Spark Sport Granted Exclusive Live TV And Digital Rights To US Open In New Zealand Through 2024

Spark Sport is now the exclusive home for the US Open in New Zeland: It has been granted the country’s exclusive live television and digital rights to the Grand Slam tournament through 2024.

The three-year deal, announced Thursday, begins at the 2022 US Open; the tournament will be available live and on-demand on Spark Sport from the start of the US Open Qualifying Tournament on Aug. 24. It also comes as Spark Sport positions itself to become the epicenter of world-class tennis in New Zealand, having also renewed its WTA rights through 2024.

“It’s the perfect time to partner with Spark Sport in New Zealand, as they continue to grow and prioritize their tennis coverage within an ever-expanding live sports portfolio,” said Lew Sherr, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, USTA. “We’re excited for the next three years and are looking forward to Spark delivering a high level of US Open coverage to the great fans in New Zealand.”

Head of Spark Sport, Jeff Latch adds: “Our goal is to bring Kiwis more of the sport they love, and we know we have a lot of tennis-mad fans in Aotearoa. Our subscribers will now have access to the US Open, a tournament that has evolved into one of the most popular sports and entertainment spectacles around the globe, as well as WTA tournaments already available on the platform. August 2022 will be our first time bringing this global showpiece to the local market and we hope subscribers will take advantage of our exclusive coverage of the tournament.”

The main draw of the 2022 US Open will take place from Aug. 29 through Sept. 11 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.

Catherine Newman Named EVP & Head Of Marketing At WWE

WWE today announced that Catherine Newman has been named Executive Vice President and Head of Marketing.

Newman brings more than two decades of executive experience to WWE including her most recent role as Chief Marketing Officer of Manchester United Media. She has also held senior positions at The Times of London and Financial Times, leading global marketing initiatives, developing strategic partnerships, and boosting subscription growth across various products.

As part of WWE’s senior leadership team, Newman’s oversight will include Marketing, Brand, Community Relations, Entertainment Relations, Creative Services and Photography.

She is a graduate of Loughborough University, a Chartered Institute of Marketing Postgraduate from Buckinghamshire New University and a Fellow & Mentor in the Marketing Academy, United Kingdom.

RealFevr And Torino FC Launch First Serie A Fully Licensed Video Collectibles

Portuguese startup RealFevr and Serie A club Torino Football Club are set to launch on June 15 an exclusive video digital collectibles drop of iconic moments from the history of the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino and the Stadio delle Alpi, featuring some of Calcio’s biggest stars like Ronaldinho, Totti, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ribéry, Ibrahimović, Cavani, or Roberto Baggio, who have played matches in the city of Torino from the 1999/2000 season until now.

This drop – which also features Granata players such as Andrea Belotti, Alessio Cerci, Fabio Quagliarella or Cristian Ansaldi – will include some historic Serie A moments like Francesco Totti’s last goal in the competition, Ronaldinho’s amazing free-kick, Andrea Belotti’s incredible bicycle kick against Sassuolo and many more everlasting moments, from some of the biggest names in the game.

Just like in previous drops, the moments came in packs, which are sorted into the following categories and price tags: BASIC, which contains 3 collectibles ($19); RARE, containing 4 collectibles ($64); SUPER RARE, which contains 5 collectibles ($149) and ULTRA, which contains 10 collectibles ($249) and will only be available in the early access pre-sale to allowlisted users. 

The NFTs will also be sorted in the usual categories (COMMON, SPECIAL, EPIC, LEGENDARY and UNIQUE) with the bonus that the four UNIQUES in this drop will be of Torino FC players. Also, in order to maximize the Granata experience and to spread it globally, each pack will contain at least one moment from a Torino FC player.

In order to obtain these historic, everlasting football moments, potential collectors will have to go to www.realfevr.com and buy digital packs available during the upcoming drop. Just like in real life, by opening these digital packs, collectors and football fans will pull several random digital collectibles with different video moments and tiers of rarity.  

With Bruno Fernandes as its shareholder and global ambassador, RealFevr launched two pack drops in the summer of 2021 focused on some of the greatest football players and video moments from the Portuguese League. More than 110 thousand packs have been sold and both previous NFT drops sold out within a 24-hour period.

