"We are delighted to be bringing six clubs to the USA in July for the first-ever Premier League Summer Series. Our clubs have incredible supporters in the US, who passionately follow their teams throughout the season”

-Richard Masters,

Premier League Chief Executive

Around The Horn.

• Join us on Wednesday, July 26 at Exploria Stadium for the Premier League Summer Series starring Fulham vs. Ashton Villa. Limited tickets are available here!
• The success of UCF‘s football program can be attributed, in part, to the 12 coaches who have provided guidance to the Knights throughout their over four decades of existence. Dr. Jack O’Leary, the former athletics director, chose Jonas to lead the Knights in 1979. Lou Saban arrived in Orlando 1983 with a way-fair reputation that included coaching stops at Northwestern, Maryland, Miami and Army and professional stints with the Buffalo Bills and Denver Broncos.
• The Orlando Magic wrapped up summer league over the weekend in Las Vegas, learning what is to come for the Magic's next season. The information the organization gathered not only about their first-round draft picks but also other players who potentially could be signed on two-way contracts is much more valuable compared to the summer league results themselves. In addition to better understanding what lottery-pick rookies Anthony Black and Jett Howard can do on the court, summer league was Orlando’s first opportunity to see how they carried themselves off the court and around teammates.
• Orlando will be among the teams that are part of the Arena Football League's return in 2024. The city will be home to one of the 16 teams that will participate in the league. AFL Commissioner and Deputy General Counsel Lee A. Hutton told Orlando Business Journal that the Orlando Predators will be the team's name and it will play at the Amway Center.
• Orlando City SC has signed midfielder Júnior Urso to a contract through 2023 with a Club option in 2024, marking the Brazilian’s return to the City Beautiful. Urso will be available for selection following receipt of his P-1 Visa and ITC. 
• Orlando startup Phlex is partnering with a global sports sensor company for a new swimming training product. The company, a graduate of the leAD Lake Nona Sports & Health Tech Accelerator, has launched a wearable device for swimmers and coaches with Finland-based Polar Electro. The device allows all levels of swimmers, from casual to competitive, to track a number of performance statistics like heart rate, calories burned and more through Phlex's app.
• Join the Orlando Solar Bears at the AdventHealth Rink at Amway Center for an Open House on Saturday, August 12 from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. to find your seats for the upcoming season! Take advantage of savings for all of your Solar Bears necessities at their equipment and merchandise sale and participate in a street hockey tournament. Registration is required.
• Three years ago, Kai Sotto took part in a Basketball Without Borders Global Camp held during the 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago. Fast-forward to the 7-foot-3 center from the Philippines making his summer league debut for the Magic at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Although he wasn’t on the court long, Sotto made the most out of his 13 minutes played, recording 6 points, 4 rebounds and 3 blocks after not appearing in the Magic’s first three games in Vegas.
• Orlando City snapped Atlanta United’s 5-game unbeaten streak at home, prevailing 2-1 on Saturday night to pass the Five Stripes in the MLS East and move into fifth place. Atlanta came into the weekend with a 7-1-3 home record, having only lost 3-1 to Charlotte FC (6-9-8, 26 points) on May 13. Atlanta had lost just one of eight home games against Orlando.
• The Orlando Pride signed Argentina international Mariana Larroquette through the 2025 NWSL season. Following the sign with Brazilian defender Rafaelle Souza. The forward comes to the Pride from Mexican-side Club Leon, where she made 26 total appearances last year, scoring 9 goals and finishing 10th in total shots (88) across Liga MX. She will join the team following a run with Argentina in her second FIFA Women’s World Cup, which begins at the end of the month.
• Greater Orlando Sports Commission will host our 5th annual Celebrating Women in Sports luncheon presented by Orlando Health Jewett Orthopedic Institute on Wednesday, September 13 at UCF's Addition Financial Arena. This year's featured speaker is Joan Benoit Samuelson, winner of the first ever women's Olympic marathon at the 1984 games in Los Angeles, and pioneer of women's marathoning. To purchase a table and inquire about sponsorship opportunities, contact Michael Kalinich. Click here to purchase individual tickets.

In The News.

• Two of Florida’s leading healthcare systems and Florida’s leading producer of nursing talent are uniting to address the state’s nursing shortage. Fueled by $10 million in combined commitments from AdventHealth and Orlando Health, the UCF College of Nursing has moved a major step closer to a new building at Lake Nona that will enable the college to graduate hundreds of additional nurses annually who will care for patients throughout the region and state. 
• Universal Studios theme park will open a land based on DreamWorks Animation characters in 2024, Universal Orlando announced on Thursday. Visitors can expect to see interactive play spaces and attractions based on “Gabby’s Dollhouse,” “Shrek” “Trolls” and “Kung Fu Panda".
• Construction continues on Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship, the Disney Treasure. The company said its sixth ship is scheduled for delivery in 2024, paving the way for new experiences that immerse guests in some of the company’s most legendary stories. On Tuesday, Disney Cruise Line revealed the character sculptures that will be on the ship’s stern.
• Work is underway for downtown Orlando's newest park - Art2 (Art Squared), located on Orange Avenue and Robinson Street. This epic and technology driven park will include a two-story container building that includes a cafe featuring Wavelength Coffee, an art store featuring local artists, a full performance stage, covered seating, two rotating food trucks, and a green space for the viewing of scheduled events that will showcase a wide range of musical and artistic performances. 
• The army of Earth’s orbiting satellites continues to swell, but the latest batch from NASA will have a leg up on the others. They won’t have to rely on humans to tell them what to do. The set of four small satellites are part of NASA’s Starling mission, which mission managers out of Ames Research Center in California said are designed to work as a “swarm.” They made it to space on a Rocket Lab launch from New Zealand late Monday and were successfully deployed overnight.
• The Florida Department of Transportation has dialed up more work coming soon for Interstate 4's latest construction. FDOT opened a new auxiliary lane on westbound I-4 between State Road 429 and County Road 532 on July 19. The project is one of multiple pieces of construction for the multibillion-dollar project, which includes 20 miles of roadway to the east and to the west of the prior I-4 Ultimate project.
• Houston-based Avelo Airlines has yet another new flight headed to and from Orlando International Airport — connecting additional leisure and business travelers to the region. The airline, which flies to 13 other destinations from Orlando, will begin nonstop flights to the Central Wisconsin/Wausau-area's Central Wisconsin Airport (CWA) beginning on Oct. 5. The new flights will operate twice a week and start with one-way fares at $49, a release said.
• UCF Lake Nona Hospital announced Friday it received LEED Gold certification — the first and only hospital in Florida and only the 28th in the nation — to achieve this green building designation. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, (USGBC), is the most widely used green building rating system in the world and an international symbol of excellence.
• Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse Live in Concert will feature a screening of the film accompanied by a live orchestra and a DJ scratcher on stage at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. The film features the story of Miles Morales, an Afro-Latin teen who is bitten by a radioactive spider and gains spider powers, and then crashes into a life filled with other spider-heroes from alternate realities.

