Liverpool owners New England Sports Ventures have appointed global headhunters Spencer Stuart to begin a worldwide search for the club’s new chief executive.

Eurosport Asia-Pacific, one of the leading sports channels in the region, has acquired exclusive broadcast rights to up to 60 games of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) per season.

The agreement runs for two years and is a real first for the top-tier Eurasian ice hockey league – which has never before achieved a comparable amount of TV coverage in Asia. The contract also covers mobile and internet rights on a non-exclusive basis. It was negotiated by the international sports marketing company Infront Sports & Media, as part of a KHL mandate for the Asian market.

The games will be broadcast live on Eurosport Asia-Pacific across 15 territories: Brunei, Cambodia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga and Vietnam.

Featuring 26 clubs from Belarus, the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Russia, Slovakia and the Ukraine, the 2012/13 KHL League season has already started in September and will run until April 2013. All games will be televised live in HD 16/9 quality with English commentary and will be also featured on Eurosport Asia-Pacific’s dedicated Web TV platform.

lya Kochevrin, KHL Vice President, Commerce and Communications, commented: “This agreement is an important step to further broaden the international KHL footprint and a great success of our collaboration with Infront. With its strong commitment to high-quality live coverage, Eurosport Asia now provides the perfect platform for fans across the attractive Asian markets to access first class ice hockey. During two consecutive seasons, we are now able to develop a sustained following across the region, for the benefit of the league and its commercial partners.”

Arjan Hoekstra, Managing Director of Eurosport Asia-Pacific, added: “We are delighted to become the exclusive pan-Asian broadcaster of the KHL especially at such an important moment for their development. We will help the KHL develop by providing extensive live HD coverage to all fans in Asia on a regular basis. With comprehensive coverage on TV, internet and mobile, Eurosport brings unrivalled broadcast to fans in Asia and consolidates its winter sports offer.”

Japan’s preparations to host Rugby World Cup 2019 have stepped up with the appointment of leading business figure Fujio Mitarai as President of the Organising Committee.

Mr Mitarai, Honorary President of the Japan Business Federation, Japan’s most powerful business lobby and current Chairman and CEO of Canon Inc. has been appointed by the Japan Rugby Football Union to preside over the development of the Organising Committee structure as Japan prepares to be the first Asian host of Rugby’s showcase tournament.

Former Japan Prime Minister, Chairman of the Japan Sports Association and President of the Japan Rugby Football Union Yoshiro Mori, Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) Vice Chairman Yoshio Nakamura, and President of the Japan Olympic Committee Tsunekazu Takeda were also unveiled as Vice President’s of the Organising Committee.  It was also announced that Koji Tokumasu, from Japan Rugby Football Union, will be General Manager.

Each will bring considerable government, business and sports event management experience to the Organising Committee, reflecting the JRFU’s commitment to delivering a world class tournament. Additional appointments of officials and senior management will follow over the coming months as tournament planning progresses.

Mr Mitarai told the press conference in Tokyo today that “business in Japan is right behind RWC 2019. We have seen Japan come together for FIFA 2002 World Cup, the Tokyo and Nagano Olympics and it is now necessary for our nation to again become ‘One big team’ and prepare to host Rugby World Cup.

“While sports has the power to move our hearts and make us one, the Rugby World Cup is more than just a sports event, it gives Japan the opportunity to share at political, trade and friendship levels with many other nations, ” Mitarai told journalists.

The announcement caps a year of significant progress for the JRFU as it continues to implement the foundations to deliver to a tournament which Japan, Asia and the global Rugby community can be proud of and which delivers the framework to accelerate the growth of Rugby throughout Asia.

“The success of hosting a world cup cannot be accomplished by the Japan Rugby Football Union alone, but working together as a nation and going toward the same goal utilizing experts in various areas as one ‘Team’ will be the best way to make it possible,”  Mori told the press conference.

“The establishment  of an Organising Committee ensures the success of a tournament that is supported in many areas.” Mori added.

The National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Memphis Grizzlies and Skyview Networks announced a new multi-year broadcast solutions agreement.

With Skyview Networks, cialis the franchise receives an all inclusive play-by-play radio solution: satellite distribution, sildenafil citrate sale online wise satellite receivers, view F.A.S.T. (Flexible Audio Storage Technology) Affiliate Web Automation and the F.A.S.T. Inventory Management software. The partnership aims to streamline broadcast operations for more efficient and accurate inventory tracking.

“Skyview Networks provide a turnkey solution for inventory management, on-air integration and radio network distribution,” said Randy Stephens, Senior Vice President of Broadcast for the Memphis Grizzlies. “They also provide exemplary service at an attractive price point and we look forward to partnering with them for many years to come.”

