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Skipper ‘Shockingly Comfortable’ on Simmons Podcast

“Simmons and Skipper discussed their disagreements towards the end of the podcast. The troubles began with Simmons not wanting to return to NBA Countdown.”
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Published

4 years ago

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As DAZN begins a sponsorship relationship with the Ringer, DAZN executive chairman John Skipper joined The BIll Simmons Podcast.

“We had an acrimonious ending,” Simmons said in his opener, adding that it was ironic the show was recorded on April Fools Day.

Simmons mentioned the duo had dinner a few months prior to talk about how things went “sideways.” He added both men looked back and realized they could have done things differently; throughout the show both Simmons and Skipper displayed thanks for reconciling the mistakes of the past and were happy to have a working relationship once again.

“This is both weird and not weird” – Simmons admitted early on.

“I am shockingly comfortable,” Skipper said. “There’s a slight trepidation, you and I haven’t actually done anything public for quite a long time, so I had a little trepidation, but I come in, I sit down on the sofa and it’s quite comfortable and we’re laughing about Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, and it’s great to see you.”

“It really makes me feel good to figure out some way to pay you exorbitant sums of money again,” Skipper added sighting the “quicky marriage” between DAZN and Simmons’ show.

Simmons began the conversation discussing Skipper’s early career at Rolling Stone in which Skipper admits a similarity to Simmons departure from ESPN.

“We share this in common, I was fired for insubordination,” Skipper said. “I was the publisher of Us magazine, 10 years after I started, and Jann wanted me to do some things which I resisted and thought I knew better than he did, forgetting in my mind that I didn’t actually own the magazine, he did, so I was dismissed.”

Simmons and Skipper discussed their disagreements towards the end of the podcast. The troubles began with Simmons not wanting to return to NBA Countdown. Simmons then blasted NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on his podcast with a challenge to his superiors to hold back his thoughts, which ultimately lead to Skipper handing down a suspension.

“We were no longer dealing with each other day-to-day,” Skipper said of the frustrating situation. “So when you would pop back up in my life it was for some kind of problem. It’s like ‘Damn, I’ve got a full day already and now I’m going to spend the next three hours dealing with this.’”

Simmons added a bit later he realizes now with a bit of maturity and regret it was an issue that could have been resolved much easier.

“To me it seems stupid now,” Simmons said.  “We had like this real relationship. At some point we should have had a real conversation about it. I see it from your point because I look like some rogue asshole who’s not listening to you which makes you look bad as a leader, which is a whole other issue.”

The podcast also includes other discussions such as how ESPN The Magazine, 30 For 30 and Grantland were started, an interesting story on Simmons trying to get Barack Obama on his podcast in 2008, and the rewards and difficulties of working at ESPN for both Skipper and Simmons.

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NASCAR Driver Denny Hamlin Launching Podcast with Dale Earnhardt Jr & Dirty Mo Media

“New episodes will be published each Monday during the NASCAR season with previews and reviews of races, with the goal of inviting guests and interacting with fans playing a future role in the series.”
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22 hours ago

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January 17, 2023

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Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Dirty Mo Media has announced a podcast deal with NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin.

Hamlin will host Actions Detrimental with Denny Hamlin on a weekly basis during the NASCAR season. The Actions Detrimental branding is verbiage used by NASCAR for fines assessed to drivers for their disparaging comments about the sport. Known as one of NASCAR’s more outspoken drivers, Hamlin has been fined several times under the “actions detrimental to stock car racing” statutes.

New episodes will be published each Monday during the NASCAR season with previews and reviews of races, with the goal of inviting guests and interacting with fans playing a future role in the series.

Denny Hamlin jokingly thanked Dirty Mo Media for the “opportunity and the fat check” the company wrote for him to host the podcast in a Twitter announcement.

The 42-year-old Hamlin has won 48 races during his 18-year NASCAR Cup Series career. In addition to serving as a driver for Joe Gibbs Racing, he co-owns 23XI Racing with basketball legend Michael Jordan.

The podcast is the latest in an expansion of content produced by the Mooresville, North Carolina-based digital outlet. After beginning with The Dale Jr. Download, the company has grown to include other podcasts like Door, Bumper, Clear, and Speed Street, as well as video projects like The Next Level.

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Sports Online

Barstool Sports CEO: Golf Likely Next Step For Company’s Live Broadcasts

“I think we‘ll start with the biggest sports that we know and love.”
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5 days ago

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January 13, 2023

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Barstool Sports CEO Erika Nardini recently did a wide-ranging interview with AdAge.com about the future of the digital sports outlet’s television aspirations, and she said sports they’re familiar with will take priority.

“”We want sports that appeal to a broad audience. We’re kind of tickled to be able to broadcast things in the first place. So I think we‘ll start with the biggest sports that we know and love, whether it’s basketball and football,” Nardini said. “You could definitely see that extended to golf, that would probably be the next place that we’ll play.”

The questions about Barstool’s future aspirations come after the company’s successful first broadcast of the Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl. Barstool says the broadcast received nearly 1 million views, peaking at 130,000 concurrent viewers. The outlet also broadcasted the Barstool Sports Invitational that featured Akron, Mississippi State, Toledo, and UAB in November.

Nardini added that the company is interested live televised sports for a few reasons.

“We’re owned by a sports betting company and the more we think about building our sports platform, there’s obviously a huge opportunity for us to convey a whole bunch of offerings to our audience, but certainly betting will be one of them…I think that live sports on television is the last man standing where it’s all anyone tunes in for.”

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Fanatics to Open First Sportsbook Inside FedEx Field

“The location at the home of the Washington Commanders will make it the first sportsbook to open inside an NFL stadium.”
Jordan Bondurant

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5 days ago

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January 13, 2023

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Sports licensing giant Fanatics will soon be launching its long-anticipated sportsbook.

The company will open up a physical sportsbook location in Maryland at FedEx Field on January 20. Fanatics has also been granted a license to operate in Massachusetts, tethered to Plainridge Park Casino.

The location at the home of the Washington Commanders will make it the first sportsbook to open inside an NFL stadium. Bettors in the DMV will now be able to place wagers at all their local teams’ venues, as William Hill has an on-site location at Capital One Arena – home of the Capitals and Wizards – and BetMGM has a space at Nationals Park in D.C.

Despite having a physical location at FedEx Field, bettors in Maryland will not be able to place mobile wagers through a Fanatics Sportsbook app.

According to Front Office Sports, Fanatics hopes to have the sportsbook up and running in some fashion in all states where legal by September.

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