Cleveland Browns, Bally’s Interactive Establish Multi-Faceted Partnership Prior To Launch Of Sports Betting In Ohio

The Cleveland Browns and Bally’s Interactive, a division of Bally’s Corporation (NYSE: BALY), today announced a long-term partnership that features various fan-focused elements and establishes the gaming leader as an official sports betting partner of the team. Pending appropriate licensing and regulatory approvals, the collaboration will be highlighted by a branded lounge at FirstEnergy Stadium, the launch of the mobile Bally Bet Sportsbook app in Ohio and free-to-play gaming opportunities for fans in the state.

“In addition to their incredible resources and expertise, Bally’s Interactive has the fan-first mindset that is consistent with our focus and pivotal to creating successful, fully-integrated sports betting experiences, and we look forward to supporting Bally’s efforts to provide these innovative opportunities to Browns fans and all sports fans in Ohio in the near future,” said Haslam Sports Group Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Jenkins. “As we continue to work closely with sports betting regulators in our state to ensure a responsible and timely launch, we are excited and confident that our partnership with Bally’s will ultimately offer industry-leading benefits to fans throughout Cleveland and Ohio.”

Adi Dhandhania, Chief Operating Officer of North America for Bally’s Interactive, added: “We are excited to partner with such a historic pro football franchise to secure sports betting market access in Ohio, and bring to its fan base more ways to engage through our online gaming platforms. The Browns’ stadium and gameday atmosphere provide a great opportunity for us to showcase our Bally Bet Sportsbook app and Bally Play products in Ohio.”

The Browns and Bally’s are currently identifying the location and specific fan accommodations for the Bally-themed lounge at FirstEnergy Stadium, details for which will be finalized in the coming months. In accordance with all applicable regulations, Browns fans ages 21 and up will have the ability to enjoy an exciting collective sports-betting experience within the new space on gamedays while watching on-field action from across the league.

As the team’s designated sports betting operator, pending appropriate licensing and regulatory approvals, Bally’s will launch a mobile sports betting app for fans to place wagers on sporting events anywhere in the stadium and throughout Ohio. Additionally, the partnership will encompass a variety of fan engagement activations, including unique digital content and an engaging free-to-play predictor game, which will give registered users the opportunity to earn special Browns-themed non-cash promotional prizes.

More details on the partnership and fan activations will be available soon. With sports betting anticipated to be operational in Ohio by January 1, 2023, the Browns and Bally’s are preparing to have all partnership elements fully accessible to fans on the first officially permitted date.

This partnership with the Browns marks the 18th state in which Bally’s would have market access for online sports betting in the U.S.

Rugby Canada Appoints Nathan Bombrys As New Chief Executive Officer

Rugby Canada’s Board of Directors is very pleased to announce the appointment of Nathan Bombrys as Chief Executive Officer following an extensive and comprehensive global search.

Bombrys, originally from Michigan, joins the national governing body of rugby in Canada with over two decades of experience in senior leadership roles in European rugby, including as Managing Director at Scottish club Glasgow Warriors who compete in the United Rugby Championship and Heineken Champions Cup, Commercial Director at Sale Sharks of England’s Gallagher Premiership, and senior commercial roles at Scottish Rugby.

“Our rigorous recruitment process produced an extremely strong candidate pool, but Nathan stood out as the person with the character and experience that Rugby Canada needs in its leader at this time,” said Sally Dennis, Chair of the Board of Directors, Rugby Canada. “Nathan has a vision and a plan for restoring pride in Canadian rugby and leading us into a new era of growth, community engagement, financial stability and increased international performance success. We are excited and keen for him to get started.”

Bombrys, who will officially join Rugby Canada in the summer upon completion of his term at Scottish Rugby, has an accomplished track record of leading sports business transformations, building successful teams, driving commercial growth and achieving on-field success. He has also played a key role in the strategic planning and development of leagues and competitions from the early years of professionalism to present day, and leading successful major event bids for World Rugby Sevens World Series, PRO14 Finals, and international test matches.

“I am grateful to be asked to lead Rugby Canada, such a proud rugby nation with a strong heritage in the game and would like to thank Sally Dennis and the Rugby Canada Board of Directors for the opportunity,” Bombrys said. “I’m proud of the fact that my rugby journey started in North America, and I’ve enjoyed some truly unique experiences through my years in European professional rugby. I look forward to sharing that experience with athletes, staff and other stakeholders, working together to grow the sport in this country at what I believe is a truly exciting time for rugby in Canada.”

