Sports & Society

"Happy Gilmore 2" is set for a Summer release.

During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, actor Adam Sandler revealed that the production had officially wrapped up on Friday and that they were aiming for a July release. He also revealed that rapper Eminem would make a cameo, and while he couldn't reveal his role, he said that his acting skills were noticeable.

"I've known Eminem for a long time and he is a great guy," Sandler said. "He came in and was funny as hell. We hung out all day with Eminem and shot and shot. He said a million things we can use and we are glad we had him on tape."

Sandler also revealed that legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus is making a cameo in addition to other golfers and noted that Nicklaus was "awesome" to work with. Patrick himself will also make a cameo in the film.

Patrick has appeared in multiple Sandler films, including Hustle, Just Go With It and Grown Ups. Eminem notably guest starred in Sandler's movie Funny People.

Jack Nicklaus had previously been confirmed to have a cameo in the film, as will current professionals Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele, Ricky Fowler, Collin Morikawa and Keegan Bradley. PGA Tour Champions golfer John Daly will also have a role in the film in addition to Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

The film is a sequel to the original 1996 film that saw Sandler star as the titular character. He was a failed ice hockey player with a booming slap shot who transitions into a golfer with a noted drive. The film also starred actor Christopher McDonald as the antagonist, Shooter McGavin and Julie Bowen as Gilmore's love interest.

Both Bowen and McGavin reprised their roles as well in this film.

Hip-hop star Kendrick Lamar will have an interesting stop on his Grand National Tour featuring SZA that was announced on Tuesday.

The Toronto Blue Jays revealed that Lamar's tour will include a visit to the Rogers Centre on June 12:

Kendrick Lamar visits Rogers Centre in June

Tickets go on sale December 6 at 10:00am ET 👇

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) December 3, 2024

Of course, Toronto is home to Lamar's biggest music rival, Drake. The two of them engaged in one of the biggest rap beefs in recent memory over the summer.

Many believe Lamar came out on top in his feud with Drake thanks to his smash-hit record, "Not Like Us," which received five nominations in the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Fans on social media couldn't help but troll Drake after it was announced that Lamar would be taking a victory lap through his hometown:

Drake: “I don’t want you to book Kendrick in Toronto”

Rogers Centre: pic.twitter.com/BNXBogd3f7

— Xanthony Davis (@PretttyFlackooo) December 3, 2024

Drake will be at the Toronto show like this pic.twitter.com/Ty4XYsRlGQ

— Charles J. Moore (@charles270) December 3, 2024

drake at the rogers center while kendrick and sza performing pic.twitter.com/utnuGtQeqP

— ethical hater (@DijahSB) December 3, 2024

Drake fans in shambles right now

— BET99 Ontario (@BET99ON) December 3, 2024

Lamar visiting Toronto is another clear indication of the undeniability of his star power. His tour will also include stops at Mercedez-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and SoFi Stadium in his hometown of Los Angeles.

A classic sports movie is finally getting it's long-awaited sequel.

Netflix announced on Monday that Happy Gilmore 2 was "officially in production." The streaming service paired the announcement with a black Boston Bruins jersey in the team's 1990's style.

Happy Gilmore 2 is officially in production ⛳️ pic.twitter.com/IznOshH5Es

— Netflix (@netflix) September 9, 2024

This lines up with the original movie from 1996, in which Gilmore, the protagonist played by Adam Sandler, dons that exact jersey. The famed actor shared the same photo on Instagram and captioned it "It ain't over. The way I see it...we've only just begun."

That quote is inspired by a similar line that Gilmore delivers to Shooter McGavin, his golf rival, in that original movie.

The classic featured Gilmore, a hockey player with a blistering slap shot but limited skill otherwise, taking his talent to the golf course and competing to save his grandmother's house from foreclosure.

The plot for the new movie is not yet known, but some of the casting is. Christopher McDonald will reprise his role as McGavin and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce will have a role as well.

The movie will premiere on Netflix but a release date is not yet known. Still, the news of production shows fans that the sequel will eventually be available.

After Argentina earned a 2-0 win over Canada on Tuesday night in the semifinals of the 2024 Copa America, the Lionel Messi-led squad got the last laugh over hip-hop artist Drake.

The 37-year-old Canadian placed a $300,000 bet for his home country to come out with the win, so Argentina took to social media after its victory with a quote from Kendrick Lamar's hit diss track "Not Like Us."

