SBJ 360: Fox Sports' football factory

Good afternoon, here's what we're following at SBJ Today: From Brady to Brees, an inside look at how Fox Sports develops on-air talent 76ers, Flyers unveil first exterior renderings of new arena Liverpool lands $81M-per-year shirt sponsor deal with Turkish Airlines Plus: Carlos Alcaraz leaves group seeking more pay for tennis players, Range Sports' new women's basketball event, Tigers GM takes self out of Red Wings candidate pool and more Start your morning with Buzzcast with Abe Madkour: Leadership in the news, from the NFL and FIA to the WNBA; and women's volleyball in prime time. Listen >> THE BIG STORY If you look at the history of Fox Sports' NFL hires — and this dates back to the era of David Hill and Ed Goren — the company has always pursued high-profile names to front its studio shows and top broadcast teams. You can argue that there has never been a more impactful sports media signing than when Rupert Murdoch brought in John Madden in 1994. Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks studied at the foot of Hill and Goren and continued the same ethos. President and Executive Producer Brad Zager now follows the lead of Shanks. From Troy Aikman to Terry Bradshaw to Rob Gronkowski to Tom Brady, Fox has pursued NFL on-air talent, on the studio and game analyst side, that has reached a certain level of sports fame in the U.S. The star-driven model continues to help engage viewers. Last season, Fox enjoyed its best NFL ratings since 2015, averaging 25.3 million viewers for its Sunday national windows. Zager said the culture and direction of Fox Sports comes from Shanks, who has been at the company since 1994, the network's inaugural NFL season. One of Zager's management philosophies is not adhering to a singular management style. He believes you cannot place all individuals in one box, especially those working in a creative business, as SBJ's Richard Deitsch and Austin Karp report. Read the full story >> 5 STORIES WE'RE WATCHING 1. 76ers, Flyers unveil first exterior renderings of new arena: The first public renderings of the venue (planned to open in 2030) show three stacked and cantilevered 'bands' that are reminiscent of The Spectrum, where the Flyers and Sixers played from 1967 to 1996. 2. Liverpool lands $81M-per-year shirt sponsor deal with Turkish Airlines: It replaces Standard Chartered after 17 years in a five-year deal, with the airline firm appearing on the front of the men's, women's and Academy match shirts beginning in 2027-28. 3. Alcaraz leaves group of players seeking more money from slams: ATP No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz and his camp are more concerned about the leadership's running of the tour over mounting complaints about a heavy schedule and 12-day Masters 1000 events. 4. Range Sports to feature Baylor, USC women in inaugural Hollywood Hardwood Classic on BTN: Range Sports is getting into the events business with the creation of the Hollywood Hardwood Classic women's basketball game at Intuit Dome on Nov. 20, with plans to build on activation opportunities in future years. 5. Tigers' Greenberg takes himself out of running for Red Wings GM position: Tigers GM Jeff Greenberg had been linked to the opening for weeks, and with his ties to the Detroit community, he would've been an interesting candidate for the club. ON THE MOVE NFL owners announced Sunday they agreed with Commissioner Roger Goodell on a contract extension through March 2031, keeping him in place through an expected new round of media rights negotiations and a high-stakes collective bargaining cycle with the NFLPA ( Ben Fischer , SBJ ). on a contract extension through March 2031, keeping him in place through an expected new round of media rights negotiations and a high-stakes collective bargaining cycle with the NFLPA ( ). The Sparks named Ariana Andonian as GM. Andonian joins the team after serving as GM of the G League Delaware Blue Coats while also serving as the 76ers' VP/player personnel ( Sparks ). as GM. Andonian joins the team after serving as GM of the G League Delaware Blue Coats while also serving as the 76ers' VP/player personnel ( ). Elevate named City Football Group VP/Global Partnership Sales Kaitlyn Beale as EVP/partnerships. Based in London, Beale will lead Elevate's international partnerships business ( Elevate ). as EVP/partnerships. Based in London, Beale will lead Elevate's international partnerships business ( ). The NWSL K.C. Current announced that the club has mutually parted ways with Sporting Director and former coach Vlatko Andonovski. He was the team's coach and sporting director for the past two seasons before he spent this season solely in his front office role (K.C. Star). NAMES IN THE NEWS Sky owner Michael Alter released a statement Friday in response to former NBAer Enes Kanter Freedom 's lawsuit against the team and the owners of Wintrust Arena over his removal from a Sky home game last month and subsequent ban from the venue, calling the suit 'meritless' and 'frivolous' ( Chicago Sun-Times ). released a statement Friday in response to former NBAer 's lawsuit against the team and the owners of Wintrust Arena over his removal from a Sky home game last month and subsequent ban from the venue, calling the suit 'meritless' and 'frivolous' ( ). Florida Panthers RW Matthew Tkachuk hosted the inaugural 'Matthew Tkachuk Hockey Celebration' at the Baptist Health IcePlex last weekend, offering fireside chats from Tkachuk and hockey and skating lessons ( Miami Herald ). hosted the inaugural 'Matthew Tkachuk Hockey Celebration' at the Baptist Health IcePlex last weekend, offering fireside chats from Tkachuk and hockey and skating lessons ( ). Bad Bunny won his first Emmy award for variety special (live) on Saturday for his historic Super Bowl halftime show ( L.A. Times ). won his first Emmy award for variety special (live) on Saturday for his historic Super Bowl halftime show ( ). Former F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone was detained at a Portuguese airport on Monday for possession of a firearm. He was later released. Ecclestone admitted he had brought the gun from Switzerland for pigeon shooting (AP, 9/8). HOT READS The Melbourne AGE went with the header, 'It's gambling dressed up as trading, and it's taken over the U.S. Open.' Sports betting is the reality of watching or attending sports, seeing people on their phones looking at prediction markets like Kalshi, which recently signed a multiyear deal with the USTA. If such 'trading' is the future, it's already in New York. Also: