Iconic Hawaiʻi boxer becomes namesake of boxing gym
HONOLULU (KHON2) — A ceremony was held in Waiʻanae, renaming the District Park Boxing Gym in honor of Fred Fernandez Pereira, Sr., also known as 'Pops.'
The ceremony was held on Pops' 91st birthday, intended to permanently enshrine his legacy onto the boxing gym. The renaming was made possible with the passage of Honolulu City Council Resolution 24-222, spearheaded by Councilmember Andria Tupola.
Early morning crash claims life of juvenile in Mililani
'Pops was a cherished leader in the Waiʻanae community and the world of boxing from April 12, 1934 until his passing on April 25, 2024,' Tupola said. 'In 1972, he founded the Waiʻanae Boxing Club, which became a beacon of hope for local youth, addressing issues like drug abuse and juvenile delinquency. Under his mentorship, the club produced numerous champions and taught important life lessons such as hard work and respect. This renaming honors his profound impact, ensuring his legacy is remembered for generations to come.'
The event was filled with community and loved ones sharing stories of the iconic boxer, such as Senator Samantha DeCorte and Representative Darius Kila. Pops' daughter, Lena Marie Silva, expressed excitement for her father's legacy.'My dad made a huge difference, and you see that with the people here today, his ʻohana,' Silva said. 'Now the world's going to know about my papa and his legacy. It's going to live on forever.'
The entrance of the boxing gym is now adorned with a sign with Pops' name, with photographs, memorabilia and awards line the interior walls.
The Fred 'Pops' Fernandez Pereira, Sr., Waiʻanae District Park Boxing Gym neighbors the Shinyei Nakamine Gymnasium Complex as a part of the almost 23-acre Leeward Park. The recreation building in the complex is currently undergoing renovations and upgrades to its flooring, roof, bathrooms and more, but will become the fully realized Pops' boxing gym upon completion.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Yahoo
Iconic Hawaiʻi boxer becomes namesake of boxing gym
HONOLULU (KHON2) — A ceremony was held in Waiʻanae, renaming the District Park Boxing Gym in honor of Fred Fernandez Pereira, Sr., also known as 'Pops.' The ceremony was held on Pops' 91st birthday, intended to permanently enshrine his legacy onto the boxing gym. The renaming was made possible with the passage of Honolulu City Council Resolution 24-222, spearheaded by Councilmember Andria Tupola. Early morning crash claims life of juvenile in Mililani 'Pops was a cherished leader in the Waiʻanae community and the world of boxing from April 12, 1934 until his passing on April 25, 2024,' Tupola said. 'In 1972, he founded the Waiʻanae Boxing Club, which became a beacon of hope for local youth, addressing issues like drug abuse and juvenile delinquency. Under his mentorship, the club produced numerous champions and taught important life lessons such as hard work and respect. This renaming honors his profound impact, ensuring his legacy is remembered for generations to come.' The event was filled with community and loved ones sharing stories of the iconic boxer, such as Senator Samantha DeCorte and Representative Darius Kila. Pops' daughter, Lena Marie Silva, expressed excitement for her father's legacy.'My dad made a huge difference, and you see that with the people here today, his ʻohana,' Silva said. 'Now the world's going to know about my papa and his legacy. It's going to live on forever.' The entrance of the boxing gym is now adorned with a sign with Pops' name, with photographs, memorabilia and awards line the interior walls. The Fred 'Pops' Fernandez Pereira, Sr., Waiʻanae District Park Boxing Gym neighbors the Shinyei Nakamine Gymnasium Complex as a part of the almost 23-acre Leeward Park. The recreation building in the complex is currently undergoing renovations and upgrades to its flooring, roof, bathrooms and more, but will become the fully realized Pops' boxing gym upon completion. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Yahoo
How March Madness became a $70M payday for this conference
