FIFA’s longest serving vice-president Jack Warner sensationally resigned from his post at world soccer’s governing body yesterday, June 20, as well as his presidency of CONCACAF following the most explosive bribery scandal in the organisation’s history.

FIFA released a statement emailed yesterday, reading: “Jack A. Warner has informed FIFA about his resignation from his posts in international football. FIFA regrets the turn of events that have led to Mr Warner’s decision.

“His resignation has been accepted by world football’s governing body, and his contribution to international football and to Caribbean football in particular and the CONCACAF confederation are appreciated and acknowledged.”

The statement added that Warner had decided to relinquish his ties with soccer to focus on his role as Cabinet Minister and as the Chairman of the United National Congress for his native Trinidad & Tobago. His reputation in the politics world had been seriously tarnished by the latest revelations at FIFA and Warner revealed last week that he would choose his role in government ahead of soccer if a decision had to be made.

A key factor in this decision has seen all charges against Warner from FIFA, having been provisionally suspended, dropped, with the statement adding: “As a consequence of Mr Warner’s self-determined resignation, all Ethics Committee procedures against him have been closed and the presumption of innocence is maintained.”

The controversial CONCACAF President was at the centre of claims that Caribbean colleagues were paid thousands of dollars to vote for Sepp Blatter’s former presidential challenger Mohamed Bin Hammam in the recent election.

Warner, 68, was temporarily suspended along with Bin Hammam pending a full investigation into accusations that 25 Caribbean federations were offered US$40,000 each at a specially arranged meeting in Trinidad on May 10-11.

With the evidence appearing to stack up against him, FIFA’s most controversial powerbroker, who has survived a number of previous yet far less damaging scandals, has walked before being pushed.

He will now be replaced as CONCACAF President and told Bloomberg: “I have lost my enthusiasm to continue.

“The general secretary that I had employed (Chuck Blazer), who worked with me for 21 years, with the assistance of elements of FIFA has sought to undermine me in ways that are unimaginable. 

“I’ve been hung out to dry continually and I’m not prepared to take that.”

Speaking specifically about the allegations that bribes were paid, Warner added: “It’s not unusual for such things to happen and gifts have been around throughout the history of FIFA. 

“What’s happening now for me is hypocrisy.”

After totalling 28 years of service, adiposity Chuck Armstrong is set to step down as Seattle Mariners President and Chief Operating Officer in a somewhat surprising announcement on Monday afternoon.

Armstrong, 71, will retire, effective January 31, 2014 the team revealed.

“Thirty years ago my family and I were given a wonderful opportunity to move to the Seattle area and become associated with the Seattle Mariners,” Armstrong said in a statement. “We quickly grew to love this community and this team. Through all the good times and the not-so-good times on the field since 1984, the goal always has been to win the World Series. My only regret is that the entire region wasn’t able to enjoy a parade through the City to celebrate a World Championship together.

“After much thought and reflection, it is now time for me to retire and enjoy as much time as possible with my wife Susan and our family. The recent deaths of several good friends have really had an impact on me and helped crystallize my decision. This was a very difficult, very personal decision, but I know in my heart that it’s time to turn the page and move to the next chapter of my life.

“Thanks to our outstanding ownership, the franchise is stable and will remain the Northwest’s team, playing in Safeco Field, a great ballpark and great example of a successful public-private partnership. The team is in good hands and positioned for future success. I am thankful for this important part in my life and I will always bleed Mariners Blue. Susan and I plan to continue to live here and remain involved in many community events and causes.”

During his tenure, the Mariners made four playoff appearances and set a major league record with 116 wins in the 2001 season. But the organization never made an appearance in the World Series. Only two current organizations in major league baseball – the Mariners and Nationals (Expos) – have never participated in the Fall Classic.

Armstrong was first brought to the Mariners in 1983 by George Argyros, a wealthy California real estate mogul, who purchased the organization. He had served as Argyros’ general counsel previously.

