John Steele, has become the new chief executive of the Youth Sport Trust (YST) following his departure as head of the Rugby Football Union (RFU), it has been announced today.

He replaces Steve Grainger who quit as the YST’s last March after he was, ironically, headhunted by Steele to be the new rugby development director at the RFU.

Since Grainger left Baroness Sue Campbell had been the acting chief executive but she has now returned to her previous role as chair. 

The main task for Steele, who is due to officially take up his new position on February 6, will be to oversee the new School Games, the Government’s flagship school sport policy, which is supported by Sainsbury’s, which is due to take place at several venues on the Olympic Park in May. 

“It is an absolute privilege to be appointed chief executive of the Youth Sport Trust,” said Steele, a former player, coach and director of Premiership rugby club Northampton Saints

“I have often looked on with admiration at the work of the Youth Sport Trust and a large part of my motivation for joining the organisation is it’s exceptional record of delivery and expertise.  

“I passionately believe that sport has a crucial part to play in the development of young people and I look forward to taking up this new challenge.  

“Leading an organisation which is playing such an important role within this country’s sporting landscape is an honour.

“In this, the Olympic and Paralympic year, we simply must ensure that every young person has the opportunity to take part in more PE and sport.   

“We have seen such dramatic improvements in school sport over the last decade and 2012 has to be a catalyst to drive these improvements further.

“Whilst understanding the tough economic position the country is in, if we are to capitalise on this sporting moment it is critical that there is the investment and infrastructure in place to support those young people who are inspired by sport.”

The appointment is no surprise as Campbell is also the chair of UK Sport, where she had recruited Steele as chief executive in 2005 just a few days before London were awarded the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. 

He had earned widespread praise for his work there before he left in June 2010 to replace Francis Baron as chief executive of the RFU.

But he left the RFU a year later following an internal row over the appointment of new performance director, which most people believed should go to Sir Clive Woodward, the coach when England won the World Cup in 2003 and who is now working for the British Olympic Association. 

“We are delighted to welcome John to the Youth Sport Trust at what is a truly exciting time for the organisation.” said Campbell. 

“John brings a wealth of experience that will be invaluable in supporting us to shape the future of school sport and ensure that every young person has the opportunity to take part, compete, lead and volunteer in sport.

“We have given careful consideration to this position and have been extremely impressed by the strong list of candidates that we received.  

“This reflects the importance that so many rightly put on school sport and the role it has to play in the development of the nation’s youth.”

AISTS (International Academy of Sports Science and Technology) announces this year’s final three Executive MBA in Sports Admistration & Technology modules. The Fall Modules series will kick off in October with a 2 day module (20 and 21 October 2011) on Ethics & Governance lead by Professor Müller from the Universities of Lausanne and Geneva. The module will analyse how sports organisations can play an active role in the fight against the problems faced by the sports industry such as illegal and irregular sport betting activities, arthritis doping, price buy money laundering, abortion corruption.

The second module in the series will be the Sports Technology & Innovations module (7-10 November 2011) lead by Professor Jan Anders Månson (EPFL), expert in his field. This module will provide participants the opportunity to learn about the fundamentals and trends in material sciences and new technologies driving trend breaking technologies but also analyse the objectives, advantages, challenges, opportunities and dangers that come with the use of sports technologies.

Finally, after its success last year, the 4 day module on Leadership & Decision Making will take place for the second year in a row (24-25 November 2011 and & 2-3 December 2011) aimed at improving participants’ leadership skills. This module will include teaching on the current state of scientific knowledge on organisational behaviour and discuss how this knowledge can be practically applied to real world situations within sports organisations. Dr Samuel Bendahan AISTS and EPFL Senior Lecturer and Research Fellow at INSEAD will lead the module.

The programme of the modules was designed by academics who are experts in their fields. Participants can expect to be taken through the most recent theories and discuss current relevant topics. Each module will be taught via lectures given by the modules’ scientific heads together with prominent guest lecturers and also allow for questions/answers and interaction between participants through case studies, presentations and discussions. To access the detailed programme of each module please click here.

“The modules will be highly interactive and challenging, the goal is for every candidate to bring in and share his or her own experience, as we expect participants from diverse organisations with different roles, the exchange and learning experience will be rich” says AISTS Executive Director Dr Claude Stricker.

The modules are available for open enrolment and welcome between 15 and 20 participants in senior positions. Package prices for group registrations or discounts for multiple registrations are available on request.

For more information on the modules click here , to register please email info@aists.org or fill out the registration form

Major League Soccer (MLS) and NBC Sports Group today announced a new, allergist day-in-the-life series, MLS 36.

