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* *U.S. Imposes New Sanctions on Russia:**
The sanctions, which include a ban on tech exports to Russia, are a response to the poisoning of a former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in England. The new sanctions are expected to go into effect Aug. 22. For more on the latest, [click here](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-administration-to-impose-new-sanctions-on-russia-for-nerve-agent-attack-in-england/2018/08/08/7c66b45e-9b3e-11e8-b60b-1c897f17e185_story.html?utm_term=.b218df59f989).
* **One-Year Anniversary of Charlottesville Riots:**
Officials in Virginia have declared a preemptive state of emergency ahead of the one-year anniversary of the “Unite the Right” white supremacist rally. One woman was killed and dozens injured when a car drove into a group of protesters. For more, check out [CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/08/us/charlottesville-va-state-of-emergency-unite-the-right/index.html).
* **Final Golf Major of 2018:**
The 100th PGA Championship tees off Thursday at Bellerive Country Club outside St. Louis. This is the last time the tournament will be played in the month of August. The PGA recently announced the championship will move to May next year. Here are the golfers with the best odds of [winning](https://amp.businessinsider.com/pga-championship-picks-odds-to-win-2018-8).
* **Rudy Giuliani Puts Pressure on Special Counsel**
Giuliani, President Trump’s lawyer, told Fox News' Sean Hannity that he's pushing the special counsel Robert Mueller to complete the probe on Russia by September. Giuliani also talked to Axios. Read his comments [here](https://www.axios.com/rudy-giuliani-donald-trump-robert-mueller-investigation-c99e726f-c889-421e-a694-72206a1618b9.html).
Cheddar's Jill Wagner gets into the latest.
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The professional gamer and Twitch streamer told Cheddar CEO Jon Steinberg that it's hard to get fans to follow you from game to game, no matter how big your following. The 31-year-old also championed the "shenanigans" of Fortnite maker Epic Games, which allowed him to ride a rocket launched by fellow esports hero Ninja ー a combination of words that aren't typically uttered in a traditional workplace.
Fintech companies are taking notice of the rapid growth in esports, and Quicken Loans has partnered with 100 Thieves, a League of Legends expansion team. Quicken CMO Casey Hurbis said this venture opened the company's eyes to the endless possibilities of esports and its personalities.
The Twitter Esports Business Summit ran from Oct. 1-3, and it held its focus on the growing market of esports and how Twitter fits into the business. Rishi Chadha, head of gaming content partnerships at Twitter, said the company is focusing on the communities that foster players and fans, as well as publishers and developers of different platforms.
The team became the first in the NBA to introduce GIFs for the Facebook platform. Sandro Gasparro, director of social media for the Los Angeles Clippers, told Cheddar it's not just another way to promote engagement, but can also connect fans to players on a more personal level.
Ralf Reichert, CEO of ESL, sat down with Cheddar at this weekend's tournament at the Barclays Center and talked about the esports world and what he believes is needed for the enterprise to grow.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know.
Ron Darling, a former MLB starting pitcher and current TBS baseball analyst, said the easiest way to attract younger people to baseball is to get more kids playing it when they're kids. Darling said there are more children opting out of football due to concerns about head injuries, and those athletes should be primed to take up a different sport.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know.
18Birdies has seen success as a one-stop shop for golfers, both amateur and pro, gaining 1.3 million members since its launch. The app lets players book tee times, navigate a new course, and choose the right club. But CEO Eddy Lui says the main goal is to create a community ー a social network ー of golfers.
The blockchain has made its way into a slew of industries. Next at bat ー the sports world. The Los Angeles Dodgers are moving away from traditional promotions and have begun using crypto tokens to give away digital bobbleheads to fans. Ralph Esquibel, VP of information technology for the team, said this is the first giveaway of its kind and could lead to more experiments with cryptocurrencies.
