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Celtic chairman John Reid can see the positive side after the club reduced its debt and recorded a small profit for the year ending June 2011 in the face of a poor economic climate.

The Scottish Premier League club announced its preliminary results for the year with net bank debt falling £5.32 million to £530, treat 000, while a £102,000 operating profit was reached compared to the previous year’s £2.13 million loss. Celtic’s figures were aided by the record £9.5 million sale of Aiden McGeady to Spartak Moscow, but the club was faced with the damage of an early exit from European football on top of the financial mess that is currently affecting the Scottish game.

As a result turnover fell 14.8% to £52.56 million, while revenue dropped £9.16 million to £52.56 million. Reid said: “Turnover decreased…affected by the reduction in European matches and the ticket and broadcasting revenues that they generate, and a decline in merchandising sales in a difficult retail market,” Reid said in his annual statement. “Against this background, the achievements of everyone at the club – management, staff and our faithful supporters – appear even more outstanding.

“To achieve and maintain financial stability, and attain a very manageable debt position, while continuing to invest significantly in strengthening the football squad and generate profit in the football sector in Scotland in these conditions is highly commendable. And yet, as our annual report shows, as a result of these efforts and our activity in the transfer market, we managed to turn last year’s loss into break-even, to reduce our debt considerably and still invest a substantial amount in new players.”

Pay-TV operator SportKlub has been awarded certain 2012–15 UEFA Europa League media rights in Slovenia and will show one live match per kick-off slot as well as highlights.

Pay television operator SportKlub has been awarded the right to all live matches, except the first pick. Each matchweek SportKlub will broadcast on its channel branded ‘SportKlub’ one live match per kick-off slot as well as a highlights programme.

All rights have been granted on a platform-neutral basis, with the rights also being exploited on the internet, via www.sportklub.si, and on mobile.

South African broadcaster SuperSport has agreed a broadcast partnership with Netball South Africa

for the upcoming Netball Diamond Challenge with all the Internationals being broadcast live.

The Netball Diamond Challenge will see South Africa, Malawi, Botswana and Zambia competing in a round robin tournament at the Heartfelt Arena in Pretoria from 15 to 18 August.

The objective of the tournament is to celebrate the role of women in sport and in particular elevate the profile of Netball in South Africa during women’s month. 

Brandon Foot, SuperSport head of Acquisitions and Legal said, “SuperSport is delighted to have concluded a three-year deal with Netball South Africa to broadcast the Netball Diamond Challenge on all broadcast platforms throughout sub-Saharan Africa and the adjacent islands.”

“As SuperSport we support the view of the Honourable Minister of Sport Mr. Fikile Mbalula, that Netball is a sport with tremendous potential, which is deserving of support,” Foot concluded.

UEFA, Europe’s soccer governing body, has excluded Greek club Olympiakos Volos from this season’s Europa League competition after the club was involved in the Greek match-fixing scandal.

The news comes just a day after Volos was handed a Super League reprieve after the Hellenic Football Federation’s (EPO) appeals committee overturned its relegation. Volos and fellow Super League side Kavala were both relegated to the second tier of Greek football for their part in the scandal however both teams had decision was overturned on Wednesday in favour of a points deduction after an appeal.

Volos had qualified for European competition after finishing fifth in the 2010-11 Super League. However, a points deduction falls foul of UEFA rules implying exclusion from European competition. Volos have also received a suspended three-year ban.

A UEFA statement said: “The Greek club have until midnight on Monday to submit an appeal under Article 49 of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations.”

Volos’ lawyer, Michael Mitzikos, told Reuters: “We will appeal first to UEFA’s appeal’s body and will also consider measures with the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport).”

Luxembourg’s FC Differdange 03 has been announced as Volos’ replacement in the Europa League and will now face Paris Saint-Germain in the play-off round.

Sports broadcaster, ESPN has secured rights to broadcast the first season of the inaugural Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament.

ESPN will show the competition in the UK and Ireland on TV, plus online highlights. It will be shown solely online in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Twenty20 competition will feature a total of 24 matches as seven teams representing the provinces of Sri Lanka compete in a round robin group stage, semi-finals and final between Saturday 11th and Friday 31st August.

ESPN UK’s live coverage of the Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League starts on Saturday August 11 with Basnahira Cricket Dundee v Kandurata Warriors live at 3.30pm, including both semi-finals on 28th and 29th August, and the final on 31st August.

