Sports leagues come together to combat hate in America
In a sign of true sportsmanship, eight American sports leagues have come together to back a new campaign targeting hate in the U.S. It is an idea from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and his foundation to combat antisemitism.
The initiative brought together the heads of the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, NHL, NWSL, MLS, and NASCAR to come up with plans to curb hate of any kind in the country. The sports leaders are spending $50 million to get the word out.
The campaign, titled “Timeout Against Hate,” launched during Thursday Night Football on Oct. 10, with a commercial featuring legendary figures and current-day athletes from all sports speaking out against hate.
Judge denies Donald Trump’s request for mistrial after Stormy Daniels concludes testimony
After hours of testimony by Stormy Daniels, lawyers for former President Donald Trump requested a mistrial. A teenager is looking to make history on the soccer field. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Friday, May 10, 2024.
Judge denies Trump’s request for mistrial after Daniels concludes testimony
Once again, the judge overseeing Donald Trump’s criminal case in New York shut down the former president’s legal team’s calls for a mistrial following more testimony from adult film star Stormy Daniels on Thursday, May 9. Trump’s lawyers argued that the prosecution’s questioning of Daniels over her alleged affair with the former president was irrelevant to the case.
The judge dismissed the motion, saying, “My concern is not just with protecting Ms. Daniels or a witness who has already testified. My concern is protecting the integrity of the proceedings as a whole.”
After two days on the stand and nearly seven hours, Daniels concluded her testimony, where she went into great detail about an alleged sexual encounter with the former president in 2006. Trump has denied the encounter took place.
Trump is charged with falsifying business records in connection to an alleged hush money payment his former lawyer Michael Cohen paid to Daniels before the 2016 presidential election. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
Trump’s attorneys also asked the judge to waive his gag order to allow him to respond to Daniels’ testimony. The judge denied that request too.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, spoke out against the judge outside the courtroom.
“This judge, what he did and what his ruling was, is a disgrace,” Trump said. “Everybody saw what happened today. He’s a corrupt judge and he’s totally conflicted. And I got to get back on the campaign trail. I’m not supposed to be here. We are so innocent. There’s never been anything like it.”
The trial continues Friday, May 10.
Cease-fire talks break down as Israel targets Rafah
Cease-fire talks between Israel, Hamas and mediators in Egypt have concluded, at least for now. Reports from the negotiations indicated some progress before talks broke down on Thursday, May 9.
CIA Director William Burns, along with Hamas and Israeli delegations, left Cairo Thursday, although one official clarified to The New York Times that this was a temporary pause. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated that finalizing a cease-fire proposal remains “incredibly difficult.”
With talks at a standstill, a senior Israeli official informed Reuters late Thursday night that Israel will proceed with its planned operation in Rafah. The Israeli military reportedly struck a home in Rafah, resulting in the death of a senior commander of a militant group and his family members.
The Israeli ambassador to the U.S. expressed concern that the Biden administration’s threat to withhold weapons for a major operation in Rafah sends “the wrong message” to Israel’s enemies in the region. In an interview on “The Dr. Phil Show” Thursday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the rift with President Joe Biden.
“I’ve known Joe Biden for many years, 40 years and more,” said Netanyahu. “We often had our agreements, but we’ve had our disagreements. We’ve been able to overcome them. I hope we can overcome them now, but we will do what we have to do to protect our country, and that means protecting our future.”
Israel contends that Hamas militants are hiding in Rafah, necessitating an attack on the city to dismantle the terrorist group. U.S. spokesperson John Kirby asserted that “smashing into Rafah, in [the president’s] view, will not advance that objective.”
Federal appeals court rejects dismissal request in Hunter Biden’s gun case
A federal appeals court has denied Hunter Biden’s request to dismiss gun charges in Delaware, paving the way for his trial in June. A U.S. district judge had previously rejected a dismissal, leading to Biden’s appeal.
The president’s son argued that he shouldn’t go to trial, citing an immunity provision in a plea deal that ultimately fell apart and alleging that prosecutors are being vindictive and influenced by political pressure.
However, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that criminal defendants cannot appeal before a final judgment is made.
Biden’s attorney plans to continue efforts to dismiss the case.
Biden is charged with three criminal counts related to his purchase of a handgun in 2018 while he was addicted to illegal drugs. He has pleaded not guilty.
Among other measures, the bill calls for hiring more air traffic controllers, faster refunds for canceled flights, and technology upgrades to avert close-call incidents on runways. The FAA says 3,600 employees would have been furloughed if the law expired.
The Senate also passed a one-week extension for the law’s expiration, with the House of Representatives expected to vote on the reauthorization bill next week.
TikTok to start labeling AI-generated content created outside app
TikTok already labels AI-generated content made within its app for its more than one billion worldwide users. Tech companies Meta and Google have also said AI labels are coming to their services.
