Photo: Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)A year ago today, Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert returned a positive COVID-19 test, triggering the sports shutdown of 2020.The backdrop: During the week prior, the U.S. had surpassed 100 cases (March 2), the world had surpassed 100,000 (March 6) and sports leagues had closed their locker rooms to media members.Timeline:Go deeper:Monday provided two major reasons for optimism about the global pandemic recovery.Driving the news: Real-world data from Israel was at least 97% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 cases, and President Biden signed a $1.9...…Photo: Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)A year ago today, Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert returned a positive COVID-19 test, triggering the sports shutdown of 2020.The backdrop: During the week prior, the U.S. had surpassed 100 cases (March 2), the world had surpassed 100,000 (March 6) and sports leagues had closed their locker rooms to media members.Timeline:Go deeper:Monday provided two major reasons for optimism about the global pandemic recovery.Driving the news: Real-world data from Israel was at least 97% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 cases, and President Biden signed a $1.9...WW…

Despite the lack of live games, sports betting stocks have performed particularly well over the past month, highlighted by fantasy sports/betting platform, DraftKings, and gaming operator, Penn National.By the numbers: Since going public on April 24, DraftKings' stock is up 82%, while Penn National Gaming — which in January — is up 130%.Why it matters: This surge signals a wider truth about the sports betting industry — it is uniquely suited to emerge from the pandemic virtually unaltered.Between the lines: As the world remains largely shut down and people are stuck at home with little to...…Despite the lack of live games, sports betting stocks have performed particularly well over the past month, highlighted by fantasy sports/betting platform, DraftKings, and gaming operator, Penn National.By the numbers: Since going public on April 24, DraftKings' stock is up 82%, while Penn National Gaming — which in January — is up 130%.Why it matters: This surge signals a wider truth about the sports betting industry — it is uniquely suited to emerge from the pandemic virtually unaltered.Between the lines: As the world remains largely shut down and people are stuck at home with little to...WW…