Established in 2015, RealFevr is expanding to become a preeminent NFT leader after launching the first-ever fully licensed football video NFT marketplace and aims to completely disrupt the NFT ecosystem by combining breakthrough tech and blockchain’s decentralization, with the uniqueness of video collectibles. The partnership with Torino FC and the launch of the first Serie A fully licensed NFT drop are two giant steps towards reaching that ambitious goal.

Harlequins Announce New Partnership With Clothing Brand Beaufort & Blake

Harlequins is thrilled to today announce lifestyle clothing brand Beaufort & Blake as the Club’s new Smart Casual Partner

There will be an exclusive, limited-edition Harlequins clothing collection kicking off in Autumn 2022 at beaufortandblake.com.

Harlequins Steve Morton, Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We are delighted to announce our partnership with Beaufort & Blake, our first in the smart casual sector, ahead of the 2022/23 Season.

“It was evident from our early conversations that both organisations understood one another including our respective cultures and values. We are excited to see work with Beaufort & Blake, helping promote the brand and exclusive Quins branded products to our supporters.”

To celebrate the partnership, Beaufort & Blake are offering Harlequins supporters an exclusive 15% off* their summer collection, to ensure you’re suitably kitted out for the pre-season games. Fans can use code PRESEASON15 at checkout when shopping online at beaufortandblake.com.

PFA Recruits James King As General Counsel

The Professional Footballers’ Association (The PFA) has announced the appointment of James King as the union’s General Counsel.

King joins the PFA from Arsenal, where he was the Senior Legal Counsel for Football Operations.

The recruitment of King represents another key senior hire for the PFA, with Patrick Coyle having recently joined the PFA as Chief Operating Officer after almost a decade at Manchester United. 

King joined the Arsenal legal team in 2016, working on the Commercial side before moving to Football Operations in 2018. In his last role, he had responsibility over all areas of football across both the men’s and women’s games, from first team to academy.

He was also a member of the FA’s Legal & Governance Group for Women’s Football.

Prior to joining Arsenal, King was part of the Employment Department and Sports Group at Mischon de Reya where, as a Managing Associate, he represented domestic and international players across the men’s and women’s games.

King was appointed after an independent and competitive recruitment process led on behalf of the PFA, which has recently undergone significant reforms to its governance and leadership structures as part of an organisation-wide modernisation process.

The PFA is the world’s oldest professional sport trade union and represents over 55,000 current and former players across the Premier League, English Football League (EFL) and Women’s Super League (WSL).

PFA Chief Executive, Maheta Molango, said:

“James’ appointment provides the PFA with even more senior industry experience, gained in both private practice and high-profile roles at one of the English game’s biggest clubs. 

“His CV speaks for itself and I’m delighted that James is joining the union at such a crucial time. His knowledge and experience across both the men’s and women’s games will be of enormous benefit to the PFA and its members.”

“James’ decision to join the PFA at this time reflects the importance of work we are doing on behalf of both current and former players. He is an excellent addition to the union.”

James King said:

“I’m excited to be joining the team. The scope of the PFA’s work has never been wider, with current and former players looking to the union to act as their voice on a diverse range of important issues.

“At a time of significant change, I’m looking forward to applying the experience I have gained within the industry on behalf of PFA members.”

EPCR Confirms Inclusion Of South African Clubs For 2022/23 Season And Beyond

In a landmark expansion of its tournaments, EPCR is delighted to confirm that the five leading clubs from South Africa will compete in the Heineken Champions Cup and the EPCR Challenge Cup from the 2022/23 season and beyond.

The Stormers, Bulls, Sharks and Lions, who have qualified from the United Rugby Championship (URC), will add a new layer of high-quality competition to the established order of Europe’s elite clubs. 

In a further development, and in addition to the four qualifiers from the URC, the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs have been invited to participate in the 2022/23 EPCR Challenge Cup.

As well as Leinster Rugby, Ulster Rugby, Munster Rugby, Edinburgh Rugby and the Ospreys, the Cape Town-based Stormers, the Bulls from Pretoria and the Durban-based Sharks will compete in next season’s Heineken Champions Cup following impressive campaigns in the URC, while the Lions from Johannesburg and the Cheetahs will fly the flag for South Africa in the EPCR Challenge Cup. 

Commenting on the major development, EPCR Chairman, Dominic McKay, said: “We are delighted to confirm that the South African clubs from will be part of our expanded tournaments from the beginning of next season. 

