*By Christian Smith*
It's been barely a week since the eyes of the sports world were focused on the the FIFA World Cup. Now rugby gets to step into the spotlight ー and very likely attract the most attention it has ever seen in the U.S.
The Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 began Friday at AT&T Park in San Francisco. It's the largest rugby event ever in the U.S. with 64 teams competing in the men's and women's tournaments.
Hosting the tournament on American soil gives USA Rugby one of its best ever opportunities to grow the sport's presence and popularity in the U.S. USA Rugby Commercial Director Mark Griffin says the sport has already made major inroads into mainstream American sports culture since he arrived from his native England.
"I've been here 19 years, and I've seen major growth, probably a doubling, I think, in terms of the number of people involved in the game over that period of time," said in an interview on Cheddar.
Rugby sevens is a version of the game featuring [smaller teams and shorter matches](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugby_sevens). In sevens matches, seven players play seven-minute halves, instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves.
To grow the game's presence in the country, Griffin says USA Rugby is working to boost the resources available for the national teams as well as get the game into the educational system from youth programs to college. "The college infrastructure in America is absolutely incredible and second to none," he told Cheddar.
USA Rugby's efforts are already paying off. Both the American men's and women's teams come into the tournament near the top of the pack. The women are ranked fifth in the world, and the men are ranked sixth.
While rugby's popularity will likely never reach the level of football in America, Griffin says it doesn't matter.
"We don't need to be the NFL ー we don't need to be any of the big major sports," he said. "There's enough people here that love what rugby stands for that we can carve out our own little niche."
Competition will continue through Sunday. The American women already notched a big 38-7 win over China. The American men are playing Friday night.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/how-usa-rugby-is-growing-the-sport-stateside)
It's no secret that much of the popularity of Epic Games' smash hit Fortnite comes from its status as a free-to-play game. Now, Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter says two other surprising titles may make the switch: Overwatch and Call of Duty.
It's become par for the course for Epic Games to release game-changing items in Fortnite just before tournaments. Ghost Gaming's Kayuun shares his worries for what that means for competitive Fortnite.
In a sign of how attitudes around gambling have changed as laws around it have softened, the NFL announced its first-ever partnership with a gambling company, naming Caesars as the league's official casino sponsor. Chris Holdren, chief marketing officer for Caesars, told Cheddar that the sponsorship represents the beginning of a relationship that could eventually become one where the NFL is directly endorsing sports betting.
Bull riding isn't just for the rodeo, anymore. It's coming to a major city near you ー and streaming online ー thanks largely to the efforts of Colorado-based Professional Bull Riders (PBR). And PBR CEO Sean Gleason told Cheddarthe organization has plenty more tricks up its sleeve to keep its momentum going.
The markets opened up sharply higher on Friday after Thursday's big sell-off. The turnaround was due in large part to investor optimism over the upcoming U.S.-China trade talks but also the December jobs report. The U.S. economy added 314,000 jobs last month, topping the 184,000 jobs expected. Plus, Professional Bull Riders CEO Sean Gleason and bull rider Tanner Bryne stopped by to chat about growing bull riding in the U.S. in an ever-changing media landscape.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Jan. 4, 2019.
Fitness and beauty booking tool Mindbody is planning to make a play for the next big thing in wellness ー on-demand video, CEO Rick Stollmeyer told Cheddar on Thursday. "You can expect us to be playing in that space because we think that the on-demand and streaming video revolution hitting the fitness space is a big breakthrough," Stollmeyer said.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Monday, Dec. 31, 2018.
There's a new mixed-martial arts league on the block. The Professional Fighters League ー or PFL ー is wrapping up its inaugural season with a championship match on New Year's Eve. According to Peter Murrary, the CEO of the league, the match's purse, $1 million, is a major draw for athletes ー money talks, and can mark achievement.
