WAPA America, the U.S. cable network arm of the leading broadcaster in Puerto Rico, WAPA Television, has renewed exclusive rights to air the 2013 Puerto Rico Basketball League season.

10 teams will make up the 2013 BSN tournament, with each team playing 36 games during the regular season. WAPA America will air four games per week; Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 8pm ET, and Sundays at 7pm ET. All games will air live.

The season kicks off on Sunday, March 31, at 7pm ET with the highly-charged game between defending champions, Los Indios de Mayaguez (The Mayaguez Indians), and Los Piratas de Quebradillas (The Quebradillas Pirates).

2013 marks the 100^th anniversary of organized basketball in Puerto Rico, after the YMCA organized the first game using the sport’s official rules in 1913. Since 1929, the BSN has been the sport’s principal league in Puerto Rico and is well-recognized around the world. The league has been the launching point for a number of current and former NBA players, including Jose Juan Barea , Carlos Arroyo and Peter John Ramos .

The 2013 BSN tournament will feature some former NBA players, among them Josh Harrellson , Brian Cook , Michael Sweetney , Andrew Goudelock , Al Thornton , Ike Diogu , and Mike Harris .

“Basketball does really well with Hispanic audiences, and we are happy to offer the 2013 Puerto Rico National Basketball League season exclusively to our audience and distribution partners,” said Jose E. Ramos , President of WAPA Television. “This is a unique opportunity for advertisers to connect with the strong base of US Hispanic basketball fans.”

WAPA America is viewed in more than five million homes throughout the U.S. and distributed on all major cable, satellite and telco providers, including DirecTV, Dish Networks, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Verizon FiOS, and AT&T U-verse.

Matches and training leading up to the 2015 AFC Asian Cup could be played at Ballarat’s new soccer stadium in 2014, potentially providing a boost to the city’s tourism industry and sporting.

Football Federation Victoria CEO Mark Rendell said the new purpose-built stadium at Morshead Park would be considered for training and matches if its pitch was of a suitable standard.

“Ballarat would be a superb location to host visiting Asian national teams as they arrive early to acclimatise and prepare for the AFC Asian Cup in 2015, ailment ” he said.

“I understand that the new stadium is planned to be in great shape by then, but much will depend on the quality of the pitch, the standard of media facilities, lighting and the proximity of quality accommodation as well.”

National teams may arrive in Australia up to three weeks before the competition starts in mid-January, giving Ballarat the potential to host training sessions of teams such as Japan, China, UAE, India and South Korea training in the city in the lead-up to the tournament.

“If a pre-Asian Cup international friendly were to be broadcast and played in Ballarat, it would attract tens of millions of television viewers and would no doubt put Ballarat on the world sporting stage,” Rendell said.

Ballarat Red Devils vice-president Andrew Burgess said he was excited about the prospect of international soccer in Ballarat.

“This really is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get football, and more broadly the City of Ballarat, well and truly front and centre in Australia and, for that matter, Asia,” he said.

“We need to get on the front foot now and start the work, so that we can in two-and-a-half years look back and say we did whatever it took to get this done.”{jcomments on}

Former New South Wales premier Kristina Keneally has been appointed as the new head of Basketball Australia (BA).

Keneally, who is now a Labor Party backbencher, will be the new chair of the board of BA, and will be charged with breathing life into Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL).

She will replace outgoing chair Justin Milne in the role.

Keneally said she saw huge opportunities for basketball to build on its recent gains.

“As a sport, basketball in Australia has some unique advantages that we are only just starting to capitalise on,” Keneally said in a statement.

She said she would promote the WNBL as a major league in Australia during her two-year appointment.

“(It) deserves just as much attention in terms of sponsorship or television or attendance as the men’s competition,” Keneally said.

She said she could speak with a bit of knowledge of the sport and understood what it meant.

“I am passionate about sports in general and basketball in particular,” she said.

Keneally said the sport’s potential over was largely untapped and she saw huge opportunities for growth in both men’s and women’s basketball.

“There’s currently over a million people in Australia (playing basketball), that’s pretty significant, of course we’d like to see that grow,” she said.

When asked about her unanimous appointment to the role she said, “There’s a great desire to see someone who can stand up and speak for the league and speak with a bit of knowledge of the sport as well.”

She said the immediate focus of BA was on the Olympics and she had high hopes of both the men’s and women’s teams returning with medals “of the golden variety”.

Milne said Keneally was selected because of her great values and fierce determination.

Keneally said she was looking forward to the challenge.

“I think the experience that a politician brings, somebody who has worked across government, private sector and community organisations, is relevant experience,” she said.

She will receive a $50,000 stipend.

Since launching their new Featured Discussions feature earlier in the month, decease iSportconnect has seen some of the industry’s leading professionals contribute their views and opinions to a range of hot topic debates in the world of sports business.

The popularity of the concept is something that iSportconnect – sports largest online business community – is hoping to promote through networking with some of the need-to-know people in the industry.

The real success of the feature has been down to the members, some of whom are of the highest end in their industry sector, sharing their thoughts on the matters relevant to them. The likes of advisory board members, Michael Cunnah, former CEO of Wembley Stadium, and Steven Falk, 8-year Director of Marketing at Manchester United, have been key players in ensuring the discussions success.