The Mahindra SLPL is set to feature some of cricket’s biggest names – legendary spinner Muttiah Muralitharan will appear alongside fellow Sri Lankans Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Matthews, as well as overseas stars including New Zealand’s Jacob Oram, Nathan McCullum and Scott Styris, Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi, Misbah Ul Haque, Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul, West Indies’ Shiv Chanderpaul and Jerome Taylor, Australia’s Dirk Nannes, John Hastings, Andrew McDonald and Brad Hodge, and, South Africa’s Loots Bosman.

Jeroen Oerlemans, vice-president, TV Channels, ESPN EMEA, said: “The inaugural season of the Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League cricket will feature some of the biggest stars in the sport. This is a great addition to our schedule in a month that is already full of top class sporting action including the return of the new football seasons around the UK and Europe.”

Sri Lanka Premier League rights holder Somerset Entertainment Ventures’ chairman Sandiip Bhammer said: “ESPN is the ideal platform to take Sri Lanka’s message in respect of a seminal cricket tournament of this stature to the rest of the world, especially at the end of the 30 years war, and we’re very confident of, and proud to be associated with a channel of the calibre of ESPN which has such fantastic following within its respective territories.”

Spanish Players from La Liga and Segunda División will go on strike for the first two weekends of the new Spanish season as the players’ union steps its game in trying to get the league to agree a new deal over conditions.

The Spanish Footballers Association (AFE) president Luis Rubiales told a news conference: “We are unanimous and firm in our decision to call a strike. The league will not start until a new agreement [between the league and the players] has been signed.”

At the heart of the dispute is the union’s demand for a larger emergency fund to help players not being paid by clubs who are in financial administration.

The La Liga and Segunda División seasons are scheduled to start on the weekend of 20-21 August.

The AFE has gotten support from La Liga players, including Carlos Puyol and Iker Casillas. Other players association have come to lend their support.

Rubiales said the players had been negotiating with the Spanish football league (LFP) over a series of protective measures for players that are commonplace in other leagues in Europe but which Spanish players do not have.

“It is lamentable. As it stands we are at the bottom of the pile in Europe. We don’t want more money, we want the clubs to honour the contracts they sign with their players. We don’t want palliative measures. We have put forward proposals which exist in Holland, Germany, France and England which are preventative. In these countries if a club shows it can’t pay its players the club doesn’t compete.

“We have asked that players who are owed more than three months [wages] can break their contracts. It seemed like we had an agreement but it was left out.”

Rubiales commented that there had been lengthy negotiations and there was a offer on the table by the LFP but it was rejected by the players.

“Enough is enough,” he said. “This does not mean we are refusing to negotiate any more. We will do for the good of the players and football in general. But the league will not start until a new collective agreement is signed.”

Ten Sports has secured live and exclusive rights from Total Sports Asia to broadcast the Brazilian League for the 2012 to 2014 season on multiple distribution platforms for South Asia. 

As part of the agreement, adiposity TEN Sports will be showcasing two Brazilian leagues – The São Paulo State Championship (PAULISTA) and The Brazilian National Championship (BRASILEIRÃO Serie A). 

TEN Sports will be telecasting 82 matches live from the league. 

The Asian corporation will be telecasting 28 matches from The São Paulo State Championship (PAULISTA) live. It is the most competitive and organized Regional Championship of Brazil. Top clubs of Brazil like Corinthians, São Paulo, Santos and Palmeiras compete in this championship. 

TEN Sports will also be telecasting 54 matches live from Brazilian National Championship (BRASILEIRÃO Serie A). It is the most important football competition in Brazil. The Top Twenty clubs compete in the Série A. Each team plays the other clubs twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 38 games. The Série A will serve as a qualifier to 2013 Copa Libertadores. The top-three teams in the standings will qualify to the Second Stage of the competition, while the fourth place in the standings will qualify to the First Stage.

Atul Pande CEO Sports Business ZEEL said: “Acquisition of Brazilian League underlines our commitment to football fans in the region as we continue providing the most entertaining content to our viewers, and an excellent promotional platform for our advertisers. We have established a strong tradition in building and strengthening top-class football properties on our channels with the reach of our networks, multiple media platforms and world-class match presentation.”

Suvrangsu Mukherjee, managing director, South Asia, Total Sports Asia added: “We are delighted to join hands with TEN Sports to bring the exciting Brazilian Football League to India. This will be the first time that the league will be shown on a national channel in India. We are sure that Brazilian Football League will draw a lot of interest from football fans around the country, especially since Indians have been passionate supporters of the Brazilian national team and great fans of the Brazilian style of football.”