Skyview Networks’ systems work together to create a bridge between the different aspects of the team’s play-by-play broadcast. This connectivity provides the broadcast and sales departments with a real-time panoramic view of all contracts, inventory and scheduling. The Memphis Grizzlies will utilize F.A.S.T. Inventory Management most specifically to track inventory and advertiser placement. F.A.S.T. will also auto-generate invoices and affidavits to expedite the billing process and provide proof of performance.

Skyview’s distribution and affiliate automation further integrate the broadcast operation for both the franchise and its affiliate network. With this technology, the franchise will have the ability to offer advertisers the benefit of copy split-spot insertion. This feature allows different versions of an advertisement to air simultaneously in different network markets to localize messaging. For affiliates, the technology provides time shifting capabilities and the security of a back up streaming audio feed. This receiver technology, coupled with Skyview’s F.A.S.T. Web Automation, provides affiliates an affordable and reliable solution to carry a full season schedule.

“We feel confident that our services are the right fit for the Grizzlies and they will enjoy the benefits of our system integration, including the accurate and detailed inventory tracking,” said Matt Stys, Vice President Business Development of Skyview Networks. “We look forward to the season ahead and to building a lasting partnership.”

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club has appointed Charles Wijeratna, arthritis London 2012’s director of commercial negotiations, to the role of commercial director.

Wijeratna was responsible for the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games’s (LOCOG) commercial negotiations and was the force behind the sponsorship programme and merchandising deals for the 2012 Games.

He was part of the London 2012 bid company from its inception in 2003, where he helped steer the bid as its commercial and legal director, managing all the commercial and legal aspects of the bid from set-up through the transition to LOCOG.

Wijeratna previously worked in sports television for Sky TV, as a lawyer with Clifford Chance and as an investment banker with Kleinwort Benson.

He joins Spurs as the club looks to create further commercial potential with its new stadium. The club is hoping that a new business strategy working more closely than ever with brand sponsors can help it climb both the sporting and finance tables.

Sky Sports is set to broadcast the British-staged fixtures of the new 2013 FIM Speedway Club Championship, SPA chairman Alex Harkness has revealed.

Elite League winners Swindon and play-off runners-up Poole will represent Britain where they are likely to meet Swedish play-offs finalists Vetlana and Piraterna and Denmark’s top two Esbjerg and Fjelsted.

The fixtures for the competition are expected to be announced early next month with the British-staged events shown on Mondays.

Harkness insists steps are being made to stop fixture clashes between the British, Polish, Swedish, Danish, Czech and German leagues.

“I’m working on the fixtures now and there is an FIM meeting around December 6 or 8,” Harkness told theSpeedway Star.

“The British-staged fixtures will be on a Monday, the Swedish ones on Tuesday and the Danish ones on a Wednesday. That’s for the television coverage – the meetings will be live on Sky.

“One of my jobs is to bring all the leagues from different countries together so that we work under the same fixture list to stop conflicts of interest when there is a clash of fixtures.”

Premier League chairman Sir Dave Richards has apologised for his comments accusing FIFA an UEFA of stealing football from the English.

Richards endured a Wednesday to forget when he told an International Sport Security Conference in Qatar that the governing bodies ‘stole’ football from the English.

He later issued a statement to apologise and he has contacted both FIFA president Sepp Blatter and UEFA chief Michel Platini.

“I would like to apologise for any offence caused,” Richards said in a statement. 

“It is important to clarify that I was expressing my personal views and not those of any organisation I represent.

“My comments on the heritage of the game were intended to be light-hearted. 

“They clearly have not come across in that way and I sincerely regret making them and any resulting negativity that may have been interpreted towards Fifa and Uefa. I will be writing to both organisations in these terms.”

Richards’ views were challenged by Fifa vice president Prince Ali Bin Hussein, who suggested that the Chinese had invented football, but the former Sheffield Wednesday chairman claimed that the English “own” the sport.

Richards’ day only got worse when, on his way to dinner in Doha, Qatar, where he was attending the International Sport Security Conference, he fell into a fountain pool. 

Richards was taken to a nearby hospital for checks and Bolton Wanderers chairman Phil Gartside, who was with him at the time, has rebuked claims that the Sheffield-born official had been drinking alcohol.

“I was on the way to dinner with Sir Dave at the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha,” Gartside told the BBC. 

“We were walking across to our table in a dark courtyard area. There were three fountain areas nearby, no pool.

“They had switched off the lights. He thought he was stepping on to flat marble, but his foot went down into the water, he fell over and hurt his leg quite badly. Any suggestions he had a drink is nonsense. It’s a dry place.”

