The Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) Chief Executive Neil Doncaster has been appointed to the board of the European Professional Football Leagues.

Doncaster willserve on the board for an initial three years from 2013/14 to 2015/16 and will follow in the footsteps of former SPL Chairman Lex Gold who previously served on the board.

The body was founded in 2005 and now has 30 European Leagues as members.

“I feel honoured to be appointed as a director of the EPFL, adiposity ” said Doncaster.

“I am delighted that Scottish football should once again be represented on the board of such an important body.

“The EPFL plays an increasingly central role within European football policy at the highest level – and it is important Scotland is able to contribute effectively to the debate.

“I look forward to representing all 42 clubs of the SPFL within the association of European Professional Football Leagues.”

Colin Moynihan, Chairman of the British Olympic Association (BOA)  has suggested any spare tickets for the London Games should go to the troops that have been drafted in at short notice due to security failures. 

Thousands of military personnel have been brought in after security firm G4S failed to provide the necessary number of staff, with many forced to give up their leave to cover the Games. 

Moynihan believes that giving them any tickets that have not yet been sold would be a good way to thank them. 

“I’m not responsible for tickets but if anyone deserves to fill any empty seats it’s those forces in their down time,” he said. 

“It makes a lot of sense – if there are some tickets available, let’s respect their tremendous contribution and say thank you. 

“These guys are so into sport and are really supporting the team, and just today some soldiers down from Chelmsford were saying ‘when we do get down time can we go out there and see the events’. If there are any spare tickets it makes eminent sense for the armed forces to have them and would be a great way to say thank you to them.” 

The London Olympics is set to begin with the opening ceremony in five days time on Friday 27.

Brazil 2014 World Cup preparations moved up a gear after they invested 200 million reais ($118 million) to ensure that all host cities have access to fast mobile internet connections.

The system also needs to be able to handle the demand for the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

The country’s President Dilma Rousseff said that she has authorised huge investments to ensure that the technology is in place for both events.

“This is a legacy which will remain to the Brazilian population after the World Cup and Olympic Games,” she said. We want to reach at least 40 million households with access to broadband internet, which is very important to our country’s development. Internet is present at everything: economy, education, shopping, personal relations and public services.”

Rousseff also said that 4G phones will also be available for the 2014 World Cup competition, and broadband services are planned to be offered for half the typical market price.

The plans include moves to ensure free internet access is available to public schools and internet centres.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has spoken to German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, claiming to have over 100 votes secured already in his presidential battle with Mohamed Bin Hammam, with just 208 available at the June 1 elections.

Blatter stated: “I imagine I have half the votes in Asia and Africa and a big majority in the rest of the world. At least over a hundred.”

When asked if rejecting an increase in World Cup places for CONCACAF would cost him votes he claimed: “It could cost votes but I look into the future with confidence.”

The current Swiss incumbent went on to claim that his presidential challenger was aiming to “turn the entire world of football on its head”, adding that this is something which cannot be done and that he has “trust in the traditional values of our game and its pyramid organisation.”

Blatter claimed that a presidential term of at least 8 years is paramount to any candidates success, saying that any incumbent should then be permitted to bid for an additional 4-year term, saying: “Eight years is a mandate where you can say you can achieve something. You can then extend it by another four years.”

In putting himself forward for re-election, Blatter is aiming for a record fourth term, spanning his presidency over 16 years. Despite claiming that 12 years should be “enough”, the 75-year-old added: “You can’t count my first four years in charge because there were people who wanted to drive me out of the centre of FIFA. I didn’t have time to focus on my mission, on the essentials.

Blatter also promised to be more open and transparent in the wake of recent corruption scandals if he wins a fourth term as head of soccer’s world governing body, admitting that negative perceptions towards FIFA are down to poor communication as well as improper conduct by a minority of those in authority.

Blatter wrote in his column for insideworldfootball: “The results of communicative ineptitude can be devastating for all those in an organisation who are decent and hard working. It is always a few who destroy lives and the image and reputation of many.”

He added that he is willing to address the allegations of financial corruption within the body by publishing FIFA’s annual figures in even more detail, adding: “I am proud to state that it was under my leadership as FIFA President that we started to publish our figures for the world to see in 2003 for the first time – and have adhered to that policy ever since, and in ever more detail.”

Leading stadium specialist AEG has reportedly offered to make lease payments for use of city land as part of a financing deal for Farmers Field, cough the planned NFL-ready stadium in downtown L.A.

AEG lists rent from a proposed ground lease as “part of the revenues that would be used to repay” the $325-350m in city bonds that would be issued for the project.

AEG submitted a three-page document to city negotiators on Wednesday, prescription February 16, but according to the LA Times, this “does not indicate how much would be derived from a long-term lease”.

