Elections
FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2020, file photo, baseballs occupy a bucket after use during fielding practice during spring training baseball workouts for pitchers and catchers at Cleveland Indians camp in Avondale, Ariz. Major League Baseball is suspending all political contributions in the wake of last week's invasion of the U.S. Capitol by a mob loyal to President Donald Trump, joining a wave of major corporations rethinking their efforts to lobby Washington. “In light of the unprecedented events last week at the U.S. Capitol, MLB is suspending contributions from its Political Action Committee pending a review of our political contribution policy going forward,” the league said in a statement to The Associated Press on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
AP Exclusive: MLB suspends political donations after DC riot

By Jake Seiner Jan. 13, 2021 05:58 PM EST

The seats in the end zone are empty at Lambeau Field during the national anthem before an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Tennessee Titans Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
NFL increasing inventory for ad sales during playoff games

By Joe Reedy Jan. 08, 2021 05:22 PM EST

A worker cleans seats in Arrowhead Stadium before an NFL football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, in Kansas City. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Even with empty stadiums, NFL still a ratings monster

By Joe Reedy Jan. 07, 2021 07:01 PM EST

FILE - Driver Bubba Wallace wears a Black Lives Matter shirt as he prepares for a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in Martinsville, Va., in this Wednesday, June 10, 2020, file photo. In a most unusual year already thrown into chaos by the coronavirus pandemic, many athletes took unprecedented steps when a nationwide reckoning on race spilled into the streets of American cities after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, while in Minneapolis police custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
Athletes act: Stars rise up against racial injustice in 2020

By Cliff Brunt Dec. 29, 2020 01:41 PM EST

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) looks for a receiver during an NFL game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020 in Tampa, Fla. The Saints defeated the Buccaneers 38-3. (Margaret Bowles via AP)
NFL television ratings see 6% decline at midseason point

By Joe Reedy Nov. 12, 2020 01:46 PM EST

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) smiles during the second half of an NFL football game against the Carolina Panthers in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
Mahomes piles up big numbers at Arrowhead - on Election Day

By Arnie Stapleton Nov. 10, 2020 03:33 AM EST

A limited audience at Arrowhead Stadium watch as the New York Jets play the Kansas City Chiefs in the second half of an NFL football game on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Election day over, Chiefs' Mahomes refocuses on football

By Dave Skretta Nov. 04, 2020 02:57 PM EST

"Detroit Votes" is displayed on the Ford Field scoreboard, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, in Detroit. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson cast her vote in a drop box at the Detroit Pistons' training facility and about 12 hours later, she witnessed ballots being rolled into Ford Field for a double-checking step of the election process. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
Sports venues across country in play on Election Day

By Larry Lage Nov. 04, 2020 04:44 AM EST

The Michael Jordan statue stands in front of an I Voted banner on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, in the atrium of the United Center, transformed for the first time into a super voting site in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Voting, activism replace practice, games in US sports world

By Howard Fendrich Nov. 03, 2020 06:43 PM EST

Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson (8) tries to pass against Philadelphia Eagles' Rodney McLeod (23) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
Rodney McLeod's voting initiative includes fun events

By Rob Maaddi Oct. 29, 2020 12:52 PM EDT

Philadelphia Eagles' Boston Scott, left, catches a touchdown pass against New York Giants' Jabrill Peppers during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
NY Giants squander chance to get back into NFC East race

By Tom Canavan Oct. 23, 2020 03:52 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 27, 2016, file photo, Vivek Ranadive, the majority owner of the Sacramento Kings, poses in the new Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. Golden 1 Center will be among the places Californians in the area can vote from Saturday until the polls close on the evening of Nov. 3. “There’s no better way to make the world a better place than by making it easy for people to vote," Ranadive said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Arenas, stadiums find new life as safer options for voting

By Kate Brumback And Larry Lage Oct. 22, 2020 08:47 AM EDT

Former Falcons and Eagles quarterback Michael Vick signs autographs in the NFL Shop at the Super Bowl Experience in Atlanta in Jan. 31, 2019 file photo. Vick is working with the LeBron James-led political empowerment group More Than A Vote and the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition to help other former felons pay fines that are preventing them from voting. His journey is being chronicled in new documentary miniseries. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
Michael Vick working to clear way for Fla. ex-felons to vote

By Kyle Hightower Sep. 27, 2020 11:07 AM EDT

FILE - In this April 29, 2016, file photo, former Walter Payton Man of the Year Chester Pitts poses for photos upon arriving for the third round of the 2016 NFL football draft in Chicago. In the Austin, Texas area Pitts, who played nine pro seasons as a guard and tackle, has been directly involved in getting out the vote for years. Often, he has chartered a bus and helped the elderly get to their polling places. He has similar plans for this fall during the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
Former NFL players getting out the vote in communities

By Barry Wilner Sep. 23, 2020 02:16 PM EDT

Los Angeles Rams and the Dallas Cowboys in the first half during a NFL football game on opening night at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Sunday, September 13, 2020. (Keith Birmingham/The Orange County Register via AP)
SoFi Stadium serving as voting center in NFL vote initiative

Sep. 22, 2020 12:09 PM EDT

NFL, players' union to close facilities on Election Day

Sep. 03, 2020 11:46 AM EDT
NEW YORK (AP) — All NFL and NFL Players Association facilities will close on Election Day, and the league and union will televise a one-hour program next week...

Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, center, looks on as players run past Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, during an NFL football training camp in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seahawks final scrimmage secondary to Carroll's message

By Tim Booth Aug. 30, 2020 08:29 PM EDT

Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams, left, talks with teammates Shaquill Griffin, right, and Quandre Diggs, center during NFL football training camp, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Seahawks' Diggs implores others to register to vote

By Tim Booth Aug. 28, 2020 08:07 PM EDT

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Philip Rivers (17) watches as quarterback Jacoby Brissett (7) throws during practice at the NFL team's football training camp in Indianapolis, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Colts return to practice with plan to combat injustices

By Michael Marot Aug. 28, 2020 05:17 PM EDT

New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins (27) waits for a play during NFL football training camp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center in Metairie, La., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020. Jenkins sees historically significant opportunities before him with both the contending New Orleans Saints and with a racial justice movement that has gained precipitous momentum in recent months. (David Grunfeld/The Advocate via AP, Pool)
Saints' Jenkins primed for campaigns on and off the field

By Brett Martel Aug. 20, 2020 07:28 PM EDT