The NHL is welcoming Anheuser-Busch InBev to the ice — well, the stands. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman rang the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday with Nick Kelly, Bud Light VP of Partnership, to celebrate the multiyear partnership that will make Bud Light the official beer of the hockey league in the U.S. and Budweiser will be the official beer of the league in Canada.
"It's a great opportunity for us to reach our fans," Bettman told Cheddar. "For Bud Light to reach our customers and for us to activate our brands together. Whether its events or the playoffs or the Stanley Cup final, this is a way for us to take two world-renowned fans and do great things."
However, the league has recently been facing difficult questions about diversity and the treatment of its players. Bettman talked about the changes the NHL has committed to in order to improve relations among its own employees.
A recent report from the Wall Street Journal outlined the National Hockey League's struggle to diversify. In the 2018-2019 season, there were just 50 nonwhite players. However, Bettman says the league is actively looking to reverse that.
"We've done more than has ever been done before in terms of ensuring that our game is diverse and that it's a welcoming place. We have activities and programs at the grassroots level for all levels of hockey," Bettman explained, referring to programs like Hockey Is For Everyone, a yearly initiative rolled out in February with the goal of making hockey more inclusive.
"Actually our diversity as it relates to the international composition of our player base is probably more than any other sport," he claimed. "With respect to North America, this has been an ongoing project."
"We're continuing to work on it. It is a priority but the signs of growth are there," he said.
The NHL has also been working to combat abusive behavior in the league.
A number of accusations against NHL coaches have recently come to light. Late last month Calgary Flames coach Bill Peters resigned after former NHL player, Akim Aliu accused him of using racist slurs against him 10 years ago when Aliu played for the American Hockey League's Rockford IceHogs. Peters was the coach.
Bettman says the league has developed a plan aimed at stopping these problems.
"What we announced is a multi-prong program where we want disclosure, we want to have a hotline, we want to have education and counseling for senior executives and coaches throughout the league. To the extent discipline is required we will investigate and discipline severely as appropriate."
Nvidia on Wednesday became the first public company to reach a market capitalization of $5 trillion. The ravenous appetite for the Silicon Valley company’s chips is the main reason that the company’s stock price has increased so rapidly since early 2023.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