Salt Lake City, Utah are “ready, willing and able” to host the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, according to Governor Gary Herbert.

Herbert said: “I’m excited and optimistic for the great state of Utah and Salt Lake City, and the people of Utah to once again say we are ready, willing and able to host the Winter Games here in the great state of Utah.”

Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker said he “wholeheartedly” endorses the idea of taking on the Games again.

Both Becker and Herbert say the state is well positioned financially and otherwise to host the Games.

An Olympic Exploratory Committee was formed in February to assess considerations such as public opinion, transportation availability, hotel accommodation and sporting venues. The committee unanimously recommended in October that Salt Lake City go for the event.

According to officials, the committee, made up of business, government, sports and community leaders, received no negative comments about trying for a repeat of the 2002 Winter Games during months of meetings. According to Gov. Herbert, 74 per cent of Utahns polled support a return of the Winter Games to the state.

In a 36-page report, the committee stated, “Utah’s Olympic legacy is strong and vibrant and ready to provide the foundation for a future Olympic Games”.

The committee says that Salt Lake City has the infrastructure in place following the 2002 Winter Olympics and that the financial benefits are too good to pass up, recommending that Salt Lake City bid for the 2026 Winter Olympic.

The report pegs the cost of a bid at less than $1 million at the USOC level and between $25 million and $30 million to compete internationally. All of the bid costs would be paid privately, said the report.

The proposed budget to host the 2026 Games is $1.67 billion, about $300 million more than the price for the 2002 Games. The costs aren’t as high as they might be for another city due to projected savings on planning costs and venue construction.

The only cost to taxpayers identified in the budget is $85 million to upgrade the bobsled, luge and skeleton track, speed skating oval, and other Olympic facilities. The budget calls for the money to be repaid from Olympic revenues, and another $75 million to be set aside for post-Games operating expenses.

Steve Price, with the Utah Olympic Exploratory Committee, said Salt Lake City is more prepared than other potential cities because of the improvements being made to the Salt Lake City International Airport and the state’s highways.

He said: “There was no burden on the taxpayers for the last Olympics, so the money that was borrowed from the state of Utah was all paid back, 100 per cent of it. For future Olympics, we are more well prepared, for example, than other potential cities because we have facilities that are in place.”

The report said the 2026 Games could be expected to produce a $5 billion economic impact, provide the equivalent of more than 30,000 jobs that last a year, and generate more than $75 million in revenues to state and local governments.

Meanwhile the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) still hasn’t decided whether to field an American city to bid for 2026. 

The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) has granted final approval of the all-weather footing that will be used at Greenwich Park during the equestrian events at the 2012 Olympic Games.

“With support from the FEI, cheap the contractors and our own team have done a great job to get the make-up of the surface right, and we now believe this will be a world class surface for the equestrian athletes in a stunning Olympic venue,” said Debbie Jevans, London Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) director of sport.

The final assessment took place on the main arena and involved two high-level competition horses working and jumping fences on the surface. The surface mixture of sand and fiber has been further improved by the addition of a binder. Approximately 8,500 tons will be used at Greenwich Park.

Also attending as FEI representatives were Technical Advisor Leopoldo Palacios, Jumping Technical Delegate Frank Rothenberger, and footing experts Oliver Hoberg and Bart Poels. Olympic jumping course designer Bob Ellis was also present. All were unanimous in their view that the footing that has been produced is of a quality that would be expected of an Olympic Games and performs consistently across the full extent of the arena, as well as on the training and warm-up areas.

The conclusions of those present following the assessment were supported by the scientific work carried out on the surface by Lars Roepstorff, DVM, PhD, professor of equine functional anatomy at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Roepstorff carried out research on the properties of equestrian surfaces around the world as part of a long-term scientific footing study for the FEI. He measured properties including surface firmness, elasticity, the dampening capacity of the footing, and grip. He considers the London 2012 footing to be amongst the best and particularly the most consistent that he has worked on.

“A lot of work has been done on this footing with the involvement of many experts and we are really happy with the final result,” said FEI Secretary General Ingmar de Vos, who was also present at the assessment. “It is the first time that there has been such a scientific approach to footing and hopefully this will be part of the long-term legacy as it helps us to determine the parameters that can be used in the future to establish scientifically approved criteria for optimal footing.

Meanwhile, de Vos said that despite persistent and heavy rainfall that has caused dozens of three-day events to be canceled this year in the U.K., the Olympic cross-country course appears ready for action: “Tim Hadaway (LOCOG sport competition manager for the equestrian events) showed me around the cross-country and we were happy to see that the footing is in very good shape and ready for the competition, and that the recent adverse weather conditions have had no negative effects.”