June 23, 2021

Read in Browser

Front Office Sports

POWERED BY

Happy 25th birthday to the Nintendo 64, which sold 32 million units worldwide. To think, Sony has already moved one-fourth as many PS5 units after two fiscal quarters.

EA Buys Warner Bros.’ Playdemic for $1.4 Billion

Playdemic/Design: Alex Brooks

Electronic Arts has acquired mobile game studio Playdemic from Warner Bros. Games and AT&T’s WarnerMedia for $1.4 billion in cash. 

“This is the next step building on our strategy to expand our sports portfolio and accelerate our growth in mobile to reach more players around the world,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of EA. 

Playdemic is the studio behind the mobile hit “Golf Clash,” which has more than 80 million downloads globally across iOS and Android since its 2017 release. 

“Golf Clash” has generated more than $225 million in revenue to date. Last month, the title brought in $6 million worldwide. 

The acquisition of Playdemic adds to an EA mobile network that has 100 million monthly active players and includes more than 15 top live-service games across a bevy of genres. 

EA is aggressively strengthening its position in the $138.4 billion video game market.

  • Completed its $1.2 billion acquisition of British racing game developer Codemasters in February. 
  • Generated $1.62 billion in revenue from its Ultimate Team offerings in FY2021, according to the company’s latest 10-K document filing. 
  • Completed its $2.1 billion purchase of developer and publisher Glu Mobile in April.

Despite expanding its offerings, EA’s spending spree led to a fiscal Q4 2021 that fell short of expectations. 

The “Madden” and “FIFA” publisher generated $1.34 billion in revenue in Q4 compared to $1.38 billion for the same period a year before. 

Its full-year revenue was stagnant at $5.6 billion — the same as fiscal year 2020. 

Operators Anticipate Sports Betting Gold Rush in Canada

The Score/Design: Alex Brooks

“Ontario, it’s happening. See you soon.”

That’s the new billboard by theScore in Toronto celebrating the looming legalization of sports betting in Canada. 

The Senate of Canada passed a bill on Tuesday permitting each province to approve single-game wagering. Prior to the 57-20 vote, Canadian citizens were only allowed to bet on sports through multi-leg parlays. 

With sports betting online by the fall, companies like theScore — which operates the country’s leading mobile sports media app — and DraftKings are expecting the biggest gold rush since the Klondike.

Canada boasts a population of nearly 38 million, as well as seven NHL teams, the NBA’s Toronto Raptors, MLB’s Toronto Blue Jays, and the Canadian Football League. 

“Fired-up is an understatement for how awesome an opportunity this now is in Ontario,” said Aubrey Levy, vice president of content and marketing for Toronto-based Score Media and Gaming. 

  • Online gaming in Canada could generate between $4.3 billion and $5.4 billion in annual gross gaming revenue, estimates theScore.
  • Ontario, the country’s most populous province, is viewed as the “crown jewel” of a legalized Canadian sports betting market. The province alone could generate up to $2.1 billion in revenue. 
  • With a population of 14.7 million, Ontario would rank as the fifth-largest U.S. state, behind California, Texas, Florida, and New York but ahead of Pennsylvania and Illinois.

Not surprisingly, the NHL generates the country’s largest betting handle, according to Levy: “Betting behavior tends to parallel media consumption. And in Canada, hockey is absolutely huge.”

SPONSORED BY ATHLETIC GREENS

The Daily Drink For A Healthier You

Pro athletes know the importance of treating their bodies right… so when they swear by a daily supplement like Athletic Greens, people take note.

Whether you’re recovering from crushing two-a-days or just trying to live a healthier life, Athletic Greens’ daily all-in-one nutritional formula gives you the help you need to feel great. With 75 bioavailable vitamins, minerals, and whole food-sourced ingredients (think multivitamins, multiminerals, and probiotics), a single scoop of Athletic Greens can:

  • Help fill nutritional gaps in your diet
  • Support your immune system and optimize gut health
  • Adapt to your body’s needs due to changes in stress, sleep patterns, and more

The cherry carrot on top? It tastes great. How many other supplements can say that?

Get a FREE year supply of Liquid Vitamin D + 5 FREE Travel Packs right here when you sign up for a subscription.

U.S. Track Star Allyson Felix Launches Unique Shoe Brand

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

Allyson Felix qualified for her fifth and (she says) final Olympics. As her storied track career nears its end, she’s launching a new chapter with her own lifestyle brand.

