Serie A Strike Ominous for Opening Weekend Games

The risk of a football strike increased in Italy as the League refused to sign an agreement over players’ rights, three days before the scheduled start of the Serie A season.

The Italian Players Union (AIC) has already emphasised it will not play at the weekend if the League does not sign the agreement, which has been the subject of negotiations for the last year.

Maurizio Beretta, League President said: “The League’s general assembly has rejected the agreement with the players by a large majority of 18 votes against two.”

Strike action was twice narrowly averted last season as AIC and the League tried to secure a new collective agreement to replace the previous one which expired at the end of the 2009/10 season.

The main problem which either party cannot agree on is that the AIC wants guarantees that these players will not be forced to train separately from their squads or be forced to move. The clubs want their coaching staff to be allowed to make the decision.

The League said in a statement it also wanted to insert a clause confirming the players would pay a new solidarity tax announced by the Italian government this month on all workers earning over $130,000 a month.

AIC president Damiano Tommasi reiterated his players would only play if an agreement was signed “At this time, we aren’t in a position to play,” said Tommasi. “The League’s demands are spurious and I don’t see how that this is going to change.” The Italian Football Federation will deliberate today over the impending strike.

Red Strike Acquire New Clients

New marketing consultancy Red Strike Marketing has declared that it has won a number of new high-profile contracts since launching earlier this year, erectile including the Marussia Virgin Racing Formula One team, herbal the Global Ocean Race and Leeds United Football Club. 

The UK-based company has also taken on a consultancy role to the Saudi Arabia Sports Agency – a new advisory board set up by the office of Prince Faisal.  ?Red Strike Marketing’s new client portfolio includes a five-year contract as the exclusive sponsorship agency for the Global Ocean Race.

The contract with Marussia Virgin Racing Formula One team allows them to secure a range of commercial partners for the start of the 2012 season and with Leeds United to develop a number of special projects. ? ?In addition to new wins, Red Strike Marketing continues to work with founding client Capita Symonds. 

Capita Symonds is a property and infrastructure company which were involved in the construction of the new roof for Wimbledon’s centre court and the completion of Wembley stadium. 

Macron, the Italian technical sportswear manufacturer and designer, is also an existing Red Strike Marketing client. 

The consultancy has helped set up a number of football kit licensing deals for Macron, with clubs including West Ham United, Leeds United, Charlton Athletic, Millwall and Sheffield United.

Mike Farnan, CEO of Red Strike Marketing, said: ‘The Red Strike Marketing team has considerable experience working for right holders, agencies and high profile brands’. 

‘This contrasting expertise and understanding helps us maximise the sporting relationships. We are able to offer a unique, multi-layered approach to help brands and organisations that invest in sport, deliver the best return of investment’

City Events 2014: Join our line-up of expert speakers!

City Events, symptoms the conference specialized in city-hosted sporting events will hold its fourth edition on November 13th and 14th in Paris, France, around the theme “Winning strategies for hosting sporting events.” We are launching a call for submissions open to anyone with an interesting angle or experience to propose a conference topic and join our line-up of expert speakers. 

Last year, City Events brought together 250 participants from 24 countries to discuss, debate, and collaborate on the issues facing city-hosted sporting events, from the point of view of local organizers, private events rights owners, and international federations. The conference takes a holistic view of the hosting process, from preparing a successful bid to ensuring a tangible legacy for citizens of the host city after the event. 

We would like to invite interested parties with unique experience or forward-thinking idea pertaining to this year’s theme to send us a short presentation of the conference that they envision giving at City Events 2014, as well as a bit of detail about their current situation and past experience pertaining to hosting sporting events. 

In 2013, we received around 20 conference proposals and retained three speakers from our call for submissions. First, Shaun Dawson, Chief Executive at Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, is responsible for ensuring a positive legacy of three venues from the 2012 London Olympic Games—Lee Valley Velopark, Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Center, and Lee Valley White Water center—by adopting a model of community-focused and commercially driven venues that combine elite and grassroots sporting events. He presented his views on ensuring a positive legacy for venues by incorporating legacy as a key concern from the outset. 

