The new college football playoff will kickoff from Pasadena, CA, on January 1, 2015. In other news, the NHL plans to release an abbreviated regular season schedule after the players’ ratification vote, and Major League Baseball has agreed to a deal with T-Mobile.
- Rose and Sugar Bowls to Host First Semifinals: The Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl will host the first ever college football playoff semifinals on January 1, 2015, the first of four years under the new format that the games will be paired together. Each year the Rose and Sugar bowls host the semifinals — 2014-15, 2017-18, 2020-21, and 2023-24 — the games will air on January 1. In all other years, when some combination of the Orange Bowl and three yet-to-be-announced bowls host the semis, the games will air on December 31. (CBSSports.com via Sports Business Daily)
- NHL Plans to Release Schedule After Player Ratification: National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday that the league plans to release a revised 2013 regular season schedule once the players’ union ratifies a new collective bargaining agreement. NHL owners imposed a lockout of players in September and canceled the first three months of the season before reaching a tentative agreement with the NHLPA on Sunday. The abbreviated NHL season is expected to begin Saturday, January 19. (SB Nation)
- MLB, T-Mobile Strike Deal: T-Mobile has agreed to a multi-year deal to become the official wireless carrier of Major League Baseball, the parties announced Tuesday. Terms were not announced, but the deal is reportedly worth $125 million over three years. According to Sports Business Daily, the agreement will be the first “league-level telecommunications sponsorship deal” in Major League Baseball since the late 1990s. (MLB.com, Sports Business Daily)
