Trading cards have gone too far
Plus: The NFL's favorite contrarian strikes again, Jim Dolan outdoes himself, and 'Advantage, Ms. Maristany Zuleta De Reales.'
Back by popular demand, here’s are six items to start your week.
The Sportico Story of the Week 🤥: Cameron Colvin had the type of story Hollywood dreams about. Orphaned at 15 in horrible circumstances, Colvin played football at Oregon, then overcame a leg injury to make the NFL. The story was told, in fact, in a 2014 movie starring Jim Caviezel and Laura Dern.
His post-football career, on its face, looked even more remarkable. Colvin claimed to be a billionaire, running an investment and real estate empire that matched his flashy social media persona. Turns out, his business success was likely a mirage. Our colleague Daniel Libit unwound the whole thing in a long—but worth it—investigative piece that looked at lawsuits, lies and a looming federal investigation.
The Non-Sportico Story of the Week ⚖️: Madison Square Garden has a policy where it doesn’t allow lawyers that work for firms involved in litigation against the company (or Knicks owner Jim Dolan) to attend ticketed events. It is lore among New York’s legal community, given the popularity of the building and the sheer number of law firms that qualify.
The list, according to reports, covers thousands of lawyers from more than 90 firms, and it’s enforced with facial recognition software. Kudos to ESPN’s Devin Gordon for this awesome story about the policy, its legality, and the many professionals who have shown up for a Drake concert, a St. John’s game, a Knicks playoff series, or even a comedy show at the MSG-owned Beacon Theatre, only to be escorted out.
What Made Me Laugh 🤡: It’s U.S. Open time again! 👇
What Caught My Eye 👀: Aaron Rodgers is upset that he can no longer wear the helmet he wore last season—it was one of seven models banned by the NFL and NFLPA for failing to meet new safety standards. If that sentence triggers some déjà vu, that’s because his previous favorite model was banned in 2019. He was upset at that adjustment as well.
Color me shocked that it’s Rodgers, the league’s most unflinching contrarian, complaining the loudest about science-backed medical guidelines put in place for his own protection…
What I Don’t Understand 🤔: This trading card from Topps. I was a big collector as a kid, and I remember the rise of the memorabilia card, but this is just absurd. Why is this card at all? Soon there will be autographed helmets surrounded by a tiny piece of cardboard.
What Surprised Me ‼️: The organizing committee for LA 2028 announced recently that for the first time in Olympics history, they’ll be selling naming rights to the many venues hosting the games. For the uninitiated, the Olympics (like the World Cup) has a “clean venue” policy, which means that even if SoFi Stadium was hosting events, the broadcasts and official material would call it something like “Los Angeles Stadium.” Well, no more. LA28 will make naming rights to all its venue available to corporate bidders. LA28 has a $7.1 billion budget and lofty sponsorship goals. I’m not surprised this is happening—I’m surprised it hasn’t happened before.
Club Sportico is a community organized by Sportico, a digital media company launched in 2020 to cover the business side of sports. You can read breaking news, smart analysis, and in-depth features from Eben, Jacob and their colleagues at Sportico.com, and listen to the Sporticast podcast wherever you get your audio. Contact us at club@sportico.com.