The XFL and USFL announced Thursday that the two spring football leagues plan to merge and begin playing as one in 2024. In a joint statement, the XFL and USFL said the merger will be subject to customary regulatory approvals. “This historic combination will anchor professional spring football with substantial capabilities and resources to ensure future growth and continue to enhance the development of the collective players, coaches, and staff that are coming together,” a portion of the release read. The XFL is owned by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Dany Garcia, while the USFL is under the ownership of Fox Corp.

Boardroom’s Sam Dunn has key details about the merger and what that means for the future of both leagues.

America’s No. 1 sportsbook has officially touched down in Kentucky. On Thursday, FanDuel announced it has opened its betting platform in the Bluegrass State. By downloading the FanDuel Sportsbook app, fan can make wagers on NFL, college football, NBA, college basketball, MLB, MMA, golf, boxing, soccer, hockey, and more. As an extra incentive, Kentucky bettors who sign up and wager $5 will receive $200 in Bonus Bets for access to special offers on local sports teams. Kentucky is now the 20th state where FanDuel offers mobile sports betting.

With WGA writers officially back at work, the SAG-AFTRA union, Hollywood studios, and streamers have set a date to return to the bargaining table. “SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP will resume negotiations for a new TV/Theatrical contract on Monday, October 2. Several executives from AMPTP member companies will be in attendance,” both sides confirmed in a joint statement Wednesday evening. The thousands of film and television entertainers represented by SAG-AFTRA have been protesting since July 14, 75 days ago. Similar to the WGA strike, SAG-AFTRA members are picketing for a larger cut of the revenue generated by streaming shows, increased base compensation, better working conditions, and stricter safeguards against the use of artificial intelligence technologies.

As she prepared for her final Renaissance World Tour show this weekend in Kansas City, Beyoncé is celebrating yet another remarkable milestone. Per numbers shared with Billboard Boxscore, Queen Bey’s 14 shows in August collected $179.3 million and 697,000 ticket sales. Beyoncé set the record for the highest one-month gross profit in Billboard Boxscore history (dating back to 1985) with $127.6 million in July, beating Bad Bunny‘s all-time record of $123.7 million he set last September. That means Beyoncé beat her own record by an impressive 40%. With 10 shows left to be reported, Billboard says the Renaissance World Tour global numbers could certainly pass the $500 million mark and inch closer to $560 million.

Fenway Sports Group (FSG) has sold a minority stake in Liverpool to sports investment firm Dynasty Equity, the owners of the club confirmed on Thursday. Although details of the transaction were not disclosed, The Guardian reports shares were sold for between $100-200 million (£82-164 million). “Our long-term commitment to Liverpool remains as strong as ever,” FSG president Mike Gordon assured. Don’t expect the funds to solely be available for buying players in the transfer windows. Instead, they’ll primarily go toward paying down debt from the COVID-19 pandemic, stadium expenses to enhance Anfield’s capacity, expenses in building their new training center, repurchasing their old Melwood training ground, and summer transfers.

In collaboration with teamaker TAZO, Issa Rae is launching the TAZO Cafe Collective, which celebrates local, independent cafes and the innovative lattes and tea drinks they serve to their communities. “When I was just getting my start, community cafes were spaces where I found inspiration for some of my favorite stories. Now as a cafe owner, I’m excited to join TAZO to support more of these spaces and the communities they inspire,” said the Insecure co-creator, who is also co-owner of Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen. To commemorate the launch, Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen released a specialty drink — Issa Rae‘s TAZO Passion Twist, an iced drink now served in all Hilltop locations. Fans can also find the drink’s recipe made to recreate at home at TAZO.com/CafeCollective.