Ambush marketers are rejoicing after it was confirmed boats operating in and around the London 2012 Olympic Park in Stratford will be exempt from advertising restrictions during this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Boats which usually operate in the zone, transporting members of the public, can continue to do so and display advertising from brands who are not official Games sponsors, even though they will be seen by a potential television audience of several billion.

Exclusion zones were published in November by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) to prevent other brands advertising around the Olympic Park.

A spokesman for the ODA told insidethegames that the class B exemption would apply to these boats and similar vehicles.

“Moving vehicles used primarily to carry paying passengers are exempt from the restrictions designed to stop unauthorised ‘ambush marketing’ advertising during the Games,” he said.

“It will be up to enforcement officers to decide if this is really their purpose, or if they are simply for advertising.

“Should that be judged to be the case action may be taken to stop breaches of the rules.”

One of the companies who operate boats on the canals in and around the Olympic Park, Water Chariots, are hoping to take advantage of the rulings.

Their director of client services, James Sawyer, told Event Magazine: “We’ve had quite a few people come and look at the boats.

“The branding is an opportunity we’re offering up, and there’s some interest in the marketplace for it as you can imagine.

“It’s a creative solution to the restrictions.”

Such creativity will likely not be taken too kindly by the Olympics sponsors, whose exemption is meant for boats and brands ordinarily displayed in the area.

New sponsors coming on board to take advantage of the situation would represent a grey area and it is possible they could be seen as a breach of the restrictions.

iSportconnect is pleased to announce it has launched a new digital platform, iSportconnect TV that will feature interviews, video podcasts and sports business discussions.

iSportconnect will endeavour to interview high profile personnel in connection with latest news and prolonged stories. The first example of this is a Podcast by Daniel Geey titled ‘Daniel Geey Discusses ECJ Broadcasting Ruling.’ Geey is a leading solicitor at Field Fisher Waterhouse, and an expert in football broadcasting law.

Also iSportconnect will broadcast iSportconnect Directors club, networking event debates live from London, Munich, Barcelona, Singapore and various locations in US.

The new platform is just another example of iSportconnect’s recent expansion with offices recently opened in Germany and United States.

Keep logging on to iSportconnect for more exciting news.

In an attempt to make the sport more efficient and exciting, Formula One cars could undergo further dramatic redesigns ahead of the 2013 season.

The changes will include:

* Downsizing of the cars wings;

* Specially-designed underfloors to generate downward force differently (the underfloor of the cars will be shaped along its length to generate downforce for the first time since the 1982 season – currently cars have bottoms that are flat between the wheels);

* A major reduction in the total amount of downward force;

* The average proportion of a lap that a driver is able to spend on full throttle to be cut from 70% in 2010 to 50% in 2013;

* Tyres will remain large and chunky to ensure cornering speeds remain high.

The adaptations will make the cars slightly slower meaning passing may be easier though the general driving should be more challenging. The cars are set to use 35 per cent less fuel in a bid to promote environmentally friendly changes.

Patrick Head and Rory Byrne have produced the redesign plans which, if implemented, would highlight the biggest design changes since 1983. The draft regulations requested by the FIA will be submitted to the F1 teams this week ahead of the Technical Working Group’s (TWG) meeting in January which scopes out rule changes.

The fundamental philosophy of the changes is set to remain intact though the design heads of each team represented by the TWG will suggest any necessary changes to the proposal.

Head, director of engineering for Williams, and Byrne, a former chief designer for Ferrari, have been partly responsible for the design of 17 constructors’ title winning cars for Williams, Benetton and Ferrari.

A financial advisory partnership has been agreed by HSBC Personal Bank to support IMG’s stellar sports division, which includes the likes of Tiger Woods and Colin Montgomerie.

The bank will now have the opportunity to offer its clients the opportunity to play alongside some of the world’s top golf professionals in pro-am tournaments whilst they also have a commitment to provide advisory services to the players.

The bank is believed to be funding a rise in the prize money for the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship to US$2.7m, up from $500,000.

HSBC has strong ties in golf having agreed a deal earlier in the year with The Open Championship to become the tournaments official banking partner. The bank also sponsors IMG’s World Golf Championships in Shanghai as well as several golf days in Malaysia and Singapore.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) is set to approve recommendations for the creation of a Test league and play-off system designed to make matches more competitive.

The plan is that results from international Test series will be used to form an official table, with the top four teams going head-to-head to decide a Test champion.

It is thought the first play-off will take place in England in 2013 if the plans are approved.

Following a two-day meeting of the ICC chief executive’s committee (CEC) in Cape Town this week, ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said: “I am really excited by what the CEC has proposed. Restructuring international cricket is a significant strategic challenge and one that must be dealt with.

“Achieving balance and unanimous agreement is not easy but it is a very important piece of work that requires a strategic response.

“We now have the potential to follow international cricket that is even more exciting.”

Crowds at Test matches have dropped in many countries since the introduction of the Twenty20 format of the game. The ICC has subsequently been looking for ways to generate renewed interest in the traditional format of the game.

Expected to attract around 650 of the world’s best swimmers from 50 countries, the sixth staging of the Championships will take place at Montreal’s Parc Jean Drapeau Aquatic Complex between 11th – 17th August 2013.

The British Gas GBR Disability Swimming Team has a strong history at the event and won 52 medals at the 2010 Championships in Eindhoven.

Xavier Gonzalez, the IPC Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are very excited about Montreal staging the IPC Swimming World Championships as it is a city with an excellent track record for staging major international sporting events.

“Many of the swimmers who competed at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, breaking 148 world records, will compete in Montreal.

“Just like in London I expect them to thrill spectators and TV viewers around the globe with their sensational performances.”

Branding agency SME Branding has been selected to create a new identity for the GRAND-AM Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series merger.

A key component in the merger of GRAND-AM Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patron was announced today, with world-class branding agency SME Branding selected to develop the new identity for the combined sports car series.

“Scott Atherton and I both believe our mandate, since announcing plans to merge GRAND-AM and ALMS, has been to ensure that we get it right the first time,” said GRAND-AM CEO Ed Bennett. “We think we’re well on our way to doing that from an identity standpoint with SME Branding on board.”

The New York-based agency’s client list includes NASCAR, the NFL, NHL, UFC, the New York Yankees, Kentucky Derby, and Madison Square Garden. In this assignment, SME will conduct stakeholder research, develop positioning strategy and produce the name, logo and brand identity for the new series.

“We are honored to be part of this historic moment in motorsports,” said SME Branding Senior Partner Ed O’Hara. “Our process will include key stakeholders from the merged series so that we can get to one holistic concept representing both the excitement and prestige of the series.”

The new branding is expected to be revealed in early 2013.

Mark Pieth, the man appointed to investigate corruption at FIFA has said the organisation has “skeletons in the cupboard” and that he has encountered resistance to his work.

Pieth was brought in to chair FIFA’s Independent Governance Committee (IGC) by Sepp Blatter, the president of world football’s governing body.

He told the BBC he believed some members of the organisation were resisting his investigative efforts, saying: “We’ve introduced this new, independent judicial system but I think they need to look at the past.

“They have skeletons in the cupboard, that’s true. There are some, usually older people, who don’t agree with what is happening.”

The IGC was set up in 2011 after a series of corruption scandals and claims. In March, it published a report that said past allegations of corruption had been sufficiently investigated.

Blatter set up an ethics committee in response, but Pieth, a 59-year-old Swiss professor, believes much more work remains to be done.