YouTube to Launch New Dedicated Football Channel

YouTube has partnered with digital specialists Rightster and international sports media rights agency MP & Silva to bring the best of international football content to YouTube.

This partnership creates a new football channel on YouTube, prostate Love Football, ampoule which will include highlights from Italy’s Serie A, capsule France’s Ligue 1, U.S. Major League Soccer, Brazil’s Serie A and the Championship, FA Cup and Capital One Cup from England.

Clips of interviews with players and managers, documentaries and behind-the-scenes footage are also part of the channel offer.

There are some rights restrictions for access in certain countries. For instance, the French Ligue 1 videos are not available to viewers in France and Spain, while the English FA Cup is only available in Asia (excluding Thailand) and in selected European countries: Germany, Italy, Turkey, Belgium, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland.

Major League Soccer from the US is not available in the USA, Canada and Mexico. The Championship and Capital One Cup from England are only available in Asia.

Stephen Nuttall, senior director, sports, YouTube EMEA, said in a statement: “We’re delighted to be able to offer content from Italian Serie A, French Ligue 1 and other international leagues to YouTube’s passionate football community around the world. Our ambition is to establish YouTube as a destination for goals and highlights and this deal adds another top league to YouTube’s football offer.”

Andrea Radrizzani, group CEO, MP & Silva, said: “Launching Love Football on YouTube is an extremely exciting project for us. In addition to highlights clips our new channel gives us the ability to stream live sports content. We can now for the first time engage directly with consumers and football fans on a global scale”.

Charlie Muirhead, founder and CEO of Rightster added, “We’re delighted to be supporting MP & Silva with the exciting launch of the LoveFootball Channels on YouTube. The YouTube platform now has many amazing new features that sports fans will love.

“Rightster’s audience development team in London and New York have already been busy working to alert fans and build the loyal and passionate subscriber base these channels deserve.

“For the first time, Rightster provides MP & Silva with centralised visibility and control of all its sports rights, including complex geographic restrictions and release windows, across both YouTube and all other platforms and publishers – allowing them to do the best possible job for each League.”

London 2012 Open New Shop at Stansted Airport

London 2012 continue to get ready for next years Olympics by opening their latest shop at London Stansted Airport.

Olympic mascot Wenlock, Paralympic mascot Mandeville and London 2012 head of licensing Simon Lilley were all on hand to perform the honours and cut the ceremonial ribbon.

The latest in a number of London 2012 Shops opened but the first to launch new product ranges and gives a wide range of international and domestic travellers the opportunity to stock up on souvenirs as they pass through the terminal.

Lilley said: “This latest shop opening offers an increased opportunity for London 2012 to connect to UK travellers and international visitors, offering them a great chance to take home a piece of the Games. The range of products on offer is huge and the diversity really means there is something for everyone – from pocket-money toys to collectables.”

London Stansted Airport, is the third-busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third-largest airport serving the London area after Heathrow and Gatwick.

Martin Lyall, operations director at London Stansted Airport, said: “We are delighted to welcome the new London 2012 shop to Stansted Airport. It provides travellers with a great opportunity to share in the excitement which the London 2012 Games will generate.”

The shop sells items including clothing, pin badges, coins, key rings, stationary, cushions and of course the London 2012 mascots.

ICC search for Twenty20 World Cup media agency

The International Cricket Council (ICC) is seeking an agency to manage the official marketing, communications, advertising and media strategies for the ICC Twenty20 World Cup tournament in 2012.

The successful company will be granted the rights and responsibilities in managing all such aspects of the tournament’s fourth edition, which takes place in Asia for the first time as Sri Lanka host the event next September.

In a statement, the ICC said they are looking fo companies with “a proven track record in running the ticketing programme for world-class sporting events is essential as well as sufficient resources and experience to provide all the necessary services, a state-of-the-art information technology infrastructure and suitably skilled and experienced personnel.”

The successful company will also have either a substantial network of relevant contacts throughout the host country and other territories represented by the teams competing at the event or a proven ability to establish local contacts in each of such countries in order to provide the services to the required standard and within the required time-frames.

To find out more, please click here.

10 Sports Broadcasting Deals of the Week: 23/05/14

1

SiriusXM to Broadcast 2014 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Semifinals & Championship Game

Thursday, 22 May 2014

2

BBC to Air Northern Ireland Friendly Against Uruguay

Thursday, 22 May 2014

3

DirecTV Acquires Ice Hockey World Championship Rights in South America & Caribbean

Wednesday, 21 May 2014

4

IMG Media Distributes Media Rights to 2014 Road to Brazil Series

Wednesday, 21 May 2014

5

2016 Centennial Cup America Logo Unveiled, Univision Announced as Broadcaster

Monday, 19 May 2014

6

TV Asahi Extends Japanese Broadcasting Rights to FINA Events

Monday, 19 May 2014

7

CBS Sports to Air 2014 Blancpain GT Series

Sunday, 18 May 2014

8

Chivas USA Inks Broadcast Deal with KDOC-TV

Friday, 16 May 2014

9

IMG Media Secures Distribution Rights to FIBA’s 3×3 Competitions

Friday, 16 May 2014

10 

NBCUniversal Inks WWE Broadcast Deal

Friday, 16 May 2014

Havas Reveals Leadership Changes with New CEO

French advertising group Havas have announced Global CEO David Jones will be leaving the company to become co-founder and CEO of a new tech start-up and will be replaced by Yannick Bolloré.