But Richards’ unfortunate day will not be forgotten after he also fell into a fountain while on his way to dinner at the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha.

by Ismail Uddin

Hispania has announced that Juan Villalonga, shop sale one of Spain’s most influential businessmen, has joined the team in a bid to secure the team’s future.

Villalonga was president of Telefonica between 1996 and 2000 and during this time, he brought the company into Formula 1 as a sponsor of the Minardi team.

Hispania have struggled to make their mark in Formula 1 this season and are more often than not the last of the three new teams.

However, there is hope for the future now that Villalonga has come aboard.

“For me the key is the quality and not the quantity of sponsors,” said Villalonga. “Formula One is always associated with innovation, research and technology, and Hispania Racing must be represented on that level, with a stable leadership.”

Hispania team owner Jose Ramon Carabante was optimistic about the partnership.

“We will substantially strengthen our ability to generate innovative activities in marketing and sponsorship with his co-operation,” said Carabante.

“We will also be able to make the best of his leadership, knowledge and relationships in the fields of technology and communications.”

Celestial Tiger Entertainment (CTE), hospital the operator of the largest network of pan-Asian channels dedicated to Asian television, arthritis | and Lingerie Football League, sale LLC (LFL) jointly announced the signing of a first and exclusive licensing deal for CTE’s sports network KIX to bring the Lingerie Football League (LFL) to audiences in Asia.

Since its premiere in 2009, the LFL has been touted as the ‘fastest growing sports league in the United States’ by NBC Sports and has drawn record television ratings for US broadcaster MTV Networks.

“We are excited to partner with the Lingerie Football League to bring America’s fastest growing sports league to Asia. The LFL presents tough, sexy, and talented female athletes playing full-contact, American football. At KIX, we promise our viewers the hottest action from around the world,” said Betty Tsui, Vice President, Programme – KIX and Thrill, Celestial Tiger Entertainment.

“This partnership with Celestial Tiger Entertainment is yet another step towards building a global sport. We thank CTE for being the pioneers that introduced LFL Football to Asia,” said, Mitchell Mortaza, Founder & Chairman, LFL Global.

The enormous international audience of LFL Football led to the formation and launch of LFL Canada in 2012 followed by the premiere of LFL Australia in 2013 and LFL Europa in 2015. The LFL is also the first-ever women’s sport to have attracted its own video game set to be released in 2015.

Brian Kennedy, ask owner of Rugby Union side Sale Sharks, pilule has confirmed he will bid to buy Rangers this week because he couldn’t live with himself if the Ibrox giants were liquidated.

The Scottish-born businessman, who bought his AVIVA Premiership team more than a decade ago.

Kennedy is prepared to walk away if there are other offers on table but he will be there to pick up the pieces if the administrators, Duff and Phelps, believe he is the best option for the long-term future of Rangers.

Kennedy said: “I will make an offer to buy Rangers before Friday.  

“My position is that if there is no better deal on the table to safeguard Rangers then I will gladly do a deal to buy the club, if there is a better offer than I will gladly walk away.  For me, Rangers are a fantastic club with a great history.

“If I have the ability to stop it from going to the wall and disappearing then I will use all my powers to do that.

“If somebody has something else that is better than what I can offer then I will gladly step-a-side.  That has always been my position.  

“I see myself as a back drop to stop Rangers going into extinction.  “I am not in it for money or personal game, for me, it is almost like a social responsibility I have to the people of Scotland and the country of my birth.”

Former Rangers director Paul Murray is also leading a rival bid under the title of the Blue Knights, with Dave King and creditors Ticketus, while there is also thought to be strong interest in buying the club from America and the Middle-east.

Kennedy has already stated that when he bids for the club it will be all or nothing and he won’t be getting involved in any other consortiums adding : “What is right for Rangers is right for me,” If the administrators feel that Paul Murray takes over then I will walk away and give him all the support he needs.  

“When you run a business you need direction and focus.  A camel is a horse designed by committee and I am not into committees or consortiums.

“If it works for these guys and they have focus then I would be absolutely delighted, if not I will be there to pick up the pieces for the administrators and to preserve such a great club, that is genuinely where I am coming from.”

Murray, who could be banned from returning to Ibrox as a director, has already confirmed his offer is condition to the club winning the big tax case, which could see them hit with a bill of up to £75 million. 

Kennedy has admitted that he has no worries about the big tax and it won’t have impact on his offer.

“I have no issues  with that,” he  insisted.  “With a CVA you completely insulated from that, so that is not an issue for me. “The biggest issue is what is right for the club going forward and this great institution for its future.  It is one of the top football clubs in Europe and it is an integral part of Scottish life, which is where I am from.”

Kennedy previously tried to buy his boyhood heroes Hibs and has previously been in charge of English minnows Stockport County.