The Whistle, discount the first cross-platform content provider solely focused on developing entertaining, educational and participatory sports programming tailored to kids have announced a partnership with the PGA TOUR, the world’s premier professional golf tour.

As part of the agreement, the PGA Tour will become a stakeholder of the Whistle. Also programming developed by The Whistle and the PGA TOUR will be co-distributed across The Whistle’s various media platforms, as well as PGA TOUR-owned media platforms. 

“Since the creation of The Whistle, we have partnered with some of the premier sports leagues and organizations in the country,” said Jeff Urban, The Whistle co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer.  “The PGA TOUR is the premier golf organization in the world and has many of the same goals for today’s youth as we do.  We’re extremely proud that an organization like the PGA TOUR sees our value. By partnering with the PGA TOUR, together we’ll be able to work toward achieving a positive impact on kids while exposing them to all the great values and attitudes inherent in the game of golf.”

“The PGA TOUR is looking forward to working closely with The Whistle to present exciting golf-related video content to young viewers across a variety of platforms,” said Paul Johnson, PGA TOUR Senior Vice President of Strategic Development, Digital Media and Entertainment. “We’re very interested in expanding our reach to young people, and The Whistle provides us with a wonderful opportunity to do so in an effective and meaningful way.  We plan to leverage our resources, including the world-class production capabilities of PGA TOUR Entertainment, to build this partnership and reach new audiences.”

The PGA TOUR joins The Whistle’s ever growing list of league and sports organization partners including the NFL, the United States Olympic Committee, the Harlem Globetrotters, the US Soccer Federation and IndyCar.

Ford Performance Racing has completed a change of ownership with Rod Nash and “Rusty” French taking over the team from Prodrive. 

“Rusty and I are pleased we’ve been able to acquire a business as strong as FPR which is not only an icon of Australian sport, but one of this country’s leading specialist engineering firms,” said Nash.

Tim Edwards is going to remain Team Manager and the Australian is confident that the change of ownership will strengthen the team.

“We welcome Rod and Rusty with open arms as they are two men very committed to ensuring our team continues to be successful. They are not only extremely passionate about racing but both are very successful businessmen in their own right so I look forward to the fresh approach they can provide us across all facets of the team,” said Edwards.

While changing owners, Prodrive will still remain a strong technical and strategical partner.

“We are delighted to pass our ownership of Ford Performance Racing to Rod Nash and Rusty French. Rod has been a tremendous partner to the team over many years,” said Prodrive chairman and chief executive, David Richards.

“Last season was the most successful in the 10 year history of FPR and we are pleased to be handing it over in such good competitive and commercial health, reinforced at the end of last year by the announcement of a major new partnership with Pepsi.

“Over the last decade, I have really enjoyed being part of the Australian V8 scene and developing FPR to the competitive status it enjoys today. The races are always close and the passion the Australian fans have for the FPR team and the series itself is something I have rarely seen in any other form of motorsport.

“FPR continues to be part of the Prodrive family and we retain our close technical and commercial relationship going forwards and I will personally continue to follow the team’s progress with great interest.

“I would like to pass on Prodrive’s appreciation and thanks to the FPR team members, Ford Australia, all of FPR’s current and past commercial partners and, of course, to the FPR fans, who make V8 Supercars one of the finest racing series in the world.”

Jean Todt, the FIA President has warned that F1 “will be unsustainable if costs are not cut” by 30% over the next three years, according to the Press Association.

Todt said: “Formula One is too expensive. It’s up to the teams to work with our people and the commercial rights holder [F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone]. We need to agree what to do, otherwise it will be unsustainable.”

Todt believes that if costs are not cut, then it could “sound the death knell for the smaller teams,” particularly with new engine regulations due to come into force from 2014.

Todt added: “We must reduce the costs in order to keep everybody on board. I prefer to present it like that.”

The Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), cough and top Euroleague Basketball teams Alba Berlin from Germany, EA7 Emporio Armani from Italy, and Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul from Turkey will play a series of preseason games this October as part of NBA Europe Live 2012 presented by BBVA, the NBA, Euroleague Basketball, and BBVA.

The four-game tour tips off on Oct. 5 when the 17-time NBA Champion Boston Celtics play five-time Turkish Champions Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul at the newly opened, state-of-the-art Ulker Sports Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. The highly successful O2 World in Berlin, Germany, will be the venue for the homecoming of German national Dirk Nowitzki as the 2011 NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks take on eight-time German Champions Alba Berlin on Oct. 6. Next stop is Milan, Italy, where 25-time Italian Champions EA7 Emporio Armani will match up against the Celtics at the Mediolanum Forum on Oct.7. The Mavericks will play an additional game in Spain with details to be announced in the near future. 

“Returning to Europe with two storied NBA franchises for the sixth installment of the NBA Europe Live presented by BBVA is a testament to our commitment to bringing more live games and events to our fans in Europe,” said Benjamin Morel, Senior Vice President, NBA Europe. “As part of our longstanding collaboration with Euroleague Basketball and with the support of BBVA and all of our partners, fans can look forward to an exciting blend of basketball action, interactive fan events and community-based initiatives as the sport of basketball thrives across the continent.” 

“Since 2006 both of the leading basketball competitions, Euroleague Basketball and the NBA, have been coming together to offer fans spectacular basketball and this year is no exception,” said Roser Queralto, Euroleague Basketball’s Chief Business Development Officer. “Some of the best and historic teams from the NBA will face off with some of the strongest Euroleague and European teams for some exciting preseason games to warm up for the next season.” 

As part of a multiyear partnership, BBVA – the official bank of the NBA – will serve as the presenting partner of NBA Europe Live for the first time, with Turkish Bank Garanti, which is part owned by BBVA, to be the presenting partner of the game in Istanbul. adidas will return as a Pan-European partner, a position it has held for all six editions of the tour. AmEx will also return as a partner providing premium ticket access to Cardmembers across the Tour. 

“BBVA is happy to be bringing the excitement of the NBA to fans in Germany, Italy and Spain – and through our partner bank Garanti Bank for the game in Turkey – as part of NBA Europe Live 2012 presented by BBVA,” said Mafe Laverde, Sponsorship Director, BBVA. “By serving as the presenting partner of NBA Europe Live, we will help bring world-class basketball to the cities of Berlin, Istanbul and Milan and through this series of games, reinforce our global sponsorship strategy. As the official bank of the NBA, we intend to provide extraordinary content to fans through our brand, promoting the values of effort, innovation and teamwork embodied by the two best basketball leagues in the world.” 

Following the NBA Europe Live Tour 2012, over 450,000 fans will have attended 32 Europe Live games in 12 cities since the inaugural NBA Europe Live series that took place in 2006. In total, 60 games featuring 25 NBA teams will have been played in 18 cities in Europe since 1988.

The president of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has rebutted questions of misconduct over the award of national TV rights to a new private broadcasting organisation run by the president’s sons. 

Criticism has been raging on the island about the deal, which will see Carlton Sports Network (CSN) air cricket played in Sri Lanka by the national team over the next three years for a fee of SLR 125 million (about US$1 million). 

BBC Sinhala, however, has reportedly been told by SLC’s president Upali Dharmadasa, that the contract award followed a ‘proper tender procedure’ which saw CSN come forward as the only bidder following a newspaper advertisement. 

“Nothing illegal or unlawful has taken place,” Dharmadasa told the BBC. He said the deal was free from political interference adding: “Are we supposed to reject a company because it is an organisation owned by the president’s sons?” 

Since 1996, state owned Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC) has held the rights to broadcast cricket within Sri Lanka. 