This week on Yahoo Finance Sports Report, host Joe Pompliano takes a look at some of this week's biggest headlines in the sports business world that you and your portfolio need to know. From the SEC earning a record $70 million in March Madness units to Deion Sanders' new $54 million extension, NASCAR hiring its first commissioner, a look back at the TGL's first season, and so much more, there are a lot of big money moves shaping the sports industry. AT&T vice president of media services and sponsorships, Mark Wright, stops by the pod to talk all things March Madness and why AT&T (T) continues to invest in the future of women's sports. Yahoo Finance Sports Report with Joe Pompliano, a vodcast brought to you by Yahoo Finance and Yahoo Sports, looks beyond the latest sports business headlines, analyzes all the need-to-know news - the teams, trades, and billion dollar deals - so you and your portfolio will win BIG. Yahoo Finance Sports Report is developed by Lauren Pokedoff and produced by Tony Czech. Welcome to Yahoo Finance Sports Report, a unique look at the business of sports brought to you by Yahoo Finance and Yahoo Sports. I'm your host, Joe Pompeiano, and I'm here to coach you through the financial game. We'll look beyond the headlines, analyze all the latest sports news, the teams, trades, and billion dollar deals, so you and your portfolio will win week, we're talking about the new commissioner of NASCO, the SEC's March Madness earnings, Deion Sanders' new contract with Colorado, and so much more. I'll also be joined by Mark Wright, the vice president of media services and sponsorships at AT&T, to discuss the business behind March Madness and the Final Four. Let's huddle up and get right into right, it's time for this week's Pops playbook, where I take a look at some of the biggest headlines in sports that you and your portfolio need to know. First, I'm talking about the impending sale of Real Salt Lake in the Utah Royals. Last weekend, multiple reports broke that billionaire David Blitzer is in deep negotiations to sell his controlling stakes in Real Salt Lake of MLS and the Utah Royals of the NWSL. Reports indicate that Blitzer is set to sell both franchises to the Larry H. Miller former owner of the NBA's Utah Jazz. However, Blitzer is expected to retain a limited stake in the franchise, both of which he has owned since 2022. Blitzer purchased Real Salt Lake in Rio Tinto Stadium three years ago for $400 million from the previous owner, Delloy Hansen, who sold the franchise after being accused of racist and sexist behavior. Blitzer also gained control of the rights to an NWSL club in Utah for a heavily discounted preset expansion $2 million. As a result, Blitzer eventually revived the Utah Royals franchise in 2023 with Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith after the team shut down previously in 2020. Now, no purchase price has been reported for Blitzer's sale of Real Salt Lake and the Royals. However, Sportico values Real Salt Lake at $525 million which includes the Royals franchise worth an estimated $70 million. So if Blitzer were to get $525 million for theThat would represent a 31% increase on the initial $400 million investment he made just three years ago. Next, I'm looking at a major shakeup in NASCAR's leadership. On Monday, NASCAR announced that President Steve Phelps has been promoted to the new position of NASCAR commissioner. With Phelps becoming the organization's first ever commissioner, former NASCAR Chief operating officer Steve O'Donnell will assume the role of president and lead the day to day management of NASCAR's move is a significant change, as NASCAR will now follow a corporate structure similar to other North American sports leagues with a commissioner at the top. In his new role, Phelps will lead NASCAR, the International Motor Sports Association, and NASCAR's 15 company-owned racetracks. But more importantly, Phelps will use his commissioner position to focus on strategic growth and international expansion for NASCAR. Phelps has already overseen major growth for the sport, recently securing a seven-year.$7 billion media rights package for NASCAR with Fox Sports, NBC, Warner Brothers Discovery, Amazon Prime Video, and the CW. NASCAR has also made its intentions clear to boost their international standing. The organization will hold its first International Cup Series points race this summer in Mexico Series. NASCAR has also explored holding a Cup Series race in Montreal and has been in talks with countries in the Middle East and India about staging events too. The sanctioning also considered holding Cup Series races in Europe. Now it's up to Steve Phelps to convert NASCAR from an American Racing Series into a global motor sport. We'll end PO's playbook today with the SEC's new NCAA March Madness record. After setting a record 14 of its 16 teams to this year's men's basketball tournament, the SEC will make major money as a result. The SEC is set to earn a record $70 million in March Madness payment units after its success in this year's the NCAA uses a unique formula to pay out hundreds of millions of dollars to conferences annually based on their success of their participating teams in