Not like us, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐮𝐬 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/Zoa4OTbgnK

— Selección Argentina in English (@AFASeleccionEN) July 10, 2024

This is far from the first time that Drake has failed to cash in on his major sports bets, as many believe he carries a "curse" when it comes to his wagers. Just last month, he bet $500,000 on the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup Final and another $500,000 on the Dallas Mavericks to win the NBA Finals, and both teams ended up losing their respective series.

While taking losses in sports bets is nothing new for Drake, he has had to deal with the masses celebrating his loss to Lamar in their rap beef that encapsulated the music world for the past few months. Lamar's "Not Like Us" has been streamed nearly half a billion times on Spotify and the music video that was released just last week already has over 115 million views on YouTube.

Messi scored his 109th career international goal and first of this year's tournament in the 51st minute of Tuesday's game to help Argentina secure the win. Julián Álvarez got the defending Copa American champions on the board first in the 22nd minute.

Messi has now produced 28 goals in his last 25 matches for Argentina, and his 14 career goals in Copa America play are just three shy of the all-time record. The 37-year-old sits behind only Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo (130) in career international goals.

Argentina has gone unbeaten in each of its last 10 matches. The team will be seeking a record 16th Copa America title when it meets the winner of Uruguay vs. Colombia in Sunday's final.

"It's insane what this team has done, what the Argentina national team is doing," Messi said after the win. "For those who remain from the old guard, it's beyond impressive that the national team is in another final."

The ongoing back-and-forth between hip-hop stars Drake and Kendrick Lamar has captivated music fans far and wide, and New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner was among those to weigh in on the situation.

After Kendrick surprised fans with the release of "Euphoria" on Tuesday in response to Drake's "Push Ups" and "Taylor Made Freestyle" diss tracks, Gardner said he was expecting more.

"Waited 3 weeks for that?? And I'm a civilian," Gardner said in a now-deleted tweet that included a meme expressing his disappointment and a laughing emoji, per TMZ.

Gardner added that he didn't think the song was "bad," but he thought Kendrick should have done better given the time between the release of his diss and Drake's tracks.

The two-time All-Pro cornerback must have ignited some vitriol from fans, as he started backtracking after he deleted the original tweet:

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, ITS OKAY TO BE A FAN OF DRAKE & KENDRICK. YALL ARE TOO DEEP IN(⏸️)

— SAUCE GARDNER (@iamSauceGardner) April 30, 2024

https://twitter.com/iamSauceGardner/status/1785382636640170366

Gardner will likely be cautious about sharing his opinion going forward after landing in hot water on Tuesday.

Drake made a lofty wager on the Kansas City Chiefs, and it paid off for him.

The rapper put down a $1.15 million bet on the Chiefs to beat the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 58, and the win earned him a whopping $2.3 million.

Drake's logic for why he picked the Chiefs was simple.

"I can't bet against the Swifties," he said in an Instagram post.

Drake has been known to make some big bets, and winning a big one for the Super Bowl will likely only add to his confidence.

The winning bet didn't come without a little stress, though. The Chiefs were down 10-0 early and had to crawl back, sending the game to overtime on a Harrison Butker field goal with seconds left. In overtime, the 49ers struck first on a field goal, but Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs down the field and ultimately to the win, securing their third Super Bowl in five years.

Drake made a good decision by not betting against the Chiefs, and now he can enjoy a big payday as Kansas City enjoys another Super Bowl.

Outside of the people directly involved, nobody may have more riding on the outcome of UFC 297's main event than Drake.

The rapper wagered $700,000 on Sean Strickland to successfully defend his middleweight title against Dricus du Plessis. A Strickland victory would net him a nearly $1.4 million payout.

Drake bet $700K on Sean Strickland to beat Dricus Du Plessis tonight 😳

(via @Drake) pic.twitter.com/feg4Un8OID

— br_betting (@br_betting) January 20, 2024

Strickland upset Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 to reign supreme over the middleweight division. He's carrying a three-fight winning streak into Saturday night's bout.

A win for the 32-year-old is no sure thing, though.

Du Plessis has a 20-2 overall record and is unbeaten in six fights since debuting in UFC in 2020. Each of his last two wins came via a second-round TKO.

A title change could easily take place at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

As the adage goes, you have to spend money to make money. For Drake, there are certainly less risky ways to invest $700k.

Sports betting isn't going away any time soon, and ESPN is jumping into the gambling industry head-on.

The self-proclaimed "worldwide leader in sports" has reached an agreement with Penn Entertainment to launch ESPN BET sportsbook this fall, the company announced Tuesday. It will launch in the 16 states where Penn Entertainment has sports betting licenses.

