Travis Scott and Jordan Brand Team up to Send 23 Fans to ‘Utopia’ Pyramids Performance
Following his announcement that Utopia is dropping soon, Travis Scott linked up with Jordan Brand and Marriott Bonvoy to give 23 fans the trip of a lifetime. The “Pyramids of Giza” event will take place on July 28 in Egypt and the Houston rapper announced the “Road to Utopia” sweepstakes. Jordan Brand will foot the bill for 23 pairs to attend the event IRL, harkening back to the company’s founding legend. The package includes flights, hotel, and event access for winners and a friend. Scott has driven huge sales numbers for the Nike subsidiary with his highly coveted colorways of the Jordan 1 Lows.
EA Announces Black Panther Game
In celebration of the 57th anniversary of the superhero’s comic debut this month, Marvel Games and Cliffhanger Games announced the development of an original, third-person, single-player Black Panther game. In the game, players will see what it is like to be King T’Challa himself and protect his nation Wakanda. Although it doesn’t have a release date yet, Project Lead Kevin Stephens promised to “craft every aspect of Wakanda, its technology, its heroes, and our own original story with the attention to detail and authenticity that the world of Black Panther deserves.”
Megan Rapinoe Scores the Cover of Time Magazine
The USWNT is heading Down Under. The squad played their final send-off match on Sunday, the beginning of Megan Rapinoe’s farewell tour following her retirement announcement. The soccer legend scored the most recent cover of Time Magazine, which fittingly labels her simply “The Champion.” The cover is part of the ongoing Time100 Leadership series, which previously featured Kim Kardashian as well.
NYT Dissolves Sports Desk, Shifts Sports Coverage to The Athletic
A year and a half after purchasing The Athletic for $550 million, Joe Kahn, the New York Times’s executive editor, and Monica Drake, a deputy managing editor, informed staffers Monday of the company’s decision to dissolve the sports division, which is made up of 35 journalists and editors. Instead, the NYT will use The Athletic to “focus even more directly on distinctive, high-impact news and enterprise journalism about how sports intersect with money, power, culture, politics and society at large.” No layoffs are planned due to this news and as for the affected employees, they will transition to other roles in the newsroom.
Ronald Acuña Jr. and Shohei Ohtani Top MLB Jersey Sales
The All-Stars will be out in Seattle on Tuesday. As the best of baseball take the diamond, Major League Baseball announced the top jersey sales for the first half of the 2023 season. Unsurprisingly, Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. and Angels two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani top the list. The numbers secured from MLBshop.com show Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres), Aaron Judge (New York Yankees), and Jose Altuve (Houston Astros) rounding out the top five spots. Additionally, an official release from the league indicates that nine of the top 20 athletes are Black and Hispanic, highlighting the evolving diversity of the sport.
Logan Paul and KSI’s Prime Beverages Under Senatorial Scrutiny
Logan Paul and KSI’s premium energy drink is under investigation. New York senator Chuck Schumer challenged the Food and Drug Administration to look into the wildly popular Prime to analyze its caffeine content. “Many physicians have serious concern for Prime, and I write to specifically urge your agency to investigate Prime for its claims, marketing and caffeine content,” Schumer said in a letter to the FDA. He accuses the brand of including as much caffeine as nearly six cans of Coca-Cola. Schumer points to Prime’s targeted marketing towards children and teens as an extra source of potential concern as it relates to the elevated levels of the stimulant.