Spanish Primera Giants Real Madrid and Chinese Super League leaders Guangzhou Evergrande have agreed to a tie a deal that could see player exchanges and the Spanish giants opening an academy in China.

Madrid, herbal who play Evergrande later Wednesday in a pre-season friendly in Guangzhou, health are striving to promote their brand in fast-developing China, adiposity as are a host of other top European sides.

The two sides on Tuesday signed a letter of intent, with an eye on cooperation on player exchanges, brand promotion and the opening of the largest football academy in China.

“We are building a close relationship with Guangzhou Evergrande (which) we believe will be closer as time goes by,” Florentino Perez, president of Real Madrid, was quoted as saying by the Xinhua news agency.

“We are working together to establish a football academy in China, which I think is the first step of our cooperation.”

IMG Sports Media have been announced as the new producers of Channel 4’s racing coverage from January 2013.

The new four-year agreement will see former BBC racing presenter Clare Balding take a leading role in coverage of meetings such as the Cheltenham Festival, Royal Ascot and the Grand National.

The deal, in operation from January 2013 until December 2016, runs alongside Channel 4’s four-year media agreement with Racecourse Media Group.

In addition, Channel 4 Racing sponsors, Dubai, have signed a new four-year extension deal until 2016.

Under the new contract IMG Sports Media will produce around 90 days a year of live terrestrial horseracing coverage in addition to the Morning Line.

Jay Hunt, Channel 4’s chief creative officer, said: “With the expertise of IMG Sports on board, I’m hugely excited about the future of racing on Channel 4.”

Jamie Aitchison, Channel 4’s sports editor, added: “After a rigorous and invaluable tender process, I am looking forward immensely to working with IMG Sports Media to deliver our vision for the sport.

“Their pitch was compelling and crucially contained deep racing expertise allied to innovative broadcasting proposals.

“The winning bid hails the arrival of a new era in broadcasting for the sport at a time when the industry is moving forwards with real momentum. The hard work starts now as we head towards 2013 and the exciting challenges ahead.

“Clare’s arrival is superb news for Channel 4 and the production team.

“I would also like to thank Dubai for their continued support and we look forward to continuing our excellent working relationship to deliver the programming that their commitment deserves.

“It is also fitting at this point to thank Highflyer TV for everything they have done for Channel 4 and British horseracing over many years.”

IMG’s managing director sports production worldwide Graham Fry said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been chosen as Channel 4’s production partner for horse racing in the UK for the next four years.

“This is a unique and exciting opportunity to bring a fresh approach to an outstanding portfolio of race days, many of them iconic sporting events.

“IMG has hand-picked an outstanding team of experienced and talented production professionals with vast expertise covering the sport.

“This allied to our strong in-house creative talent who have worked on major sporting events around the globe, will ensure that race viewers see a new and enhanced approach to the overall horse racing experience.”

IMG has committed to introduce a range of innovations including graphical enhancements, while they are planning to relaunch the Channel 4 racing website as well as building new footings on other digital platforms.

The programme sponsors are more than happy to renew their deal.

John Ferguson, bloodstock advisor to the ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed, said: “His Highness Sheikh Mohammed has supported British horseracing for many years and has always felt that strong terrestrial television coverage is crucial to the sport’s popularity in the UK.

“As Channel 4 Racing becomes the home of all racing for the British public, His Highness has made the decision that Dubai will continue to be the broadcast sponsor for the period 2013- 2016.

“Since 2008, when the sponsorship started, we have seen a growth in viewership and we look forward to the future.”

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has decided to drop its controversial plans to create a 38-team national soccer championship after heavy criticism of the plans from players, pills coaches, fans, club officials and the media.

The proposal, which was put forward by AFA president Julio Grondona last week, would have seen the merger of the country’s top two divisions from the 2012-13 season. Teams would have been split into two zones of 19 with traditional rivals like River Plate and Boca Juniors kept apart before facing each other in ‘inter-zone’ matches. The plans called for the top five teams in each zone to advance to a Championship Stage, which would have determined the league champion, while the other 28 competed to avoid relegation.

The plans were seen by many as a ruse to ensure relegated River returned to the top flight at the earliest opportunity and reduce the chances of other top clubs also suffering relegation.

Despite ending these plans, the AFA has called for ideas from clubs for further reform of the domestic game. The Apertura championship, the opening event in the Argentine first division season, kicks off this weekend.