In another leadership change Andrew Benett, sale Co-President Havas Worldwide, pills has been promoted CEO of the advertising network and will report to Yannick Bolloré.

Yannick Bolloré (pictured) said: “It’s a very exciting time for Havas. We are well on our way to realizing our goal of being the most integrated and innovative communications group of our industry. I would like to thank David for the impact he has made at Havas over the last 15 years. Thanks to his talent, David has contributed significantly to the improvement of the results and organization of the Group and its standing amongst clients and in the industry. I wish him all the best for his future business.”

Jones, who is also the Guardian’s Sustainable Business Leader of the Year for 2013 and co-founder of One Young World, leaves the Group by agreement with Havas’s management and will be retained as advisor to the Havas Chairman & CEO throughout 2014.

David Jones said: “If I were going to stay in the industry it would be at Havas, but I have always had a burning desire to be an entrepreneur and this is too exciting an opportunity to not seize. Those people who know me know my two passions in business are social media and social responsibility and this new venture combines the two.”

“I want to thank the Bolloré Group and Vincent Bolloré in particular for his support and mentorship over the last eight years and wish Yannick every success.”

Yannick Bolloré added: “I also want to congratulate Andrew for his promotion. I have no doubt that with the Havas Worldwide leadership team they will continue to drive the growth and evolution of our network over the coming months and years.”

Andrew Benett said: “I’m looking forward to my expanded role and to continuing to implement our strategy in partnership with Yannick and the leadership team at Havas. It’s an incredibly exciting time as we continue to build strong relationships with our clients, helping them to innovate and grow their businesses.”

Exclusive: Sochi’s Winter Olympic Stadium to be Completed on Schedule

With 18 months to go until the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia’s Black Sea city of Sochi, erectile the Fisht Olympic stadium is set to be completed well in advance of the Games, prostate according to Populous who constructed some of the venues.

According to Richard Breslin, Senior Principal at Populous, the stadium should be completed next year. The Games will have just two centres, one for mountain facilities and one for the venues around the coast, which includes the stadium. He also says that Games project is now the “centrepiece for a massive coastal development stretching for kilometres along the coast, including the new International Adler Airport, new universities, hotels, and residential zones.”

As Sochi will also be a World Cup venue for when Russia host the event 2018, the capacity and seating for the Olympic stadium is flexible, with 32,000 the capacity for the Winter Olympics, before rising to 45,000 for the World Cup, and then 25,000 for its overall use – a football and concert venue for the local community.

John Barrow, Project Director of Sochi’s new stadium, added: “the opportunity to work with our Russian friends on such a showcase for the nation, and to pass on what we have learnt from London has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.”

To read more of what Richard Breslin said about Sochi 2014 preparations click here:>>

Lord’s Cricket Ground to Have New High Speed WiFi after The Cloud Signs On

Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has signed a five-year deal with WiFi provider The Cloud to install high-speed public WiFi at Lord’s.

Visitors to the Ground can now access a fast, user-friendly, internet connection to browse the web free of charge on smartphones, tablets, laptops, e-readers, and all other wireless devices.

The service – launched recently during the England v South Africa Investec Test Match – focuses on making The Cloud available in the J.P. Morgan Media Centre, across hospitality areas, in the Food Village, and in the vicinity of all public bars. Following the initial roll-out, MCC will now look at the option of providing free WiFi in every stand, to reach each of the 28,500 seats at Lord’s.

MCC Chief Executive and Secretary, Derek Brewer, said: “The availability of high speed WiFi adds to the experience of visiting Lord’s. Spectators spend a whole day with us, so having secure access to the internet means that they can post photos and videos of their experience, as well as keeping up to speed with commentary and analysis of the match online.

“The service is also ideal for email access, general web surfing, social networking and media streaming.

“The introduction of The Cloud represents another step to ensure that Lord’s continues to set the highest standards for spectator experience in the game.”

Vince Russell, Managing Director at The Cloud, added: “We are delighted to have been chosen by MCC to provide The Cloud’s fast reliable WiFi access at the spiritual home of cricket. The doubling of traffic on our network over the last 6 months to well over 100 million minutes a week demonstrates the increasing importance of being able to access the internet from a mobile device as a must-have for most people.

“Whether they are an avid fan wanting to discuss the game on Twitter, or a businessperson who needs to send a couple of quick emails in between overs, there is a huge need for free WiFi to be available.”

In addition to improving the experience of visiting Lord’s, The Cloud’s service will allow MCC to provide a more personalised service to those who log-on.

The landing page, which greets users will contain information about the Ground and its facilities, and will also highlight exclusive offers for tickets to future matches.

NBA Summer League All Star Game Moves Venues

Tonight’s (Aug 30) summer league all-star game featuring LeBron James, erectile Carmelo Anthony, cheap Chris Paul and Kevin Durant has been moved to Morgan State in Baltimore, discount not St. Frances Academy as originally planned.

The Morgan State facility holds about 4,500 people, compared to just 1,000 at the high school’s gym.

James, Anthony and Paul will suit up for the Baltimore-based Melo League, which will face an all-star team from the D.C.-based Goodman League.

The Melo League will look to steal bragging rights as the best summer league in the nation from the Goodman, which earned that distinction by virtue of a 135-134 victory over the L.A.-based Drew League in D.C. earlier this month.

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’