“The Stormers, Bulls, Sharks and Lions will all bring hugely exciting southern hemisphere rugby, well-known world-class players and broad new audiences into our tournaments, and we are pleased to welcome the Cheetahs into the EPCR Challenge Cup. The steps we have taken with our stakeholder leagues and with SARU ensure that we can further develop the tournaments as the pinnacle of global club rugby.

“This is a crucial step forward in bringing to life our vision of growing the game and our own tournaments, continuing to deliver strong returns for our leagues and creating an ever-higher standard of mouthwatering matches for our fans.”

The South African clubs in the Heineken Champions Cup will be in the mix against newly-crowned winners, Stade Rochelais, who lifted the trophy for the first time in dramatic style in Marseille last weekend, as well as Lyon who also claimed a historic first European title when they won the EPCR Challenge Cup final.

EPCR welcomed over 110,000 fans to the Stade Vélodrome over the course of the two finals with a record EPCR Challenge Cup attendance of 51,431 witnessing Lyon’s victory over RC Toulon, while 59,682 went through the turnstiles for last Saturday’s showpiece match between Stade Rochelais and Leinster.

The formats for next season’s Heineken Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup will be announced shortly, in conjunction with details of the Pool Draws for both tournaments which will be staged towards the end of the month.

EPCR Chief Executive, Anthony Lepage, said: “This is a hugely significant step forward in realising our ambitions to grow our tournaments and bring our outstanding competitions to new audiences across the globe.

“Welcoming such well-known and well-supported South African clubs to the Heineken Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup will take the competitions to a new level of elite rugby, with the best of South Africa now also able to test themselves against the best of England and France.

“The calibre of our competitions is consistently high and, as last weekend in Marseille demonstrated so clearly, we deliver incredible experiences for fans who love the tournaments, whether following the fortunes of their team or simply enjoying our finals, on one of rugby’s biggest weekends. It will be superb to raise the bar even higher with matches next season featuring South African Rugby World Cup winners, in addition to the stars of Europe we already see lighting up the pitch. 

“We look forward to the Pool Draws later this month and then we will announce our fixture schedules for both tournaments so that clubs, fans and all our stakeholders can begin preparations for next season.”

SARU Chief Executive, Jurie Roux, added: “Our five franchise teams will now play in two new territories against opponents we’ve never played before. We’ve already experienced the intensity of the URC, and now we’ll also face the top clubs from England and France. We would like to thank all stakeholders who have been involved in the negotiation process – the Board and staff of EPCR, the URC, Premiership Rugby and the Ligue Nationale de Rugby.

“A big word of thanks also to the Cheetahs for their patience. I’m sure they can’t wait to face international opposition again, and we’re very grateful to have them included in the EPCR Challenge Cup.

“Ever since we’ve made the decision to align with the northern hemisphere, our aim was to play in the EPCR competitions. As we’ve seen during the inaugural season of the URC, the rugby is of the highest standard and our top players definitely benefited from this move. 

“We now have an opportunity to also start rubbing shoulders with the top clubs from England and France in two other competitions that have caught the imagination of rugby supporters around the globe for more than two decades.”

During the 2022/23 season, EPCR will continue to be supported by Heineken as the title partner of the Heineken Champions Cup, as well as by EPCR’s Official Logistics Partner DHL and Official Hotels Partner IHG Hotels & Resorts amongst others, with future exciting partner announcements expected in the near future.

The 2023 Finals weekend is scheduled for Dublin’s Aviva Stadium on Friday 19 and Saturday 20 May.

Sky Sports Announces Multi-Year Extension Of Live PGA TOUR Coverage With New Warner Bros. Discovery Agreement

Sky Sports, the home of live golf in the UK and Ireland, has today announced an extension to its broadcast deal to show live PGA TOUR events, giving golf fans more of the best live action.

As part of the deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, the strategic partner of the PGA TOUR, Sky Sports will continue to show a minimum of 36 golf events per year. The deal covers all PGA TOUR FedExCup events including the FedExCup Playoffs, the TOUR Championship and Presidents Cup.

Sky Sports will provide extensive coverage of PGA TOUR competitions, including Early Coverage, Marquee Group, Featured Holes and Featured Groups. In addition, Sky Sports will continue to bring the best TV coverage bringing fans as close to the action as possible, including on-site with the Sky Cart, Sky Zone and on-course commentary.

