Tag: Emirates

NBA refs suddenly have sponsored Emirates patches on their uniforms and fans weren’t happy

After the NBA’s All-Star break, officials have a new look on their jerseys.

After the NBA’s All-Star break, officials have a new look on their jerseys.

The league unveiled a partnership with Emirates on Feb. 8, the same day as the NBA’s trade deadline. They announced the airline as the title sponsor for the NBA’s In-Season Tournament, now known as the Emirates NBA Cup.

Also included in that press release was the news that the Emirates logo will appear on all NBA referee jerseys, starting with the NBA’s 2024 All-Star Game. All referees in the WNBA (beginning in 2025) and G League (starting in 2024-25) will also wear Emirates patches.

Emirates is currently a sponsor across various international sports properties, including referee jersey branding for the FA Cup, Cricket World Cup, and the Rugby World Cup.

Although the news was picked up by several outlets, fans may have missed this information if they were focused on the winners and losers of the trade deadline. After the league returned from the brief All-Star break, though, it did not take long for fans to notice the sponsorship:

Here is more from Chris Herring (via ESPN):

“The move comes at a time when NBA viewership is up from last year on the major networks and at a time when the league’s referees are being shown on television far more than in the past.

Television cameras generally zoom in on lead officials as they finalize their rulings over an in-arena microphone following coach’s challenges, where referees review replays of debatable calls — a process that often takes minutes at a time. The number of reviews has increased in recent years, as league stakeholders voted in 2023 to allow clubs a third challenge if a coach requests and is successful with his first two tries.”

Now that the NBA patches are public, though, fans shared their thoughts:

World Amateur Team Championship moves to odd years; headed to Dubai in 2023

The Emirates Golf Federation will bring the World Amateur Team Championship to the Middle East for the first time in 2023.

The International Golf Federation has selected the Emirates Golf Federation as the host of the 2023 World Amateur Team Championship. The selection was made in the IGF’s biennial meeting this week, which was held virtually. The Emirates Golf Federation beat out Singapore Golf Federation, the other finalist.

The Emirates Golf Federation will bring the World Amateur Team Championship, an event that dates to 1958, to the Middle East for the first time. Fewer teams will also compete and on only one course: The Emirates Golf Federation presented the Greg Norman-designed Fire Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai as the host venue. The reduced field of 36 teams was approved in the IGF’s 2018 meeting. The idea was to lessen the cost and complexity of hosting the event.

“Both candidates provided exceptionally strong bid proposals, which was duly noted by both the IGF Administrative Committee and the IGF Bid Panel,” said Antony Scanlon, Executive Director of the IGF. “We greatly appreciate the interest and strong case presented by the Singapore Golf Association. At the same time, the Emirates Golf Federation made a compelling case that resonated with our member organisations and we’re very excited to be holding our first World Amateur Team Championships in the Middle East region. We look forward to working with the Emirates Golf Federation to deliver a memorable event and experience for the athletes in 2023.”

The World Amateur Team Championship also now moves to an odd year to avoid conflicting with the summer Olympic Games. The 2022 championship is already scheduled, meaning the event will be played in back-to-back years.

The 2022 championships are scheduled for two courses near Paris: Le Golf National, host of the 2018 Ryder Cup Match and future host of the 2024 Olympic golf competition, and Golf de Saint-Nom-La-Bretèche, host of 33 editions of the Lancôme Trophy, will host the men’s and women’s championships.