The New Jersey Grand Prix is set to be added to the 2013 F1 Calendar at the expense of the European Grand Prix in Valencia, according to a provisional calendar.

The Grand Prix of America remains the subject of much discussion and rumour over its viability but a schedule leaked at the Singapore Grand Prix has it installed as the second part of a trans-Atlantic double-header with Montreal in mid-June. The race directly replaces the European Grand Prix in Valencia which, despite provide an interesting backdrop for the F1 circus, has yet to regularly produce either scintillating racing or large crowds.

The New Jersey race, which will also take place on a waterfront street circuit, is one of four dates still awaiting final confirmation – along with Germany, Singapore and Korea – and the calendar, which has still to be ratified by the World Motor Sport Council, could continue to evolve amid rumours that France is chasing a place at the table and Turkey could be poised to return after a one-year break caused by a disagreement over fees as crowd figures struggled to match expectation at the otherwise well-loved Istanbul Park circuit.

While there are rumours that the latest Concorde Agreement contains the provision to expand the schedule beyond the current 20 races, doubts remain over the viability of both the German and Korean races, both of which have their own financial concerns. Singapore, meanwhile, reaches the end of its initial five-year deal with FOM this weekend, but is widely expected to continue as the calendar’s only night race despite organisers debating the fee it pays to host the F1 fraternity. According to Britain’s Daily Telegraph, the event is apparently looking for relief from its already favourable $12m fee on the grounds that it already faces vastly higher set-up costs due to being staged after dark.

Although the provisional schedule remains at 20 races, the loss of Valencia means that it features an historical low of just seven in the sport’s European heartland, with the extended travel requirements of going to Asia and the Americas also bringing a record high eight back-to-back rounds.

The Spanish Grand Prix will take place in Barcelona amid continuing suggestions that the Circuit de Catalunya could enter a date share with Valencia, while Spa’s new deal ensures that it remains a cornerstone of the programme.

The complete provisional schedule is as follows:

March 17 Australia
March 24 Malaysia
April 14 China
April 21 Bahrain
May 12 Spain
May 26 Monaco
June 9 Canada
June 16 United States (New Jersey) *
June 30 Britain
July 21 Germany *
July 28 Hungary
September 1 Belgium
September 8 Italy
September 22 Singapore *
October 6 Japan
October 13 Korea *
October 27 India
November 3 Abu Dhabi
November 17 United States (Austin)
November 24 Brazil

*Not Confirmed yet

Kobe Bryant has been ranked as the number one Basketball player in terms of international jersey sales.

NBA has for the first time released its list of top-selling jerseys internationally, and despite younger superstars such as Derrick Rose and LeBron James leading sales domestically in the past couple years, Kobe Bryant reigns supreme across the globe.

According to ESPN.com, Kobe led all jersey sales in the 2011-12 season overall, and in three regional categories, including China, Europe, and Latin America. The notch marks the sixth straight year the Lakers superstar led jersey sales in China.

Rounding out the top five sellers internationally were Rose, the Miami Heat’s LeBron James, the Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett, and the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard. Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers finished ninth.

Bryant’s teammate Pau Gasol, a native of Spain, had the top-selling jersey among non-American players at 11th. His countryman, point guard Ricky Rubio of the Minnesota Timberwolves, finished 15th.

While Kobe leads around the world, as previously reported, Derrick Rose leads in U.S. jersey sales.

The International Cricket Council’s (ICC) are planning to have flagship weekly programme, buy renamed ICC Cricket 360 with the help from IMG Media, cough part of IMG Worldwide, prostate the global sports and media company in a deal lasting until the end of 2015.

The weekly half-hour programme is scheduled to begin in June 2012 and will be produced out of IMG Sports Media’s Singapore’s production base and will draw heavily on IMG’s production experience around the world.

The programme will cover news from the full spectrum of world cricket with features and action from the very best of the top cricketing countries through to the 95 ICC Associate and Affiliate Members where the game is growing in popularity.

The half-hour programme will include features such as star interviews with leading international players, the A-Z of Cricket and Featured Club of the Week, as well as news, reviews and previews from all levels of the game. There will be regular updates on the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC World Twenty20, ICC Champions Trophy and the ICC U-19 World Cup as well as Test cricket. The continued success of women’s cricket, including the ICC Women’s World Cup, the ICC’s successful Pepsi ICC Development Programme and a weekly update on the latest Reliance ICC Rankings will also feature prominently. Among the leading players expected to feature in the opening editions of the show are Yuvraj Singh, Shane Watson and Kevin O’Brien.

