Welcome back to the Spotlight! If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to delve into the uber-interesting sports and entertainment business world with a witty bent, congratulations, you are on the right track! If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to be more active, then perhaps you need to find a track. That’s right, folks – the kid’s still got it. Though I was off for a few weeks, it seems writing in this space is akin to getting back on a bicycle. I understand the same can be said of skiing, but I haven’t attempted that since age five when I was pushed down a hill backwards by my skiing instructor (that explains a lot, doesn’t it?). Mercifully, my plans to try skiing again over the holidays got cancelled, so this Spotlight comes in the form of a reprise (or re-prize) rather than a requiem. Anyway, enough yammering on – there is already so much to cover in just the first week of 2026 that I can tell it will be a busy year. So let’s get to it…
- Mere days after signing a $4M revenue-sharing deal committing to play football at the University of Washington for the 2026 Season, then apparently indicating his intent to transfer from Washington, Quarterback Demond Williams, Jr. is staying at UW. The change of heart might be due to his signing a contract that would have required him to forfeit the $4M – so it’s true what they say: the demond is in the details.
- Hip Hop Artist Drake finds himself in hot water for allegedly scheming to artificially inflate his songs’ streaming numbers. Would it have killed him to artificially inflate my readership numbers, too?!
- Social Media Influencers are increasingly finding success in obtaining “extraordinary artist” visas to immigrate to the United States, bringing life to Emma Lazarus’ words inscribed on a plaque at the The Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your skincare routines…”
- Warner Bros. is encouraging its shareholders to reject Paramount’s takeover bid and stick with Warner’s Netflix deal. Ironically, the film “He’s Just Not That Into You” is available to stream on Netflix.
Endorsement Deals, Sponsorships & Investments
Lionel Messi, Logan Paul Resolve Beverage Dispute
January 8, 2026 via Front Office Sports
Zurich and Players Health Form Injury Insurance for NIL Era of College Sports
January 6, 2026 via Insurance Journal
Louis Vuitton Casts Jeremy Allen White and Pusha T in Travel-Themed Campaign
January 6, 2026 via Women's Wear Daily
Why Celebs Like Dwayne Johnson and John Legend are Getting Into the Skincare Business
January 5, 2026 via Coastline Pilot News
Datavault AI and The Dream Bowl to Set New Benchmark in Sports Innovation with World’s First Tokenized Autograph Session, Featuring Current and Future NFL Stars
January 2, 2026 via LancasterOnline
Sports
UW QB Enters Transfer Portal, Signed Multi-Million-Dollar Contract with School Days Earlier
January 8, 2026 via KIRO 7
Demond Williams Walks Back Transfer Talk, to Stay at Washington
January 8, 2026 via Front Office Sports
TGL Launching Women’s League, Exploring Future Media Rights Options
January 7, 2026 via Awful Announcing
Las Vegas A’s Trademark Whiff Doesn’t Mean Game Is Over
January 7, 2026 via Sportico
Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart Are SI’s 2025 Innovators of the Year
January 5, 2026 via Sports Illustrated
Onetime NBA Draft Pick James Nnaji of Baylor Gets Frequent Boos in College Debut at TCU
January 3, 2026 via Lancaster Online
Predictions for the Business of Sports in 2026
January 2, 2026 via Front Office Sports
Music Biz
Taylor Swift Cameo Sparks US Sell-Out for Sancerre
January 7, 2026 via The Drinks Business
Universal Music Acquires 30% Stake in India’s Excel Entertainment, Valuing Bollywood Production House at $267M
January 5, 2026 via Music Business Worldwide
Drake Accused of Manipulating Streaming Play Counts With Bots in New Lawsuit
January 2, 2026 via Gizmodo
Film & TV
Warner Bros Rejects Revised Paramount Bid as Risky Leveraged Buyout
January 7, 2026 via Reuters
Oasis Would Be “Honored” To Write James Bond Theme Song, But Noel Gallagher Says He’s Not Heard From Amazon MGM Studios
January 6, 2026 via Deadline
Tracee Ellis Ross Strikes Development Deal With Fox Entertainment Studios
January 6, 2026 via Deadline
NBCUniversal's Ad Slots for 2026 Winter Olympics Sell Out to 'Unprecedented' Demand
January 6, 2026 via Reuters
More and More ‘Extraordinary’ Artist Visas Are Going to Social Media Influencers, Say Immigration Lawyers
January 5, 2026 via ArtNewsGizmodo
Emerging Sports
UMG and Roblox Strike Deal to Expand Commercial Opportunities for Artists on the Gaming Platform – Including Merch Sales via Shopify
December 19, 2025 via Music Business Worldwide
