Rodney Fort | Lightnews

Rodney Fort 🐀

@rodneyfort.bsky.social

830 followers 160 following 1.1K posts

Sports economist. Emeritus Professor of Sport Management, University of Michigan.

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Economics 56%

Political science 12%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 22h

So instead of CBS suing FCC under 1A, they pull an innocuous interview Trump doesn’t like. What a world.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 2d

👍

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 3d

And Engelbert should suggest Silver get back to the owners’ box and make statements the rough her. Otherwise, unfair practice claims abound for the union.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 3d

Hmm. I know the NBA+joint owners at 60% and hold sway on WNBA side. But bargaining agents are WNBA and WNBPA. Not NBA and WNBPA. Silver can spout off all he wants. Owners often do during negs. Ogwumike should embarrass him with that fact.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 3d

I guess Silver is speaking on behalf of NBA’s 42%? But he’s not the WNBA commissioner. He has no power to claim anything about setting deadlines. And the players need to ignore this bullying.

WNBA.is

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 3d

You’ve been busy.

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Dr. Karen Weaver @drkarenweaver.bsky.social · 3d

Sacramento State just announced they are joining the Mid-American Conference in football-a huge move for a current FCS school. President Luke Wood joined me on the podcast to talk about his vision for Sac State:
youtu.be/BWGz1G5_gSU?...

Dr. Luke Wood's Bold Plan: Making Sac State a Flagship FBS school in Five Years

YouTube video by Trustees + Presidents: Managing College Athletics

youtu.be

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Dr. Karen Weaver @drkarenweaver.bsky.social · 3d

College athletics is evolving—and so are its risks. From NIL regulations and concussion protocols to Title IX compliance and anti-hazing initiatives, risk management has never been more vital.

Thanks, Melanie Bennett!
⚽ ⚾ 🥎 🏀 🏐 🏈 🎾 🏑 🥍 🥅
Spotify: lnkd.in/eM5Tukbb

YouTube: lnkd.in/e42YXwEa

Reposted by Rodney Fort

P. Andrew Torrez @andrewtorrez.bsky.social · 6d

FOOTBALL & RACE 🧵
1/ Four years ago, Brian Flores sued the NFL alleging that the "Rooney Rule" requiring teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching vacancies is a sham.

Today, the judge ruled that ALL claims must be litigated, not arbitrated.

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Following a trip to the Second Circuit on an appeal by Defendants of the Court’s March 1, 2023, Order at Dkt. 76 (“March 1 Order”), which resulted in an appellate decision favorable to Plaintiffs, Plaintiffs filed a motion asking the Court to reconsider aspects of the Court’s March 1 Order that were adverse to Plaintiffs (and thus were not appealed by Defendants). Dkt. 153. Plaintiffs’ Motion is GRANTED. Defendants’ Motion to Compel Arbitration at Dkt. 47 is now DENIED in full. All of the claims of Plaintiffs Brian Flores, Steve Wilks, and Ray Horton against the NFL and various member teams may now proceed in this Court.

Reposted by Brad R. Humphreys

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 6d

Nice issue overview.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

What would MLB look like with a salary cap? Explaining the wide-ranging, game-changing effects

From free agency to guaranteed contracts to franchise values, a salary cap would completely remake the MLB landscape.

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Rachel Bachman, WSJ sports reporter @realbachscore.bsky.social · 7d

Olympic skiers do wear actual airbags under their racing suits that deploy when they detect a crash coming:
www.wsj.com/sports/olymp...

Ski Racers Keep Crashing. So They’ve Been Fitted With Airbags.

The international ski federation now requires World Cup racers in the speediest disciplines to wear the crash-sensing tech.

www.wsj.com

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Georgy Shukaylo @georgyshukaylo.bsky.social · 7d

Interesting presentation by Colleen Dibble and Grace Kazmierski-Davie on motivations to consume women’s and men’s NCAA basketball. Adds to the literature on early-season invitational tournament attendance and clarifies motivation to support women’s sports. #ASMA2026

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Rachel Bachman, WSJ sports reporter @realbachscore.bsky.social · 7d

If you want to know more about alpine skiing, check Downhill Olympic gold winner Breezy Johnson’s replies on Threads. Really dropping some knowledge.

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Stefan Szymanski @sszy.bsky.social · 8d

Isn't that like saying that someone will start a rival league to the NFL because there's simply too much money to cede them a monopoly? In fact there have been many attempts and all fail because the incumbent can always adapt.

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Sickos Committee @sickoscommittee.org · 8d

RIP to the Detroit bowl game.