The first episode, featuring MLS scoring-leader Chris Wondolowski of the San Jose Earthquakes as he prepares for the 2012 AT&T MLS All-Star Game in Philadelphia, will premiere Sunday, August 5, at 9:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network. MLS 36 will follow the three previous successful 36 series Fight Night 36, IndyCar 36 and NHL 36 which currently air on NBC Sports Network.

Capturing an in-depth and exclusive behind-the-scenes look into the life of this MLS superstar, MLS 36 takes viewers into Wondolowski’s world for 36 straight hours as he and his fellow MLS All-Stars prepare to take on current European champions, Chelsea FC, in the AT&T MLS All-Star Game at PPL Park in Chester, Pa. The 30-minute episode will grant unparalleled access and give unique insight into Wondolowski’s life as a professional soccer player, and his goal that opened the scoring in the All-Stars’ 3-2 victory last week.

“We are thrilled to partner with NBC Sports Group for a series that will provide compelling insight into the personalities and lifestyles of our top players,” said Howard Handler, MLS chief marketing officer. “In each chapter, MLS 36 will chronicle a day and a half of activity at home, on the field and everywhere in between.”

In the editorial foreground of this television venture is the Emmy award-winning 441 Productions, a company which has produced such shows as “Road Trip,” a two-part series that shadowed the 2003 U.S. Women’s Soccer Team in its quest to reclaim the World Cup.

On Friday, August 10 at 10:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network will air the second episode of MLS 36, which will depict Seattle Sounders FC striker and Colombian star Fredy Montero in the 36 hours ahead of Sounders FC’s Herbalife World Football Challenge face-off against Chelsea FC on July 18.  Montero scored two goals in the match against Chelsea.

Prior to the premiere of MLS 36 on August 5, NBC Sports Network will air an MLS Western Conference showdown between the Portland Timbers and FC Dallas at 7 p.m. ET. Preceding MLS 36: Fredy Montero on August 10, the network will broadcast an MLS Eastern Conference clash between the New York Red Bulls and the Houston Dynamo at 8 p.m. ET.

The Rio 2016 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games has changed its commercial structure by appointing a commercial team.

Flavio Pestana will be the chief commercial officer (CCO) for a team which will also have its Sponsorship Sales director, therapy Rodrigo Frazao; Partner Services director, Henrique Leal; and head of Licensing, Retail and Concessions, Sylmara Multini.

Pestana will be responsible for the Games’ sponsorship, ticketing and licensing programmes as well as negotiations with the International Olympic Committee regarding Rio 2016’s share of broadcasting rights and international sponsorship agreements. The new CCO will report to the chief executive officer, Leonardo Gryner, who had also been acting as interim chief commercial officer.

The new chief commercial officer has had a career in the media sector as CEO of two of Brazil’s largest business newspapers (Gazeta Mercantil and Valor Economico), as well as the Bom Dia Communication Network and the Diario de Sao Paulo newspaper. He was also superintendent of Folha Group’s newspapers and magazines, a board member of Folha de S.Paulo newspaper and Plural Publishers and Editors, and chairman of the board of the UOL online media portal and Internet company.

Pestana has a degree in Engineering and postgraduate degrees in Business Management from Harvard Business School and Dom Cabral Foundation/INSEAD (the European Institute of Business Administration), as well as in Finance from Getulio Vargas Foundation.

With a wealth of experience in the commercial area, Rodrigo Frazao has participated in the preparation of several sales and relationship plans for corporations and events such as AB-Inbev and Casa Show. In his last professional experience, he participated in Technos’ IPO.

Henrique Leal is a marketing specialist, an expert in communications strategic planning, mainly customer relationship management (CRM) and digital marketing. He has over 20 years’ experience in marketing and advertising and has worked in large advertising agencies such as Ogilvy and Young & Rubican. Before joining Rio 2016™, he was vice-president of Sun/MRM, the digital marketing and CRM agency of the McCann Erikson Group.

Sylmara Multini is a business administrator with a degree from the University of Sao Paulo. She has extensive experience as an executive in the marketing area, mainly in sales, sponsorship, concessions and licensing for large corporations such as Volkswagen, the Walt Disney Company and Mattel. Before joining Rio 2016™, Sylmara held the position of Licensing director for Warner Bros Latin America.

Carlos Arthur Nuzman, president of Rio 2016 commented on the appoitments: “Hiring a professional of the highest caliber such as Flavio Pestana and the other new members of the commercial department ensures the confidence and reliability we need to conduct such a record-breaking sponsorship programme and develop new revenue generating programmes for staging memorable Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2016.” 

