DDolich
1-1-18 - 49ers - Ed Jay
1-1-18 - Raiders
1-1-18 - Oakland A's
Will Jimmy G. fill 
Levi Stadium's seats?
More sizzle needed for
Sin City ?
A reprieve for Howard Terminal?

Andy Dolich -- 2015
Andy Dolich
 
Sports Stories to Follow in 2018

By Andy Dolich

Here are some sports stories that are sure to be front and center in the coming months.

1.  The A-Z of Jimmy G. and the 49ers is going to be the rags to riches sports saga in 2018. This will truly be a Game of Thrones on everyone's mind. Fans are already buying gallons of suntan oil.

2.  There will be at least one Championship parade in the Bay Area in 2018.

3.  The Golden State Warriors continue the mega money process of selling their new Chase Center in San Francisco to their fans. How much will individual and season tickets cost to the best show in the NBA? The $15,000 membership fees for each season ticket have moved without much eye-blinking.

4.  Security and safety at sports events: We live in a world where sports venues have become targets. How authorities effectively create secure fan environments without taking away the openness of our sporting events and venues is key. The process of going to a game will become more complicated and expensive for teams, fans and event operators. Are those drones or Seagulls?

5.  Ongoing traumatic brain injury and CTE fallout in all contact sports: The basis of the sports business is the player-participation pipeline. As science improves on diagnosing head injuries, every family associated with constant contact sports will be monitoring the risk/reward of their children's participation.
 
6.  The Oakland A's new ballpark location continues to be a cloudy vision. Do they re-engage in negotiations with Peralta, relook at Howard Terminal, go all in on making the Coliseum the East Bay's answer to the Miracle of Mission Bay? A's fans will be enjoying games at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum for years to come as the franchise deals with their search to keep the Team Rooted in Oakland.

7.  Vegas Baby! Yes, the Silver and Black have broken ground on their $2 billion dollar domed stadium in Sin City. If you are a betting person, when are you going to see the team kicking off in Las Vegas? How will the Oakland Raiders' re-energize the franchise after the 2017 road-to-the-Super Bowl became a disappointing off ramp? Welcome back Chucky?

8.  Is an NFL team going to sign Colin Kaepernick in 2018?

9.  What comes first? Will the Angel's Shohei Otani hit a home run or pitch a scoreless inning?

10.  Players, coaches, and league officials will continue taking public positions on societal, political and workplace issues. Active involvement in social causes will increase significantly in 2018.

11.  What will attendance look like in Pyeongchang, South Korea for the Winter Olympics from February 9-25? How about in Russia for FIFA's World Cup from June 14-July 15. Make sure you don't book, screw up and fly to Pyongyang unless you are traveling with Dennis Rodman.

12.  Will Tiger Woods be hoisting a championship trophy in 2018?

13.  Following the Bouncing Balls:
What the L!
Lonzo and the Lakers
Lamelo and LiAngelo in Lithuania
Lavar In LaLa land

14.  The NFL was kicked around plenty in 2017. Will they continue to be front-and-center in the midst of multiple controversies? Are they the UFC or the NFL?

15.  Cord-cutters are now being joined by cord-never fans and plugging into new methods of consuming sports. This generation is spending spend more time and money looking down than up when they go to a live sporting event or will they just bypass the event altogether? ESports is real and doesn't seem to be slowing down.

16.  Hopefully the Russians won't be interested in the new voting procedures for this year's NBA All-Star game in Staples on February 18th. Team captains will be determined by the most votes received in their respective conference. They will then draft their teams from the pool of players voted as starters and reserves. S ounds like the coolest idea for All-Star games ever.

17.  NFL draft: How many players from Bay Area schools will be selected to move on? How high will Stanford's Bryce Love go if he declares for the draft ? Who will the 49ers and Raiders be focusing on?

18.  The Cal Athletic Department: The deep financial deficit caused by the Memorial Stadium retrofit may cause cuts in Golden Bears team sports. Who is the new Athletic Director going to be when Mike Williams leaves in May?

Miscellaneous:
Standing ovation for Stanford's men and women's soccer programs. They became the first University to capture both NCAA titles in the same year. The men won their third straight title and the women went back-to-back and ran their undefeated streak to 22.

Did you know? T he National Championship in college football for 2018 will be played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara on January 7, 2019.

Andy Dolich, President, Dolich Consulting -- Dolich has held executive positions in the NFL (San Francisco 49ers), NBA (Memphis Grizzlies, Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers), MLB (Oakland A's), NHL (Washington Capitals) Pro Soccer and Lacrosse. Dolich is the Entrepreneur in Residence at Menlo College and co-author of

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3-6-17 - Pops

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