Bombrys added: “I can’t wait to start getting to know the staff, meeting the rugby community and learning more about the organization in the coming months. On a personal note, Anastasia and I are looking forward to making new friends as we settle into our new life in Canada.”  

With Bombrys’ appointment and having held the role of Interim CEO since February 1, Jamie Levchuk will move to the position of Managing Director, Revenue and Fan Engagement.

“I have been honoured for the opportunity to lead Rugby Canada during this time of transition,” Levchuk commented. “When Nathan joins, I will return enthusiastically to my role leading the business’ revenue and fan engagement area, and I’m excited for the opportunity to work with Nathan to implement transformational changes moving forward.”

Levchuk added: “I’d also like to thank the staff and partners of Rugby Canada for their dedication and support during this transitional period. Their hard work and commitment, and belief in rugby in Canada, have allowed our organization to weather difficult times and we now look ahead to a brighter future.”

Super Rugby Franchise The Hurricanes Welcome New Investors Y11 Sport & Media And Richard Mansell

Hurricanes have today announced new investors Y11 Sport & Media and Richard Mansell to complete the private investment component of the Super Rugby franchise. 

Y11 Sport & Media have acquired a 25% stake investment in the Hurricanes, whilst Richard Mansell,  Director of Horowhenua-Kāpiti Rugby Football Union and CEO of Coastlands Mall, has secured  12.50%. 

Y11 Sport & Media, a global investment group specialising in sport, made its first investment in  highly successful regional franchise the Ospreys, based in Wales, in 2020. The investment in the  Hurricanes further emphasises Y11’s commitment to professional club rugby, with the Hurricanes  being its first investment in Southern Hemisphere rugby. 

As well as a minority ownership, Y11 will develop the Hurricanes IP globally, focussing on the  franchise’s global commercial rights outside of New Zealand and Australia. 

Hurricanes Chairman Iain Potter welcomed Y11 Sport & Media and Richard Mansell to the Club. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Y11 Sport & Media and Richard Mansell to the Club as shareholders.  Their addition means we now have a full roster of shareholders.”  

“Y11 are a great fit as they share our ambitions and vision, bringing international understanding,  expertise and resources that will help propel our Club into an exciting new era. We’re thrilled by the  opportunities this partnership will bring.” 

“Richard Mansell brings strong business experience and perspectives, and a real passion for rugby  which will benefit us greatly,” said Potter.

Y11 Chairman & CEO James Davies-Yandle said: “We are very excited and proud with this strategic  investment. The Hurricanes is a massive brand, and we want to further maximise the franchise on a  global scale through our management of their global commercial rights.”  

“Professional club rugby has so much potential, especially with investment coming in at the top of  the game through the leagues and the governing bodies and we have positioned ourselves to invest  in the clubs that compete in those leagues and tournaments, where the governing bodies want to  build best operating practices and competition, as it’s the platform for talent to succeed at  international level. Our investments in rugby to date compliment this strategy.” 

Kāpiti resident and long-time Hurricanes fan Richard Mansell says his investment was for personal  enjoyment and interest.  

“It reinforces a long-term commitment I have to the Hurricanes and honours the many matches I  was able to attend with my late father.”  

Between 1996 and 2012, the five New Zealand Super Rugby franchises were solely owned by NZR  and were run by boards formed by representatives from the provincial unions in each franchise’s  catchment.  

However, a review in 2012 paved the way for private investment, which saw the Hurricanes  franchise purchased by Hurricanes’ Investment Ltd Partnership, an entity led by Wellington Rugby  Football Union (WRFU) and supported by private investors Horowhenua-Kāpiti Rugby Football  Union, Cohiba Traders Limited (Director, Sir Paul Collins), Y11 Sport & Media and Richard Mansell.

FIFA To Launch Tender Process For Media Rights To FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ In Selected Territories In Asia

FIFA has announced that it will launch an invitation to tender (ITT) on 28 April 2022 for the sale of media rights to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ in selected territories across Asia.

Interested parties will be invited to make an offer in one or more of the following territories: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Korea Republic, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam.

Further information about the rights being offered, the bid process and the submission of bids will be provided in the ITT.

Media companies or organisations wishing to participate in the ITT can submit a request by email to FWWC23-asia-media-rights@fifa.org.

Since its inception in 1991, the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ has grown exponentially, becoming the most-watched women’s single-sport event globally. The most recent edition – the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019™ – attracted a record audience of over 1.1 billion viewers, smashing domestic viewing figures in many territories.

