National Basketball Association (NBA) team the Philadelphia 76ers have been bought from Comcast-Spectacor by a group led by Joshua Harris after having been approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors.

“My partners and I are thrilled to have become owners of the Sixers,” said Harris. “It is an honor to be a part of this storied franchise – we have a lot of work to do but we have a rich history, a strong foundation and a bright future. My partners and I want to thank Ed Snider and the Comcast-Spectacor team for all their efforts to make this outcome possible. As we move forward, we want to build on the team’s momentum and be world class and cutting edge in everything we do.”

The new owners have named Adam Aron, a native Philadelphian and the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Vail Resorts, Chief Executive Officer of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Harris said: “Adam is a superb executive with deep and broad experience, and we are very pleased he will be returning to Philadelphia as CEO of the Sixers and a member of our ownership group. Adam and I both have strong ties to the Delaware Valley, and we are committed to providing an exciting, high-quality experience to the great fans in Philadelphia in the years ahead.”

Aron added: “Being named CEO of the Philadelphia 76ers is truly a dream come true. Having grown up in Abington, I have always been a fan of this team. I’m excited about celebrating and building on the extraordinary heritage of the 76ers, the third winningest team in NBA history. We will work tirelessly to make Philadelphia sports fans proud.”

The investor group is led by Harris, who will serve as Managing Owner of the 76ers and as the team’s Governor on the NBA Board of Governors. Other investors include David Blitzer, who will serve as Co-Managing Owner and an Alternate Governor of the NBA, CEO Adam Aron who will also serve as an Alternate Governor of the NBA, Martin Geller, David Heller, Travis Hennings, James Lassiter, Marc Leder, Jason Levien, Michael Rubin, Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith, Handy Soetedjo, Erick Thohir and Art Wrubel, all of whom have made personal investments in the team.

dosage pills helvetica, therapy sans-serif;”>A national poll conducted by Bloomberg last week has revealed that 43 per cent of those surveyed side with the players union and 20 per cent with the National Football League (NFL) owners with regards to the labour dispute in the game. The remaining 37 per cent either don’t follow football or aren’t sure which side they favor.

allergist helvetica, sans-serif;”>David Carter, executive director of the Sports Business Institute at the University of Southern California, said in an interview“Fans live vicariously through the players, and are more sympathetic to player causes.”

Among the issues are what share of the league’s US$9 billion in revenue players should get and whether to expand the season to 18 from 16 games and impose a rookie wage scale.

The NFL Players Association has rejected owners’ demands and say the teams should open their accounting books. The union is also seeking improved health care for retirees, some of whom suffer from nerve damage, joint deterioration and the effects of repeated head trauma.

While the NFL has offered to reveal some financial data, it has refused to show everything the union sought. The NFL said the data offered is more than has ever made available to the union, including some information that it doesn’t disclose to its own clubs.

Organisers of the Delhi Commonwealth Games are to hand out free tickets to tackle the problem of empty seats.

Many of the competitions have been poorly attended at the Games, asthma which began this week.

Now organisers are hoping to solve this problem with a ticket giveaway scheme to childen adn teh underprivileged.

Chairman of the Delhi organising committee Suresh Kalmadi said: “We are working on the children from schools – already steps have been taken in that direction.

“And also from the low level of society, ed we have been distributing a lot of tickets.”

Kalmadi also said that ticket booths have now been opened at all the venues to make it easier to purchase them.

He added: “There were problems – some of the ticket stalls were not put up, but all the stalls are up now at all the stadiums.”

Thomson Sport has been appointed as the Official Travel Partner to the Scottish Football Association and the Scottish Supporters’ Club.

The four-year deal will see Thomson Sport become the preferred provider of Match Breaks for Scotland supporters, including matches in Scotland and overseas.

Managing director of Thomson Sport, Nathan Wilson, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this partnership with the Scottish Football Association and are excited at the opportunity to work with the Scottish national team.

