ZWF: A Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Zander's Facts
Zander's Weekend Facts #46: Sunday, December 25, 2022
Ho ho ho! It seems Santa has brought lots of facts this year!
Inside this week’s edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts, a fact-filled festivus greeting. Plus, a compilation of the top headlines from the last seven days.
Also, go listen to the latest episode of the Zander’s Facts podcast! Episode 87 features Zander’s Facts NBA analyst Hill Billy joining the podcast to update the world on the latest happenings in the NBA. Before you check out today’s Christmas Day games, you should check out Episode 87 of the podcast! Go download and listen to the Zander’s Facts podcast wherever you get your podcasts!
Here are Zander’s Weekend Facts for Sunday, December 25, 2022:
A Fact-filled Holiday Greeting
Tell me this. If there’s no Santa, then how did I get so many facts in my stocking this year?
Today is Sunday, December 25, otherwise known as Christmas Day!
For billions of people around the world, the holiday season is the time for spreading cheer and joy. And facts, of course.
For those who are celebrating today, Merry Christmas!
But I couldn’t leave you this fine Sunday morning without a fact!
There are actually 11 different holidays that are being celebrated around the world in the month of December.
If you want your daily dose of facts, check out this article on Time - 11 Holidays the World Celebrates in December (Link for article on Apple News)
Zander’s Facts Sporting Club
The top headlines from the sports world in the ZF Sporting Club:
NFL Week 16: With Christmas falling on a Sunday this year, the NFL pushed the majority of their games to Saturday. Among the notable matchups that took place yesterday, the Vikings got a last-second field goal to defeat the Giants 27-24, the Steelers took down the Raiders 13-10, the Bengals beat the Patriots 22-18, and the Cowboys survived the Eagles 40-34. Later today, the NFL has a triple header beginning with the Packers and Dolphins at 1:00 pm et, the Broncos and Rams at 4:30 pm et, and the Buccaneers and Cardinals at 8:20 pm et. On Monday night, the Chargers will head to Indianapolis to take on the Colts. On Thursday, the Jaguars handled the Jets 19-3.
NBA Christmas Day: Christmas Day marks perhaps the most circled date on the NBA regular season calendar. All five of the day’s basketball games will be nationally broadcast on ABC and ESPN, with some of the season’s most highly anticipated matchups taking place. At 12:00 pm et, the Knicks host their annual Christmas game against the 76ers. At 2:30 pm et, the Lakers take on the Mavericks, followed by the top two teams in the East facing off at 5:00 pm et with the Bucks and the Celtics. In primetime, the Grizzlies face the defending champion Warriors at 8:00 pm et, and the Suns take on the Nuggets at 10:30 pm et.
Club Soccer Returns: With Argentina taking down France in penalties one week ago in the World Cup Final, club soccer is set to make its post-World Cup return. On Monday, the English Premier League will resume for the second half of the season with its annual Boxing Day fixtures. Other European leagues also resume in the near future, with Spain’s LaLiga returning to play on Thursday, Italy’s Serie A coming back on January 4, and the German Bundesliga resuming on January 20.
Phoenix Suns Sale: A majority stake in the NBA’s Phoenix Suns is set to be sold to Mat Ishbia, the CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage. The sale brings an end to Robert Sarver’s time as Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury owner. Earlier this year, Sarver was found of engaging in workplace misconduct in a league investigation. Ishbia, who was a walk-on on the 2000 Michigan State national championship team, is purchasing control of the team for a record $4 billion.
NFL Sunday Ticket: The NFL announced a new agreement with Google this week to put NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube. Sunday Ticket is the package of games played on Sunday afternoons that are not aired locally. Since the package’s inception in 1994, the service was only available on DirecTV. However, with the new agreement, the service will be available as an add-on package for YouTube TV subscribers and through YouTube Primetime Channels.
Rapid-fire Facts
The top news headlines from the past week in rapid-fire fashion:
Zelensky in Washington: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a highly unexpected trip to the United States this week. Zelensky was able to covertly escape the fighting in Ukraine to travel to Washington on Wednesday, where he met with President Biden and congressional leaders. Zelensky only stayed in the U.S. for less than 10 hours, but was able to address Congress in a speech thanking the U.S. for its support in Ukraine’s war against Russia.
Jan. 6 Committee Report: The House January 6 Committee released their final report this week. The report, a result of 18 months of investigations into the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, includes a criminal referral to the Justice Department against former President Donald Trump for his role in the attack. With the Committee having made their case, the decision is now with DOJ over whether or not to charge Trump.
Government Spending Bill: Congress passed a government funding bill this week that will fund the U.S. federal government through the end of the fiscal year, which ends September 30. The bill includes record funding for the military and aid to Ukraine, just days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to Washington. The passing of the bill, which President Biden has announced he will sign, effectively marks the end of the current Congress. The 118th Congress, which will be sworn in on January 3, will mark Republicans’ return to the majority of the House, while Democrats will retain their majority in the Senate.
Equal Pay in Sports: A bipartisan bill that will equalize compensation for all Team USA athletes passed Congress this week. The Equal Pay for Team USA act, which passed the Senate unanimously, will require that women athletes representing their country in over 50 national sports be paid the same as their male counterparts. The bill comes after the U.S. Women’s National Team was able to secure equal pay with the U.S. Men’s National Team in soccer earlier this year.
Record Winter Storm: A major winter storm walloped most of the country this week, bringing heavy snowfall, blistering winds, and record-low temperatures. Blizzard warnings have led to feet of snow in places like Buffalo and across the upper midwest. Temperatures this week reached far below zero all across the country, but particularly in the midwest where some areas have reached -20 degrees Fahrenheit. To add on, heavy winds have dropped wind chills to bone-chilling levels, with some areas in Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming reaching wind chills of -50 degrees Fahrenheit.
Wrapping up the Facts
Before this edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts wraps up, here’s another reminder to check out the latest episodes of the Zander’s Facts podcast. Download and listen to the latest episode of the podcast, along with every episode of Zander’s Facts, wherever you get your podcasts.
Check out Zander’s Facts’ Linktree page for more on everything Zander’s Facts related, including the all-new Zander’s Facts website. At ZandersFacts.com, get the latest on all the facts that Zander is putting out, and check out the freshest styles at the Zander’s Facts shop!
You can also listen to every episode of the podcast on this very website. All Zander’s Facts podcast episodes are now available on zandersfacts.substack.com under the “Zander’s Facts” tab for your enjoyment. That includes the next episode of the Zander’s Facts podcast, which comes out this Wednesday!
That’s a wrap on this week’s edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts. The Facts in print return next Sunday, January 1, 2022.