"Our primary focus is always to serve sports fans and we know they want both betting content and the ability to place bets with less friction from within our products," said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro. "The strategy here is simple: to give fans what they've been requesting and expecting from ESPN. PENN Entertainment is the perfect partner to build an unmatched user experience for sports betting with ESPN BET."

ESPN BET will join an ever-growing gambling market that includes the likes of major sports betting companies like DraftKings, Caesars, FanDuel and BetMGM, among others. Like those companies, ESPN will offer a mobile app, website and mobile website.

The Republican-led House of Representatives has passed the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which would ban transgender athletes from competing in women's and girls' sports at schools and educational institutions that receive federal funds.

However, the bill is not expected to get through the Democratic-led Senate, per Clare Foran and Shawna Mizelle of CNN.com.

Per Josh Christenson of the New York Post, no Democrats in the House approved the legislation. The vote was 219-203 down party lines.

The White House has also explicitly stated that it would veto the bill if it got to President Joe Biden's desk, although it is not expected to get that far.

The bill was introduced by Rep. Greg Steube of Florida's 17th congressional district.

"Parents do not want biological men in locker rooms with their daughters, nor do they believe it's equitable a male can compete with women in female athletics," Steube said in part during a floor speech Wednesday, per Scott Wong of NBC News.

Rep. Mark Takano of California's 39th congressional district also spoke and stated that "his friends on the other side of the aisle do not recognize trans people as human beings."

"We know transgender students already face widespread bullying and discrimination," Takano said Wednesday, per Wong. "Adding to their pain by targeting their participation in school sports is both wrong and dangerous."

A bill summary reads as follows:

"Specifically, the bill provides that it is a violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for federally funded education programs or activities to operate, sponsor, or facilitate athletic programs or activities that allow individuals of the male sex to participate in programs or activities that are designated for women or girls. (Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs or activities, including in public elementary and secondary schools and in colleges and universities.) Under the bill, sex is based on an individual's reproductive biology and genetics at birth."

The Movement Advancement Project (h/t Annie Karni of the New York Times) reports that 21 states have already enacted laws banning transgender athletes from playing sports aligned with their gender identity.

However, the bill doesn't appear to have a chance of passing on the federal level. The White House's statement on the matter read in part:

"Discrimination has no place in our nation's schools or on our playing fields. At a time when transgender youth already face a nationwide mental health crisis, with half of transgender youth in a recent survey saying they have seriously considered suicide, a national law that further stigmatizes these children is completely unnecessary, hurts families and students, and would only put students at greater risk."

The bill would need 51 votes to pass in the Senate just to get there, but that would appear to be a moot point with Democrats holding the majority (48 Democrats but three independents who caucus with them).

On the 50th anniversary of Title IX being signed into law, the United States Department of Education has proposed new and revised regulations.

Per ESPN's Paula Lavigne, Thursday's proposal would keep in place a provision from President Donald Trump's administration that "prevents disciplinary action against students until an investigation has determined they were at fault," including in cases of alleged sexual assault or misconduct.

The new proposals include formal protections for LGBTQ+ students by making it clear that "preventing someone from participating in school programs and activities consistent with their gender identity would cause harm in violation of Title IX," though specific regulations around transgender athletes were not included.

Instead, the Department of Education said it will engage in separate rulemaking "to address whether and how the Department should amend the Title IX regulations to address students' eligibility to participate on a particular male or female athletics team."

U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona told reporters during Thursday's media call that LGBTQ+ protections were important to include in the proposals.

"Together, we must seize this opportunity to better protect LGBTQ youth who face bullying and harassment, experience higher rates of anxiety, depression and suicide, and too often grow up feeling that they don't belong," Cardona said. "You belong in our schools. You have worthy dreams and incredible talents. You deserve the opportunity to shine authentically and unapologetically. The Biden-Harris administration has your back."

The Title IX sexual misconduct policies adopted by the Trump administration in May 2020 were met with widespread criticism.

Nicole Bedara of TIME said the rule at its most basic level "will make it harder than ever for survivors to understand their legal rights—and if survivors can’t understand their rights, it’s very unlikely that they will use them."

Thursday's new proposals include broadening "the definition of sex-based harassment and discrimination."

There are also proposed changes of regulations to include reports of incidents that occur off-campus but within a school's Title IX jurisdiction, to require schools to use a "preponderance-of-the-evidence standard of proof" and to permit "a live hearing in which those who report incidents and those who are accused can be cross-examined, and allow for such hearings to happen in a virtual setting where the parties are not in direct proximity."

Lavigne noted live hearings are currently required in most cases. A final ruling on the proposals will be made within 60 days after a public comment period.

Title IX was adopted as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. The amendment prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or education program that receives federal government funding.