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What's in store with this year's Super Bowl commercials?

Feb 10, 2023
Expect brands to team up for ads, and a special surprise from Blockbuster.
Super Bowl LVII signage in Phoenix, Arizona. This year's commercials will likely make little to light reference to stressful economic conditions face by many Americans, says Ad Age editor Jeanine Poggi.
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Tax revenue vs. temptation: Legalized online sports betting creates a dilemma for problem gamblers

Sep 6, 2022
Where mobile betting is legal, it accounts for 90% of all wagers, one expert says. Do the pros outweigh the cons?
“Americans have always bet on sports," says John Holden of Oklahoma State University.
Roslan Rahman/AFP via Getty Images

The NFL draft is designed to promote parity in the league. That provides an incentive to lose on purpose.

Apr 28, 2022
The worst team in last year's league gets first pick from the new crop of players turning pro.
Former Miami Dolphins' head coach Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins alleges that team’s owner, Stephen Ross, offered nearly $100,000 for every game the team lost in 2019. The NFL is investigating the allegations.
Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

The NFL's hiring practices are biased against Black coaches, a former coach's lawsuit alleges

Feb 14, 2022
The vast majority of the league's head coaches don't look like the vast majority of its players.
Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores claims in a lawsuit against the NFL that the Rooney Rule — which requires that one nonwhite candidate be interviewed for head coach positions — is all show.
Adam Glanzman/Getty Images

As the Super Bowl looms, the NFL is roiled by claims of racism

Feb 10, 2022
While 70% of players are Black., less than 6% of head coaches are.
Former Miami Dolphins head coach, Brian Flores, seen above on Jan. 2, filed a class-action lawsuit alleging discriminatory hiring practices in the NFL.
Silas Walker/Getty Images

New NFL rules let some players pick new numbers — if they pay for it

Aug 19, 2021
Some players believe single-digit jerseys make them look faster or stronger. But they’d have to buy up the old inventory.
Vikings running back Dalvin Cook looked into replacing "33" with "4." But it reportedly would have cost him $1.5 million to purchase the old merch from the league’s sales outlets.
Stephen Maturen via Getty Images

Amazon bets a billion a year that NFL's "Thursday Night Football" will draw customers

Mar 19, 2021
The games themselves might never be profitable, but the Prime members they draw probably will be.
Amazon's NFL deal may expand the ranks of Prime members. Experts also say the online giant has room to up its streaming game.
Marc Atkins/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Why multimillion-dollar Super Bowl ad slots are slower to sell out this year

Dec 18, 2020
Many companies are wary of investing that kind of money in an event during a pandemic for multiple reasons.
Fans react while watching the Super Bowl on Feb. 2, 2020. The next Super Bowl will be much different, and advertisers know it.
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Tackling the economics of empty stadiums as the NFL season gets underway

Sep 7, 2020
LA's new SoFi stadium is set to open, but there won't be fans in the stands.
Lincoln Financial Field, where the Philadelphia Eagles play, in July. Without fans attending games, the NFL's business model is taking a hit.
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Ping pong, anyone? Sports fans find new games to bet on during the pandemic

Jul 16, 2020
While U.S. pro sports leagues suspend play, table tennis, darts and other more obscure competitions find new fans.
Sports fans have had to look elsewhere for betting opportunities. Above, the final match of the Düsseldorf Masters table tennis competition.
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