ICC Cricket 360 will also allow supporters to engage with the show through the use of different Twitter hashtags for each edition’s main feature stories, while additional material not featured in the television programme will also be available on social media platforms, including the ICC’s official Twitter and Facebook page.

Haroon Lorgat, the ICC Chief Executive, said: “Our partnership with IMG and the launch of ICC Cricket 360 is fitting as it will showcase the splendour of cricket, including the three vibrant formats and the captivating ICC global events. Promoting the ICC World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka and the U/19 Cricket World Cup in Australia this year and the Champions Trophy in England next year will be an exciting start.

“The show will also be an excellent platform to present the growing success of our Pepsi ICC Development Programme and the rewarding strides achieved in women’s cricket. The weekly programme will be valuable to promote cricket both in traditional and new audience markets over the next three years.”

Executive producer, Andy Tait, said: “Our aim will be to give viewers and cricket fans a unique behind-the-scenes view. We will show how the game is growing in different parts of the world due to the ICC’s initiatives and competitions, especially at youth and grassroots level in the different regions.”

He added: “We will unearth truly amazing stories that will show the role cricket is playing in different parts of the world and in all walks of life. It is a truly global game and our objective is to demonstrate how far and wide cricket’s message is being heard as well as talking to some of the top players past and present and delving into the rich cricketing archives for historical elements to the show. The cricket fan is in for a real treat.”

EFLI (Elite Football League of India) has announced that Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg and ex- Arizona Cardinals Quarterback Kurt Warner have become the latest investors in the forthcoming league.

The league, ambulance which is set to launch in November with eight teams, cough is the first attempt at bringing American football to the subcontinent.

The EFLI will run through until February 2013 and includes representatives from around India – Bhubaneswar Warhawks, Mumbai Gladiators, Hyderabad Skykings, Goa Swarm, Pune Blacktigers, Kolkata Vipers, Delhi Defenders and Punjab Warriors.

Wahlber has promised to promote the EFLI brand through media and personal introduction and support. He stated, “I anxiously look forward to the inaugural 2012 season. I hope to bring my family to India for the opening game and to witness this miracle that is the EFLI”.

The amount of investment from either man has not been disclosed, but it has been released that Warner will invest $50,000 in the purchase and distribution of Warner Family footballs to schools and across India.

Warner added, “I am extremely excited about the possibilities of the EFLI. I became a partner for two primary reasons.

“First, to expand the reach of what I believe is the greatest team sport in the world. The game of football has a chance to impact the lives of many people and families in India, like it did for mine.

“Second, I believe the success of EFLI will present us with some amazing opportunities to impact their communities from a charitable perspective. I believe we will be able to use the great game of football to truly impact the people of India, both on and off the field, and help many to improve on their quality of life”.

Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka and ESPN NFL analyst Ron Jaworski have already been announced as investors in EFLI.

Looking forward, the league hopes to follow the IPL model and auction the franchises if they are successful.

Sports channel Ten Sports, which is owned by Zee Group, is committed to broadcasting the action.

India’s parliamentary committee of finance, headed by former finance minister Yashwant Sinha, has finalised its report on alleged financial wrongdoings in the country’s leading Twenty20 cricket competition Indian Premier League (IPL).

The four franchises involved are Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab.

In its report, the panel has accused the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) and the IPL franchises of violating Company Law and RBI regulations. It has also asked to process action against BCCI top brass for the alleged violations.

The panel has recommended that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigate the alleged Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations of the BCCI and four IPL franchises.

It also asked that the investigations be completed within six-months.

The committee has come down heavily on the income tax department for being “lenient” towards the Indian cricket board and the IPL franchises.

The panel has asked ofr fastracking of the process of income tax assessment of the BCCI and IPL franchises. 

The committee has also pulled up several banks for not following know your customer (KYC) norms while dealing with IPL franchises with dubious ownership structures.

The panel has asked for an action taken report (ATR) on the matter to be submitted within a month of the tabling of its report.

Sportel has announced an end to its conventions five-year stay in Asia, with spring’s edition scheduled to take place in Rio, Brazil, next year.

SPORTELRio 2012 will take place from March 12-14 at the Sofitel on Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, the home of the 2016 Olympics. The leading international convention for sport, television and new media has been running for 21 years, and its next event will be the annual SPORTELMonaco market from October 10-13.

David Tomatis, chief executive officer of Sportel, stated: “After five successful years in Asia, Sportel is moving to Brazil, home of the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

“We are pleased to offer our participants a meeting platform in a city to become the world capital of sports, centre of the expanding South American market,” he added. “It will be the opportunity to network with the industry’s highest level executives, learn about the latest trends and innovations, conclude deals, forge new alliances and more generally pursue your business objectives.”