“Scottish fans are some of the most passionate in the world of football and the Scotland Supporters’ Club has a record membership of 35,000 fans. We look forward to playing our part in ensuring they fully enjoy the football experience both at Hampden Park and internationally.”

Scottish FA acting chief executive, George Peat, added: “This partnership ensures the national team and its magnificent support enjoy the best possible travel experience for all our games during the Uefa Euro 2012 and 2014 Fifa World Cup Qualifiers.”

Thomson Sport will also be the preferred of travel and accommodation to the Scottish national teams, as well as for key executives linked to the Scottish FA travelling to matches.

Two former presidents of League 1 football side Paris Saint-Germain have been found guilty of illegal transfer dealings and handed suspended jail sentences.

Francis Graille and Laurent Perpere were convicted of forgery and using forged documents to boost salaries in a bid to attract big name players to the club with undeclared money.

Perpere was president of the club between 1998 and 2003 and was given a US$50,000 fine and a twelve-month suspended jail sentence. Graille replaced him as president and held the position until 2005. He was handed a US$25,000 fine and an eight month suspended prison sentence.

Several agents were also handed suspended jail terms for their parts in the scam, while Nike France was fined just under US$190,000 for its part in the operation.

Prosecutors had spent four years investigating the illegal employment practices at at PSG during Perpere and Graille’s reigns, which saw 24 players and two coaches allegedly benefit from the system to the sum of US$11 million.

Nike Golf has today announced two new appointments to its global senior management team, stuff with Simon Parkhill appointed to the role of General Manager of Nike Golf Japan, and Brian Karl to the position of Commercial Sales Director of Nike Golf EMEA.

Since arriving at Nike in 2001, Simon has played a number of key roles for both the Nike Brand and Nike Golf including assuming the position of Nike Golf Sales Director of UK and Ireland in 2006 where he was responsible for the sales and distribution execution in those strategic marketplaces for four years.

Following a two year stint as the Sales Director of the Football Category for the Nike brand in the UK and Ireland where he worked in partnership with key sports marketing assets such as Manchester United FC and Arsenal FC to maximize their commercial potential, Simon returned to the Nike Golf team in EMEA as the Senior Commercial Director of Nike Golf EMEA in 2012.  For the last two years in that role, he has been responsible for leading a team of 50, focused on accelerating the sales and profitability of this critical geography.

“I have mixed feelings, sad to leave Nike Golf EMEA at such an exciting time for the Brand and the Business. We are poised to accelerate our growth in this market and in Brian we have the right person to lead that charge.

“But I’m equally excited to be taking up the challenge with Nike Golf in Japan; our potential for growth in that marketplace is unlimited,” he added.

Parkhill’s 13-year tenure with the brand will continue in Tokyo, where he transitions with his wife, Louise and their three children.

As successor to Simon in Europe, Brian Karl has accepted the position of EMEA Commercial Sales Director. The 15-year Nike Golf veteran was most recently the Director of Sales for National Accounts in the USA geography, bringing a focused approach to account specific strategic planning and a discipline on account profitability. Prior to this role, Karl has held numerous sales positions at Nike Golf in the USA, ranging from Territory Sales Rep to National Account Manager to Multi-Course Business Director. He has a proven track record of success and will be bring a strong commercial expertise, high level of strategic thinking and brand management to his new role.

“There has never been a better time to be with Nike Golf and I am excited to join the EMEA Team. With our stable of athletes and innovative products coming to the market we are poised for tremendous growth,” added Karl.

In the coming weeks, he will be transitioning to Amsterdam with his wife Monica and their two children.

Commenting on the two appointments, Nike Golf EMEA General Manager Angus Moir said: “While we are disappointed to lose Simon from the EMEA business, I know that Brian will continue the great work that Simon has started as we reset our business model for 2015 and beyond. Our brand momentum is very strong after Rory McIlroy’s Open Championship victory and these changes will further fuel that success.”

