English Championship club, Burnley have revealed a profit of £3.6m for the year ending 30 June 2012 ahead of their AGM.

The Clarets operated at a loss of £4m the previous year and the upturn in their finances can largely be explained by the £7m sale of star striker Jay Rodriguez to Southampton.

Joint chairmen Mike Garlick and John Banaszkiewicz said in a statement to shareholders: “This player trading remains a cornerstone of how the club balances it books.

“Despite recording an operating loss for the year, the transfer fee we received for Jay Rodriguez meant we were able to convert this loss for the year into a profit and provide the basis for supporting ourselves in 2012/13.

“Looking forward, the reduction in our income in 2012/13 and 2013/14, now that the initial Premier League parachute payment period has ended, and the introduction of the Football League Financial Fair Play Rules mean that we need to continue to plan carefully for the future and act accordingly, to ensure that we operate within the Rule and the income we generate.

“Your Board are true Clarets’ fans and we are committed to supporting the team and the manager to give us the nest chance of achieving the success we all feel the club deserves.”

The Turf Moor club will continue to try and cut their wage bill after turnover fell by £4m to £23m due to a further reduction in parachute payments from the Premier League and lower attendances.

Jerry Colangelo will remain chairman of USA Basketball through the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Since Colangelo joined USA Basketball in 2005—one year after the men’s team brought home the bronze medal at the Athens Olympics—the men have posted a 62-1 record, ampoule with gold medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, 2010 world championship and 2012 London Olympics.

“I’ve decided I’m going to continue,” Colangelo told USA TODAY Sports. “I’m committed to our organization during this transition period. I want to make sure, as good as things are, that once the baton is handed over to someone it’s in even better shape. That’s the plan for these next four years”

Colangelo said his decision was not influenced by a decision from FIBA, international basketball’s government body, not to ask the International Olympic Committee to make the men’s competition an under-23 event.

“It didn’t have anything to do with my willingness to continue,’ he said. ‘I’ve been encouraged to continue, and if somebody didn’t want me there, it would take about three seconds for me to walk.”

There is a formal procedure, based on USA Basketball’s constitution, that must be followed, though. Colangelo must be nominated for a spot on the board of directors for the 2013-16 quadrennial, on which Colangelo said he has been assured a spot.

USA Basketball’s new board of directors is expected to be named by early 2013, and it will elect a chairman. Given Colangelo’s desire to return and the success of the senior and junior programs, it’s unlikely someone else will be named chairman.

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Lord Triesman – Former Chairman of The Football Association

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Lalit Modi – Founder and Architect of the Indian Premier League

Sir Ronnie Flanagan, GBE, QPM – Chairman Anti-Corruption & Security Unit, International Cricket Council (ICC)

Brian Moore – Sports Journalist, Commentator, Lawyer and Former England & British Lions Rugby International

Muhammad Zaka Ashraf – Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board

 

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Paul Wildes has completed the purchase of English League Two side, Port Vale lifting the club out of administration.

Wildes, supported his business partner Norman Smurthwaite, had a bid of £1.25 million bid approved by the club’s administrators Begbies Traynor.

The deal, which has also been approved by the Football League, sees the Valiants come out of administration, eight months after entering in March.

Wildes, who was named as the preferred bidder last month after Keith Ryder’s summer-long bid came to nothing, told the club website: “I would like to thank the Port Vale supporters, once again, for their ongoing patience and support.

“It has been a long process but we are delighted to have finally taken over the club and look forward to a long and successful association.

“As I have previously stated, our intention is to develop the club both on and off the field.

“On the pitch we’re continuing to support manager Micky Adams and the squad as they push for promotion. Off the pitch we have made some key appointments to ensure the immediate and ongoing success of the club.”

Wildes will become club chairman whilst Smurthwaite will be chief executive, with Mike Aspinall taking up the role of operations director.

Financial director Robin Anderson will take responsibility for finance and IT departments and the club is also planning to appoint a commercial director.

The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) also know as the World Air Sports Federation, medstore has announced today the appointment of Giancarlo Sergi as CEO of FAME, its recently formed marketing and events company.

Mr Sergi is the President of SINERGI Ltd, a management consultancy firm based in Switzerland and active in the sports industry.

The primary objective of FAI Air Sports Marketing and Events SA (FAME), a shareholder company based in Switzerland, is to promote air sports and create commercial value for the FAI and its events by actively exploring the sports market and developing new and more attractive events. 