Second, Alf Oschatz, Head of Sports at EMEA Geography AECOM in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa and lead project manager and stadium manager for the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban presented us his experience-based lessons on budget management for a stadium. 

Finally, James Patterson, Director of Government, Tourism, and Events at Repucom with over 20 years experience in sporting event consulting, specializing in holistic major event evaluation and valuation, led participants through innovative and effective ways to measure return on investment for a sporting event. 

We look forward to receiving your submissions and enriching the 2014 City Events program with your fresh ideas. Send your short abstracts and personal information before July 1, 2014, to Pierre-Emmanuel Danger at pe.danger@cityevents-sport.com. Submissions will be evaluated by the City Events program committee composed of athletes, institutional leaders, experts, and key international decision-makers. 

We look forward to hearing from you! 

Info & Registration: www.cityevents-sport.com

Adidas Appoint Eric Liedtke to Executive Board for Global Brands

German sportswear giant adidas AG have revealed their supervisory board has appointed Eric Liedtke to the Executive Board of adidas AG effective March 6, symptoms 2014. 

Liedtke, anesthetist 47, drugs currently Senior Vice President adidas Sport Performance, will assume responsibility for Global Brands on an Executive Board level. After 30 successful years at the adidas Group, Erich Stamminger (56) has decided not to extend his Board contract and to leave the adidas AG Executive Board on March 5, 2014, for personal reasons.

“We are committed to giving our next generation of leaders more responsibility for the future of our Group. Following the appointment of Roland Auschel last year, we are now very pleased to welcome Eric Liedtke to the Executive Board,” stated Herbert Hainer, CEO of adidas AG.

“Over the past years, Eric Liedtke has contributed to the extremely positive development of adidas both in North America and globally. We are convinced that he will lead our brands into the next era of desirability, success and growth.”

Eric Liedtke, a US citizen, joined the adidas Group in 1994 as Global Line Manager for Cross Training in Portland/Oregon. During his 20-year career with adidas, Eric Liedtke has held senior management positions of increasing responsibility at adidas America, including Director of Footwear Marketing and Vice President Brand Marketing.

adidas CEO Herbert Hainer said: “Erich Stamminger and I have worked very closely together for more than 20 years and I could not have asked for a better and stronger business partner and personal friend. I can only praise his unrivalled marketing expertise and passion for our brands. I wish him all the best for his future.”

UK MPs Adamant G4S Should Forfeit Olympic Games Fee after Blunder

UK MPs have today suggested Australian security firm, nurse  G4S should forfeit its £57m Olympic Games management fee for failing to provide the required number of security staff.

The home affairs select committee said the blame for failing to fulfil the contract rested ‘firmly and solely with the company itself’.

Armed forces personnel were forced to step in to cover security in some venues after G4S admitted it could not provide the 10,400 staff it had committed to recruit and train. The contract with Games organiser Locog was worth a maximum of £284m.

As a result of the failure, total military deployment for the Olympic Games peaked at 18,200 troops, up from the original planned workforce of 7,500.

Committee chair Keith Vaz said that the firm had ‘turned years of carefully laid preparations into an eleventh hour fiasco’.

In a report examining Games security, the committee said ‘a combination of flawed management information and poor communication with applicants and staff meant that G4S senior management had no idea how badly wrong their operation was going until it was too late to retrieve it’.

Despite this, the firm continued to give false reassurances, based on poor-quality data, to Locog, the Home Office and others until a very late stage.

Forgoing the £57m management fee would ‘send a strong signal to the British taxpayer, its biggest client in the UK, that it is serious about making good for its mistakes’, MPs said.

The report urged the government to maintain a central register of high-risk companies that have failed in the past to deliver public services, which could inform future procurement decisions.

Armed forces personnel should also now be considered as possible security providers for future major events from the outset, rather than just as a backup.