During the last Cricket World Cup, co-hosted by Sri Lanka along with Bangladesh and India, SLRC earned advertising revenues of over SLR 556 million (about $4.3 million), after paying a reported SLR 143 million ($1.1 million) for the broadcasting rights. 

The SLRC told the BBC that the SLC’s recent tender for Sri Lankan cricket until 2016 was not seen in the newspaper, and so the corporation failed to make a bid. 

“Yes we will certainly lose a considerable income but I wouldn’t say we will end up in debt as a result,” Mohan Samaranayake, chairman, SLRC is quoted as saying by the BBC. 

“We will look into how our marketing and sports departments missed the newspaper advertisement and of course will continue bid for sports rights in future events,” he added.

Ticket prices for Sunday’s Super Bowl have fallen by 15% over the past week on the secondary market.

Seats for the New York Giants – New England Patriots game are now available for an average of $3, viagra sale 664.

Tickets for the Lucas Oil Stadium match were going for $4, physician 311 on January  27th according to TiqIQ, bronchi an event ticket aggregator which monitors resellers such as StubHub, EBay, TicketNetwork and TicketsNow.

Face-value prices for seats at the Super Bowl range from $800 to $1,200. TiqIQ claim the least expensive ticket available on the secondary market is $2,000.

On the official NFL (National Football League) ticket resale site, at least one sold last week for $16,480.

The industry will continue up until the day of the game itself. Online resellers will be “setting up shop” outside the stadium in Indianapolis on Sunday.

StubHub are set to have a ticket centre across the street from the stadium at Pan Am Plaza which will host a “real-time pricing ticker” to help fans find seats at the best prices.

Touts selling tickets on the street for over 15 percent of face value must have a temporary license on display. Indianapolis city officials have stipulated that any scalpers selling tickets below that price point do not need a license.

The risk of counterfeit ticketing is high. Police in the area will carry scanners to check the authenticity of tickets.

Lawyers for National Football League teams and players are working on the final details of a labour agreement that would end the four-month lockout and allow USA’s richest and most-popular sports league season to start on schedule.

Lawyers for both sides will continue working separately today with the intention of drafting a deal, rumoured to last 10 years, that would then go to a vote of players and owners.

A majority of the 1,900 players is needed to ratify any agreement.

The NFL Players Association’s executive committee began meeting in Washington yesterday and if an agreement is completed today, could recommend to the full membership whether or not to approve it.

Owners could ratify the contract at a meeting scheduled in Atlanta, with 24 of 32 votes necessary for adoption. tomorrow

The deal would give players about 48 percent of the league’s projected US$9.3 billion in revenue, and cap payrolls at about US$120 million a team in 2011, with additional benefits, down from about US$128 million in 2009.

The agreement would also create a pay scale for rookies and free-agency rules that allow most veterans to negotiate with any team after four years.

Organisers of the Soccerex European Forum have announced that Olympic Medal winner Iwan Thomas MBE will be joining a special session at next week’s event, medic including Aston Villa and ex-USA goalkeeper Brad Friedel, Rachel Ely, Football Competition Manager, London 2012 Organising Committee and Alan Curbishley, former Charlton Athletic and West Ham manager, to look at the viability of a GB team participation in the competition for the first time in 40 years.

Currently the English Football Association is set to manage the GB team but the Irish, Scottish and Welsh are unwilling for their players to participate due to worries over losing their individual statuses in the eyes of FIFA.

Iwan Thomas will give his first hand experience of competing in the Olympics having won a Silver medal in the 1996 Games in Atlanta as well as Gold medals in the World Championships, European Championships and EAA European Cup. As well as representing Great Britain he also represented Wales in the Commonwealth Games, where he again won Gold, Silver and Bronze medals.

Iwan will be joined by Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel, who has represented his country in three FIFA World Cup tournaments as well as the 1992 Olympic Games. The former Charlton Athletic and West Ham manager Alan Curbishley will be the final member of the panel, drawing on his years of player and management experience in English football.

