Endeavor generated $1.1 billion in revenue in Q2 2021 — a $650 million increase compared to the same period a year ago. 

The results were driven by the return of live events and audiences, which led to the biggest first half of the year in UFC history.

Endeavor’s events, experiences, and rights segment saw revenue reach $528.7 million — $408.8 million more than in Q2 2020. It’s been a busy year for the company all-around.

• UFC inked a 10-year, $175 million deal with Crypto.com in July.
• Endeavor China acquired sports digital agency Mailman Group in July for roughly $60 million.
• Its On Location Experiences property became the exclusive global hospitality partner of the 2024, 2026, and 2028 Olympics in June in a deal worth at least $1.3 billion. 

Endeavor raised $511 million in its initial public offering in April. The company also held a private placement that brought the total raised to $1.8 billion and made New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and AC Milan owner Paul Singer stakeholders in Endeavor.

Billionaires Michael Dell and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison acquired some of the 74.5 million shares sold during the IPO, as well.

Endeavor’s full-year revenue is expected to range between $4.8 and $4.85 billion.

Allbirds fans can now complement their sustainable shoes with sustainable clothing.

On Tuesday, the brand announced its own activewear collection with apparel made from eucalyptus tree fiber and merino wool. The company has committed to cutting its per-product carbon footprint in half by 2025.

Allbirds joins a growing list of brands getting into activewear, a category that accounted for 40% of all online sales in 2020.

• Denim brand Levi Strauss entered an agreement in August to acquire Beyond Yoga. Levi expects the activewear brand to contribute more than $100 million in revenue in its next fiscal year.
• Footwear company Wolverine Worldwide acquired women’s activewear brand Sweaty Betty in August in an all-cash deal valued at roughly $410 million.
• Dick’s Sporting Goods launched men’s activewear brand VRST in March, shortly after Target revealed that its All In Motion brand generated over $1 billion in annual sales in its first year.

Allbirds received a $1.7 billion valuation last year after a $100 million funding round and has plans to go public later this year.

Bloomberg reported that an IPO could happen as soon as next month.

The NCAA accrued hefty legal fees in its attempt to block new compensation laws from going into effect, but it’s distributing 90% of the costs to the conferences it oversees.

Of the $37.9 million it racked up in the landmark Alston case, the NCAA will pay $3.8 million. Conferences that were codefendents in the case will cover $24.4 million (64.2%), and the remaining conferences are on the hook for $9.8 million (25.8%).

The conferences with the biggest tabs are:

• Atlantic Coast: $2.7 million
• Big Ten: $2.5 million
• Conference USA: $2.5 million
• Southeastern: $2.5 million

The NCAA’s total legal fees during the 2019-2020 season were $67.7 million, compared to $33 million the previous season.

In Alston, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the NCAA could not limit the education-related benefits offered to Division I football and basketball players.

The NCAA made $868 million in marketing and media rights revenue in 2019, the bulk of which came from broadcasting deals with CBS and Turner. Revenue from those deals fell to $113.1 million last year — from an expected $827 million — due to event cancellations.