Sky Sports Managing Director, Jonathan Licht, said:

“We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with the PGA TOUR. The extended deal cements Sky Sports’ place as the home of golf in the UK and Ireland and means our customers will be able to follow the key live action on the TOUR for years to come.”

PGA TOUR Chief Media Officer, Rick Anderson, said:

“We are extremely pleased to continue our long partnership with Sky Sports in a key market, one that values golf at the highest level. Sky Sports’ localized production connects the best in professional golf, the PGA TOUR, to our UK audience.’

Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe President and Managing Director, Andrew Georgiou, said:

“Sky has been a long-term partner to Discovery and now Warner Bros. Discovery for more than 30 years, helping to bring our channels and content to millions of people. Building on this relationship and extending PGA TOUR coverage on Sky Sports is a clear winner for viewers in the UK & Ireland, particularly given the channel’s proven commitment to innovative golf broadcasting and excellent live coverage.”

Sky Sports Golf is the home of golf in the UK and in 2022 will show all four men’s Majors, all five women’s Majors and both men’s and women’s tours – well over 100 tournaments in total. In addition, golf fans can tune in for round-the-clock coverage on Sky Sports News and Sky Sports’ social and digital platforms.

RedBird Capital Partners Enters Into Agreement With Elliott Advisors To Acquire AC Milan

RedBird Capital Partners and Elliott Advisors UK Limited today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for RedBird to acquire Associazione Calcio Milan, newly crowned Champions of Serie A. The transition to new ownership will take place over the summer, with an expected closing no later than September 2022.

The deal, which values the Club at €1.2B, will see Elliott retain a minority financial interest in the Club and seats on the Board of Directors, solidifying a partnership between RedBird and Elliott that continues the progress made under Elliott’s stewardship over the last four years.   

RedBird’s priority is to work with the Club’s title-winning sporting and Club management team to continue Milan’s journey back to the summit of world football. A combination of a successful team on the pitch, Milan’s player development and acquisition expertise, a world-class commercial operation, and RedBird’s experience in operating and building global sports businesses, will ensure that the next chapter in Milan’s storied history will take the Rossoneri to even greater heights. 

Gerry Cardinale, RedBird Founder and Managing Partner

RedBird Founder and Managing Partner Gerry Cardinale said: “We are honoured to be a part of AC Milan’s illustrious history and are excited to play a role in the Club’s next chapter as it returns to its rightful place at the very top of Italian, European and world football. I want to thank Gordon Singer and the entire Elliott team for the tremendous work they have done over the last four years in rebuilding Milan and returning it to its rightful place at the top of Serie A.  RedBird’s investment philosophy and track record in team ownership has shown that football clubs can be successful on the pitch and sustainable off it – we are looking forward to a long term partnership with the Club, its management team and Milanisti around the world to keep propelling Milan in the years to come.”  

Elliott Managing Partner Gordon Singer commented: “When Elliott acquired AC Milan in 2018, we inherited a club with a tremendous history, but with serious financial problems and a mediocre sporting performance.  Our plan was simple: to create financial stability, and to return AC Milan to where it belongs in European football.  Today, I believe we have accomplished both.  As we make this remarkable transition to AC Milan’s next chapter, I want to express our deepest sense of humility, pride and above all gratitude for the experiences we have shared with each member of the AC Milan family: We could not have done any of this without you, Il Popolo Milanista”.

Goodwood Secures Multi-Year Partnership With Heycar

The Goodwood Estate today announced a multi-event partnership with heycar, the online car marketplace. The agreement will see heycar become an Official Partner of the annual flagship event, the Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard, which runs from 23-26 June 2022.

Heycar is to be the Presenting Partner for the First Glance Paddock, one of the most popular features at Festival of Speed. The First Glance Paddock presented by heycar serves as a showcase of the latest cars and prototypes from the automotive world, many revealed to the public for the first-time.

Heycar will have a stand next to the First Glance Paddock and further branding on the paddock shelters and across the site, as well as receiving increased online reach through First Glance digital content and the festival’s daily live stream. The live stream allows viewers from around the world to tune in over the weekend, which will include coverage of First Glance content on the famous 1.16-mile Festival of Speed Hill – the focal point of the event.