Brett McMurphy C
ON3
@Brett_McMurphy
BREAKING: Detroit's bowl game canceled after 29 years, sources told @On3. Bowl title sponsors were GameAbove Sports, Quick Lane, Little Caesars & Motor City. This is 3rd bowl to fold in past year along w/LA & Bahamas bowls

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Eben Novy-Williams @ebennovywilliams.bsky.social · 9d

Get the 🔎 out. Here's the latest @sportico.bsky.social valuations for all 154 team in the big five U.S. leagues:

🔴 NFL - $7.13 billion average
🟠 NBA - $5.51 billion average
🟢 MLB - $2.82 billion average
⚫️ NHL - $2.1 billion average
🔵 MLS - $767 million average

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Andy "Andyfa" Schwarz @andyhre.bsky.social · 12d

Once again the "college sports are a disaster" is only true if what you actually dislike is player empowerment. (summary from @d1ticker.bsky.social, quotes from frontofficesports.com/college-bask...)

College basketball viewership is soaring, with Fox men’s games up 69% (averaging 1.37M viewers) and FS1 up 38%, while ESPN women’s hoops has jumped 39% year-over-year. Front Office Sports’ Griffin Senyek reports the boost extends beyond the 5-10% lift from Nielsen’s new Big Data metrics, as even comparing panel-to-panel, ESPN women’s viewership is up 14% and men’s is up 5% (with an overall 21% rise). The Big Ten Network also posted gains, with men’s viewership up 45% and women’s up 15%. Highlights include Illinois vs. Nebraska drawing nearly 1.4M on FS1 (a network record) and Michigan State vs. Michigan attracting 2.76M on Fox (a Friday night record). Kentucky at Arkansas (2.39M) and BYU at Kansas (2.1M) rank as ESPN's top draws so far.

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Dean Oliver @deanolytics.bsky.social · 13d

I'm heading to Connecticut in April for the Connecticut Sports Analytics Symposium. Giving a talk with the boring title of

Why division of (micro)credit helps in sports

The talk should be better than the title.

statds.org/events/csas2...

CSAS 2026 : Keynote Sessions

statds.org

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 13d

www.sportico.com/leagues/coll...

SEC Has Officially Broken the Billion-Dollar Revenue Barrier

The Southeastern Conference claims a major financial milestone in announcing $1.03 billion in revenue distributions to its members in FY25.

www.sportico.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 14d

I agree. And I was for WAPo. But no longer. I’m reading why but… sad.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 14d

In my college sports class, i had students evaluate employee staus by IRS guidelines. It was always unanimous they fit employee, not contractor.
www.sportico.com/law/analysis...

The Next Game-Changing NCAA Case Seeks Athlete Employment

The NCAA has settled antitrust cases, but whether college athletes are student employees is an unresolved question. It's a major issue for higher ed.

www.sportico.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 15d

Purchase of many firms allows PepsiCo to become price setter. Classic example for Econ101 classes.
www.oregonlive.com/nation/2026/...

Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos and Tostitos chips will get cheaper

Their manufacturer ains to win back customers exasperated by years of price hikes.

www.oregonlive.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 15d

www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 15d

So…It’s not obvious players actually even need the WNBA. Hmmm.
andscape.com/features/unr...

Unrivaled's Philly stop reflects momentum driving WNBA players amid labor dispute - Andscape

The elephant in the room with those 21,000-plus Unrivaled fans: the ongoing WNBA labor dispute between players and owners.

andscape.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 16d

This boggles my mind.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...

NBC Sports set to host Super Bowl LX pregame coverage from Alcatraz Island

Alcatraz will play host for segments of NBC's Super Bowl coverage on Sunday.

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Andy "Andyfa" Schwarz @andyhre.bsky.social · 16d

SB 1/2timers: Dan Akroyd (Canada), Phil Collins (UK), U2 (Ireland), Paul McCartney (UK), Rolling Stones (UK), Cirque du Soleil (Canada), The Who (UK), Coldplay (UK), Shakira (Venez), the Weeknd (Canada), & Rihanna (Barbados)

But THIS is the year people are upset about a "foreigner" at halftime?

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 16d

Getting close to mirroring the number of black majority owners (zero).
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...

The NFL hired zero Black head coaches. That tells you everything

With 10 head-coaching vacancies this offseason, the hiring cycle echoed decades past as owners defaulted to their superficial practices.

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Rodney Fort

John Thorn @johnthorn.bsky.social · 17d

Who was MLB's first Black player? Not Jackie Robinson in 1947, not Moses Fleetwood Walker and his brother Weldy in 1884 … but William Edward White, in 1879. He passed for white for much of his life but, uniquely among MLB players, he was born a slave. ourgame.mlblogs.com/pioneers-wil...

PIONEERS: William Edward White

First in a season-long series

ourgame.mlblogs.com

Reposted by Rodney Fort

Dennis @dcoatesecon.bsky.social · 17d

I do as well. And I show videos of soccer on bicycles, gymnastics on bikes and hurling.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 17d

I always started my sports Econ class with the Q: What is a sport? If I was still teaching, this piece would make a fun motivator.
www.washingtonpost.com/sports/inter...

Between the sheets at the college Excel championships

One of the most unusual — and fun — events in college sports is a high-stakes spreadsheeting competition in Las Vegas.

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