FIFA Futsal and Event Manager Jaime Yarza said he has seen progress in the construction and renovation of stadiums for the Futsal World Cup to be held in Thailand in November.

Yarza said: “We are pleased with the construction and renovation of the venues. The preparations for the tournament have made considerable progress since the last inspection.”

The venues under renovation are the Nimibutr Gymnasium and Indoor Stadium. Anew stadium in Bangkok’s Nong Chok district is  under contruction.

Yarza unveiled the ball for the tournament called Tango 12, which is “a smaller version of the one used at Euro 2012.”{jcomments on}

Derek Brewer has become the fifteenth Chief Executive of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).

The former Nottingamshire CEO will take up the post at Lord’s at the beginning of April.

Brewer succeeds Australian Keth Brashaw who resigned after five years in the role this summer because of family reasons.

This morning the MCC unanimously voted in favour of Brewer after a recruitment process.

The MCC committee had elected a sub group to find a suitable replacement and Brewer was the name presented to the board.

The MCC chairman stated, “We are delighted to announce the appointment of Derek Brewer to the post of chief executive of MCC. He was an outstanding candidate in an incredibly strong field, and is the right person to take the club forward.

“Derek will now oversee the finest cricket ground in the world and will have the responsibility to ensure MCC continues to act as a progressive and independent force for the good of cricket everywhere. It’s a wonderful opportunity and a challenge to which the committee is confident he will rise”.

The Aston University graduate and banking veteran (he worked at NatWest for over twenty years, including as Regional Director of Corporate and Commercial Banking in East Midlands) had six years experience as chief executive at Trent Bridge.

During this time, he oversaw the development of a new stand – which is especially relevant in light of the imminent redevelopment of the Home of Cricket – as well as two championship titles.

Brewer added, “I am very excited and honoured to have been selected as the next secretary and CEO of MCC,” Brewer said. “Lord’s is the most iconic Test match venue in the world and I look forward to bringing the experience I have gained in leading the Trent Bridge redevelopment to opportunities which lie ahead at Lord’s.

“I know that I inherit a very strong team and, having worked closely with Keith Bradshaw during his tenure, I would like to pay tribute to his outstanding contribution. I would also like to thank the Nottinghamshire committee, staff and local partners for making the past seven years at Trent Bridge so enjoyable and successful. Trent Bridge, like Lord’s is a special place”.

Universal Sports Network, the year-round destination for Olympic and endurance sports programming, has announced it will have live coverage 117th Boston Marathon. 

UniversalSports.com will offer a live stream of the event presented by Timex. The network’s exclusive national TV coverage of the world’s oldest annual marathon will showcase more than 20,000 runners tackling the historic 26.2-mile course, including many of the sport’s elite marathoners.

In addition to the highly anticipated race, Universal Sports will air a special preview show presented by Xendurance, featuring analysis of the elite field, on Sunday, April 14 at 4 PM ET. On Monday, April 15, LIVE race day coverage from Copley Square will include the network’s pre- and post-race shows presented by Slow-Mag at 9 AM ET and 12:30 PM ET respectively, and a recap show at 4 PM ET.

The Network’s LIVE on-site coverage will be hosted by Paul Sunderland, alongside analyst and elite distance runner Josh Cox, analyst Juli Benson, field reporter Nick Gismondi, and Special Guest Analyst Frank Shorter, the only American male to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the marathon.

“As America’s top TV and online destination for marathons, we are proud to offer this in-depth coverage of the world’s ultimate distance running race,” said Dean Walker, SVP, Production of Universal Sports. “The Boston Marathon is the linchpin of our Marathon-A-Thon programming and a must-watch event for the growing endurance sports community.”

English League Two team Keith Ryder has completed his takeover of Port Vale following the approval of the Football League and Football Association. 

Lancashire businessman Ryder and the club’s administrators Begbies-Traynor last week completed all the necessary paperwork, but the deal was still subject to approval.

That approval was granted on Friday afternoon.

The npower League Two club confirmed via a brief statement on their official website: “In accordance with Football League Regulation 94.1 – Publication of Ownership. Port Vale FC Ltd is owned 100% by Mr. Keith Ryder.”

Former British Prime Minister Sir John Major has resigned from the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) club committee, after having a disagreement with the rest of the panel over the Vision for Lord’s project.

“For me, cricket has been a lifelong and enduring passion and it will remain so. The solace the game has given me in good times and bad, the friendships I have made, and the sheer joy of the game will never fade,” he told The Telegraph.

“My decision to resign from the committee of the world’s pre-eminent cricket club has been reached with very great sadness and I wish other members of the committee well in their future deliberations,” he added.

The move by the likes of Major comes as a setback for the MCC.

An MCC statement said it had accepted his resignation, which was “due to fundamental disagreements over the direction of policy on the Vision for Lord’s; the manner in which decisions have been reached, and their wider implications for the club”.