The 2021 Festival of Speed live stream was viewed 6.1 million times and the event was broadcast to 2.5m people in the UK through ITV and Sky programming. The hillclimb and its partnersalso feature heavily on Goodwood’s 365 social media channels – with millions of views generated from fans around the world in the last year.

In addition, heycar will be the Presenting Partner for Goodwood’s Three Friday Nights where top-class horse racing on the Sussex Downs is followed by music hosted by well-known and popular DJs. heycar will also sponsor a number of races on each of the evenings – June 3, 10 and 17. This year’s DJ line-up features Ibiza legend Carl Cox and BBC Radio 1’s Greg James and Annie Mac.

heycar’s partnership activation will include a phenomenal spin the wheel prize giveaway with prizes including sunglasses, ponchos, glow sticks and tickets to the Luna Cinema Summer Series. The sell-out event will be called Three Friday Nights presented by heycar.

Jonathan Gregory, Commercial Director, Goodwood, said: “heycar is an exciting new brand and business that, like Goodwood, prides itself on quality and excellent customer service so we are delighted to have them as a partner across both Festival of Speed and Three Friday Nights. The First Glance Paddock presented by heycar is one of the most eagerly viewed elements of Festival of Speed for car lovers with manufacturers providing a glimpse of the very latest in design and technology of what lies ahead in the motor industry.”

Karen Hilton, Chief Commercial Officer at heycar, said: “Goodwood and their many exciting events have become a staple of British automotive culture, and we feel privileged to have the chance to work with them on their upcoming events and festivals for years to come. When it comes to our passion for quality cars and feel-good attitude to championing the beauty of motorsport, it certainly feels like a match made in heaven. We look forward to joining them at this beautiful estate to celebrate the latest and greatest that the automotive industry has to offer.” 

Inthegame Joins iSportConnect’s Roster Of Advisory Clients

Inthegame, a global viewer interaction and monetisation technology leader, has become the latest company to collaborate with iSportConnect’s Advisory service. 

Inthegame partners with leading broadcasters, brands, streamers and rights-owners to instantly deliver interactive viewing experiences on any screen. The company’s AI Powered video engagement products support both live and recorded content across all connected devices.

“ITG provides the largest set of out of the box tools, as well as the infrastructure which enables continuous growth and addition of capabilities.”

They combine advanced gamification capabilities, sophisticated monetization, and unique social features to deliver an innovative viewing experience. It enables content owners and brands to foster ongoing relationships with viewers throughout the entire viewing journey through clickable, intuitive modules.

Inthegame was created with a vision of connecting viewers with the content they love, creating fun and exciting experiences with memorable moments of engagement. Their offices are located in New York, London and Tel Aviv.

“We’re excited to work together with the iSportConnect team, who bring years of experience across a variety of sports verticals,” says Aviram Sharon, Co-Founder and CEO of Inthegame. “We believe our collaboration will enable leading sports and media organisations to gain access to Inthegame’s advanced video interaction technology, and meet their revenue growth, and audience engagement goals.” 

“Inthegame’s technology is the perfect way to combat this challenge and transform the viewer’s experience.”

“Inthegame empowers OTT’s, content owners, and digital broadcasters to deliver the next generation of essential viewing features, as a first screen experience, on all CTV’s and mobile devices. In a time where on one side viewers consume content on a variety of TV’s and devices, and on the other, ease of deployment and customisation of product offers and engagements is crucial – ITG provides the largest set of out of the box tools, as well as the infrastructure which enables continuous growth and addition of capabilities.” 

David Fowler, iSportConnect’s MD of Advisory, commented: “In the current day it’s incredibly crucial that the broadcast experience becomes more interactive and, from a sporting standpoint in particular, finds a way to create greater monetisation.

“Inthegame’s technology is the perfect way to combat this challenge and transform the viewer’s experience. We’re excited to help them take their business to the next level and create many more high-level viewing experiences across the sports industry.”

iSportConnect Advisory

iSportConnect’s advisory service works to help our clients with commercial development, marketing and communications, and global sports market entry and business strategy. Our consultancy clients include the likes of Vindicia, Tata Communications and InCrowd, among others.

About iSportConnect

iSportConnect was launched in 2010 with the aim of bringing together sports business professionals around the world in a networking community enabling them to meet one another, find information and obtain access to a wide range of relevant services. The platform is now the largest global private network of sport business executives, where membership is exclusive and follows a strict door policy.