UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino has become one of the latest figures to approve the idea of a winter World Cup in Qatar for 2022.

Speaking to The Times, Infantino has endorsed the idea claiming all tournaments should be played in the most suitable weather in the host country joining FIFA president Sepp Blatter and UEFA boss Michel Platini who have also backed the move.

Qatar are preparing to spend £65 billion on air-conditioned stadiums and other facilities, but Infantino believes there is a more commonsense approach. 

“Whenever you play the World Cup should be the best period for it,” he told The Times. “I had the same reflections on South Africa in 2010. 

“Four years earlier in Germany it was nice sunshine. South Africa is a beautiful country, but at five o’clock, it’s night and it’s 0C. It’s not a celebration of football.” 

Infantino went on to say that he did not understand why football had been historically played in winter. 

“You see people in stadiums with hats and scarves,” he said. “Why did England, who brought to us this beautiful game, decide that football is for the winter and not for the summer? Cricket. 

“The month of June, which is the most beautiful month to play football, is hardly ever used except for the Euros and the World Cup. But the World Cup is played only every 12 years, more of less, in Europe. 

“I fully share this view that you have to play in the best period for football; that is not June or July in Qatar. This is an issue that FIFA has to sort out. The sooner they do it, the better. The decision for 2022 was taken in 2010, so in 12 years you can organise yourself.”

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WBIG, salve Washington, D.C.’s Classic Rock station, announced today that it has been named the official Washington, D.C. broadcast home of the two-time Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens.

Beginning in 2014, D.C. listeners will hear all regular season Ravens games on BIG 100.3. 

“We’re pleased to bring the games to so many Ravens fans in the suburbs of Maryland and Virginia,” said Dennis Lamme, President and Market Manager, Washington D.C./Baltimore. “The Ravens have a strong fan base in the greater D.C. area.”

“This is a terrific partnership for the Ravens,” Ravens President Dick Cassexplained.  “The power of WBIG’s signal, along with its digital platforms, will go a long way in bringing the Ravens’ games to D.C.,  many Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia.  We’re excited about this relationship.”

