This article was originally published on February 22nd, 2019.
Here is this week's dose of “5-Point Friday”. A weekly round-up of the sports news and stories that I find most interesting and enjoyable.
Basketball news that's interesting me -
The NBA and FIBA announced that they will be co-lunching the Basketball Africa League. A professional basketball league in Africa that will feature 12 teams from several countries across the continent. These countries will include Angola, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, and Tunisia.
Sport I'm learning about -
Today will see the second experiment of AFLX. The shortened variation of AFL will be a one-night event, with 56 of the best AFL players coming together to compete in the mini-tournament. AFLX rules differ from that of their AFL counterpart in some significant ways, most notably the games will be held on a rectangular soccer sized field. The new version of the game is an attempt to make the sport more appealing to a wider audience out with Australia.
Soccer news that concerns me -
Less than two months before the start of the 2019 NWSL season, it was announced that the league had lost a major investor and its national broadcast partner. A&E Networks will return its estimated 25 percent equity in the league and no longer carry matches on the Lifetime channel.
Sport business news I am paying attention to -
Nike appears to be playing damage control after Duke basketball star Zion Williamson (@ZionW32) tore his sneaker during Wednesday evening's loss to arch-rivals the University of North Carolina.
What I've been listening to -
American Fiasco podcast series, with Roger Bennett (@rogbennett). The 12-episode series chronicles the U.S. men’s soccer team and their disastrous foray into the 1998 World Cup. “This is an incredibly American story,” says Bennett. “This is a story about American dreams, and how collective efforts to make them come real can be completely undone by success, self-interest, and one terrible human decision after another. It just happens to be played out by athletes with mullets clad in polyester and cleats.”
Have a wonderful weekend all!
Jonathan
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