The 2023 edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand and will take place in nine Host Cities across ten stadiums from 20 July to 20 August 2023. Following the amazing success of the 2019 event, the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 will be the first edition of the tournament to feature 32 teams, including more Asian teams than ever before.

China PR, Japan, Korea Republic, the Philippines and Vietnam have all already qualified for the final tournament; Thailand and Chinese Taipei still have a chance to qualify in the play-off tournament for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 early next year.

The tender process will allow FIFA to select the media companies that are best placed to achieve FIFA’s overall objectives to deliver high quality, comprehensive coverage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ to help accelerate the growth and development of women’s football.

Bid submissions to FIFA must be received by 10:00 CEST on Tuesday, 7 June 2022.

Through the sale of media rights for its football tournaments, FIFA generates income which is essential to support and develop the game around the world, for instance through the FIFA Forward and FIFA Women’s Development Programme.

La-Z-Boy Kicks Off UK And Ireland Partnership With NFL

La-Z-Boy has become the official furniture partner of the NFL London Games.

The USA’s National Football League will stage three of its 2022 season games in the capital during October.

World renowned sofa brand La-Z-Boy has penned a three-year deal which will see it provide ‘The best seats in the house’ for the two London games at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and become the key sponsor of the Jason & Osi Podcast in which the two former NFL players and BBC pundits chat about the game.

La-Z-Boy branding will be visible around the stadia at all three London Games and on the NFL UK website.

Managing director of La-Z-Boy UK, Mark Draper, described the partnership as an ideal link-up.

“NFL fans are very dedicated to their sport and that means watching the games in comfort is a big deal. We’ll not only be offering the chance to win game tickets, but providing the ‘best seats in the house’ so fans can enjoy a game in world-renowned La-Z-Boy comfort.

“La-Z-Boy chairs and sofas are all about celebrating time with friends and family as well as relaxing to enjoy me-time – both of which fit perfectly with the NFL fanbase. We’re very excited to work closely with the NFL in the UK and Ireland and get to know NFL supporters even better.”

NFL’s European commercial director, Michelle Webb, commented: “We’re delighted to welcome La-Z-Boy UK as our Official Furniture Partner of the NFL London Games. The brand and activation work perfectly and we’re excited to see what the next three years bring for both brands.”

The partnership will launch at the January Furniture Show, the UK’s largest furniture trade event, which takes place at its rescheduled date in April at the NEC, Birmingham.

Further details of the activations and competitions will be announced throughout the year.

Brand marketing director for La-Z-Boy International, Natasha Wright, added: “As La-Z-Boy approaches its 100-year anniversary in 2027, we are looking to make strategic partnerships to ensure we reach this milestone in the best possible position. 

“The NFL deal will elevate our brand in the UK and Ireland by reaching a consumer group which is in keeping with our strategic vision.”

Inter Miami CF Announce Acronis As Official Cybersecurity Partner Supported By iPower Technologies

Inter Miami CF and Acronis, a global leader in cyber protection, announced an Official Cybersecurity Partnership which will be supported by iPower Technologies. Through this partnership, Inter Miami will have access to leading technology that will help keep data safe and CyberFit.

Sports teams around the world choose Acronis Cyber Protect, an innovative Machine Intelligence (MI) enhanced solution that integrates data protection with cybersecurity, prevents cyberattacks, and helps teams avoid downtime. Acronis combines automation and integration, ensuring the prevention, detection, response, recovery, and analysis needed to safeguard all workloads while streamlining protection efforts. Acronis cyber protection provides the safety, accessibility, privacy, authenticity, and security (SAPAS) services required to protect the modern sport.

“Our data is a valuable asset for our organization and safely storing information pertaining to our club is important to our business,” said Inter Miami CF Chief Business Officer, Xavier Asensi. “As leaders in the space, we are excited to welcome Acronis to our family of partners.”

“Inter Miami will be an exciting addition to our roster, which aligns them with other world class sports teams who entrust their cyber protection to Acronis,” said Acronis Vice President and General Manager, Americas, Pat Hurley. “We’re proud of our ability here at Acronis to provide organizations with the latest and greatest in technology to combat cyber threats, and this partnership with Inter Miami expands our reach and exposure.” 

iPower Technologies offers end-to-end network solutions that span from the desktop to the datacenter. Leveraging decades of experience across multiple industries, iPower has the proven record to enable digital transformation. Their unique understanding of the “always-on” business allows cutting-edge stability and efficiency, powered by an expert team that can help anytime, anywhere. iPower takes businesses to the next level with customized cloud solutions, keeping data safe, secure, and accessible. 