1	Chase Sponsors Orlando Magic’s Amway Center	Friday, 18 January 2013
2	J.J. Watt to Endorse H-E-B Grocery	Friday, 18 January 2013
3	Fired Up Corporation Sponsors Huddersfield Town’s International Development Programme	Friday, 18 January 2013
4	Puma Sub-Licenses Sponsorship Rights to Four African Nations to Centauro	Friday, 18 January 2013
5	Manchester United Announce First-Ever Official Paint Partner	Friday, 18 January 2013
6	Globacom to Title Sponsor Nigeria Premier League	Friday, 18 January 2013
7	Peugeot Gets Shirt Sponsorship Rights to Flamengo	Friday, 18 January 2013
8	Upcoming Golfer Kristoffer Broberg to Endorse Callaway	Friday, 18 January 2013
9	Colin Montgomerie Becomes Brand Ambassador for De Vere Golf	Friday, 18 January 2013
10	Sporting Kansas City Severs Ties with Livestrong, Adds New Jersey Sponsor	Thursday, 17 January 2013
11	RFL Match Officials Acquires XBlades Sports as Official Boot Supplier	Thursday, 17 January 2013
12	Reebok Announce Title Sponsorship of Spartan Race	Thursday, 17 January 2013
13	Randy Moss Inks Endorsement Deal with LiveWire	Thursday, 17 January 2013
14	PROBIZ Renews Blackburn Rovers Shirt Sponsorship Until End of Season	Thursday, 17 January 2013
15	Nolan Ryan’s All-Natural Beef Chosen as Official Hot Dog & Beef Provider of Texas Rangers	Thursday, 17 January 2013
16	Dunlop Extends Nick Matthew Sponsorship	Thursday, 17 January 2013
17	Heavy Haulage Speed Off with Erebus Motorsport in Naming Rights Deal	Thursday, 17 January 2013
18	Ginger Grouse Becomes Official Spirit of Scottish Rugby	Thursday, 17 January 2013
19	Shell Sponsors MotoGP’s Pramac Racing Team	Thursday, 17 January 2013
20	DHL Express Increases Harlequins Partnership with Sponsorship of Biarritz Trip	Thursday, 17 January 2013
21	Adidas Agrees Supply Deal with Swedish FA	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
22	Harken Extends Title Sponsorship of 29er Grand Prix Sailing Series	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
23	Orbea to Title Sponsor Orca Triathlon Team	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
24	Power-Pole Extends FLW Associate Sponsorship	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
25	FirstEnergy Acquire Naming Rights to Cleveland Browns’ Stadium	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
26	Cheez-It to Title Sponsor Nasar Race at Watkins Glen International	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
27	Tennis Star Tomas Berdych to Endorse H&M	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
28	Bushnell Named Official Laser Rangefinder of PGA Tour of Australasia	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
29	Michigan State Athletics Partners with StubHub & Paciolan	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
30	Accrington Stanley Agree Shirt & Stadium Sponsorship with Store First	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
31	Reser’s Fine Foods Sponsors Joe Gibbs Racing’s Matt Kenseth	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
32	Gatorade UK to Sponsor Proj3kt 3on3 BBL Programme	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
33	Dubai Becomes Major Sponsor of Chinese National Table Tennis Team	Wednesday, 16 January 2013
34	Samsung Renew Australian Rugby Union Partnership	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
35	Houston Dynamo Reveal Radio Partnership with Gow Media	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
36	Red Bull Sign First Tennis Ambassador Victoria Azarenka	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
37	Carlsberg Joins Barclays Premier League as Official Beer Partner	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
38	Puma Named Official Fan Supplier of 2013 Africa Cup of Nations	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
39	Manchester United Delve Deeper into Chinese Market with Two New Deals	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
40	Featherlite Remains Official Trailer of NASCAR	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
41	Verivox to Title Sponsor 2013 FIS Team Tour	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
42	Bank of the West Seals Presenting Sponsorship of Rahlves’ Banzai Tour	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
43	Jewson Ends Long-Term Sponsorship of Gloucester Rugby	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
44	Precision Goalkeeping to Supply Gloves for Northern Ireland’s Alan Blayney	Tuesday, 15 January 2013
45	Lotus F1 Ink Clothing Deal with Henri-Lloyd	Monday, 14 January 2013
46	Under Armour Sign Upcoming Golfer Jordan Spieth to Brand Roster	Monday, 14 January 2013
47	Seven Network Secures Landmark Deal for Australia’s Major Horse Races	Monday, 14 January 2013
48	Tony Jacklin Expands Glenmorangie Role to Worldwide Ambassador	Monday, 14 January 2013
49	Certina Extends Sauber F1 Sponsorship	Monday, 14 January 2013
50	Humana Renews PGA Tour Marketing Agreement	Monday, 14 January 2013

The Seven Network in Australia has secured the rights to broadcast the 2014 Masters Tournament at Augusta National.

The multi-year deal, for an undisclosed sum, comes as recent ratings suggest premium sports and local content equal ratings success for Australia’s broadcasters.

Seven’s Head of Sport Saul Shtein said the signing of the Masters “reaffirms a key strategy in our future: a focus on live coverage of major sports events across our broadcast television platform and expanding that presence into new forms of content delivery.”

Seven was the host TV broadcaster for the Emirates Australian Open, Talisker Masters and ISPS HANDA Perth International in Australia’s huge summer of golf.

With the 2013 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations kicking off in South Africa this week, iSportconnect looks at the sponsors and partners behind Africa’s largest football tournament.

By Steve Moorhouse

Orange

Orange has again become the official partner of the tournament and are currently the title sponsor of The Africa Cup of Nations. The mobile network has made great strides in Africa and currently sponsors the national teams in Cameroon, Mali, Niger, Guinea, Senegal, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Botswana.

The company has now secured the title rights to the tournament until 2016 and is also the media partner of African football, offering exclusive mobile content across the continent. Orange has an added interest in this year’s competition, with a number of the teams competing, coming from areas where they operate their network, including; Tunisia, Morocco, Niger, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali and the Ivory Coast.

Orange are continuing their efforts to become a major player in African football sponsorship and have a number of services available to fans throughout the tournament. One of these is the Football Fan Club, a mobile platform that provides news, games and forums about African and European football. The service has approximately two million users.

There’s also the Orange AFCON madness that gives fans the chance to win packages and match tickets. The mobile provider also has an app for smartphone users, allowing fans to keep up-to-date with match highlights and goals.