This highly topical subject is part of a diverse agenda reflecting the latest issues in European Football including Financial Fair Play, sponsorship, rights holder relationships, digital media and fan interaction and International FA development.

Dates and prices for ticket sales for Wembley’s staging of the UEFA Champions League Final in May have been announced to the displeasure of many fans.

The prices for tickets are perhaps unsurprisingly at a record high but many wouldn’t have predicted an increase of as much as 17 per cent in some cases.

The availability of tickets for the flagship European club soccer final will go on sale from next week, February 24, until March 18, with prices ranging from £300 (US$487) down to the lowest cost of £150 ($243.5), and £80 ($130) for wheelchair users.

Sales will be conducted exclusively through Europe’s football website, UEFA.com, with each applicant having to complete in full the online application form. Should demand exceed supply then every valid request will enter a lottery to decide the allocation.

The net capacity of Wembley Stadium for the UEFA Champions League final will be around 86,000. Each finalist club will be entitled to take up to 25,000 tickets, to be distributed directly to their fans.

Along with the rising ticket prices, an administrative fee of £26 ($42.2) (including postal charges) for successful applicants inside Europe is in place and £36 ($58.4) for the rest of the world.

The most expensive seats available to the general public for the game are from Category 1; costing £300 ($487), 17 per cent up on the comparable ticket last year. Second-tier places are up 15.5 percent to $355, and the third category costs $243.5, 13 percent more.

UEFA’s event director Giorgio Marchetti told reporters in London. ““We have to benchmark this event against other comparable events like, for example, the final of the European Championship, the World Cup. It’s still priced below comparable events.”

Alltech’s founder expects his company’s investment in the World Equestrian Games to offer quite a profit, leading to $100 million in new business by this time next year.

It’s the endgame of a sponsorship that surprised many when it was announced in June 2006, given Nicholasville-based Alltech’s small number of equine products and relatively low profile. It also was a major learning experience for the company, founder Pearse Lyons told the Herald-Leader.

“It has been absolutely worth it,” he said.

Jack Kelly, who oversaw the Games’ organizing committee until mid-2008, called it the “most unusual and amazing sponsorship” he’s seen over his career of working with events that attracted $200 million in sponsorships.

“It was unique given the amount of the sponsorship for a first-time sponsor and the ability of a company to build all or a great part of their marketing around the sponsorship every day,” Kelly said.

Lyons told the Herald-Leader that the $100 million in new business — at least that much, he says — will come from several of Alltech’s divisions.

Sales of its Kentucky Ale beer have doubled year over year since the 16-day Games, which ended Oct. 10. “We expected there to be a spike during the Games,” Lyons said, “but we didn’t expect there to be another spike after the Games.”

The Games also saw Lyons meet a leader of one of the country’s largest beer distributors, he says: L. Knife and Son Cos. The company doesn’t distribute the Kentucky Ale family of beers yet, Lyons said.

The centerpiece, of course, is the company’s primary business: equine feed supplements, which have seen sales rise since the sponsorship was announced. In 2006, they accounted for 2 percent of Alltech’s roughly $300 million in annual sales. Now they’re up to about 5 percent of $500 million in sales.

One of those that’s spending more is California-based O.H. Kruse Grain and Milling, which buys ingredients from Alltech for its equine products. The company was impressed enough to become Alltech’s “official feed partner” for the Games, said Dave Spaulding, a sales manager.

“They’re going to become a bigger player,” he said of Alltech.

Rick Burton, a professor of sport management at Syracuse University, said Lyons’ estimation that Alltech could yield $100 million in new business from the sponsorship is “very feasible.”

“Even if they would only make $30 million, they could say it’s break-even, and this is something that raised their awareness,” he said.

While the finance people at the privately held company are crunching the numbers — “we have to be a successful business,” Lyons reiterated — the company’s leader focuses primarily on how the Games bolstered Alltech’s image.