Racing prodigy Connor Zilisch is in discussions to compete full-time next year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team, according to sources, as Zilisch rapidly climbs the motorsports ladder toward the premier Cup Series. The 17-year-old was signed in January by Trackhouse Racing, which is trying to assert itself as the future of NASCAR in part by amassing driving talent. Zilisch isn’t competing full-time this year in one of NASCAR’s three national series because a driver must be 18 years old to do so, but he will make his Xfinity Series debut in September at Watkins Glen after he turns 18 in July, driving for Earnhardt’s JR Motorsports. 

Zilisch has quickly made a name for himself by winning in various disciplines and series, and Trackhouse scouted the highly touted prospect. He won the Rolex 24 hours of Daytona sports car race in January and pole position in his debut NASCAR national series race in March when he drove in the Craftsman Truck Series at COTA. The Truck Series and the Xfinity Series allow drivers younger than 18 to complete, but only at shorter tracks and not full time. The COTA appearance was for Spire Motorsports, another team that is close to Trackhouse. Zilisch, who hails from North Carolina, also has two wins this year in the ARCA Menards Series. On top of Watkins Glen, he will compete in three other Xfinity Series races for JR Motorsports this season, for a total of four events with the team in 2024.
 
Trackhouse and JR Motorsports are in talks to elevate him to the Xfinity Series full time in 2025, sources told SBJ. Sponsorship details could not be confirmed, but Trackhouse has a range of partners such as WeatherTech that could step up to defray his racing costs and enjoy in the exposure he will produce. It costs upward of $6M to sponsor an Xfinity driver for a season in a top ride. Both Trackhouse and JRM are aligned with Chevrolet, making it a brand fit from a car manufacturer perspective. 

Trackhouse is a two-car team in NASCAR’s premier series but could expand to three as soon as next year. It’s been in the private equity market since last year seeking to raise capital to fund the growing ambitions of team founder Justin Marks and President Ty Norris. Those ambitions include its expansion this year to MotoGP’s premier series, making it the only American team on the grid of the globe-trotting motorbike racing property, which was recently purchased by Liberty Media. Marks is based in Nashville, which is the site of this weekend’s NASCAR action.

Digital media platform Snapchat will sponsor a NASCAR driver in next week’s racing action around the streets of Chicago to promote its “Less Social Media, More Snapchat” campaign that debuted this year. The sponsorship will be with Xfinity Series team Alpha Prime Racing and its No. 43 Chevy driven by Ryan Ellis at next Saturday’s “The Loop 110” on the Chicago street course. Specifically, the paint scheme and Ellis’ fire suit will highlight the second ad that Snapchat debuted as part of the campaign, this one called “Less likes. More Love,” which came out this month. The campaign is about the power of self expression, and as a result the paint scheme is an eye-popping collage of random colors, hearts, butterflies, Snapchat brand lettering and its ghost logo. Snapchat is part of the publicly traded Snap Inc., which was trading at $16.54 a share at presstime, down 0.2% from the close of business Thursday.

The St. Louis Cardinals will offer fans a "first of its kind" giveaway tomorrow, with fans receiving a free, randomly-sized jersey. The "first 25,000 fans 16 and older" will get a jersey sized "anywhere between adult small and extra-extra large." Cardinals Multimedia Communications Strategist Carson Shipley said the team "wanted wanted to provide the chance for fans to get a size they would enjoy." Shipley: “We think fans will enjoy the high-quality look of the jersey and want them to have the opportunity to get the size that fits them best.” A “jersey exchange” between fans will take place at the Budweiser Terrace in the upper right-field corner. Shipley also noted the team has “predicted how many of each size jersey would be needed” by taking the "extra step to study retail trends in our Team Store over the last few seasons to ensure the proportion of jersey sizes given out at the gates reflect our fans’ preferences” (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/27).

Royals SS Bobby Witt Jr. has signed an endorsement deal with Whataburger, joining Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes as the latest “Kansas City sports star from Texas” partnering with the San Antonio-based QSR. Company President & CEO Ed Nelson “handed Witt a white and orange Whataburger jersey, which he slipped over a Royals jersey,” during the announcement on Thursday at a restaurant a “short distance from Kauffman Stadium.” Part of Witt’s responsibilities will be to sign autographs and “interact with fans on social media” on behalf of the QSR (K.C. STAR, 6/27).

The Trail Blazers have hired Galen Davies as EVP & CRO, where he will be responsible for leading strategic planning, ticketing and commercial partnerships -- with the goal of increasing revenue streams and diversifying customer segments. Davies joins the organization after 15 years with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, where he was most recently VP/Brand and Commercial Strategy. The Trail Blazers retained search firm Nolan Partners in the hiring of Davies. Additionally, Laura Flynn has been promoted to SVP/Commercial Partnerships (Trail Blazers).