Stay Engaged.

• Join Mayor Dyer and representatives from Orlando's Citizen Advisory Boards on Wednesday, August 30 at 5:30 p.m. at The Monroe for a Boards and Brews event to learn how you can make an impact by serving on a city board. As board members, residents contribute to the policy-making process, offering valuable input and review of city programs. Registration is required. Click here for more information or to begin an application to serve on a City of Orlando Advisory Board or Commission.  
• Disney Springs’ Flavors of Florida is preparing to return to Walt Disney World Resort this summer with even more savory dishes and a scrumptious new culinary series featuring renowned chefs. Running July 1 through Aug. 13, more than 30 locations throughout Disney Springs will be featuring a variety of food and drinks that celebrate homegrown flavors from Florida.
• Universal Passholder Appreciation Days is Back on Aug. 15 - Sept. 30, 2023. Includes over six weeks of exclusive offers, special events, discounts, Passholder opportunities and more. 
• Orlando Business Journal's Inno Under 25 is a recognition of the top founders, entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders under 25 in your local ecosystem. Highlighting some of the community's youngest entrepreneurs and technologists, the deadline to submit nominations is Friday, July 21.
• A beloved speaker series, Creative Mornings Orlando, will return this month on Friday, July 28 for the first time since shutting down during the pandemic. This upcoming event will feature a talk by Orlando’s official Poet Laureate, Shawn Welcome. Past guests have included the likes of filmmaker Jon Strong, Rollins Art Professor, Rachel Simmons, acclaimed designer Clark Orr, and professional musician Matt Heafy.
• A touring Edgar Allan Poe-themed speakeasy cocktail experience will make its way to Orlando this September, just in time for a maudlin/spooky autumn. The hour-and-thirty-minute immersive pop-up will take place at The Mezz in South Eola near downtown Orlando and will feature four themed cocktails and live readings of Poe’s work, as told by onsite “Poe Historians.” The pop-up will run from September 7-10 with multiple seatings each evening.
• The Orange County Library System is currently celebrating 100 years of service here in Central Florida and as part of its ongoing festivities, it will be hosting an event with acclaimed authors and culture-movers, Neil Gaiman and Art Spiegelman, on November 6, 2023.
• EDC will return to Orlando on November 10-12 at Tinker Field at Camping World Stadium and the lineup has been released. The annual three-day music festival boasts multiple stages in different sections of the venue and attracted over 100,000 people a day at the 2022 event. 
• Florida Residents can save up to $65 on select multi-day tickets at Universal Orlando theme parks when buying online. Click here for current offers.
• Florida residents can save big while visiting Walt Disney World Resort theme parks. Click here to view the current list of special offers.

In The Community.

GO Sports President & CEO Jason Siegel presented to the Central Florida chapter of Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) at their July luncheon along with GO Sports partner and friend Jessica Beers from Kissimmee Sports.

GO Sports President & CEO Jason Siegel attended Destination International's annual convention, pictured here with Visit Orlando COO Mario Bass.

GO Sports President & CEO Jason Siegel presented to the Central Florida chapter of Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) at their July luncheon along with GO Sports partner and friend Jessica Beers from Kissimmee Sports.

GO Sports partner and friend Danny Trosset and his nonprofit Sports 4 The Kids donated soccer balls and air pumps for kids in several small villages in Brazil as part of a larger mission trip.

GO Sports Senior Director Kyle Sturley attended WISE Greater Orlando’s “Wise & Grind” member meet-up yesterday at Foxtail Coffee along with women from across Orlando’s sports community.

GO Sports Executive VP Jennifer Lastik attended the PlayBingo Ladies Lunch benefitting the Orlando City Foundation, pictured here with Jamilah Aminah (AdventHealth), Tajiana Ancora-Brown and Elizabeth Watkins (Disney), Bridget Keefe (UCF), Kayla De La Rosa and Lauren Poppe (Orlando Health) and Ha'Ani Hogan (Downtown Arts District).

GO Sports Senior Vice President Brent Nelson visited with Tucker Neale from Ohio Basketball, who is hosting the Orlando Splash and National Championship boys & girls basketball events this week at the Orange County Convention Center.

GO Sports President & CEO Jason Siegel welcomed State Secretary of Commerce Alex Kelly and his leadership team, Ali Jones and Mary Clare Futch to Orange County and the Park Avenue District.

New Corporate Partner.

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Fun & Games.



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