“We are extremely excited to support and protect Inter Miami with Acronis,” said Jarrett Pavao, President of iPower Technologies. We have been fortunate enough to work with the club since its inception and we are thrilled at how Inter Miami continues to innovate on both the field and in the datacenter. We are proud to be able to support their technical initiatives through the Acronis CyberFit partnership.”

Through this partnership, Inter Miami will access innovative cyber protection solutions to safeguard data, applications, and systems to optimize data management and defend cyberattacks.

FanDuel Expands Its Partnership To Become An Official Sports Betting Partner Of The New York Yankees

FanDuel Group, the premier sports gaming destination in the United States, announced today a multi-year partnership renewal to become An Official Sports Betting Partner of the New York Yankees. The expanded partnership ensures that America’s #1 Sportsbook remains aligned with the world’s most iconic sports franchise.

Under the terms of the agreement, FanDuel will be permitted use of New York Yankees’ marks. Additionally, FanDuel will have premium VIP hospitality accommodations at Yankee Stadium along with integrated FanDuel signage in right-field and rotational signage behind home plate during television broadcasts.

“There is no more globally recognized sports brand than the New York Yankees, and as a New York-based company we’re delighted to remain partners with our hometown team,” said Mike Raffensperger, CMO of FanDuel Group. “One of our company values is to be absurdly fan-focused and there is no fanbase more passionate about their team than Yankees fans which makes this a natural fit.”

“We are very excited to be continuing our relationship with FanDuel—our Partner since 2020,” said Michael J. Tusiani, New York Yankees Senior Vice President, Partnerships. “We hope that FanDuel’s Yankee Stadium presence and customer engagement will continue to strengthen its brand as a sports betting operator within the tri-state area.”

W Series Announces New Multi-Year Broadcast Partnership With Sky Sports

W Series will include ten races across eight Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends in 2022, and Sky Sports will broadcast live coverage of every qualifying and race session. The three-year partnership – through to the end of W Series’ fifth on-track season in 2024 – represents W Series’ largest media investment to date and will include distribution of W Series content across Sky’s channels, including linear, digital, and social.

The deal also increases the footprint of W Series coverage across Sky’s global platforms. As well as the UK, W Series will begin a new partnership with Sky Italia this season, adding to the series’ existing agreement with Sky Deutschland.

Sky is committed to the marketing and promotion of W Series coverage through its network of channels, as well as joint initiatives to promote women in motorsport. W Series will sit alongside Sky’s premium sports portfolio, including elite women’s sport such as the FA Women’s Super League.

Channel 4 will broadcast live and free-to-air coverage of the fourth race of the 2022 W Series season, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, UK, and show highlights of the other nine races from season three. The W Series broadcast talent team for the 2022 season – which begins with a double-header in Miami, USA, on 6-8 May – will be announced in due course.

Catherine Bond Muir (Chief Executive Officer, W Series) said:

“I’m delighted to announce our landmark broadcast partnership with Sky Sports, which is another significant step in W Series’ continued rapid expansion. Throughout our conversations with Sky, I’ve been impressed by their commitment to women’s sport and plans to amplify coverage of W Series across their vast portfolio of distribution channels, which will add real weight to our offering across broadcast, digital, and social platforms.

“This partnership enables W Series to continue to expand its viewership within the UK. Alongside Sky, Channel 4 will continue its free-to-air coverage of the entire W Series season with highlights of every race, and will also broadcast live our home race at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in July. With this broad broadcast offering, we have the perfect mix of coverage across our UK audience.

“W Series is an increasingly international series – more than half of the races during the 2022 season will take place outside Europe, including our first-ever race in Asia in support of the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Our broadcast partnership with Sky Sports reflects this, giving us great breadth of coverage across Sky’s global platforms and we’re excited to showcase incredibly exciting racing through fantastic content, direct to our fans.”

Jonathan Licht (Managing Director, Sky Sports) said:

“In addition to Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland, Sky Sports are delighted to be growing our motorsport portfolio with this recently established elite women’s series. It feels like Sky Sports is a natural home for W Series, given we have such a dedicated motorsport audience and a dedicated motorsport genre channel.

“We pride ourselves in being a good partner to sport and it’s been a privilege to work alongside Catherine and her team to come up with a broadcast offering that works for everyone. It is clearly a very exciting time to be a part of this journey.