Sporting KC has hired former Revolution GM Mike Burns as the club’s new Sporting Dir. Burns spent 15 seasons on the Revolution’s technical staff "in various roles," becoming GM after the 2011 season. He was dismissed as GM in May 2019, "days after Brad Friedel was fired" as the club's coach. In 2022 and 2023, Burns "served as a consultant with the MLS league office." The move comes after Sporting KC "made an offseason hire to the position" -- previously announcing former Portland Timbers and Thorns exec Gavin Wilkinson for the same role. However, the club parted ways with Wilkinson eight days later "after continued public backlash" due to his time in Portland, where he was fired after multiple investigations into the organization’s handling of alleged misconduct by players and coaches (K.C. STAR, 6/28).

With exactly four weeks to go until the start of the Paris Games, a number of storylines and newsworthy notes have been popping up in recent days: 

• Paris Games storylines emerge at U.S. Trials
• Tide's new Paris Olympics ad features Noah Lyles, Carl Lewis
• NBC teaming with social media companies to deploy content creators for Olympic coverage
• Paris Games seeking to restore prestige of Olympics
• NBCU's Olympic ad sales still on track for 'best ever'
• Off and running: U.S. track team boost stars ready for crossover opportunities
• USOPC extending CEO Sarah Hirshland's contract
• AI-generated version of Al Michaels' voice will be used to deliver Paris Olympic recaps on Peacock
• Al Michaels embracing AI-generated voice for NBC's Olympics coverage
• NBC's upcoming Olympics coverage to be a fresh start on broadcast approach
• NBC's primetime Olympics coverage to feature branded content

Andretti Global and Chicago-based developer Bradford Allen joined general contractor Clark Construction Group to celebrate the topping out of Andretti Global’s new HQ. The nearly 400,000-square-foot facility is part of a larger 90-acre campus, and more than quadruples the size of Andretti’s HQ (Andretti Global).

The San Diego Wave have reached a partnership with Alaska Airlines as the Official Airline Partner of the club. As part of launching the partnership, tonight's match against the Red Stars will be presented by Alaska Airlines (Wave).

Performance eyewear company Revo Sunglasses is partnering with Knicks G Donte DiVincenzo in a deal thatwill feature his favorite Revo sunglass frames and styles on a dedicated page on the Revo website. DiVincenzo will also participate in an exclusive in-store meet-and-greet event at Revo’s flagship store in Soho on July 1 at 6pm ET (Revo).

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced almost half a billion dollars in "funding for elite athletes" in the lead-up to the Paris Games. On Friday, he detailed the government's investment strategy as it "targets future success at the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games" (SKY NEWS AUSTRALIA, 6/28).

Billionaire former Georgia Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili "promised to pay out more than $10 million" following the Georgia soccer team's surprise win over Portugal in Euro 2024 (AP, 6/28).

"It’s a big moment for us. We worked really hard with the players, with all the teams over the past couple years to take a sweater that they already loved and make it a little bit better and take it to the next level" -- Fanatics founder & CEO Michael Rubin, on picks at Friday's NHL Draft receiving jerseys with the company's logo on it ("First Take," ESPN, 6/28).

hey there CC 👋@Gatorade installed this impressive Caitlin Clark promotion in downtown Indianapolis. pic.twitter.com/31zd43c7L1

— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 27, 2024

When Anderson anchored the 6p SC, he’d go from the 11:30am show meeting to the gym where he’d run 6-10 miles.

Then he’d go to the caf where he’d get gummy worms and a Pepsi or a Mt. Dew.

Then he’d go write an incredible show in maybe 45 minutes.

The man is built different 🫡 https://t.co/Wrydc7uw9F

— Randy Scott (@RandyScottESPN) June 28, 2024

"The NFL is gonna take this all the to the supreme court if they have to because it's $14 billion..

We know have a number to attached to this thing and we're gonna see what happens"@ProFootballTalk #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/LkeVuutMlx

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 28, 2024

The winning guitar for Sunday here in Nashville: pic.twitter.com/r5xnlZzC4M

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) June 28, 2024

Frank Bensel Jr. just made back-to-back aces at the U.S. Senior Open! 🤯

See more: https://t.co/YeAPQPasSM pic.twitter.com/CoK0VNql4Q

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) June 28, 2024

Oof! $NKE now off 20% on the day. Phil Knight's net worth down $5.8B today, per @Forbes. https://t.co/V3tPbgaYyc pic.twitter.com/pg2zMphNKY

— Kurt Badenhausen (@kbadenhausen) June 28, 2024

In a new ad for “Welcome to Wrexham," team owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney “tricked” musician Dolly Parton into promoting their show.

411,000 -- Average viewership on SNY for the two-game Mets-Yankees series this week, as the RSN saw its two best games this season to date. The Subway Series also averaged 3.1 million live minutes streamed, marking the two best digital audiences for games this season on SNY (Austin Karp, SBJ).