It also acknowledged Major’s contributions to the committee.

Major had been member of the MCC’s development sub- committee, which was re- developing the Lord’s as a majorcricket venue.

The £400 million ($620.6m) plan was floated in 2007 to increase Lord’s capacity with new stands at the Nursery End of the ground.

But the cost of the plan was reduced to £100 million ($155.5m), and the committee dissolved since MCC Chairperson Oliver Stocken adopted a cautious line of approach in the wake of recession.

But the decision to scrap the committee did not go down well with Major, who was in favour of strong development subcommittee.

Former Kiwi Test cricketer Martin Snedden is likely to succeed Major.

To vent your thoughts on this issue go to our latest discussion: Was Sir John Major right to resign from the MCC committee?

Data recently published about the Chinese Super League (CSL) shows salaries are soaring for top coaches and players alike.

The league’s highest paid personnel are Shanghai Shenhua duo Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka who both earn US$15.19 million anually.

Marcelo Lippi, who was recently appointed coach of Guangzhou Evergrande, is third in the list with his annual salary of US$ 12.66 million.  Other coaches in the list of top 15 highest paid CSL staff are Beijing Guoan’s Jaime Pacheo and Nelo Vingada of Dalian Shide.

Shanghai Shenhua coach Sergio Batista, who replaced Jean Tigana following the side’s poor start to the season, will be under to pressure to succeed with four of his club’s players being among the league’s top ten highest paid staff.

=Didier Drogba —Shanghai Shenhua *$15.19m p/a

=Nicolas Anelka— Shanghai Shenhua $15.19m p/a

3. Marcelo Lippi— Guangzhou Evergrande $12.66m p/a

4. Lucas Barrios— Guangzhou Evergrande $8.23m p/a

5.Yakubu Aiyegbeni—Guangzhou R&F $ 7.85m p/a

6.Dario Conca— Guangzhou Evergrande  $$7m p/a

7. Moisés Pinheiro— Shanghai Shenhua $3.50m p/a

8. Giovanni Moreno— Shanghai Shenhua $3m p/a

9. Takeshi Okada— Hangzhou Greentown $2.36m p/a

10. Jaime Pacheco— Beijing Guoan $2.2m p/a

11. David de Jesus— Guangzhou R&F $2m p/a

12.Frédéric Kanouté — Beijing Guoan $2m p/a

13. Nelo Vingada— Dalian Shide $2m p/a

14. Aleksandar Jevtić— Jiangsu Sainty $1.5m p/a

15.Cléo Córdova— Guangzhou Evergrande $1.5m p/a

*All salaries are in US dollars

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Former Spanish Formula One driver Luis Perez-Sala has taken the top job at F1 minnows HRT as the replacement for team principal Kolin Kolles, pharm the team announnced today.

Kolles, a Germany-based Romanian, had led the financially-strapped Spanish team since they made their Formula One debut last year. His departure was announced on Wednesday.

“With the naming of Luis Perez-Sala at the fore of the team, HRT F1 team closes one chapter and begins a new one, which will hopefully come with new successes and satisfactions,” HRT said in a statement.

Perez-Sala, 52, completed two seasons for Minardi, achieving his best result at the 1989 British Grand Prix when he finished sixth. He initially joined the Spanish team as an advisor to the new owners, investment group Thesan Capital, this summer.

“We must be patient and keep in mind that we cannot expect to achieve great success in the short term,” he said.

“But we can take a team forward that we can still feel proud of. The simple fact that Spain has a team at the pinnacle of motor sports is already a great feat.”

The team is being moved to a new base in Valencia and are trying to establish themselves as an all-Spanish outfit.

Asian supporters said Manchester United may have made a mistake by opting to take out a US share listing rather than tapping their fanatical fan base in the region for funds.

The club, which says it has 325 million Asian followers, had received in-principle approval for an initial public offering (IPO) in Singapore.

But the club filed papers to float shares in the United States.

“It is disappointing that the club is not raising funds in Asia,” said Sean Seah, a securities trader and Manchester United supporter in Kuala Lumpur.
He said may not make as much money from a US listing as they might have in Asia.

“If the Red Devils float their shares in Asia, supporters will swamp it. It is simple. Manchester United supporters are familiar with the team. Owning shares (in it) will be akin to having a souvenir or collectible,” Seah said.
”I do not think the stock will perform well in the US, where interest for football is less, unlike across Asia.”

Hong Konghad also been considered for the IPO but Singapore was the odds-on favourite to clinch the deal right up to the announcement.
The Singapore and Hong Kong stock exchanges had no immediate comment.

“I’m disappointed,” said Ken Lai, chairman of United for United, the team’s official supporters’ club in Singapore.

“It would have been nearer to us, it would have been a great honour to Singapore to actually host this,” he said.{jcomments on}