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Tom Mayenknecht: Club World Cup gets a red card as interest is dire.
Published Jun 20, 2025 • 3 minute read
panthers
Florida Panthers centre Brad Marchand skates with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the Cup Final on June 17 in Sunrise, Fla. Photo by Lynne Sladky /AP
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Bulls of the week
On this first day of summer and longest day of sunshine of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, there’s plenty to be bullish about in the business of sport, beginning with the two words “Game 7” in the NBA, where the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers will play for all of the marbles on Sunday.
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The NHL fell short at six games in its Stanley Cup Final this spring after watching the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers go the distance 12 months ago in their first of back-to-back showdowns. That was the 18th Cup Final Game 7 over the course of 83 years, with the previous final series maximum having been reached when the St. Louis Blues won their first Cup in franchise history, beating the Boston Bruins in 2019.
The Association, on the other hand, is playing an NBA Finals Game 7 for the first time in nine years, when LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers outlasted Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in 2016.
Moreover, the NBA is in one of those scenarios where they’ll have a compelling storyline and first-time champion, either way. That won’t fully mitigate against the small-market matchup when it comes to TV ratings, but it will at least make the most of the showdown between the 25th biggest TV market in the U.S. (Indianapolis) and the 47th largest (OKC).
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It was also a bullish week for emerging sport business tycoon Mark Walter, who announced that he will be adding the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA to his impressive list of sport properties, one that has featured the defending World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers since 2012.
The deal between Walter, who is building on a personal net worth that was estimated at US$6.1 billion in February, and the longtime Buss family ownership group values the Lakers at US$10 billion, a record franchise transaction in North American pro sport.
Walter’s reach and influence also extends to Chelsea of the Premier League of English soccer, a stake in Strasbourg of the French Ligue 1, Cadillac Formula One, and single-entity governance and ownership of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL).
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Yet there was no bigger winner in the business of sport this week than owner Vinnie Viola and his Panthers, who won their second consecutive Cup title in their third straight trip to the championship series.
The dominant performance by the Paul Maurice-coached Panthers inspired many to begin referring to them as a dynasty, suggesting that two wins in three finals in the salary cap era at least rivals three or four straight titles in the years before payroll restrictions and the resulting competitive parity were introduced in to the NHL more than 20 years ago.
It’s an impressive achievement, not only for the Panthers, but also for the sunbelt hockey strategy deployed as part of NHL commissioner Gary Bettman’s more than 30-year tenure.
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It marks the sixth straight year in which the Cup has gone through the state of Florida, with two wins and three trips through Tampa Bay 2020-22 and the same through Sunrise, Fla., 2023-25.
It’s a remarkable evolution as well for a team that has spent much of its history with among the lowest attendance in the NHL. The Panthers have nowhere near the profile of a Canadian-based market, but give credit where credit is due: They’re run by a highly respected hockey operations department that does much more than simply benefit from zero state income tax provisions in Florida.
Bears of the week
The FIFA 2026 World Cup — now less than a year away — will be a huge success played before sellouts throughout its three host countries of the U.S., Mexico and Canada. That doesn’t change the fact that the Cup hasn’t made quite the same dent, at least so far, on attendance and fan engagement in the American stadiums that are hosting it.
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Fast-forward eight to 12 years and the global club championship will be better understood.
Consider these growing pains for an event that just a few years ago was played under more of a “final four” format, not a 32-team competition spanning all six continents.
Tom Mayenknecht is the host of The Sport Market on Sportsnet 650 on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Vancouver-based sport business commentator and principal in Emblematica Brand Builders provides a behind-the-scenes look at the sport business stories that matter most to fans. Follow Mayenknecht at: x.com/TheSportMarket.
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[Abbotsford Canucks forward Arshdeep Bains celebrates his second period goal against the Charlotte Checkers during Game 4 of the AHL Calder Cup Finals on June 19, 2025. Abbotsford won 3-2.
Abbotsford Canucks Recap: One win away from Calder Cup glory after 3-2 Game 4 victory](https://vancouversun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/abbotsford-canucks-score-recap-game-4-charlotte-checkers-ahl-calder-cup-final/wcm/d9a056d0-ee53-469b-9f27-63250608eced)
2. [Vancouver Canucks senior managers — president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford, general manager Patrik Allvin, president of business operations Michael Doyle and Dax Aquilini, son of team co-owner Roberto Aquilini — were spotted at Rosemary Brown Recreation Centre in south Burnaby taking an apparent tour of the facility on June 4.
Canucks: The Aquilini ownership chatter is not going away](https://vancouversun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/canucks-ownership-rumours-not-going-away)
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