Vaz added: ‘Because of the swift actions of the MoD, Home Office and Locog, London enjoyed a safe and secure games. The taxpayer must not pay for G4S’s mistakes. G4S should waive its £57m management fee and also compensate its staff and prospective staff who it treated in a cavalier fashion.’

Responding to the report, G4S said that its board and management had ‘taken responsibility for the inability of the company to deliver, in full, on the Olympic security contract and apologise for this failure’.

However, the firm has estimated it will incur a loss on the contract in the region of £50m, including payment of penalties and liabilities due under the terms of the contract.

Its statement added: “As explained by both G4S and Locog to the committee, the £57m “management fee” is not a profit. It relates substantially to real costs which have been incurred such as wages, property and IT expenditure. The final financial settlement is currently under discussion with Locog.”

WWE Launches New App

WWE today launched the official WWE flagship app for iOS and Android mobile devices and tablets, ambulance including the iPad, iPhone, iPod touch and Samsung Galaxy SIII.

The entertainment app provides a 24/7 platform for the WWE Universe on-the-go, as well as a second screen TV companion experience that activates during Monday Night Raw with live polls and content.

“Our fans have proven they want to consume WWE content day and night and now, through our new mobile app, they can stay completely connected to the action wherever they are,” said Jason Hoch, SVP Digital Operations, WWE.

The new application will also offer exclusive videos and content, plus pull in the social media streams for every WWE Superstar and Diva. The latest WWE.com news can be accessed through the app and will be updated constantly, keeping fans informed at all times. Using mobile location technology, users can also order tickets to local events, buy authentic WWE merchandise via WWEShop.com and follow social conversations happening in their area.

BRDC Considering Leasing Silverstone to Qatar Investment Authority

Qatar’s Investment Authority (QIA) are having talks with British Racing Drivers Corporation (BRDC) to lease the Silverstone Formula One circuit, The Independent newspaper reported.

The BRDC, which owns the circuit, is considering leasing the 850-acre Silverstone site for 150 years, in a deal expected to be worth up to $405.7 million, the paper said.

The Independent added that QIA was selected from a shortlist drawn up by PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

Silverstone hosted the first Formula One Championship race in 1950 but has been continually questioned in recent years by Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who famously likened it to a “country fair masquerading as a world event”. 

The paper quoted a source as saying: “To do all the development, they have had to borrow a massive amount of money and, long-term, the club can’t sustain that.” 

Other high-profile investments made by the QIA over the past couple of years include the 1.5 billion pound acquisition of London department store Harrods. 

Qatar also has stakes in companies including retailer J Sainsbury , banking group Barclays and German automaker Porsche through the QIA.

IAAF Call for Re-Vote after Problematic Electronic System Votes Out Bubka

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Congress ordered a re-vote after Sergey Bubka, the man favourite to become potential successor to President Lamine Diack, catastrophically failed to earn election as one of the four vice-presidents. 

The Ukrainian’s defeat had seemed to have boosted Sebastian Coe’s chances of being elected as the next President when Diack eventually steps down in 2015.

Coe, the London 2012 chairman, polled 167 of the 199 votes to finish fourth behind Qatar’s Dahlan Jumman Al Hamad and Canada’s Abby Hoffman, who both got 175, and the United States Bob Hersh with 171.

Bubka, the 1988 Olympic pole vault champion and world record holder, and seen as the rising star in global sports administration both within the IAAF and International Olympic Committtee (IOC) earned only 118 votes and was not elected finishing fifth overall.

At the last IAAF elections in Osaka four years ago Bubka had topped the poll with 167 of the 192 votes, leading to Diack to appoint him as the IAAF’s senior vice-president.

Hamad, currently acting as the head of the Asian Athletics Association, had on that occasion finished fourth with 129 while Coe got 137.

But doubts over the electronic voting system led to Diack ordering a re-run this afternoon.

The validity of the system began to come under scrutiny following the election of Russian Valentin Balakhnichev as the new treasurer in the election that followed the one for vice-president with more votes were cast than member federations were in the chamber and a wild swing in the polling.

