Pub chain Fuller, Smith & Turner is going to spend £16 million ($25.5m) to buy five pubs, four in London, to exploit the opportunities the London 2012 Olympics will provide.

The brewer of London Pride recently lost out on a bid to buy the Capital Pub Company to rival Greene King, which paid £70 million ($111.5m) for 34 boozers around town.

Most pub chains think the Olympics will be very lucrative and are looking to expand in the capital.

Fuller is acquiring The Wellington at Waterloo, The Pavilion End and Bluu in the City, The Hand & Flower in Kensington Olympia and the Red Lion Hotel in Wendover, Bucks.

The seller is Marston’s, which is seeking cash to build new pubs in areas such as retail parks.

Fuller’s managing director Simon Emeny said: “These acquisitions are high turnover managed houses with a similar trading style to our own where we feel Fuller’s can add value. They emphasise our continued focus on London.”

The deal adds 58 bedrooms to the Fuller’s estate and takes the number of pubs it owns to 365 – one for every day of the year.

For City drinkers, The Pavilion End might be of most interest. It is close to Cannon Street station and has a beer garden regarded as one of the best in the Square Mile.

London’s 2017 bid for the World Championships has been given a major boost after Bob Hersh, head of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Evaluation Commission, claimed the issue surrounding the London Olympic Stadium track has been resolved.

The American headed an IAAF delegation that completed its inspection of London’s 2017 bid on Tuesday. 

Inspectors were handed a ‘cast-iron guarantee’ by the British government that the running track will remain in place at the Olympic Stadium, regardless of whether English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur wins its court action against the decision to award the venue to West Ham United after London 2012.

The action had threatened to derail London’s bid, but Mayor Boris Johnson last week urged Tottenham to stay in North London after the club was offered a stadium deal that could save it $26 million. 

Tottenham is still seeking a judicial review of the Olympic Stadium decision, which will be heard on 18th October.

Hersh said: “We were concerned before we got here, having read about this issue for years now. But based on our very good meeting yesterday, the assurances we have received from the government and the way in which it has addressed the legal state of affairs and legal possibilities, we are satisfied.

“We are satisfied there will be a stadium with a track in it and we will be able to host the 2017 World Championships in that stadium. We’re very pleased to have that issue sorted as we have just regarded it as a distraction off to the side.

“The city sells itself. It is a wonderful city and one that I have always enjoyed being in. The stadium is world class and we’re also very pleased with the passion and commitment of UK Athletics (UKA) and those who are involved in this bid. I think UKA have shown they are capable of holding a successful World Championships.”

USA Boxing has selected a new Board of Directors, while also re-electing Dr. Charles Butler as their President

The prominent list of ten community leaders, to lead the organization in a new and positive direction. The board breakdown includes four independent directors, a general membership director as well as affiliated organization director, Local Boxing Committee (LBC) director, AIBA representative and athlete representatives. 

“I am extremely honored that my fellow board members have elected me to serve as the President of this great organization once again. USA Boxing currently sits at a critical juncture and a clear vision is needed to turn this sport around”, said Dr. Butler. “I believe that the talented and diverse group of individuals selected to sit on USA Boxing’s Board of Directors possess the experience needed to accomplish this important mission. If this board and membership work closely together we will restore the golden age of boxing in this country”.

The four independent directors, which were selected by the nominating and governance committee, are: Bill Polian, DJ Walton, Dr. Dick Hoffman and Richard Halpert.

There were further appointments with John Brown becoming General Membership Director, James Beasley becoming Affiliated Organization Director, Angel Villarreal joining as LBC Director and Cam F. Awesome & Mikaela Mayer being named Athlete Directors. 

ed sans-serif; color: black; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white;”>Mayor of London Boris Johnson says cars will not be banned from the city centre during London 2012.

There have been reports in the media stating the International Olympic Committee is keen to see traffic management altered during the Games, including a possible car ban in central London.

The Mayor stated there are plans to enforce such measures at this week’s London Assembly Meeting. Johnson said: “I think it would be crazy I give you categorical assurance that I won’t do it.

“As I understand it, there is no basis whatever for this report. No such suggestion has been made to me, so we are a bit mystified about where this is coming from.”

There is expected to be a sharp increase in traffic on London’s famously crowded roads during The Games.

The IOC Coordination Commission will monitor the situation in the lead up to London 2012.

Denis Oswald, Head of the IOC’s London 2012 coordination commission, said: “The transport system has been improved. There has been big investment made. And this will remain after the games.”

“We visited the Transport for London offices, where we have seen all the technology which is available. We have seen information on the situation of different parts of London and we were very much impressed.”

“We were shown how this will apply during the Games and this has given us confidence on the ability of Transport for London to overcome the additional traffic which will be present for the Games.”

“A lot of progress has been made. But this is an issue we have to follow very closely until the end.”

South Africa will host the the 2013 African Cup of Nations after Libya relinquished their hold of staging the event, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced.

The South African Football Association (SAFA) earlier had claimed  they had received the right to host the tournament but were quickly rebuked by CAF general secretary Hicham El Amrani

The switch occured due to the security situation in the country, where the fighting between pro and anti-Muammar Gaddafi forces have continued to influence Libyan officials.

