Cazoo Named As New Title Partner Of The Open De France

  • Cazoo Open de France to be played on 2018 Ryder Cup course with €3m prize fund
  • Continental Europe’s oldest national Open to be played from Sept 22-25, 2022
  • Cazoo extends its partnership to three DP World Tour events in 2022

Cazoo, Europe’s leading online car retailer, which makes buying and selling a car as simple and seamless as ordering any other product online, has today been named as the new Title Partner of the Open de France on the DP World Tour and follows Cazoo’s launch in France at the end of last year.

The tournament will now be known as the Cazoo Open de France and the deal includes significant on-course and off-course branding to include tee boxes and markers, greenside boards, par and yardage boards as well as caddy bibs and branding. The new agreement is an extension of the current partnership between Cazoo and the DP World Tour which already includes the Cazoo Open in Wales and the Cazoo Classic in England.

The 104th edition of the Open de France will return to Le Golf National, venue of the 2018 Ryder Cup, which first played host to France’s national Open in 1991, when Argentinian Eduardo Romero overcame Sam Torrance and José María Olazábal by two strokes. Nicolas Colsaerts is the most recent winner of the tournament, after the former Ryder Cup winner claimed an emotional triumph in 2019, the Belgian’s first title in seven years.

The 2022 Cazoo Open de France will have a prize fund of €3million – double the amount played for in the last edition of the tournament in 2019. The tournament will take place on 22-25 September 2022, the same week in the golfing calendar as the 2018 Ryder Cup, where Thomas Bjørn’s Team Europe defeated the United States 17½ – 10½ in France’s first ever hosting of golf’s greatest team event.

Cazoo was founded in 2018 by British entrepreneur Alex Chesterman and is one of the fastest growing businesses in Europe, pioneering the shift to online car buying. It listed on the NYSE last year and launched in France at the end of last year. Cazoo has sold over 50,000 cars online in the UK since its launch just over two years ago, as consumers have embraced the selection, value, transparency and convenience of buying used cars fully online.

Alex Chesterman OBE, Founder & CEO of Cazoo said: “We’re delighted to be extending our partnership with the European Tour and adding Europe’s oldest national Open golf tournament to our portfolio of sports sponsorships. Following our recent launch in France, this deal gives us exposure to a great new audience and we look forward to engaging with the fans as we continue to deliver the best car buying experience across Europe.”

Guy Kinnings, Deputy CEO of the European Tour group, said: “We are delighted to have Cazoo on board as the Title Partner of one of golf’s most historic tournaments, the Open de France. Since joining the DP World Tour commercial family earlier this year, Cazoo have been a pleasure to work with and continue to show a strong commitment to growing the game of golf in new markets. Together with the Fédération Française de Golf, we look forward to working with Cazoo on an exciting new chapter for this prestigious tournament.”

Pascal Grizot, President of the French Golf Federation, said: “I am glad and proud that such an important company as Cazoo has chosen to support our national open. I wish to thank the European Tour group and their staff, who have worked tirelessly to make it happen. This partnership proves that our historical tournament remains highly attractive and will continue to serve as an astounding showcase event for French golf. I am delighted with this dynamic announcement.”

London Marathon Events Announces Enthuse As New Online Fundraising Partner

London Marathon Events (LME) today announced a new three-year partnership with Enthuse, a leading fundraising, donations and events registration technology provider.

The partnership means Enthuse will become the official online fundraising partner across LME’s full portfolio, including the TCS London Marathon, RideLondon, the Vitality Westminster Mile, Vitality London 10,000, The Big Half and Swim Serpentine. Enthuse will support each event with an official branded fundraising platform that provides the best experience for charities, event participants and donors.

The agreement follows an extensive consultation process with all the major online fundraising platforms following the closure of Virgin Money Giving, LME’s longstanding online fundraising partner, last year.

Hugh Brasher, Event Director of London Marathon Events, said: “We were looking for a new online fundraising partner that would provide the best possible service for our charities, our participants and their donors.

“Enthuse has put together an innovative fundraising platform and, with their commitment to technology, service, value and transparency, we are confident that over time Enthuse will become the market leader. 

“We are very excited about this new partnership and impressed with the Enthuse management team’s commitment to use technology to improve the experience for all users, as well as the company’s growth plans. We look forward to working with Enthuse to raise many millions more for good causes through our world-leading events.”

The partnership will start with the ballot results announcements for RideLondon and the TCS London Marathon this month. From then on, fundraising page creation will be integrated with the event registration process for all LME events. Fundraising pages will be fully branded with the logo and colours of the charity the participant has chosen to support. The creation of the fundraising page will feel a seamless part of the registration process for participants, with no need to create a separate account. 

For charities, the partnership means they will have full access to real-time fundraising and donations data, insights and analytics for their supporters participating in any LME event via a centralised account for all events. Charities will also be able to capture any custom data they require, as well as showing the availability of match giving funds to donors, as the start of a series of innovative new features coming later in the year.   

