweight contender is primed to break through. Take Ngannou and the over as “The Predator” hopes to be crowned a champion.

Who ya got? Reply to this newsletter with your prediction for the Ngannou-Miocic winner, whether it will go the distance, and if not, what round the fight ends. Nail it, and you get a mention in Monday’s FOS PM. Don’t forget to include your Twitter handle.

Shoutout: On Thursday, we asked readers to pick the winner, final, score, and high scorer of the 76ers-Lakers tilt. The 76ers beat the Lakers 109-101 and Danny Green led all scorers with 28 points. No one expected Green to go off but FOS reader @DavisonFrizzell nailed the 76ers as the winner.

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Written by Abigail Gentrup, Owen Poindexter

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