March Madness, with each game reportedly being worth around $2 million in unit payments. By next Monday's championship final, the SEC will have played in 35 games to earn 35 units worth $70 million beating the ACC's previous record of 25 units in 2016. The $70 million in tournament earnings is also a huge win for SEC commissioner Greg 2015, Sanki has worked with SEC schools to push higher salaries for top coaches. He improved the conference's officiating quality, and they have increased the SEC's health promotion of its basketball programs. NIL has also played a huge role in the SEC's basketball rise, as schools with rich alumni bases have helped lure top talent to the conference, and the best may still be to come for the SEC. The conference has two schools, Florida and Auburn, in this weekend's Final Four, and a real shot at winning an NCAA week for the deeper dive, where I give you a play by play analysis of news in the sports world, the net significance of your bottom line. We're recapping the first season of Tiger Woods and Roy McIlroy's tech-infused arena Golf League, TGL. Now, TGL's first season ended last week when the Atlanta Drive franchise won the league's inaugural championship. TheIndoor tech-enabled golf league had its share of ups and downs in year one, but I think TGL is one of the most undervalued properties in sports, and the data shows encouraging signs for the future viability of the league. Given that media rights are the primary revenue driver for every major sports league, TGL's most encouraging sign in season one was its TV averaged 513,000 viewers for its first regular season, and delivered a total audience of 19.3 million viewers across ESPN platforms. Viewership did range from about 1 million viewers for TGL's most popular matches to 160,000 viewers for its least watched match on ESPN 2. But there are some important context to these numbers. Topline viewership for TGL is a bit misleading because its matches rotated between ESPN 2. And TGL's condemned schedule put some matches to early afternoon windows that typically garner less viewership. Believe it or not, there is actually a sizable difference between matches airing on ESPN and ESPN 2. And while 300,000 viewers may not be a big hit for ESPN's main channel, it's a massive outcome for its less popular channel in ESPN 2. Plus, when you compare TGL matches to the same broadcast window from ESPN schedule and2024, which mainly featured college basketball and NHL games. TGL outperformed those time slots by 21%. TGL reportedly exceeded ESPN's expectations in year one, especially considering that the network paid less than $10 million to broadcast the league that season, according to CNBC. TGL also gives ESPN massive advantages as a product. This year, the median viewer age for TGL was 51.4 it the 2nd youngest sports league behind the NBA 50 years old, and much younger than the PGA Tour's median viewer age of 63. And unlike traditional golf, which isn't the greatest TV product with 4 day long tournaments and rounds that last more than 4 hours on average, TGL was specifically built for television. It's a different kind of golf, sure, but it's still golf no matter what the sports purists say. Every match takes less than 2 a shot clock to speed the game along. Mic'd up players create weekly viral social media clips for the league and ESPN, and the broadcast has tons of advertising opportunities baked into it. And it's not like TGL is going to replace the PGA Tour. In fact, the PGA Tour took an 18% equity stake in the league because of the massive potential it presents for the game of golf as a whole. Plus, even though Liv Golf has spent over $1 billion on player contracts and averaged about 5 times more viewers in season one at a fraction of the upfront calls. However, TGL still has plenty of work to do. The league has things to improve, like establishing a more consistent schedule for TV viewers. But overall, TGL is off to a great start, and it will be fun to see how the league evolves over time. And the good news is that TGL has proven there is a demand for its new age golf product. Now, the next step is to grow their week for my one on one, I'm joined by Mark Wright, the vice president of media services and sponsorships at AT&T. Welcome to the show, Mark. I want to talk about how AT&T specifically is utilizing their sponsorships department when it comes to March Madness and some of the other marquee events on your calendar. So speaking of March Madness, what do you say is the value proposition to AT&T specifically for this tournament? Yeah, so thank you, Joe. Uh, this, this, this sponsor should have might be, it predates uh