Armstrong was let go as president when Argyros sold the team to Indiana businessman Jeff Smulyan in 1989. He worked as a consultant for local businesses and served as interim athletic director of the University of Washington in 1991.

With the Mariners up for sale and possible relocation to Tampa Bay in 1991, Armstrong was asked by then Senator Slade Gorton to work with a group of local investors led by Seattle businessman John Ellis to keep the team in Seattle. With the backing of Nintendo Company, the Baseball Club of Seattle purchased the team in 1992. Armstrong was immediately brought back to serve as team president, a position he’s held ever since.

“When the Baseball Club of Seattle purchased the franchise in 1992, it was clear that Chuck Armstrong was uniquely qualified to lead the organization,” said Mariners Chief Executive Officer Howard Lincoln. “Since day one, he has given his heart and soul to Mariners baseball. He sincerely cares about the game of baseball, this organization, this city and this region. On behalf of ownership and everyone who has worked here for the past 30 years, I thank Chuck for his tremendous contributions. We wish him all the best in retirement with Susan and his family.”

Commissioner Bud Selig also offered congratulations and thanks to Armstrong.

“I congratulate Chuck Armstrong, a great baseball man, on his upcoming retirement after 28 years of dedicated service to the Mariners franchise as club president,” Selig said in a statement. “Chuck was one of the key leaders who secured the national pastime’s future in the Pacific Northwest, guiding the Mariners as they became a model franchise in a wonderful ballpark. His knowledge and experience on both the baseball and business sides was an asset to our entire sport in numerous ways, including on my Special Committee for On-Field Matters and our International Committee, and he always kept the best interests of our game in mind.”

British fans were so eager to keep up with the London 2012 Olympics action that more than half not only switched on TVs but also used radios, laptops, smartphones and iPads to follow events simultaneously, according to new research by international consumer research specialist Intersperience.

A group of 250 people around the UK participated in a special Intersperience research project in which they recorded how they followed the action during the middle weekend of the Olympic Games which resulted in a weekend gold rush for Team GB.

The research found that 52% of people who watched the action on television followed events simultaneously across two or more devices, frequently following several sports at a time on different screens. In fact, the research showed that 10% of participants used three or more devices to keep up with the sporting action.

Participants used several devices at once to get a mix of live action, replays and post-event interviews as well as to get more detail on events and athletes and to access social networking sites. Many people chatted on the phone about the Games, while also reading results online, watching live TV and sending emails.

Paul Hudson, Chief Executive of Intersperience said: “Our research shows that London 2012 was not just the world’s first Digital Games, it was a major event for social media.  We found that 45% of the people using social networking sites while watching the Games, were directly communicating about the Olympics. If these figures were replicated across the total population, it would mean that 16% of the total UK population used social networking sites to share the Olympics.”

Facebook emerged as the dominant site, with 95% of participants using it to share Olympics facts and opinions compared to just 18% who used Twitter, although Twitter was more popular when people were away from home.

A total of 46% of people watching the games on TV at home were also using their laptops at the same time while 31% were using smartphones. Ipads proved popular also, especially for using Facetime to connect with friends and family during major events.

Another participant described his experience of following the Olympic marathon: “I had my DAB radio on Radio Five Live, I had my TV switched on with the sound turned off and I used my laptop to get details of the marathon.”

Hudson added: “This research shows that ordinary families are becoming very sophisticated in the way they consume and share information across digital platforms. Digital is now mainstream in the UK – this is a wake-up call for organisations who have not yet mastered multi-channel digital contact.”

Soccer fans in China can watch 3D computer recreations of all goals scored in Euro on their mobile phones thanks to a service provided by WASU New Media and AFP.

WASU chief executive, Li Yiqing, said: “We are making this AFP service available to China Mobile,China Telecom and China Unicom subscribers. This will be another way for them to enjoy this hugely popular sport in China.”

 The three network providers combined have more than one billion subscribers.