The Commercial Power of Sports Events in Asia: Top Players Gather in Singapore

With the recent influx of activity in major sports events throughout Asia, prostate it is clear that the region will be at the forefront of commercial activities for decades to come. Top players in the industry will gather at the 2011 Asia-Pacific Sports Conference (APSC) at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel in Singapore for 2 days of thought provoking discussion and networking.

With Asia’s large economic growth, prostate size and young population, asthma the region has been successful in bidding for, and winning major international sports events. This week saw the news confirming Japan’s capital, Tokyo, officially entering their bid to host the 2020 Olympics, and only last week we PyeongChang succeed in winning the bid to host the Olympic Winter Games in 2018 – proof of the region’s continuing importance in the sports event industry.

Major sports events include the very recent FINA World Championships in Shanghai, the upcoming IAAF World Championships in Daegu, Korea, the Asian Beach Games 2012 and 2014, the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, the Asian Youth Games 2013, the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, Korea, in 2014, to mention but a few…

Cornel Marculescu, Executive Director of FINA, in charge of the recently concluded FINA World Swimming Championships in Shanghai, will be sharing his experiences during the Asia-Pacific Sports Conference in September. Presentations will be on the challenges and achievements the organising committee faced, as well as lessons learnt throughout the event management process.

Cornel Marculescu, will be joined by Mr Dong-Hoo Moon, Secretary General and Vice President of the IAAF World Championships 2011 in Korea, which will take place just before the conference opens its doors in September. Mr Moon will present a case-study on his recent experiences on the organising committee’s win, their utilisation of local stadiums in Daegu, the effect tourism has and how to ensure a legacy from the event.

APSC is a must-attend event for local organising committees and federations in the Asia-Pacific region.  Organisations attending include: Olympic Council of Asia, Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, INASOC, Indonesian SEA Games Organising Committee, Indonesian Olympic Committee, IEC in Sports, Badminton World Federation, World Match Racing Tour, TSE Consulting, PMP Legacy, Singapore National Olympic Council, Singapore Rugby Union, ITTF, Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, SportsHub Pte Ltd, Asean Football Federation, Asian Football Confederation, Singapore Sports Council, IFM Sports Marketing Surveys, Sponsorium, Prescient Sports and Entertainment, Hill and Knowlton, ASIAN Tour, ESPN Star Sports, World Sport Group and more.

Visit Asia Pacific Sports Conference on www.asia-pacificsports.com

Infront Sports & Media, the media and marketing partner of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), has extended the national media rights agreement for IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship with the Austrian public service broadcaster ORF through to 2017. Austrian ice hockey fans can look forward to five more years of top-class ice hockey on free TV.

The IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship is the biggest annual winter sports event worldwide and brings together the 16 best teams from around the world in April/May of each year. The extended agreement between Infront and the ORF includes this year’s tournament in Sweden/Finland as well as the World Championships in Belarus (2014), Czech Republic (2015), Russia (2016) and either Germany/France or Denmark/Latvia (2017, location yet to be confirmed).

The rights covered by the agreement include live, delayed and highlights coverage for all games of the Austrian national team. Furthermore, ORF will broadcast at least ten additional games per tournament and the respective finals. In addition, the contract covers the IIHF Division 1 World Championship — should Austria not qualify for the top flight competition.

Infront, in close cooperation with the IIHF will continue to provide high-quality media production and broadcaster services to the ORF. Since 2009, the IIHF World Championship has been produced in full HD quality with 20 cameras per game guaranteeing in-depth sports coverage and dynamic reporting from every angle.

Manchester United hope to raise around US$300 million by selling just over 10% of the club on the New York Stock Exchange, the Glazer family confirmed.

The United owners initially claimed they would use the funds to pay off the club’s £400 million debt. However, the prospectus that has been released to accompany the announcement on Monday evening indicates only half the money will be used for that purpose, with the rest going directly to the Glazer family.

“Manchester United today commenced its initial public offering of 16,666,667 Class A Ordinary Shares,” said a statement issued from New York by Sard Verbinnen & Co, the public relations firm enlisted by United for the IPO.

“Manchester United is offering 8,333,334 Class A Ordinary Shares and the selling shareholder is offering 8,333,333 Class A Ordinary Shares.

