Welcome back to the Spotlight! Hard enough as it is to believe, with this week’s entry, the Spotlight is celebrating its fourth birthday. (sniffle, sniffle…our business development content grows up so fast). No magicians at this party but, as luck would have it, there’s always a clown. What started out with a small audience as a way of getting my name and passion for the sports and entertainment industry out there in a post-COVID world still somewhat hesitant to jump back into in-person networking, has grown with the help of a slightly-less-small audience into a conversation starter for in-person networking. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge that I owe a debt of gratitude to those of you who have been on this ride from the beginning and offered words of support an encouragement along the way. I probably also owe that much more in apologies for the cringe dad jokes I’ve made you suffer through and all those yet to come. That’s right—I’m just getting started.
- OK, so maybe there is magic for the 4 year celebration after all: Vegas casino RIO debuts a branded table game Penn & Teller’s Casino Monte bearing the name, image and likeness of the magician duo. For their first trick, they’ll make your life savings disappear!
- Stephen Curry and Marshawn Lynch – themselves Bay Area sports legends—are collaborating to produce a documentary on the life and legacy of Bay Area hip-hop artist Mac Dre. The biggest hang-up to the collaboration may be whether to go for 3 points or 6.
- A new private equity-backed music rights acquisition joint venture named Raven Music Partners comes knocking at the chamber door with an initial $250 million investment. My two-cent investment is that it would be wise to stay away from the slogan, “Never More.”
- Several strip clubs are the subject of claims that they had misappropriated the name, image and likeness of ten celebrities including Carmen Electra – when reached for comment, the strip club owners said, “Miss Appropriate? There’s no one here by that name.”
Endorsement Deals, Sponsorships & Investments
Serena Williams and the Toronto Tempo Are Coming for the WNBA
March 6, 2025 via Glamour
C4 Energy Enlists More College Athletes To Prove That Its Products Are Legitimate
March 6, 2025 via AdWeek
Meghan Markle urged to follow five-step plan for As Ever brand after latest Netflix flop
March 5, 2025 via Daily Express
Las Vegas Icon Rio Hotel Unveils Penn & Teller Casino Monte, a Revolutionary Celebrity-Branded Table Game
March 5, 2025 via Travel and Tour World
Federer-Backed On Brand Projects 2025 Revenue Up 27% to $3.3B
March 4, 2025 via Sportico
Ionescu Invests In NWSL's Bay FC
March 3, 2025 via Barron's News
Tiger Woods Sun Day Red ambassador Karl Vilips details how endorsement deal came about
February 28, 2025 via SB Nation
Cizzle Brands Adds Pro Hockey Life to its Roster of CWENCH Hydration™ Retailers
February 27, 2025 via Business Wire
Sports
'It's huge': Money talks as UNLV basketball nets big payday from NIL tournament
March 3, 2025 via Vegas Inc
PGA Tour extends event title sponsorship with 3M as commercial momentum continues
March 3, 2025 via Sports Business Journal
NCAA Committee recommends adding flag football
March 1, 2025 via Danville Commercial News
Charles Barkley slams college basketball, NIL: ‘Don’t think that’s a sustainable model’
February 27, 2025 via Awful Announcing
Padel's popularity soars thanks to South Florida luxury clubs and tournaments
February 27, 2025 via Biz Journal
Music Biz
ex-Guggenheim exec’s Aquarian Holdings backs new $250m music rights JV with Raven Capital
March 5, 2025 via Music Business Worldwide
Sony Music, DNS Capital lead $16m Series A funding round for AI licensing platform Vermillio
March 3, 2025 via Music Business Worldwide
Drake settles legal action against iHeartMedia in dispute over ‘Not Like Us’
March 2, 2025 via NBC News
ASCAP Posts Record $1.8 Billion In Revenue for 2024, Along With Record Distributions.
February 28, 2025 via Inside Radio
Warner Chappell speeds up songwriter payments following investment in rights management systems
February 28, 2025 via Music Week
The Cranberries File Suit Against Island/UMG, Alleging Millions in Unpaid Digital Royalties
February 28, 2025 via Digital Music News
Film & TV
Stephen A. Smith’s ESPN Deal Makes Him a $100 Million Man
March 7, 2025 via Sportico
Marshawn Lynch joins Stephen Curry for Mac Dre documentary
March 5, 2025 via San Francisco Chronicle
Nationals free to negotiate TV deal starting in 2026, settle lengthy MASN dispute with Orioles
March 3, 2025 via ABC News
MSG Networks on the verge of possible bankruptcy
March 3, 2025 via Awful Announcing
Fox’s Lachlan Murdoch suggests NFL opt-out ‘an opportunity’ to ‘deepen relationship’ with league
March 3, 2025 via Awful Announcing
Celebrities claim strip clubs misappropriated their images in suits against Oz and Pony
March 3, 2025 via Madison