The United States Olympic Committee and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign announced an agreement designating the university as a U.S. Paralympic Training Site.

The distinction was given to the Division of Disability Resources & Educational Services, ailment which is part of the College of Applied Health Sciences at Illinois. The DRES venues, ed staff and resources will provide an elite athlete training environment for current and aspiring Paralympic track and field athletes.

“We are pleased to support the University of Illinois and its dynamic wheelchair program in a more formal manner, symptoms ” said Cathy Sellers, U.S. Paralympics track and field high performance director. “The program has produced many Paralympic athletes who’ve reached the podium and we look forward to its continued success.” 

The university’s wheelchair track and field program is synonymous with Paralympic athletic achievement and has helped produce several elite athletes, including Jean Driscoll, Sharon Hedrick and Shawn Meredith. 

At the London 2012 Paralympic Games, athletes from the university’s wheelchair track and field program accounted for 10 out of the total 28 U.S. track and field medals won – including three gold medals and one bronze from 2014 Illinois graduate Tatyana McFadden – and four gold medals from Raymond Martin, who is currently a junior at the university.

There are 22 athletes currently training at Illinois, including 12 U.S. Paralympians, six Paralympic medalists and four gold medalists. Collectively, the 22 athletes own four world records, and three have been nominated for ESPY awards and have won the Boston, London, Chicago and New York City marathons. 

“We are excited about the opportunity to deepen our relationship with the United States Olympic Committee by becoming one of its elite Paralympic training facilities,” said Tanya Gallagher, dean of the College of Applied Health Sciences. “Since athletes from our program at Illinois participated in the first Paralympic Games we have had a sustained commitment to the world-wide recognition and celebration of athletic ability that these games represent. We are honored to have been selected as a training site and for the support we received from BP.” 

“As a proud partner of the United States Olympic Committee, BP is honored to support the establishment of what we believe will be the top Paralympic wheelchair racing training facility in the world,” said Corey Correnti, BP’s Chicago-based vice president of marketing, sales and supply. “We’re very excited to lend our support to this world-class wheelchair racing program at the University of Illinois.

Australian Football League team Adelaide FC has today appointed Andrew Fagan as their new Chief Executive Officer.

Fagan joins the Crows from Australian Rugby Union, prostate where he held the position of General Manager of National Teams, cialis Competitions and Rugby Operations. Fagan will start at the Club early next month.

He has been responsible for the strategic and commercial management of the Wallabies, pilule Australia’s Rugby Sevens Teams, National Competitions, all Test Match operations, Australian Super Rugby, and the national governing body’s relationship with the International Rugby Board.

South Australian-born Fagan is also a former long-time Chief Executive Officer of Australia’s most successful Super Rugby Club, the University of Canberra Brumbies.

Adelaide Football Club Chairman Rob Chapman commented: “Andrew has an extensive background in sports administration, and is the ideal person to take our Club forward,” Chapman said.

“He has been a senior executive at a governing body and also led a successful elite sporting club.

“Andrew has done in recent times, much of what our Club needs to achieve in the next few years.”

Fagan added: “The Crows are a strong national brand, boasting a world class stadium, a loyal and passionate supporter base, and talented playing squad.

“In saying that, there is a great deal of upside still to be realised both on and off the field and I am looking forward to maximising those opportunities.”

Daytona International Speedway (DIS) today announced CommScope, ailment Inc., order a global leader in infrastructure solutions for communications networks, order has become the first technology partner.

The company will partner the expanding “We Built Daytona” marketing platform supporting the unprecedented $400 million DAYTONA Rising redevelopment project.

CommScope will deploy a new communications infrastructure at DIS providing the facility with the bandwidth and flexibility to offer services that will enhance a fan’s experience, as well as improve stadium operations. 

The “We Built Daytona” platform is designed specifically for partners involved in the construction of DAYTONA Rising and enables them to showcase their involvement through a marketing presence (once their role in the project begins). 

“We’re thrilled to welcome CommScope to our ‘We Built Daytona’ roster of partners, and we are especially honored to recognize them as the first technology partner for the platform,” said DIS President Joie Chitwood III. “This new infrastructure from CommScope will give us the ability to deliver leading technology services and functions to fans and staff as DIS becomes the world’s first motorsports stadium.”

For stadium operations staff, the new infrastructure will enable DIS to provide critical security measures such as high resolution security cameras, HVAC control, lighting control, and other fire and life safety services.

“Daytona International Speedway is an American icon, and we are excited that CommScope will be a part of its transformation,” said Kevin St. Cyr, senior vice president of Enterprise Solutions, CommScope. “The advanced connectivity solutions that we will put in place will ensure that DIS can support the needs of racing fans in 2016 and beyond.”