📰🏟️ That’s sus

Good morning. In today’s edition: Sus Venmo payments for gambling (?), one of the largest donations in NCAA history, and much more.

—Peter & Kyle

On the clock: This newsletter takes ~3.83 minutes to read (1,019 words).

Enjoying these emails? Help us grow by forwarding one to a friend.

Did someone you know do this^ to you? Subscribe here for free.

👔 BUSINESS

Fanatics launches the most-comprehensive fan loyalty program to date

Fanatics just keeps getting deeper into fan antics: The three-time CNBC Disruptor 50 company with partnerships with nearly every major sports league this week unveiled what it says is the most comprehensive loyalty program available in sports, an industry where perks and benefits have traditionally been siloed by league and/or team.

Fanatics One, as the new program is called, will reward users for activity across the company’s array of products, with tiered benefits that include:

• Discounted hotel stays
• Limited-edition, personalized athlete and celebrity memorabilia
• Custom experiences with Fanatics athletes like LeBron James, Shohei Ohtani, Tom Brady, and Victor Wembanyama
• Invites to the company’s events, such as its flagship Fanatics Fest or exclusive Super Bowl party
• “Epic sports experiences” like an all-expenses-paid trip to an upcoming NFL Game in London

Don’t miss the connection

Fanatics is leveraging its partnerships and own events to provide the perks. The Michael Rubin-led company hopes this approach will better link its three business units together to diversify revenue and boost customer spending, given its revenue skew is more lopsided than a seesaw with a sumo wrestler on one end.

• Out of Fanatics’ $8.1B in sales in 2024, $6.2B came from its merch division (~77%), followed by trading cards and collectibles at $1.6B (~20%) and betting at $300M (~3%). 
• Fanatics One is aimed at pumping the rookie numbers up by converting more of the 100M+ people that have purchased from the company into multi-vertical spenders.

That’s not all: The program is also expected to serve as a launching pad for future business verticals, such as media and ticketing, according to analysts.

🔥 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HELLOTALK

Master a new language through meaningful connections

Ditch the flashcards and join conversations that matter. HelloTalk's free community of native speakers to practice with makes learning any language natural, fun, and actually effective.

• Chat via text, voice, video—whatever feels most comfortable
• Moments feature connects you with the entire global community instantly 
• Built-in tools for translation, pronunciation, and corrections keeps conversations flowing 

Join 60 million learners building friendships across cultures worldwide.

⏱️ CATCH UP QUICK

Headlines de la semaine

⚾ LA Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is once again linked to shady off-field issues. In a recently filed lawsuit, two Hawaii real-estate professionals claim Ohtani and his agent, Nez Balelo, illegally interfered to get them fired from a $240M luxury housing development on Big Island. The complaint says Ohtani was brought into the venture for promotional/branding value, and had agreed to purchase one of 14 residences and spend time there in the MLB offseason. But once the deal was done, Balelo allegedly forced the two plaintiffs’ business partner— Kingsbarn Realty Capital—to drop them from the deal so Balelo’s cut (and Ohtani’s) would be higher, the lawsuit claims. Kingsbarn called the allegations “completely frivolous and without merit,” while Balelo has yet to publicly respond.

🏆 …but that hasn’t affected Ohtani’s on-field play. Heading into last month’s All-Star break, there were four clear leaders for the MLB’s major awards: Aaron Judge (AL MVP), Shohei Ohtani (NL MVP), Tarik Skubal (AL Cy Young), and Zack Wheeler (NL Cy Young). But as of this week, only Ohtani retains his massive award lead in terms of betting odds, according to ESPN Bet, which gives Ohtani a 99.3% implied probability to win his third straight MVP. It comes on the heels of recent performance declines by Judge, Skubal, and Wheeler, along with the emergence of other stars like Mariners C Cal Raleigh and Pirates P Paul Skenes.

🏈 Jon Gruden vs. The NFL moves ahead. In a 5-2 ruling that got the former head coach feeling nicey (probably), Nevada’s Supreme Court this week sided with Gruden in his civil lawsuit alleging the NFL leaked damaging emails to the media before he was forced to resign as Oakland Raiders head coach in October 2021. The justices found the NFL is not allowed to force Gruden’s suit to enter closed-door arbitration overseen by Commissioner Roger Goodell, who’s also the target of Gruden’s legal action—but didn’t rule on whether Gruden's claims are true. The NFL will now request a rehearing from the same court over Gruden’s suit, which seeks unspecified monetary damages.