“At Sky Sports we are committed to making sport more inclusive and I can now proudly say that, with the addition of W Series, every genre channel at Sky Sports now has both men’s and women’s sports coverage.

“We look forward to sharing the excitement of this upcoming season with our viewers.”

McLaren Racing Partner With Sanofi

McLaren Racing today announced a multi-year partnership with innovative global healthcare company Sanofi. 

The partnership will see McLaren Racing collaborate with Sanofi’s Industrial Affairs team towards achieving excellence in manufacturing operations, enabling Sanofi to meet patients’ needs around the world through more effective use of its global network and support the supply of its broad portfolio.

With a unique data-driven approach through its bespoke Accelerator programme that focuses F1 ingenuity on industrial challenges, McLaren Racing will bring its digital and analytical expertise and skills to help Sanofi teams focus on major items impacting performance, and better anticipate and resolve them. Analysis of losses, modelling and simulation of production line scheduling, and specifically product change-overs, will be key areas to maximise performance in Sanofi manufacturing sites. Through McLaren Accelerator, performance-driven data can be translated into the culture and thinking of partners through collaborative projects and leave a lasting legacy. 

McLaren has successful experience in maximising performance of assets in a competitive high-pressure environment to bring speed and acceleration to change. This was evident during the covid-19 pandemic when, through a joint effort across McLaren Group as part of a UK industry consortium, ventilator production was accelerated from 20 per week to 400 a day, by using data to support decision intelligence, and building the foundations for operational excellence.

Beyond the technical leadership from F1, the collaboration will bring a specific focus on the people dimension of high performance. The partnership will bring a racing mindset, emulating the competitive, fast-paced environment of F1 to help accelerate improvements, learnings and sharing of best practices individually and collectively across sites, fostering a “one Sanofi spirit.” This unique opportunity will marry the best of the two companies with the speed, agility, teamwork, and constant improvement required to succeed in motorsport, as well as in healthcare discoveries.

Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing, said:

“We are delighted to be partnering with Sanofi. It is an important opportunity for two global brands who share values to work together to maximise performance through our bespoke Accelerator programme.  We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Sanofi to make a positive impact not only in manufacturing but to help Sanofi improve patients’ lives.”

Paul Hudson, CEO, Sanofi, said:

“We are thrilled to partner with McLaren and learn from their winning spirit and culture of going over and above. I see a lot of commonalities in our shared values to stretch, with courage and determination, so we can maximize performance and operational excellence. We want to run our lines with the speed, precision and efficiency of an F1 racing team.”  

BLAST Premier’s Host City Process Underway For 2023 Season

Esports tournament organiser BLAST Premier has kickstarted its host city selection process for the 2023 season, following last week’s announcement on the Spring Final returning to Lisbon’s Altice Arena in June. 

Running from April-August 2022, BLAST will begin working with interested parties to find suitable host city locations and partners to deliver a number of event opportunities across their global tournament circuit in 2023. 

As part of the process, BLAST will host engaging workshops on the benefits of hosting an esports event, create opportunities for behind-the-scenes experiences at BLAST Premier live events (including the Spring Final in Lisbon) and offer opportunities to meet the BLAST team in-person.

Last week, BLAST announced plans for a return to Lisbon nearly four years after their first event in the Portuguese capital. The tournament organiser has visited a number of other iconic locations in recent years, from London to Copenhagen, Miami to Sao Paulo and Istanbul to Madrid – with the main aim of uniting fans through their shared love of esports and CS:GO. 

Charlotte Kenny, Managing Director of BLAST Premier, said, “BLAST Premier has a rich history of hosting memorable events in iconic locations around the world. With a global audience and passionate fanbase, our previous events have seen many host cities benefit from a positive impact in many ways. We want to build on this success and are seeking enthusiastic host cities to work with us to bring our incredible tournament and experiences to life. We can’t wait to work with applicants to understand more about their cities and find the perfect places for our amazing arena events next year.” 

BLAST Premier is a global Counter-Strike tournament series, where the best teams and brightest stars fight it out for glory and a multi-million dollar prize pool, while offering opportunities to regions across the globe and crowning the world champions of CS:GO. Up to 32 of the best teams take part in the seven BLAST Premier events across the year with a combined prize pool of $2,475,000 on the line. 

BLAST has partnered with The Sports Consultancy (TSC) to manage the independent bidding process. Widely recognised as leaders in host city procurement and major event bidding, TSC is inviting cities to formally express their interest.