Mr Cunnah’s discussion on the issues surrounding the 2022 World Cup in Qatar posed some interesting questions, prompting a flurry of responses and proposed answers from a number of members including Director of Event Operations Paul Freudensprung, whose experience in the matter is extensive through 4 Olympic Games and 2 World Cups respectively.

In addition, Stephen Pearson’s discussion on the prospect of the re-launch of world renowned MLS franchise the New York Cosmos was replied by CEO of fellow MLS club the Vancouver Whitecaps. Barber added his support to the work of Paul Kemsley in bringing in the likes of Pele and Eric Cantona to back the re-launch, stating: “With the Whitecaps now just days away from entering Major League Soccer, it would certainly capture the imagination of the soccer public if the New York Cosmos were to return to play top flight North American soccer too.”

Steven Falk’s latest discussion, Sponsorship – the next big push, was also contributed to by one of the relevant industry sectors most successful professionals. After recently partaking in an exclusive Featured Profile interview with iSportconnect, Vice-Chair of the European Sponsorship Association Pippa Collett explained where she thought some of the English Premier League’s top clubs were going wrong.

Collett wrote: “The essence of sponsorship is the desire of a sponsor to associate its brand with that of the rights-holder. But how many football clubs have developed a real brand? A brand is more than just a logo and a colour combination – it is a set of values, a personality, with certain characteristics that make it special and unique in the minds of those touched by it. When I look at the EPL, very few clubs have much to differentiate them beyond their geographic location. Faced with so little on which to base a selection decision, it is no surprise that brands look elsewhere.”

Speaking on the current success of the Featured Discussions section of isportconnect.com, the company’s CEO Sree Varma stated: “We are delighted that our members have taken the opportunity t utilise the new feature through interacting with their fellow, like-minded professionals. iSportconnect hope that the Featured Discussions can go from strength to strength and become an essential component of the networking department of the site. I would like to thank all of those who have contributed such fantastic discussions and debates thus far and urge all of our members to make your voices heard!”

Sony SIX has agreed a deal to broadcast both live events and archived events produced by GLORY, anesthetist the world’s new premier kickboxing league, on an exclusive basis for the first time in India.

Kickboxing fans for a long time have been missing a true globally organised series, with the sports most decorated icons, such as world No. 1 ranked heavyweight Semmy Schilt, world No. 1 ranked lightweight Giorgio Petrosyan and a host of other superstars including Daniel Ghita, Remy Bonjasky, Peter Aerts, Gokhan Saki and Tyrone Spong, competing for world championships in their respective weight classes

Commenting on the tie-up N P Singh, COO Multi Screen Media, the parent company of SIX, said “We are very happy to announce that GLORY will now be available on SIX. GLORY already attracts a 550 million audience & with India, we have the potential to reach a 100 million more. Indian sports lovers are maturing in their taste for fast paced fight sports, and there is a huge demand for such action packed and adrenaline pumping sporting events. We are proud to associate with GLORY and look forward to airing it exclusively to our Indian audiences.”

Julian Jackson, the Chief Content Officer of GLORY’s worldwide distribution partner, TSA, stated that, “We are delighted that the top management of Sony could see what GLORY is trying to achieve. They recognised the colossal project that GLORY has undertaken and the massive financial commitment that the owner, Pierre Andurand, has made to ensure it succeeds. GLORY has exceeded all of our expectations in terms of broadcast coverage with us being in almost every country in the world with the ability to reach over 550+million viewers – now we are delighted that Indian combat fans will get the chance to see why GLORY is sweeping the globe on Sony SIX.”

Sony SIX is an Indian sports channel owned and operated by MSM India.

In yesterday’s broadcasting stakes BBC overwhelmingly beat out ITV with a resounding share of the UK viewers.

An average of 10.2m people (41% share) watched Vincente del Bosque’s boys administering a thrashing on BBC1 and its HD counterpart, compared to the depleted squad of 1.7m (7%) viewers who tuned in to see their 4-0 victory over on ITV1 and ITV1 HD. 

The pre-match coverage watched by an average of 5.5m viewers between 7-7:40pm, while Adrian Chiles’s superfan act on ITV only attracted 1.2. people to the channel.

During the game itself (7:45-10:15pm), ITV averaged 1.8m viewers while the BBC scored almost 10m more with an mean audience of 11.6m. The channels’ respective peaks came within five minutes of each other too, with ITV pulling in 2.3m (8%) at 8:55pm, while Auntie’s apogee came at 9:00pm when the Beeb entertained a high of 13.4m (49%) people.

But while last night’s figures are impressive, they’re distinctly first division compared to the premier 23m-strong audience who got behind Roy Hodgson and the England team for their heartbreaking encounter with Italy, which went out on BBC1 on Sunday 24 June and saw our boys crash out of the tournament.

The PGA Tour Policy Board announced that Randall L. Stephenson, order Chairman, price Chief Executive Officer and President of AT&T, Inc., will become a member of the Board effective January 1, 2012.