In an effort to make sure the tournament is accessible to as many people as possible, “Orange Villages” have been set-up in many of the major cities where the group operate. These villages are designed to create a festival atmosphere, that broadcast games on giant screens and provide games and football related competitions.

In an official statement, Orange said:“It is with great pride that Orange associates its brand with various African competitions and this proximity is associated with human values shared in African sports. This achievement is a celebration of the closeness of the brand to the African markets.”

Adidas

Adidas is the long standing partner to the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The latest agreement was signed in 2008 and runs until 2016, meaning Adidas will provide the CAF with sports equipment for their events and programs, including courses for coaches, referees, sports medicine and football administration.

African football fans chose the name of the AFCON 2013 ball, made by Adidas. The ball is called Katlego, which means success. Zobuzwe Ngobese, PR Manager at Adidas South Africa said: “Adidas is proud to be at the helm of the production and the naming of yet one more South African inspired official match ball following the resounding successes of both the Kopanya and Jabulani match balls. This will be Adidas’ fourth official match ball for the AFCON since its partnership with the federation in 2008.”

Puma

Earlier in January, sports retail giant Puma, bagged the rights to become the Official Fan Supplier at AFCON 2013.

The deal allows Puma to develop and distribute sportswear, apparel and accessories that carry the Orange Africa Cup of Nations logo, as well as the chance to control retail stores, vending stands and kiosks in and around the stadiums.

They have partnered up with Totalsports to complete the retail side of the deal, with Totalsports managing the official fan shops and distributing the official fan merchandise.

Puma has a strong heritage with African football that stretches back almost two decades and has grown progressively over the years. Since 1998, Puma has had an association with the continent, investing in grassroots projects, player relationships and African Federation partnerships.

Brett Bellinger, Marketing Director for Puma South Africa commented: “This partnership with CAF’s major competition is very positive for the brand. We’re very pleased to be able to work together with CAF to provide African football fans in both South Africa and those visiting for the tournament, an opportunity to show their support and purchase Official Fan Merchandise.”

iSportconnect covered the news as it happened and further details of the deal can be found here>>

PepsiCo 

PepsiCo, the global food and drink company is also a sponsor for AFCON 2013. The company has been involved in African football for a number of years, through player sponsorship, teams and promoting grassroots football. PepsiCo sponsors top African players such as Didier Drogba, Mohamed Abu Treika and Egypt’s Amr Zaki.

The Pepsi Football Academy in Nigeria has 14 centres and 3000 students, whilst the Pepsi Schools’ League in Egypt covers over 5,500 schools with around 75,000 student participants. This shows the company’s dedication to grassroots football in Africa.

PepsiCo’s sponsorship of AFCON 2013 continues their previous involvement and highlights their strong presence with the continent’s governing body, CAF. They have a partnership deal that runs until 2016, which covers all of CAF’s major championships.

Click on page 2 for more major sponsors…

The International Swimming Federation (FINA) have signed a new media rights deal in the United States with the Universal Sports Network until 2021.

The deal gives Universal Sports multiplatform rights, including exclusive TV and Internet rights, to the upcoming editions of the FINA World Championships: in 2015 in Kazan (RUS), 2017 in Guadalajara (MEX), 2019 in Gwangju (KOR) and 2021 in Budapest (HUN). 

Encompassing aquatics events in men’s and women’s swimming, diving, water polo, synchronised swimming and open water swimming, the agreement also includes rights to the FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) in 2016 (Windsor, Canada), 2018 and 2020; FINA Diving World Cups in 2014 (Shanghai, China), 2016 (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), 2018 and 2020; and FINA Synchronised World Cups in 2014 (Quebec City, Canada) and 2018.

“The success, prestige and exposure of our major events are directly linked with FINA’s association with TV networks worldwide”, considered FINA President Dr. Julio C. Maglione. “The United States is a very important market for FINA and many of our greatest stars come from this country. This emphasises the added-value of this agreement with Universal Sports in the US territory; its multiplatform approach is also of paramount importance to highlight the performances of our best athletes to the widest possible audience”.

“This long-term commitment from FINA solidifies Universal Sports as the premier
destination in the USA for aquatic sports through 2021,” said Robert James, Universal Sports’ VP of Programming and Acquisitions. “As future American and International swimming stars rise in prominence, Universal Sports will bring the competition to life with unprecedented, in-depth, primetime coverage delivering hundreds of hours of international aquatics event programming right into the homes and hands of our viewers.”