“The underwriters have an option to purchase up to an additional 2,500,000 Class A Ordinary Shares from the selling shareholder. The Class A Ordinary Shares will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and will trade under the symbol ‘MANU'”

The Glazers intend to hold on to the remaining 8,333,334 Class B shares, giving them 10 times as many voting rights on the club’s board as those who hold Class A shares.

This late change in stance is likely to anger United supporters who have opposed the family’s reign following the their takeover of the club in 2005.

“Supporters are going to be very angry about this,” said Duncan Drasdo, chief executive of the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST). “The Glazers have already cost United more than £550 million in debt related fees and now another slap in the face as they help themselves to half of the proposed IPO proceeds.

“Clearly this has nothing to do with benefits for Manchester United and is all about giving the Glazers quick access to desperately needed cash at the expense of our football club.”

IRB (International Rugby Board) CEO and Rugby World Cup Limited Managing Director Mike Miller will step down from his posts at the end of this month.

In his decade at the head of the IRB and Rugby World Cup Limited, here Miller has overseen significant development in the game.

An official press release praised Miller’s involvement in “three hugely successful Rugby World Cups, viagra the re-inclusion of Rugby into the Olympic Games, viagra the expansion and growth of the HSBC Sevens World Series and the creation of the IRB’s Strategic Investment Programme and Union Fund which have seen an exponential increase in funding to Tier 1 and Tier 2 Unions and emerging major market countries.

Miller has reflected on his own achievements and looked forward to the realisation of his legacy.

“It’s been a fantastic 10 years. It was an honour and a privilege to have been welcomed into the Rugby family and to have worked with so many dedicated and talented Rugby people around the world.

“I have been lucky to have had three excellent chairmen in Vernon Pugh, Syd Millar and Bernard Lapasset and a brilliant staff at the IRB. We have achieved a lot in the last decade.

“Rugby is in a great place as it looks forward to Rugby World Cups in England and Japan, Rugby World Cup Sevens in Moscow, Women’s Rugby World Cup in France and the Olympics in Rio in 2016.

“The Game has grown around the world and with its major events going to Asia and Eastern Europe for the first time the platform has been established for Rugby to become a truly global sport.

“I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to Rugby’s growth and success over the last 10 years and in particular Bernard for his support and vision and Bill Beaumont for his advice and guidance as Vice Chairman over the past four years”.

Miller made the decision to step down after discussions with recently re-elected Chairman Bernard Lapasset.

It was agreed that the beginning of a new four-year cycle following the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand last autumn was a prudent time to end a partnership which has seen the IRB develop and mature.

Lapasset has stated, “Mike has achieved much during his 10 years at the IRB which is a much stronger organisation than when he joined in 2002.

“The Game is in great shape and the IRB is ready to take on the challenges of continuing to grow Rugby around the world and in particular to ensure that the Tier 1 countries are strong and secure, the Tier 2 countries continue to improve and grow, and the emerging major market countries become competitive as soon as possible.

“All of this will be achieved through our strong working relationship with the IRB Regions who are the first point of support and contact for our Unions.”

“Mike will be a hard act to follow. But with my newly re-affirmed four-year mandate, a revamped IRB Executive Committee, a soon to be refreshed Rugby World Cup Board and a vibrant Council and staff we have the tools in place to continue to drive the Game forward”.

RaboDirect PRO12, the league that showcases the top rugby clubs from Ireland, Scotland and Wales, has announced a four-year broadcast deal with Sky Sports beginning in the 2014/15 season.

For the first time Sky Sports will show 30 live matches, plus the semi-finals and final from the tournament, strengthening its unrivalled rights portfolio across six channels.

The RaboDirect PRO12 features the top teams from Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Italy, including Europe’s current number one ranked side Leinster, defending champions Ospreys and current leaders Ulster.

Sky Sports viewers will be able to enjoy weekly coverage on TV, PC and on the move via mobile and tablet devices.

Barney Francis, managing director of Sky Sports, said: “We know European rugby is hugely popular with our viewers and this deal provides for even more fantastic action. From next year, the RaboDirect PRO12 will complement our Heineken and Amlin Challenge Cup coverage and provide viewers with an unrivalled diet of rugby union.

“Sky Sports remains the home of televised rugby union, offering an unprecedented schedule from the international, European and domestic game. Our coverage is innovative and our expert analysis respected. This agreement is even more good news for rugby fans with Sky Sports.”

John Feehan, Chief Executive of RaboDirect PRO12, said: “We are delighted to welcome Sky Sports to the RaboDirect PRO12 family. Our competition is growing from strength to strength and we feel this partnership with Sky Sports will allow us to extend the reach of the RaboDirect PRO12 in the UK and Ireland.”