💬 WORD ON THE STREET

Overheard

“I understand the seriousness of the matter, but recognize that, taken out of context, those Venmo descriptions suggest otherwise.” 

Misleading Venmo descriptions are basically a rite of passage among college students (sure, that $150 payment for "coffee👃❄️" was just repayment for a caffeine boost). But in rare instances, they can land you in hot water.

Oklahoma starting QB John Mateer this week denied allegations that he bet on sports, after screenshots showing two of his Venmo payments from 2022 labeled “sports gambling” and “sports gambling (UCLA vs USC)” went viral on social media Monday night.

Mateer, a top-ranked transfer from Washington State, said the payments were “inside jokes between me and my friends” when he was a freshman, and that the memos didn’t accurately portray what the payments were for.

Nevertheless, they could land him on the NCAA’s naughty list. The organization’s current rules ban all active college athletes or institutional staff from gambling on sports at any level—pro, college, or amateur—if that sport has an NCAA championship.

• Dozens of college athletes, coaches, and staffers have been suspended, fired, or arrested for gambling violations dating back to 2023.
• They include Alabama head baseball coach Brad Bohannon, former LSU WR Kayshon Boutte, and ~60% of Notre Dame’s men’s swimming team (allegedly).

But…Mateer isn’t currently suspected of sports betting by the NCAA, according to Oklahoma Athletics. Or in other words: the only thing he’s gambled on is OU’s questionable offensive line.

📰 NEWS

What else is happening

• The UFC will host its first-ever fight at the White House on July 4th, 2026, Dana White announced.
• University of Kansas alumnus David Booth donated $300M to support the school’s athletics and campus development, in one of the largest gifts in college athletics history.
• The Minnesota Twins are no longer for sale, the Pohlad family announced yesterday. Instead, the team will take on new investors while ownership remains with the Pohlads…
• …while the Portland TrailBlazers will reportedly be sold to Tom Dundon, owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes, for just over $4B. The team, currently owned by Paul Allen’s estate, will reportedly remain in Portland following the sale.
• Taylor Swift unveiled her new album,​​ The Life of a Showgirl, during a guest appearance on the New Heights podcast starring her boyfriend, Chiefs TE Travis Kelce, and his brother Jason.
• The first-ever World Humanoid Robot Games kicks off today and runs through Saturday. Some 500+ robots from 16 countries will compete across 26 sports, including soccer, athletics, and gymnastics.

🔥 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH NONETZ

Ultra-cooling polos for the hottest months

NoNetz polos have 3 distinct features to keep you cool and comfortable during the August heat…

• ❄️ Cooling minerals that reduce your skin’s temperature
• 💧 Advanced moisture-wicking fabric to keep you feeling fresh
• 😤 Breathable fabric specially engineered to encourage airflow

Available in trending colors and boasting UPF50+ protection, they’re perfect for sports, hiking, the beach, and staying cool on a sweltering day.

🤔 TRIVIA

Welcome to Franchise Roulette

The roules rules: Below we’ve compiled three facts about a professional sports franchise—your challenge is to guess which franchise we’re talking about. Eligible franchises are those currently playing in the Big 4 (MLB, NHL, NFL, NBA).

Today’s team:

• Was founded in 1883 as the New York Gothams.
• Has more wins than any other team in the history of major American sports.
• Counts 66 representatives in the Baseball Hall of Fame, the most of any MLB franchise.

🌐 WEB GEMS

Interesting things to click

⚾ PCA on the PCH: What it looks like to catch a ball with 0% catch probability.

🤔 Misery-stycism: Discover how satisfied—or miserable—you are as a fan.

🎆 Lol: The Mets hit so many home runs in a recent game against the Braves that Citi Field ran out of fireworks.

📈 Become a better investor in just 5 minutes… Get market trends and insights anyone can understand with The Average Joe investing newsletter—and stick around for the humor and memes. Join 250K+ readers and subscribe free.*

*A message from our partners

🤔 ANSWER

The San Francisco Giants