AI is not the only battle TikTok is facing these days.
The company earlier this week sued the United States to block a law that requires its Chinese parent company to divest the platform within nine months or face a ban.
14-year-old soccer player signs with Philadelphia Union
As many teenagers begin looking for summer jobs, a 14-year-old in Pennsylvania has found a full-time one — as a professional soccer player.
The Philadelphia Union announced on Thursday, May 9, that the team has signed 14-year-old Cavan Sullivan. Sullivan is joining his older brother Quinn on the team. ESPN reports that Sullivan’s deal with the club includes a clause that would send the soccer phenom to Manchester City of the English Premier League after he turns 18.
Sullivan becomes the fifth-youngest player to sign a first-team contract in Major League Soccer history. If he starts playing for the Union before July 29, he will officially be the youngest MLS player ever.
Private equity firm bets on natural grass after artificial turf issues
On his first home game on artificial turf, Aaron Rodgers lasted just four snaps before his Achilles snapped at MetLife Stadium. His season-ending injury reignited a fierce debate about the safety of artificial turf.
Now a sports-focused private equity firm is betting big on natural grass. Bruin Capital, founded by former NASCAR COO George Pyne, is reportedly buying Dutch turf management company PlayGreen for more than $100 million, according to reports by DealBook and Sports Business Journal. PlayGreen owns Stadium Grow Lighting (SGL), a major player in turf care.
Interest in SGL grew after Aaron Rodgers’ injury. Rodgers himself is very familiar with the turf company’s product. He played on a surface it grew for most of his career.
The Green Bay Packers was the first North American team to experiment with the Netherlands light system starting in the 2010 season. Lambeau Field, aka the “Frozen Tundra,” was a prime place to pilot. With less sunlight and unforgiving weather, growing natural grass was a challenge. The lights changed that, Packers fields manager Allen Johnson told AthleticTurf.net in 2014.
“Without them, honestly, I wasn’t growing anything really well beyond the middle of October,” Johnson said. “And now, with some decently mild temperatures, I could probably go til the first week of December.”
From Wisconsin to Saudi Arabia, SGL told DealBook, “We’ve proved we can grow grass under any circumstances.”
SGL has deep roots in the market, with contracts for 90% of stadiums that use grow-light technology. Overall, the company said it works with roughly 20% of professional sports stadiums worldwide. Soccer is its main market but the technology is everywhere from Augusta National Golf Club to Fenway Park.
Bruin Capital’s bet on green came as more teams weigh ditching artificial turf for natural or hybrid options. But it is also on the grounds that PlayGreen is more than a turf company, it is also a tech company. On top of LED grow lights, SGL uses data to predict and treat fungus growth. With all of its client data, SGL has sights on artificial intelligence to automate turf management in the future.
The ‘fancy financing’ used to draw Lionel Messi to Miami over Saudi’s $1.5B offer
In a shocking score for Major League Soccer, superstar Lionel Messi reportedly turned down $1.5 billion from Saudi Arabia’s oil coffers to play for Inter Miami, the struggling MLS team co-owned by David Beckham. Messi’s deal may be less lucrative on paper than what the Saudis offered but comes with plenty of perks.
“It looked like, at least initially, like there’s no way that MLS would be able to have the sort of money needed to pry away a player like Messi for the sort of money that the Saudis had already shown they were willing to pull up for [Cristiano] Ronaldo,” said Victor Matheson, a sports economist and professor at the College of the Holy Cross.
But Matheson said MLS engaged in some “fancy financing” to draw in Messi, just as they had done with Beckham more than 15 years earlier. Messi’s deal reportedly includes team ownership stake when he’s done playing, relaxed salary rules and competitive commercial partnerships with Apple and Adidas.
Apple has exclusive rights to air MLS games for years to come in a 10-year, $2.5 billion deal. And now, it appears that Messi could get a chunk of revenue sharing from the tech giant, in addition to Apple TV+ airing a 4-part documentary series about the superstar.
“What’s really interesting is the only other soccer player that we can actually think of who has been linked to a deal like this is no other than David Beckham,” Matheson said.
“We see a case here where money doesn’t necessarily buy everything,” Matheson said. “We’re looking at that full package with Messi saying, ‘Do I need to associate with the Saudis in order to get what’s going to be the best deal for me?’”
The answer, evidently, is no. Matheson said Messi risked tarnishing his brand by going to Saudi Arabia.
“He is, without question, one of the greatest players ever to play the game,” Matheson said. “And I think he thought…’It could tarnish my long-term earning capacity. I’m only going to be playing for a few more years as an actual player, but I could be a brand ambassador for decades. Last thing I want to do is tarnish that decades of brand ambassadorship by taking a job at the end of my career at a place that clearly has troubling associations.’”