me arriving at AT&T, one of our longest lasting, if not the longest lasting partnerships we have on the books. It goes back some 23 years, started, I think, under the singular wireless brand, now AT&T wireless, it really is an opportunity, I think in the in the in the purest form to tap into what what is arguably one of the most passionate fan experiences in the United States, right? It is, I always think about this is like the quintessential uh connectivity experience, right? And for a connectivity company, uh, as we say here, connecting changes this this is a sweet spot, right? I mean, it's a, first of all, it's 3 weekends long, right? It's not a one and done Super Bowl or, uh, you know, one game, uh, marquee matchup. This thing goes on for 3 weekends it captures the imagination ofSo many different fans out there, right, from the actual students to alumni, to parents, etc. for a company that uh has kind of grown with the tournament, this is right in the sweet spot of connectivity causeYou, you gotta stay attached to what's going on in this tournament. Obviously, March Madness has grown, it's become more important. The TV ratings are huge, the contracts around that are even bigger, but I imagine this has sort of changed your guys' approach when it comes to the tournament itself. So I'd love to just hear more on just obviously the partnership stuff, but even activations and things like that, just how this partnership has changed and evolved over the years. Yeah, so Joe, I mean, it is, uh, gosh, I don't, I don't even know where to start on that because there's so many points that have grown, right? First of all, I mean, you, you, you, it went from 64 to you got a 1st 4 play in, you've got, uh, the, the actual distribution of the games, right, has changed, where in the past it was on CBS only, it was a linear proposition and you had to download in this kind ofUh, uh, it, uh, I'll call it a challenging proposition on digital to now on March Madness live stream that has grown, uh, every single year and now it's as big as the games themselves on linear TV. Uh, our proposition, I guess, on the ground on site has grown from the concerts that take place, uh, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Ours is on to the treatment even uh uh of the halftime guest, right, that is AT&T at the half, uh, and every game, right, being presented now, uh, on, uh, on some kind of a live platform with the introduction of uh the Turner Networks, right? So that wasn't the way it was in the uh that deal changed it. So I would say almost everything from viewership to how we treat the proposition, whether it be on the ground or on the air, and then certainly the growth of the women's tournament, right, over the last 4 or 5 years it's just been and we've always been at the center of, uh, women's sports, whether it's the WNBA and, uh, or the women's Final Four, but that has certainly grown. Uh, our presence in Tampa will be, uh, the biggest it's ever been at the Women's Final Four. Yeah, and what was the thought process behind that, right? Like, if you look at sports today, I think, uh, women's sports specifically and certainly March Madness around the women's tournament has become uh a great asset for brands to leverage to be able to get more exposure and things like that. And I know a lot of different brands have been looking at that over the last couple of as you mentioned, AT&T was sort of one of the early adapters more than a decade ago to really invest in and put assets towards women's sports. March Madness, but other ones as well with the WNBA too. What was the driving force behind that and why did you guys think that was going to be so valuable in the future? Well, I, I think you've, uh, you start from a place of, uh, gender equality, which is something the company has always believed in and supports, uh, whether it's the women's national soccer team and the success they've had in at World Cups and in the Olympics, or it's uh the WNBA and our charter position there when we did our deal with the league, uh, some 7 years ago, or women's Final and our support of that on ESPN, the broadcast, uh, partner, right, of, uh, the NCAA. But mostly, Joe, it, it's because it's good for business, right? Marketing, uh, to, um,You know, uh, to that consumer set is good for our brand and our business, uh, our products and services. So I'd say that's at the heart of it, uh, and certainly capturing fan passion across the board. Yeah, has NIL specifically changed the way that you approach uh college sports in general, but I guess more specifically March Madness and and men's women's college basketball? Yeah, so, um, well, I