Liz Nicholl, the chief executive of UK Sport, is adamant that governing bodies will reach their target to get more women in the boardroom

Maria Miller, Culture Secretary and Minister for Women, wants to see at least a quarter of women making up sporting boardrooms by 2017 – but research conducted by Sky Sports has revealed more than half of our national bodies are lagging behind.

Liz Nicholl believes organisations should be made to have women at their top tables but admits an emphasis on ‘quotas’ could be hindering the battle for diversity.

“Absolutely, boards should be made to have women members,” Nicholl told Sky Sports News.

“Using the word quota sounds like anyone would do when it’s about really good women, great women, being appointed to create balanced boards. Diverse boards are more effective boards and they make better decisions.

“There are some things that need to change before a board can appoint an independent, outside of the membership of their governing body, to the board; articles need to be changed, sometimes that takes a year to get through. It’s a journey but what we’re hearing is that the sports are very committed.

“Making people aware of opportunities is also important and I’ve seen a big difference in the way the sports are now handling that; they’re openly advertising for board appointments.”

Nicholl revealed UK Sport would re-examine the figures after the 2016 Olympics Games in Rio de Janeiro.

“We might consider sanctions at some point,” she added.

“(A quarter) is not a tough target, you’d expect that to be achievable a lot earlier. We hope to have a really good look after Rio 2016 when we make our decisions about the next funding cycle because that is the point we can decide whether or not to make (female representation) a funding requirement.”

Leora Hanser of the Women’s Sports & Fitness Foundation believes the target should be set higher.

“We applaud the 25 per cent expectation but I think we’d say that 30 per cent is the new normal; when you have a third of women in the board that mainstreams diversification,” she told Sky Sports News.

“No one is saying we need to have 25 or 30 per cent tomorrow; the timeframe is quite generous.

“Women on boards can help improve participation among females at grassroots level, they can help boost the support for women athletes at elite level and they can help improve media coverage of women’s sport.

“There’s a whole host of really talented women – often outside of the sports sector – out there so we need a better process to let these women know that opportunities are available.”

Global interactive marketing provider ExactTarget have announced that Papa John’s Super Bowl-themed marketing campaign was named the best cross-channel digital marketing campaign of 2012, ambulance earning the pizza giant ExactTarget’s annual Power of ONE Award.

Papa John’s International, ask Inc, rx the world’s third largest pizza chain, earned the ExactTarget Power of One Award for its Super Bowl-themed FREE PIZZA FAST campaign that integrated email, mobile, social media, television, print advertising and Website promotion to drive sales during the important Super Bowl season. Papa John’s is the Official Pizza of the National Football League and Super Bowl XLVII.

“Papa John’s is a trailblazer in digital marketing, creating new and engaging cross-channel experiences for its customers that build loyalty and lasting business results,” said Scott Dorsey, co-founder and chief executive officer of ExactTarget. “The team at Papa John’s and those across all of our Power of One Award recipients are transforming their businesses with ExactTarget and unlocking the power of digital marketing to connect with their customers.”

Papa John’s award-winning campaign invited customers to vote “heads or tails” on Papa John’s website to predict which side the official Super Bowl coin would land. As part of the online voting process, the company seamlessly integrated the opportunity to enroll in Papa John’s Papa Rewards loyalty program. When the Super Bowl XLVI coin toss fell in their favor, Papa Rewards members were automatically sent a unique email, featuring a one-time promo code for a free pizza.

“Our FREE PIZZA FAST campaign proved to be incredibly successful in generating awareness and participation in our Papa Rewards loyalty program,” said Andrew Varga, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Papa John’s. “We’ve seen the benefits of creating campaigns across all marketing touch points and are honored to be named the Cross-Channel Campaign award recipient.”

ExactTarget’s annual Power of ONE Awards recognize the world’s best digital marketing campaigns that demonstrate how one team and one idea can connect a brand a customer across all channels. The awards honor the top campaigns across nine categories: business-to-business email, business-to-consumer email, small business email, social media, mobile, design, list growth and reseller.