Two other nations, Algeria and Nigeria, were in the running for hosting the event but CAF chose South Africa who will also stage the 2014 African Nations Championship, an event for locally-based footballers.

This wasn’t all bad news for Libya as they will take over the 2017 tournament from South Africa. A CAF statement read: “The Executive Committee…decided on the swapping between Libya and South Africa for 2013 and 2017 respectively, considering the current political situation prevailing in Libya. This means that South Africa will host 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and Libya, 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.”

South Africa last staged the Cup of Nations in 1996 and the 2013 event and will use the stadia developed for last year’s FIFA World Cup.

SAFA president Kirsten Nematandani told told BBC Sport: “The Nations Cup presents them (the stadia) with a great opportunity. They will be better utilised for the better use of the game itself and (show) that taxpayers’ money has been well-invested.” Gabon and Equatorial Guinea will co-host the 2012 Cup of Nations in January and February, with the 2013 edition brought forward a year as CAF restructures its calendar to avoid its tournament clashing with the World Cup.

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Sochi 2014 has already raised more than $1 billion in domestic sponsorships, now Russian organizers of the Winter Olympics hope to secure deals worth another $200 million and finish with a post-games surplus of more than $300 million.

President and CEO of Sochi 2014 Dmitry Chernyshenko, also head of the Sochi organizing committee, told The Associated Press on Thursday the Olympic body will not need any government funding despite the weakening global economy and competition from the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

He said: “We are really confident we will not apply for public money from the state. There is an obligation of the state to co-invest in the games, but my goal is to have this money as profit of the games.”

While Sochi has already secured $1.2 billion an Olympic record in domestic sponsorship revenue and tied up all of its top-tier sponsors, Chernyshenko said deals with a few second-level companies are still possible.

Several deals are still to be negotiated to provide value-in-kind services worth $200 million, which would take total sponsorship deals to $1.4 billion, he said.

In addition, money from licensing, ticket sales, lottery revenues and IOC television rights and global sponsorships should help cover Sochi’s organizing committee budget of $2.2 billion, Sochi 2012 prsident said.

Overall, he said, Sochi hopes to end up with a surplus of about $340 million.

“I would love to have that, but it will depend on the currency fluctuation and economic environment,” Chernyshenko said in an interview after addressing the International Sports Event Management Conference.

 

Macau and Copenhagen are bidding to host the 2014 Badminton World Championships, with both also contesting with Guangzhou to stage the 2013 event. 

The illustrious tournament is held annually and is the highlight of the badminton calendar in non-Olympic years.

The race to host the Sudirman Cup, which takes place every two years, in 2013 will be contested by Kuala Lumpur and Melbourne.

Badminton World Federation President Dr Kang Young Joong said: “We are excited to see cities from several continents bidding to host our major events and this shows an increasing interest in the sport world wide.”

Copenhagen is the only one of the bidding venues to have hosted a World Championship, having done so on three occasions, whilst Kuala Lumpur and Melbourne will be boosted by having previously staged Commonwealth Games, in 1998 and 2006 respectively.

The decision will be made by the BWF Council when they meet on December 9 2011.

Danny Jordaan is set to be nominated by the South African Football Association (SAFA) to run for the presidency of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Jordaan was the chief executive of the organising committee for this summer’s FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and according to SAFA, his name will be put forward for the 2011 elections.

SAFA vice president Mwelo Nonkonyana has said Jordaan is the right man to improve football in Africa. He said: “Our position is clear, we want to transform soccer, not only in Africa, but the rest of the world.

“We have already consulted extensively in this regard. We have to know CAF’s views. We don’t want to antagonise people – we wish to make a difference.

“Change must come, but it must be a change for the better. We will nominate a person with extensive knowledge of the game, and a person who has demonstrated those qualities is Danny Jordaan.”

Protais Mitali, asthma Hon. Minister of Sport and Culture, site Republic of Rwanda, sale  one of the key decision makers involved in the development of sport in Africa, will be speaking on the ‘Sport & Government’ panel at the Soccerex African Forum in Durban, 1-2 October.

The session will look at the significant relationship between sport and government in Africa, focusing on a number of key issues including bidding and funding for major events, shifting the level of financial support from the government to the private sector, developing relationships with key international stakeholders and improving grass root projects. 

In what is an exciting period for football in Rwanda, the Honourable Minister will also be able to update the African football business community on his country’s preparations for the fourth edition of African Nations Championship (CHAN) in 2016, as well as the remaining business opportunities available ahead of the tournament. The country has already proved itself as a destination for major events in Africa through successfully hosting the CAN U-20 Africa Youth Championships in 2009 and the CAN U-17 Championships in 2011.

Soccerex CEO Duncan Revie said: “It’s a great honour to welcome the Honourable Protais Mitali to the Soccerex African Forum. His position is an extremely important one in the development of football across Africa and he is an excellent speaker for the Forum.”

The Soccerex African Forum will bring together 1,000 senior football decision makers together with businesses from across the continent and the world for two days of unrivalled learning, networking and business opportunities to unite the business of football in Africa. You can find the conference agenda for this year’s Forum here:http://www.mysoccerex.com/AF13ConferenceProgramme.pdf

For further information about this event please call +44 (0)208 987 5522 or visit http://www.soccerex.com/africa