Stephenson will serve as one of the Policy Board’s four Independent Directors, joining Chairman Victor Ganzi, former President and Chief Executive Officer of Hearst Corporation; John McCoy, former Chairman and CEO, Bank One Corp.; and Ken Thompson, former President and CEO, Wachovia.

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem, said: “I have had a great working relationship with Randall over the past several years and consider him a wonderful choice by the Policy Board as an Independent Director. He has been very supportive of a number of initiatives by the PGA Tour and is recognized as one of the world’s most outstanding business leaders. Randall will be a true asset to the Board and the PGA Tour.”

Stephenson was appointed as AT&T’s Chairman, CEO and President in 2007. He previously served as the company’s Chief Operating Officer from 2004 to 2007 and as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from 2001 to 2004.

“I am honored to join the PGA Tour Policy Board,” Stephenson said. “I have great respect for the PGA Tour and its members and look forward to working with the other Board members to serve in the best interests of the PGA Tour, Champions Tour and Nationwide Tour.”

AT&T has been title sponsor of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am since 1986 and has sponsored the AT&T National since its inception in 2007.

“We are delighted that Randall has agreed to become the newest member of the PGA Tour Policy Board,” Ganzi said. “He has tremendous business acumen and has intimate knowledge of the PGA Tour through AT&T’s sponsorship of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the AT&T National. We are fortunate to have an outstanding collection of business leaders and players on the Policy Board to serve the organization and its members, and Randall will be a most welcome addition.”

Stephenson is replacing Edward E. Whitacre, Jr. on the PGA Tour Policy Board. Whitacre, Chairman Emeritus of AT&T Inc., is retiring from the Board after having served since January 1, 2008.

Thomas Cook, denture  the Official Provider of Short Breaks to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, has unveiled the detail of Games Breaks on sale from 15^th March 2011.

From 15^th March, sports fans will be able to secure their official Games Break at Thomas Cook stores and online at www.thomascooklondon2012.com. Paralympic Games short breaks will be available from September 2011.

Games Breaks and Games Breaks Plus will include accommodation and tickets to a full range of events from the Opening Ceremony and Athletics 100m final to Football preliminaries, Cycling and Swimming.  Games breaks are priced from £99.

Stephen Vaughan, Managing Director, Thomas Cook, London 2012 Partnership, said, “We’re getting ready for what promises to be an amazing year in the build up to this historic, once-in-a-lifetime occasion.  We’re incredibly proud to be involved and we’re looking forward to ensuring that wherever in the UK fans are, they have every opportunity to attend the London 2012 Games.”

Games Break customers favour a complete Olympic experience over a specific sport

Feedback from those interested in purchasing a Thomas Cook Games Break has shown that, with over a quarter of people interested in buying a London 2012 event ticket with accommodation, more people want to experience London as the host city and take in the Olympic experience rather than follow a specific sport.

With 44% of all adults saying they are most excited about the opportunity to soak up the atmosphere during London 2012 as they visit the host city as opposed to 39% who want to see a specific sport, the desire to experience the Games is strongest amongst those aged 25-44 (48%) with more 18-24 year olds (43%) wanting to see their favourite sport.

It’s also clear that using iconic sporting venues across the capital, such as Wimbledon and Wembley as well as the new Olympic Park, is proving a popular decision – over half of those people who would buy a Games Break (54%) would do so for venues away from East London.

The comments show that 59% of 18-35 year olds would spend up to £400 per person on a Games Break if it included two nights in a hotel and two events, while 17% of all adults expressed an interest in shorts breaks priced between £151 and £200 – an indication that many people are looking to visit the Games and experience this once in a lifetime occasion.

Games Breaks

Starting from £99, Thomas Cook’s Games Breaks will include a one or two night stay in a London hotel and guaranteed tickets to one or more Olympic Games events.  With a Games Break Plus, sports fans will be able to attend the Games in style, stay in a 4 or 5 star hotel and dine in the capital’s finest restaurants.

Thomas Cook’s Games Breaks also include flexibility and plenty of time for fans to use their stay as a base to visit other events that they’ve been successful in obtaining tickets for, through the London 2012 Official Ticket Ballot.

UEFA has announced that Cardiff City Stadium will host the 2014 European Super Cup.

The annual match, which pits the winners of the previous season’s Champions League against the winners of the Europa League, has been held at Monaco’s Stade Louis II since 1998, when the previous two-legged format was abandoned.

But the principality will no longer be permanent hosts of the showpiece game after this year, with Eden Park in Prague the destination of the 2013 edition.

Cardiff will then host the 2014 Super Cup, with the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tbilisi, Georgia, having that honour in 2015. Both stadiums have capacities around the 28,000 mark.

First Minister of Wales Carwyn Jones said: “This is fantastic news and confirms once again how our capital city is in the ‘champions league’ itself when it comes to hosting world class sporting events.

“The European Super Cup will be a major boost to not only to the city, but also for the global profile of Wales.”

Barcelona won last season’s Super Cup with a convincing 4-0 victory over FC Porto, while Champions League winners Chelsea will take on Europa League champions Atletico Madrid on August 30 this year.

AC Milan have won the Super Cup more than any other club, claiming the trophy on five occasions.