Felix, the most decorated female track star in U.S. history, unveiled women’s clothing and fitness company Saysh on Wednesday.

Elite gymnast Simone Biles and the 35-year-old Felix followed a similar path after initially signing on with Nike. 

  • Felix left Nike in 2019 after penning an op-ed criticizing the Swoosh for cutting her pay when she was on maternity leave. She joined Gap-owned Athleta later that year.
  • The dispute prompted Nike to change its maternity leave policies and raised Felix’s profile as an advocate for equal treatment.
  • Biles left Nike for Athleta in April, saying that “Athleta is committed to diversity and inclusion of all women, backgrounds, ages, sizes, abilities, and races.” 

Felix and her older brother, Wes, raised $3 million in seed funding to start the company. Its first product is the Saysh One sneaker, which at $150 comes with a lifetime membership to the Saysh Collective. The membership offers perks like workout videos, networking possibilities, and interactions with Felix and others.

The track star is still involved with Athleta: This week, the brand released its most recent line in collaboration with Felix. 
Athleta has been a bright spot for Gap this year: The company plans to open 20-to-30 Athleta stores while closing 75 Gap and Banana Republic stores in 2021.

Conversation Starters

Conversation Starters

  • Financier Gerard Lopez reached a deal to save FC Girondins de Bordeaux from financial collapse. The European soccer club needed at least $119 million of fresh investment.
  • Combate Global signed a multiyear deal with Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network to bring MMA to their sports coverage. Combate is directed toward a Hispanic audience.
  • Vanessa Bryant settled on the wrongful death lawsuit over the helicopter crash that killed her daughter Gianna, husband and NBA legend Kobe, and seven others. 
  • The NBA Draft lottery has come and gone and the Detroit Pistons own the top pick. Who will they pick? Many have Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham pegged at No. 1. How much can Cunningham expect to make? For more on that, check out the Sports Spection, a free FOS newsletter. Subscribe here.

SPONSORED BY DRAFTKINGS

Play With The Leader in Daily Fantasy Sports

There’s nothing like the thrill of skin in the game action you’ll get with DraftKings Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS).

Pick a sport and draft a lineup. Contests range from a single game to a weeks-long tourney. Earn points based on your lineup’s in-game performance. Feel the excitement you can only get when your team surges ahead.

Test your knowledge and talk a little smack with friends and fans nationally. DraftKings DFS is available in 43 states. It is not offered in these seven states: Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, Washington.

With baseball in full swing, get your game on and play FREE for your share of millions in prizes!

Market Movers

Market Movers

U.S. stocks were mixed on Wednesday. Here’s a look at how sports-related stocks performed:

Up:

Hibbett Sports, Inc. (NASDAQ: HIBB) gained 4.83%

Allied Esports Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ: AESE) gained 4.13%

Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UA) gained 3.20%

Down:

Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) dropped 3.73%

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) dropped 1.59%

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLAY) dropped 1.50%

(Note: All as of market close on 6/23/21)

What to Watch

What to Watch

The Milwaukee Bucks host the Atlanta Hawks tonight in the first game of the third-round series. The teams last met in April when the Hawks beat the Bucks 111-104.

How to Watch:

8:30 p.m. ET on TNT

Betting Odds:

Bucks -8 || ML -375 || O/U 225.5*

Pick: Expect the Bucks to come out firing. Take Milwaukee to cover and lean under. 

Who ya got? Reply to this newsletter with your prediction for the Hawks-Bucks winner, final score, and high scorer. Nail it, and you get a mention in Thursday’s FOS PM edition. Don’t forget to include your Twitter handle. 

Shoutout: On Tuesday, we asked readers to make predictions for Clippers-Suns. The Suns beat the Clippers 104-103 behind Cameron Payne’s game-high 29 points. Reader Kigeni Freeman predicted a Suns win! 

*Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details

Refer Friends, Win Merch

Refer Friends, Win Merch

Ready to rep your favorite newsletter? Refer your friends and colleagues to Front Office Sports and you could win FOS merchandise.

It’s easy to spread the word. Copy and paste your unique link below and share it in an email or on your timeline.

Your custom referral link: [RH_REFLINK]

Or use these one-tap sharing methods:

Email // Twitter // Facebook

Advertise Awards Learning Events Video Shows
Written by Justin Byers, Michael McCarthy, Owen Poindexter

If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here.

Update your preferences / Unsubscribe

Copyright © 2021 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.
460 Park Avenue South, 7th Floor, New York NY, 10016

Subscribe To Our Daily Newsletters

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.