The FAI and SINERGI had already teamed up earlier this year; SINERGI played a significant role in the signing of a long term sponsorship agreement with the prestigious Swiss watch company Breitling as the first ever Global Partner of the FAI. 

Robert Henderson, Chairman of the FAME Board of Directors, stated: “We are delighted to have Giancarlo join us a CEO. I am confident that his knowledge and expertise will ensure that FAME will be in a strong position to respond proficiently to requests for innovative and marketing oriented events from host cities and FAI Air Sports Commissions”.

Mr Henderson also announced that the FAI had agreed to the sale of a stake in FAME to SINERGI Ltd and the election of Mr Sergi to the FAME board of directors.

Giancarlo Sergi added: “SINERGI strongly believes in aeronautics and we are proud to be associated with such an appealing project. FAI is entering a new era and we hope that our investment and involvement will contribute to the success of this venture. I am also honoured to commit personally to this project.”

Newly launched sports network BT Sport has announced all three of its channels will will be available in all of Betfred’s 1, view 370 bookmakers across the UK.

Betfred is BT’s first big commercial contract in the gaming sector following the news that more than 500, viagra 000 households have already signed up for BT Sport.

The commercial deal means that all of the Betfred shops will have access to BT Sport, comprising BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN, for the next three years.

BT Sport will be delivered as part of the bookmakers own Betfred TV service. Betfred customers will be able to watch and bet in play on a huge range of events including one of the most comprehensive line ups of live football available.  This includes coverage of 38 games from the Barclays Premier League, with 18 of the ‘top pick’ games. These include the London derby between Tottenham and Chelsea on September 28 and the Merseyside derby as Everton play host to Liverpool on November 23.  BT Sport will also show top flight live matches from football leagues around the world including Italy, Germany, France, Brazil and the US as well as games from the Scottish Professional Football League, FA Cup ties for the next five seasons including the final, as well as live coverage from the UEFA Europa League.

Bruce Cuthbert, director of commercial customers, BT Sport, said: “We are delighted to announce our first major contract in the gaming space. It is fantastic that Betfred has signed up to put BT Sport in all of its bookmakers. As the largest independent bookmaker in the UK, we could not have hoped for a bigger name as an early customer.

“We are already seeing fantastic levels of interest and sign ups in BT Sport across pubs, clubs and hotels, as hard-pressed owners who have been priced out of the market by Sky in recent years look to offer their customers some really top class sport at an affordable price.”

Betfred Managing Director John Haddock, “We are delighted to have secured a deal with BT Sport and we are looking forward to showing some top quality action in all our 1370 shops nationwide. As well as showing the live sport we will continue to have the best offers on the high street including special boosts for our in play betting.”

The Russian city ofSt Petersburg has been announced as the host of the opening match and final of the 2017 Confederations Cup, the warm-up tournament for the following year’s World Cup in Russia.

They will join Moscow, Kazan and Sochi in the event held every four years by FIFA.

It is contested by the holders of each of the six FIFA confederation championships, along with the FIFA World Cup holder and the host nation, to bring the number of teams up to eight.

The eight-team tournament, to be played in June 2017, will serve as a prelude to the World Cup to be hosted by the world’s largest country for the first time the following year.

The under-construction Gazprom-Arena in St Petersburg is set to stage the opening match and the final of the event.

“Proposing Moscow and Saint Petersburg, the cradle of Russian football by the way, as the stage for the key matches of these two major FIFA events is an important operational decision for the LOC (Local Organising Committee),” said Vitaly Mutko, Russia’s Sports Minister and chairman of Russia 2018.

“It is part of our milestone achievements, and our preparations are already in full swing.

“We look forward to the validation of our suggestions in December so we can continue our mission.”

Diego Maradona has been appointed Dubai Honorary Ambassador of Sports.

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Maradona accepting the ambassadorial role with Dubai Sports Council (DSC) will help resolve a dispute with former club Al Wasl, which sacked him in July just over a year into a two-year contract.

“Dubai Sports Council and I have discussed a few ideas and they are serious about upgrading the sports sector in Dubai,” Maradona said. “For those who think that I have fallen down or I have collapsed, I’m stronger now.”

Ahmad al-Sharif, secretary-general of Dubai Sports Council, said: “Maradona will inspire the new generation of talented players to reach the highest athletic levels possible.”

Maradona’s appointment comes after he was sacked as coach of Dubai-based Al Wasl The Dubai Sports Council will take over the Argentine’s contract with the club, which was due to last until August 2013.{jcomments on}