AFP’s German-based partner, Impire AG, will provide high-definition computer graphics of each goal from three angles.

The service will be available to subscribers of the three mobile networks within two hours of the end of each match.

“The idea is to have soccer fans enjoy and appreciate the intricacies of each goal scored,” AFP’s Asia-Pacific regional director, Eric Wishart, said.

“We are delighted to be working with WASU in bringing this very special news product to soccer fans in China.”

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Top English Premier League soccer club Tottenham Hotspur has announced its intention to return to the High Court as the club continues to fight the decision to award West Ham United occupancy of London’s Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Games has ended.

The future of the stadium has become a contentious legacy component of London 2012. Tottenham Hotspur last week failed in a bid for a judicial review of the decision, which they contested alongside English League One outfit Leyton Orient, in its bid to overturn Olympic Park Legacy Company’s verdict that West Ham and Newham Council should become anchor tenants of the venue.

Wednesday’s announcement will now grant Tottenham the opportunity to make its case in a hearing at the High Court. Tottenham said in a statement: “The club has today applied to the High Court to renew its application for permission to bring a claim against the London Borough of Newham and the Olympic Park Legacy Company, the Mayor of London and Government Ministers for judicial review of their decisions underlying the bid process for the conversion of the Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Games.”

The club has been engaged in a long-running battle to secure a site for a new stadium with Tottenham’s current White Hart Lane home only able to hold 36,000 fans, compared to the Olympic Stadium’s 60,000 when used for soccer.

British Olympic Association (BOA) chief executive Andy Hunt has admitted that the organisation is likely to fall back into the red this year, despite staying out of debt in 2010.

Hunt stated that the body’s plan was for this loss to be cancelled out by the profit that should be generated in Olympic year in 2012, adding: “When you look at those two financial years, our business plan actually says it will break even.

“Our plan is to break even over the 2011-2012 period.”

Hunt added that the BOA plans to go to market with rights for the next Olympic quadrennium, running from 2013 to the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, this coming September.

He claimed that the BOA’s partnership with the London 2012 Olympic organising committee was “stronger than ever”.

Olympic sponsors Coca-Cola and Samsung are benefitting most out of the olympics after having the best social media performance according to business information group, health Precise.

In looking at the different ways people were referring to the brands on blogs, help forums, Twitter, Facebook, videos and images, both brands had the greatest share of voice and sentiment.

The research conducted by Precise – carried out in the two weeks until 31 July covering the last days of the Torch Relay, the Opening Ceremony and the first few days of competition – found that sponsor sentiment scores range from +89 to -7. Samsung’s favourability is highest with a score of +89; McDonald’s is bottom of the table with -7 mainly due to negative comments and people questioning the fit of the events with the brand. Criticisms around the restrictions placed on what can be sold at Olympic venues have also harmed the brand.

Research also found 12 per cent of conversations about Coca-Cola and five per cent about Samsung directly mention the Torch Relay, the genuine engagement with the Relay had a positive increase on these brands. Coca-Cola’s prominent role in the Torch Relay managed to tap into the excitement around the games.

Samsung’s product placement within the Opening Ceremony was also found to have resonance, one third of messages mentioning Samsung have direct relation to the Opening Ceremony. Even though the brand name and logo was not in view, use of the phones proved to be the single most significant boost to the brand within social media.

Brand ambassadors have also played a role in the success of Samsung and Coca-Cola on social media. Samsung’s association with David Beckham and Zara Phillips, and support of athlete Jenna Randall, has also curried favour for the brand on social networks. Coca-Cola has also benefitted from its association with music artists Mark Ronson and Katy B.

Head of brand insight at Precise, James Withey, commented: “This summer of sport stands out as being the most social ever. Social media has seen explosive growth over the last few years. This provides the sponsors with new battleground for brand visibility, and a new way to measure the success of their investment.

“Investing in sponsorship does not automatically curry good favour. The winning brands will be those that are seen to play a meaningful role and bring real benefits to people.”