thebrands Page 3 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Why Is The NFL Giving More Super Bowl Ad Time To Its Favorite Sham Domestic-Violence Group?
I took the No More pledge last year. What do I have to show for it? I’m now very aware of when #NOMOREexcuses Law & Order: Special Victims Unit marathons are about to air, but that’s about it. I don’t know much more about domestic violence or sexual assault. I haven’t discovered new organizations wo...
Sepp Blatter Calls Out Tough-Talking Brands For Being Phony
Freed from PR considerations following yesterday’s eight-year ban from soccer, a Nelly bandaid-rocking Sepp Blatter—who presumably sports it for the same reasons the rapper did, as an homage to his recently locked-up homies—has loosened his tongue a little bit. One of his targets is the brands and t...
Fuck Off, Kobe
The funniest thing about Kobe Bryant’s retirement “announcement” yesterday is that Kobe Bryant was clearly the last person to know that this would be Kobe Bryant’s final season. Honestly, I thought he had announced it already, given that he’s a broken-down old mummy who can no longer play basketball...
Now It’s Sepp Blatter Vs. The Brands, And We All Lose
Well now, isn’t this getting interesting!...
At The Sports Brand Awards, Brands Tell A Story About Telling Stories
When I walked into Cipriani on 42nd St.—a gorgeous Manhattan event space highlighted by stone archways, Greek columns, and ceilings higher than those of a Renaissance cathedral’s—on Wednesday night, I was greeted by a bank of MacBooks, each manned by a well-dressed young person, their faces glowing ...
Kevin Johnson Promotes His Brand By Releasing Personal Logo
Deadspin recently published a couple of stories alleging that Kevin Johnson’s actions show how eager he is to promote his brand. The latest one actually used the phrase “promote his brand” in the lede. We meant it figuratively. ...
John Oliver To The Brands: "Please Make Sepp Blatter Go Away"
This week’s Last Week Tonight With John Oliver monologue is very funny. If you’ve been following the increasingly ridiculous FIFA scandal, you’ll delight in Oliver rolling out the greatest hits; if not, prepare to meet grotesques like the FIFA bigwig/government informer who rented an apartment in Tr...
Tennessee Responds To Your Nike FOIAs And The Answer Is Super Shady
Wednesday, I asked those of you in Tennessee to submit a public records request on behalf of Deadspin because ours had been denied due to a chilling and arbitrary law limiting records requests to Tennessee residents only. I wanted copies of Tennessee's communication with Nike, because the universi...
Tennessee Won't Give Us Nike's Emails; Maybe They'll Give Them To You
The University of Tennessee recently decided to do away with calling nearly all its women's sports teams Lady Vols, a move that came at about the same time the university announced switching from Adidas to Nike for athletic apparel. Now, they are all Volunteers who will use the Power T logo—except f...
"Sports Analytics" Is Bullshit Now
The 9th annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics conference takes place this weekend, and you've likely noticed all the coinciding and ongoing coverage of the analytical side of sports. Some of these stories are illuminating explanations of what's going on at the vanguard of sports analysis; others bitch, ...
Kevin Durant Is Turning Into Drake Right Before Our Eyes
In case you haven’t noticed, Kevin Durant is making a transition. Tired of the unselfish, humble, respectful, One Of The Good Ones role he was involuntarily cast in when the sports press needed someone to hold up in opposition to the post-Decision LeBron, Durant is apparently in the midst of a publi...
Are "Maximalist" Running Shoes The Next Big Con? No One Knows!
Today, The New York Times has a piece out on the maximalist running shoe, a trend now old enough to warrant an article written with characteristically Times-ian remove from rigorous examination of its subject. The thing about these shoes, though, is that even if the Times had wanted to conduct a mor...
Read No More's Talking Points And Guide For How To Tweet Them Support
Are you ready for No More week? Guess what, it's coming! So are a bunch of tweets that read: "Learn about #NOMORE, a public awareness campaign making a difference in the lives of survivors." And probably people pointing you to this story about a domestic-violence hotline in the Dayton, Ohio area...
No More, The NFL's Domestic Violence Partner, Is A Sham
The brands have spoken, and they want you to know that domestic violence and sexual assault are bad. In fact, the brands not only think they’re bad, but have a theory as to why they persist: the issues of domestic violence and sexual assault don’t have a strong enough brand. So, to help get America ...
<i>SI</i> Nobly Accepts Ad Money To Put Normal-Sized Woman In Swimsuit Issue
Sports Illustrated has revealed the cover of its annual issue of Boobs: The Great Subsidy, and all the predictable heavy breathing that comes on a day like this has been joined by another kind of "buzz," as one might call it. Between now and the issue's publication date, you are probably going to se...
Do The NFL's Anti-Domestic Violence Initiatives Actually Even Exist?
As long ago as it now seems, it was only this past July when Roger Goodell decided to suspend Ray Rice for two games after the Baltimore Ravens running back cold-cocked his future wife in an Atlantic City casino elevator. There was outrage, but not enough to change the NFL commissioner's mind. He ...
Coin Flip Photo Is A Nike Hoax
This photo was tweeted out by Nike, and then re-tweeted (without context) by ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr. It's not real....
Coca-Cola Supports Slavery
Someone should do something about the human rights catastrophe that is the 2022 World Cup! Qatari authorities, for example, are reportedly using North Korean slave labor to build infrastructure in preparation for the event. If only someone would put enough pressure on them, maybe they would not use ...