think the most uh obvious change, right, that NIL has had on us is the opportunity to tap into the actual athletes that um are competing. Uh, so, uh, we, we have used this year as you probably are aware, participants, one that has just become an absolute cultural phenomenon in some ways, in Cooper flag and uh the two UCLA players, Kiki Rice and Lauren Batts, both of them are in our ads, both of them talk about uh the ETT guarantee and how uh we want that to be uh expressed, right, in giving commercials and how we're trying to market those products and services. Uh, so the NIL opportunities just opens the door to actually, uh, go in and, uh, you know, um, work, uh, some kind of a uh relationship with these athletes, where in the past that obviously didn't exist. Yeah, and how do you measure the success of a partnership like this, right? Like, I think everyone understands that the exposure is super important, you're gonna get a lot of eyeballs on the brand and everything like that, but are there any internal metrics or things that you guys look at to to quantify or measure the success of a large partnership like this? Uh, yeah, so I, I think, uh, I would, I would say it's 22 fronts, right? And this is the case in most, in, in most of our partnerships that we have, not necessarily just March Madness and Final 41 is is absolutely on brand attributes, right? Did we brand, uh, love, if you will, right? Um, brand relevance, brand, brand awareness, brand relevance, brand consideration through these associations, whether the association is at a high level through AT&T in the NCAA or AT&T in the NBA, um, and then ultimately trying to drive that, uh, through the funnel, if you will, uh, to, uh, a purchase, right? And we have other metrics we in terms of driving that, uh, through the funnel, but, but primarily it is about, you know, brand love, and did we, uh, improve on that through these relationships and, and we have a number of ways to measurethat. We've got to take a quick break, but we'll be back with more of my conversation with Mark Wright right after back to Yahoo Finance Sports Report. I'm your host, Joe Pompeano. I'm here with Mark Wright, the vice president of media services and sponsorships at AT&T. Yeah, so we, we talked a little bit about how you measure kind of the effectiveness of the campaign, but is there things that you do on the front end to determine whether you should even get involved in something? well, I, I would say the first, the first screen, right, isUm, does it actually work for AT&T's brand offering, right, our products and services. Uh, is that, uh, an opportunity, uh, content wise that we think fits the overall AT&T brand? Uh, and, uh, I think the second, uh, consideration isUh, is scale, right? We're a big company, we have millions of customers out there. It's a super competitive category, as you know, Joe, how we try to grow that through acquisition or uh a trade up of our current customer base, you really have to have scale. Certainly March Madness has and then you have to look at the, the portfolio of assets, whether it be sponsorship or media, and uh how that potential asset that you're thinking about acquiring fits, right into it, whether it fits uh from the strategic perspective on reach and how it fits in your overall calendar, right? The, the annual calendar in your business. Well, you sort of sit in a weird spot where you're, you're hoping that the entire tournament performs well and as many eyeballs as possible are on your brand. But is it fair to say that you're hoping uh that Duke wins because of your relationship with Cooper Flag? No, that I'm not going there. Uh, you, you know, it's, uh, you know, this year is interesting, right? Like it's only the 2nd time ever that all four of the #1 seeds have made the Final Four, you, uh, you play some bats, and even if Duke had not won into the Final Four, I think you would still have incredible mileage on the Cooper relationship. Um, yeah, as you probably know, we we're an official, um, with the NBA as well, uh, and, uh, striking a relationship with works, uh, for us on both fronts, right? Um, we hope that he goes on to have a successful career in the NBA and is projected to be the number one pick, and so that kind of crossover I think would work for us, but, but we're, uh, I've been doing this a long time. I got over rooting for one team or one league over the other a long time ago. That's uh that's very fair. Well, Mark, thank you so much for joining us today. It's awesome to learn about how AT&T is leveraging some of the sponsorships, specifically across March Madness, but this stuff is fascinating, so I appreciate