Sports & Entertainment Spotlight

Welcome back to the Spotlight! Just one year ago, many wondered whether The Grammy Awards would go forward in light of the massive wildfires that devastated Southern California. Nevertheless, the show went on, with partnerships nobly geared towards relief efforts and showing appreciation for firefighters. This year, instead of fire, we have ice and frigid temperatures marring much of the country, though the world most assuredly is still burning (tip of the hat to Billy Joel). So what to expect this year on “music’s biggest night?” Look for the K-Pop revolution to take center stage, emerging talent who got their start on TikTok, Travis Kelce to have a role reversal with Taylor Swift by cheering on her (award) receptions and a whole slew of human expression and creativity on which to train AI models. Without further ado, let’s see the nominees for this week’s Spotlight (where the winner is always you).

• • Jordan Brand is discontinuing its signature sneaker partnership with New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, after his pro basketball career has fallen short of lofty expectations, leaving him on poor footing with the marketing team.

• • Recording Artist A$AP Rocky is entertaining a run for New York City Mayor. Aside from the fact that I appreciate the whimsy of Rocky, whose legal name is Rakim Mayers, being referred to as “Mayor Mayers,” he and his potential First Lady Rihanna could certainly wield influence to work (work work work work) to address the City’s…”----in’ problems.”

• • TikTok creator Khaby Lame, who rose to prominence for his viral “life hack” videos made the ultimate life hack by selling an equity stake in his company Step Distinctive Limited at a nearly $975 million valuation. On a related note, I will henceforth take it as a compliment whenever someone calls my content “Lame.”

For inquiries and/or unabashed compliments, please feel free to contact me at josh.bloomgarden@foster.com or add me on LinkedIn

Welcome back to the Spotlight! With a trip to the Super Bowl on the line in each of this weekend’s NFL Conference Championship matchups, and the NFL’s playoff television ratings reaching levels not seen since the ‘90s (oh, how I miss you) I’d be willing to bet that tens of millions will be tuned in After all, with the arctic temperatures and impending winter storm in the U.S., many will be staying indoors, so what *else* are you going to do? Talk to each other?!?!

I’d also be willing to bet that the number of dollars bet on the games will be at least equal to the number of viewers of said games. Some might even call that a “sure thing” particularly because of the proliferation and soaring popularity of legal sports gambling. In case you haven’t noticed from the ubiquity of sports betting advertisements before, during, after, throughout and [insert your favorite preposition here], a sporting event—including by current and former athletes. Interestingly, a recent YouGov poll observed that such advertisements don’t have a material impact on gamblers’ decisions to gamble, but instead make brands seem less authentic. Not only that, but I would surmise that athletes’ peddling gambling platforms call into question the integrity of their sports. In that regard, it’s not particularly helpful that there have been so many betting schemes that have been uncovered in just the past 24 months across all levels of competitive sports. Still, there seems to be little appetite for messing with the formula. Changes on the horizon? Don't bet on it.

• • The Sphere is Las Vegas has raked in $260 million for its “The Wizard of Oz” show, because well…there’s no place like dome.

• • Duke University sues its Quarterback Darian Mensah to enforce its revenue-sharing agreement and keep him from transferring to another school – just the latest instance of schools and athletes duking it out in the NIL era.

• • Ryan Coogler’s blues-y horror film Sinners may pull off a laugher at this year’s Academy Awards, having earned 16 award nominations – the most in history for a single film. In other news, the folks behind Saints are shedding tears as they were not nominated.

For inquiries and/or unabashed compliments, please feel free to contact me at josh.bloomgarden@foster.com or add me on LinkedIn

Welcome back to the Spotlight! Many people ask me the same question: “how do you write the Spotlight week after week?” After feigning thinking about it for a moment, I reply: “one keystroke at a time.” In all seriousness it is hard to do, particularly nowadays when the world is, well…all seriousness. Often, I feel constrained in what I write (hard to believe, I know), so the finished product is merely a speck of what’s on my mind at any given time. That might be for the best. In any event, against the backdrop of all the depressing, really-not-so-great things we hear about on a daily basis I’d like to take cues from the very industries that are the backbone of the Spotlight (Sports and Entertainment, if you haven’t gotten that yet) and embrace some hope and indulge in a much-needed distraction. So, we can lean into this year’s awards season (just as long as the stars don’t presume to lecture you on a topic they know nothing about), and even what has so far been some rather captivating NFL playoff games. And if, on the heels of signing a future Hall of Fame head coach (John Harbaugh), my unbridled enthusiasm for the New York Giants’ prospects for next season (following a dismal showing this past year) is any indication, you need not even have a dog in the race. After all, everyone loves a good comeback story.

• • Legendary singer-songwriter Sir Elton John launches (like a rocket man) an alcohol-free sparkling wine. Great news for revelers who want to down an entire bottle of wine and proclaim, “I’m still standing!”

• • New York Yankees’ MVP slugger Aaron Judge prevails in a decade long battle to block an individual from registering trademarks for Judge’s nicknames “ALL RISE” and “HERE COMES THE JUDGE.” So, maybe a good omen for a World Series victory also…?

• • Teenage British Darts phenom Luke Littler signs a $27 million sponsorship deal with Target Darts. I’ll repeat: $27 million to sell darts. Those of us working away with our nose to the grindstone must think that is a big load of bulls…eye.

• • Former U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team star Alex Morgan invests in Women’s Indoor Golf League, WTGL, a joint venture between the LPGA and TMRW Sports. OMG that’s a lot of letters, LOL.

For inquiries and/or unabashed compliments, please feel free to contact me at josh.bloomgarden@foster.com or add me on LinkedIn

​Welcome back to the Spotlight! If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to delve into the uber-interesting sports and entertainment business world with a witty bent, congratulations, you are on the right track! If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to be more active, then perhaps you need to find a track. That’s right, folks – the kid’s still got it. Though I was off for a few weeks, it seems writing in this space is akin to getting back on a bicycle. I understand the same can be said of skiing, but I haven’t attempted that since age five when I was pushed down a hill backwards by my skiing instructor (that explains a lot, doesn’t it?). Mercifully, my plans to try skiing again over the holidays got cancelled, so this Spotlight comes in the form of a reprise (or re-prize) rather than a requiem. Anyway, enough yammering on – there is already so much to cover in just the first week of 2026 that I can tell it will be a busy year. So let’s get to it…

• • Mere days after signing a $4M revenue-sharing deal committing to play football at the University of Washington for the 2026 Season, then apparently indicating his intent to transfer from Washington, Quarterback Demond Williams, Jr. is staying at UW. The change of heart might be due to his signing a contract that would have required him to forfeit the $4M – so it’s true what they say: the demond is in the details.

• • Hip Hop Artist Drake finds himself in hot water for allegedly scheming to artificially inflate his songs’  streaming numbers. Would it have killed him to artificially inflate my readership numbers, too?!

• • Social Media Influencers are increasingly finding success in obtaining “extraordinary artist” visas to immigrate to the United States, bringing life to Emma Lazarus’ words inscribed on a plaque at the The Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your skincare routines…”

• • Warner Bros. is encouraging its shareholders to reject Paramount’s takeover bid and stick with Warner’s Netflix deal. Ironically, the film “He’s Just Not That Into You” is available to stream on Netflix.

For inquiries and/or unabashed compliments, please feel free to contact me at josh.bloomgarden@foster.com or add me on LinkedIn