On Saturday, July 19, 2025, the WNBA will hold its All-Star Game. The sport has seen exponential growth in audience and popularity since the emergence of second-year star Caitlin Clark. Still, when Clark missed time due to injury, ratings fell.

Dr. Tywanna Smith is a former pro basketball player and President of The Athletes’ Nexus. She, along with retired NBA star Sonny Weems, co-founded the Athletes Abroad Summit, a platform that empowers American athletes playing overseas to build sustainable success beyond the game.

They held a summit in Las Vegas during the NBA Summer League and will be in Indianapolis for WNBA All-Star Weekend. The activation brings together pro athletes, coaches, and executives to lead global conversations around business, branding, and legacy in sports.

Dr. Smith was a guest previously on Sports with Friends Episode 102.

In this episode, Smith details the Athletes Abroad Summit and what athletes need to know if they want to pursue playing outside the USA. She also discusses the impact of Clark on the WNBA ratings and discusses whether the league is too reliant on her for its success and whether the increased ratings are sustainable. She also discusses the overall appeal of Clark and the role race plays in it.

For more info: https://www.athletesabroadsummit.com/

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FIFA World Cup 2026™ will be the biggest sporting event ever — three Host Countries, 16 Host Cities, 48 teams, and 104 matches will unite an entire continent to showcase a momentous new tournament format. The event will culminate with the Final at New York New Jersey Stadium (MetLife Stadium) on July 19, 2026, complemented by unprecedented fan experiences throughout the NYNJ region. Co-host City Manager Bruce Revman joined the show to discuss both the ongoing Club World Cup and next year’s international tournament. Revman oversees all aspects of the Host Committee. Prior roles include Managing Director at NYC & Company, where he contributed to marketing and partnership strategies, and Commissioner for the USA TODAY Sports Media Group.

In this episode, Revman discusses how NY/NJ was awarded the Final and what fans can expect. He commented on the sheer enormity of the World Cup and how both New York and New Jersey will embrace it.

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One hundred episodes after his first appearance, former Oakland A’s and St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Mark Mulder returns to the show. He previously appeared in Episode 410. Mulder pitched for the A’s from 2000-2004. He was then traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, where he pitched through 2008. In the early 2000s, Mark Mulder was part of the “Big 3” with Barry Zito and Tim Hudson. He is a two-time all-star, the AL wins leader in 2001. He finished with a record of 103-60.

After his playing career, Mulder began pursuing golf. He won the American Century Championship in Lake Tahoe, a celebrity golf tournament, three times from 2015-2017.

In this episode, Mulder offers poignant commentary on the A’s recent move from Oakland to Sacramento, where they are playing in a AAA stadium. He talked about the A’s breaking ground on a stadium in Las Vegas and gets emotional about saying goodbye to people in Oakland last season as part of their final season there. He also discusses the current state of baseball and other sports and the challenges that face them all.

Follow Mark on social media at @markmulder20.

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In the sports business, there are a slew of headlines that get covered in this episode. The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics were recently sold. Is this a trend where

other legacy sports owners will try to get out of owning franchises? In baseball, the Rays and A’s have untenable stadium situations. How big an issue is this for baseball?

Baseball is also trying to do new media deals and has a collective bargaining agreement expiring. Is NBA expansion on the horizon? Will Seattle get the Supersonics back?

Scott Rosner rejoins the podcast. He previously appeared on Episode 344 (about St. Peter’s NCAA tournament run). He is the Program Director and Professor of Professional Practice, M.S. in Sports Management at Columbia SPS School of Professional Studies. Rosner is the lead author of The Business of Sports, a leading textbook in its second edition that synthesizes a collection of the leading scholarly sports business articles, the first such volume in the field. He is also the principal of Hudson Sports Consulting, a sports advisory firm that provides a wide range of services in the business and legal aspects of the sports industry.

This episode covers a wide range of sports business topics and touches on most major sports.

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Former NFL quarterback and broadcaster Joe Theismann returns to the podcast for the third time. His previous appearances were Episodes 306 & 461. In 306, he spoke about his incredible football career and the catastrophic leg injury that ended it. In 461, he discussed helping Alex Smith recover from his own terrible, similar injury. This appearance references those moments but tells different stories.

Theismann is competing in the upcoming American Century Championship, an annual celebrity golf tournament held in Lake Tahoe. Among the 80-plus participants in the field are: Travis Kelce, Jason Kelce, Charles Barkley, Josh Allen, Colin Jost, Annika Sorenstam, and actor Miles Teller. This year marks the 36th year of celebrity golf and will be televised with coverage on GOLF Channel, Peacock, and NBC from July 11th through the 13th, 2025.

In this episode, Theismann discusses the Tua Tagovailoa concussions and if he had advice for the Dolphins’ quarterback. He also discussed the lasting effects of his injury in his day-to-day life and the medical challenges that such an injury created both then and now. He also discussed a fantasy option for the golf classic, where fans can engage to win trips to the event in Lake Tahoe. He also had an interesting perspective on all the international games and a potential 18th game for the NFL.

For more info on the American Century Championship, https://americancenturychampionship.com/.

For more info on the Fantasy Golf opportunity, https://www.accfantasygolf.com/.

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Anish Shroff is a play-by-play commentator for various sports on ESPN and its partner networks, including college football, college basketball, college baseball, and lacrosse. He is also a proud alumnus of Syracuse University. Shroff is the current radio play-by-play announcer for the Carolina Panthers NFL team, joining in March 2022. Shroff also worked the NFL preseason in the summer of 2021.

Shroff has covered several bowl games and FCS championship games, as well as matchups across the SEC, Big Ten, ACC, and Big 12. Since 2017, Shroff has been ESPN’s lead voice for men’s college lacrosse.

In this episode, Anish discusses his incredible career path, especially how his play-by-play roles evolved. He also explains how he became the 3rd ever radio voice of the Carolina Panthers. He also explains the inner workings of the Syracuse experience and how it helped mold him into the broadcaster he is today.

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Ethan Cooperman has worked for over 25 years doing stats for various sports television broadcasts. He rose to fame in the industry when he paired with the late Greg Gumbel on CBS NFL broadcasts. Since 2004, he has worked on the #1 CBS team with Jim Nantz and Tony Romo. He also does college football for FOX and Monday Night Football on the radio for Westwood One. There isn’t a network that Ethan hasn’t worked on. Part of his success is clearly due to his incredible sports knowledge and research capabilities. He’s also a master networker and literally knows everyone.

In this episode, Ethan explains his various roles and how he acquired them. He tells amazing stories about the late Greg Gumbel. He also details the intricacies of working with Jim Nantz and Tony Romo. He answers the question, Do Romo’s predictions often come true or is that a myth?

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In 2000, New York City was at the center of the baseball world as the New York Mets faced off against the New York Yankees in the 2000 World Series. Author Chris Donnelly has penned a new book that chronicles both the Mets and Yankees in the late 90s, leading up to that Fall Classic. “Get Your Tokens Ready: The Late 1990s Road to the Subway Series” chronicles both teams from 1997, the dawn of interleague play, to the end of the 2000 Subway Series.

The Yankees were amid a dynasty, while the Mets were up and coming. This era chronicled the Roger Clemens/Mike Piazza bat incident and the Bobby Valentine fake mustache.

In this episode, Donnelly explains this pivotal time for both the teams and their passionate fan bases. He explains how this book does not have a Met or Yankee slant and how it covers both teams objectively. There is also a lot of conversation about the stadiums that they played in during this time, the original Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium…

“Get Your Tokens Ready” is available here: https://bit.ly/3Z2bYxs.

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