Jersey advertisements have long evaded the Big Four leagues, but that valuable real estate has become too tempting to ignore.
Driving the news: The Padres on Tuesday became the first MLB team to announce a jersey patch sponsor, signing a multi-year deal with Motorola reportedly worth $10 million annually.
Jay Wright stunned the college basketball world on Wednesday, announcing his retirement after 21 seasons, 520 wins, two national championships and four Final Fours at Villanova.
Why it matters: Wright leaves at the top of his profession. He was the fifth-highest paid coach this past season ($6+ million) and guided the Wildcats to the Final Four just three weeks ago.
Thirteen sexual assault survivors abused by USA gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar have filed claims against the FBI totaling $130 million.
State of play: Lawyers for the survivors said the FBI failed "to properly investigate sexual abuse allegations" against Nassar. His victims as a result suffered "continued physical trauma and abuse, subsequent mental anguish, and emotional trauma," per the lawyers.
The Washington Commanders sent a 17-page letter to the Federal Trade Commission on Monday, denying allegations of financial impropriety detailed last week by the House Oversight Committee.
Why it matters: Dan Snyder has a history of responding to allegations by digging his heels in, but Congress presents a formidable foe in this D.C.-based drama.
A pitch clock has shortened Minor League Baseball games by 20 minutes, per ESPN, setting the stage for MLB to implement a clock next season.
State of play: Entering Tuesday, MLB games were lasting an average of 3 hours, 10 minutes. The good news? That's one minute shorter than last season. The bad news? That's over one hour longer than a century ago — and 20 minutes longer than the average game as recently as 2005.
International sports organizations, teams and athletes quickly moved to boycott Russia after it invaded Ukraine, leading to the cancellation of major events in the country and the suspension of its national team from international soccer.
Why it matters: The sports world's rebuke of the invasion signals a swift change of tune about the Russian government, which has spent vast sums of money hosting international events.
Wimbledon has banned Russian and Belarusian players from this year's event in June, the All England Club announced Wednesday.
Why it matters: Wimbledon, the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, hasn't barred athletes from specific countries since the aftermath of World War II.