your time. You're very welcome, Joe. The clock is winding down here, but we have just enough time for some final buzz. So, let's talk about Deion Sanders' contract extension with the University of Colorado. Last Friday, the University of Colorado announced that head football coach Deion Sanders agreed to a 5 year, $54 million contract extension will double Sanders's salary to an average annual value of $10.8 million to make him the eighth highest paid coach in college football after a 9 and 4 season last year that included a Heisman Trophy win for two-way superstar Travis Hunter. Now, Sanders' base salary will stay the same at $500,000 per year. However, his supplemental salary for things like PR, football program promotion, and fundraising will double in the new agreement. In addition to the increased payments, Sanders will also get a $300,000 allowance per a private jet, a country club membership and access to two SUVs. With the new contract signed, Sanders is now committed to Colorado through the 2029 football season. And the deal calls for Sanders and the Colorado Buffalos to meet and confer in good faith at the conclusion of the 2027 season, to talk about a possible contract extension, which means Sanders could be aligned for an even bigger payday in two years if all goes well in Boulder. Now, some college football fans may think it's too early for one of the highest paid coaches in college football. However, I maintain my long held position that this new deal is still a bargain for the University of Colorado. Why? Well, because even in just two seasons, Deion Sanders has had an outsized impact on the University of Colorado's business. Colorado says home football games have had an economic impact of $94 million since Sanders' arrival. Last year, the University of Colorado saw a record 68,000 applicants for the fall 2024 semester. A 20%.from 2023 that results in a 3.4% increase in student enrollment. Plus, with more applicants, Colorado can place a premium on accepting out of state students who pay $34,000 in out of state tuition annually versus $12,000 for in-state students. So at the end of the day, whether you agree or disagree with the extension, one thing can't be denied athletics are the front door to a university. And by doubling down on DM Sanders's coaching salary, the Colorado Buffaloes are simply doing good all out of time, so it's officially game over for this week. Thank you so much to Mark and all of you for joining us. Make sure to tune into Yahoo Finance Sports Reports on Thursdays at 5 p.m. wherever you get your podcast. I'm your host, Joe Pompeanaa. See you next time. This content was not intended to be financial advice and should not be used as a substitute for professional financial services. 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Yahoo
05-01-2025
- Yahoo
Local super-fan reaches milestone birthday
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Veteran, uncle, dad, and granddad are just a few of the titles worn by Billy Hall, or more affectionately known by friends and family, as 'Pops.' On January 4, he celebrated with friends and family as this man of many titles turned 80 years old. Donate and save lives during National Blood Donor Month 'I never thought I would make it this far, but I praise and thank God that I've made it, and He's kept me in pretty good health and surrounded me with many beautiful friends and family,' Hall said. Pops was born in Brewton, Alabama, but he moved to Wichita Falls in 1993 with his wife and never looked back. After building a life in Wichita Falls, he became known by many in the community as a superfan of the City View Mustangs, whom he never fails to support. Kiriski Mitchell, one of Hall's family members from California, learned that first-hand after they arrived in Wichita Falls. 'When we got here Friday morning, we're like, 'Where's Uncle Billy?' He had snuck out the back door to go to the basketball game at City View,' Mitchell said. 'That's the kind of support he feels for the team. And then we called like, 'Where are you?' He's like, 'Oh, I'm at the game.' He's like, there's one more game to go.' Though his mind was on the Mustangs on Friday night, Pops knows his greatest joy came from his family from across the country making their way to Wichita Falls. 'I'd just like to thank all of my friends and family and everyone who wished me a very happy birthday,' Hall said. 'That made me feel so good, and I'd just like to say thank you to all of them.' After 80 years, Billy 'Pops' Hall earned every one of those birthday wishes from family, friends, and the community. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