In the first round Spain’s Jose Maria Odriozola had polled 93 votes but failed to earn an overall majority against his rivals, the Czech Republic’s Karel Pilny, who got 75, and Balakhnichev with 42.

That meant a total of 210 votes were cast when only 199 were supposed to be eligible.

Then ,in the second round, Odriozola dropped to 41 as Pilny got 77 and Balakhnichev 87 – a total of 205.

As things stand, it means Bubka will not have a place at the top table of world athletics as he had been so confident of being re-elected as vice-president that he had not put himself forward a place on the ruling Council.

That would seriously jeopardise his chances of succeeding Diack when the next Presidential election is held in Beijing in 2015.

Bubka had declined to challenge Diack for the Presidency this time round, although there was pressure on both him and Coe to put themselves forward.

“It is clear there is a problem with the electronic system,” Bubka said as he hurried out of the room at the end of the session.

When asked if he expected to be elected in the re-vote he replied: “Let’s see.”

A hastily arranged “crisis meeting” was then held by IAAF officials during the lunch break who decided to ditch the electronic system and adopt a manual system instead, holding a series of votes, including for the vice-presidents and treasurer, simultaneously.

“We are facing a situation that was totally unseen,” IAAF general secretary Pierre Weiss told the meeting when they returned.

“We have lost trust in the system.

“The solution is not ideal but we are not in a situation where we can have ideal solutions.

“We are in crisis.”


Sorenstam renewing with IMG

One of the most successful female golfers of all time Annika Sorenstam has renewed her long-standing contract with IMG, ed the global sports, clinic fashion and media agency, cure for her worldwide management and marketing representation.

The retired Swedish golfer  and ten time major winner runs a number of business and charitable initiatives under her name, including the Annika Academy, Annika Course Design, Annika Financial Group, and Annika Collection of premium consumer products, such as a signature clothing line, wine label and fragrance.

Sorenstam said “After much consideration and in light of my ambitions for the next phase of my career, I have determined that IMG remains the company best positioned to support me and the Annika portfolio of businesses,” she also added  “IMG’s experience and global resources are unmatched and I look forward to continuing to work with them across all aspects of my business and charitable initiatives.”

Robbie Henchman, senior vice president and co-managing director of IMG Golf, said: “Annika is a legend in the game of golf and her popularity throughout her career allowed her to transcend her sport. IMG is extremely proud of our long-standing relationship with Annika and is also proud that she has been as successful with her many business and philanthropic pursuits as she has been on the golf course. We are thrilled with the opportunity to continue representing Annika, and we look forward to working closely with her and the dedicated team at Annika Inc., led by Mike McGee, to help her achieve many more exciting milestones in the future.”

iSportconnect Announces Sport and Recreation Alliance Partnership

iSportconnect, the world’s largest private network for sport business professionals, have announced a partnership with Sport and Recreation Alliance.

The agreement will make iSportconnect the Sports Business Media Partner of the 2014 Sports Summit, which is set to take place on June 5th.

At the Sports Summit 2014, leaders from across the sport and recreation sector will horizon-scan to unearth the qualities and skills they need to drive their organisations future success.

Taking place at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge the summit will allow delegates access to hands-on learning workshops and keynote sessions on Insight, Digital marketing and CRM, Sponsorship, Crisis Comms, Integrity and Governance.

Speakers include UK Athletics, Sainsbury’s, the Tour De France, The FA, the Lawn Tennis Association, The Rugby Football League, Goodform, Lexington Communications, the Shadow Minister for Sport and more.

Michael Cunnah, Chairman of iSportconnect said: “We are delighted to partner with Sport & Recreation Alliance and this prestigious event.”

Sallie Barker, Interim Chief Executive of the Sport and Recreation Alliance said: “The event focuses sharply on financial sustainability in sport. Part of that is knowing what others are up to and exchanging ideas and views with the best in the sector – something which isportconnect enables.

“They are a great fit for a partnership on the Sports Summit and we’re pleased to have them on board.”

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