For participants, fundraising pages will provide a home for all training and fundraising activity pre-event, on the day, and post-event. Fundraisers can showcase their training efforts, as well as post updates, images and videos to their fundraising page to demonstrate their fundraising activities. They can even livestream their efforts on the day of the event to allow supporters to follow their progress. There will also be the opportunity for friendly competition with other participants through leaderboards for the amount fundraised, activity levels and finishing times.

At the TCS London Marathon, a participant’s fundraising page will also be integrated with the Official App, powered by TCS, so that supporters tracking a participant can easily donate and see the participant’s finish time automatically posted to the fundraising page.

Speaking about the announcement, Chester Mojay-Sinclare, Enthuse Founder and CEO, said: “We’re absolutely delighted that London Marathon Events has entrusted us to take the baton from Virgin Money Giving as its official online fundraising partner. It’s a real honour to be powering some of the largest and most prestigious fundraising events in the world and we can’t wait to get to work with the brilliant London Marathon Events team.

 “At Enthuse, our approach is different to other fundraising platforms. We believe in putting the charity’s branding first and creating innovative solutions that help them to maximise their fundraising and that’s exactly what we’ll deliver. We’re excited to be supporting even more great causes to raise as much as possible through this partnership. We will continue to invest in our product to provide charities with innovative fundraising solutions that are transformative for the sector, but simple to use.”

All LME partner charities with places in any LME events will be featured on the official fundraising platform for RideLondon ballot results announcements later this month. This will be expanded to include all charities registered with Enthuse in time for the TCS London Marathon ballot results. 

Any additional charities wanting to be included for free on the platform for the TCS London Marathon ballot results announcements should visit enthuse.com/london-marathon-events/ to register.

Participants will still be able to choose to use the fundraising page provided with the official fundraising platform or create one on a platform of their own choice. 

DAZN Group Appoints Aviv Giladi As President, Broadcast Partnerships

DAZN Group, the leading global sports entertainment company, has announced today that Aviv Giladi has been appointed as President of Broadcast Partnerships, to oversee all joint venture partnerships.

Aviv will oversee DAZN Group’s strategy to drive commercialization of the business, including WTA Media, FIBA Media, and the European Handball Federation (EHF). As part of this growth strategy, he will look to expand existing joint ventures and audiences worldwide and identify new global partnership opportunities.

Aviv joins having served as Chairman and CEO of global film production companies AI Film Ltd. and British Icon Group. With AI Film, he executive produced a number of acclaimed titles, including the Oscar-nominated film “I, Tonya.”  Previously, he established R.G.E Group Ltd, which controlled major broadcast media companies in Israel, including Channel 10 and Channel 10 News Corporation, The Sport Channel and Noga Communications. With this background, Aviv brings to DAZN a wealth of global entertainment experience.

DAZN’s Global Rights Partnerships team works with leading rights holders to help commercialize their brand, expand their audience, and grow the popularity of their sport through enhanced broadcast strategies. The team works in partnership to drive media rights sales, production, and digital marketing to improve the capabilities and broadcast quality of sport around the world and create new commercial opportunities.  For example, in 2014, DAZN formed WTA Media, a 10-year media strategy rights partnership with the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) which was the largest live media rights and production venture in the history of women’s sport.

Shay Segev, CEO of DAZN Group, said: “Aviv joins us at a time of great global growth at DAZN, as we broaden and strengthen our strategic partnerships, and transition our platform into a more expansive sports destination,  benefitting our stakeholders, fans, leagues and the athletes themselves. Our goal is to make sports broadcasting more fun, interactive, social and accessible to everyone on any device, and our partnerships with rights holders, athletes and leagues are key to this. Aviv is a great addition to our leadership and will be fundamental in driving this strategy.“

Aviv Giladi added: “DAZN Group has a brilliant portfolio of strategic partnerships and I look forward to further enhancing the commercial opportunities and helping grow new audiences for sports around the world. DAZN is gaining huge global momentum and I look forward to overseeing and identifying new partnerships and supporting our existing joint venture partners.”

Former DFL MD Christian Seifert Creates Joint Venture With Axel Springer

Launch of joint venture between Christian Seifert and Axel Springer planned for fall 2023

Long-standing managing director of the German Soccer League (DFL), Christian Seifert, is working with Axel Springer on the joint development of a streaming platform tailored to the German market for sports league competitions and outstanding sports events. The launch has been set for fall 2023.

The goal of the joint venture is to attract millions of German fans who are interested in sports and leagues other than soccer, and to offer them a new media platform that caters to their enthusiasm. To achieve this, the audiovisual rights of attractive sports leagues and sports events are to be bundled within one media offering. By working to high-quality production standards and with intense marketing support, the new streaming portal aims to increase the awareness and interest in sports such as handball, basketball and ice-hockey. The offering is targeted directly at the end customers but shall also be available via other platforms already on the market.

Founder of the start-up is Christian Seifert, and Axel Springer has a majority holding in the new company. Seifert also maintains a significant holding and will act as managing partner. The top management team will also have a CEO and COO. The brand name of the planned OTT services is to be announced later in the year.

Christian Seifert, founder and managing partner of the new company, says, “Germany is a nation of sports fans, millions of whom are enthusiastic about types of sports beyond soccer. We want to offer this large sports community a new home, as it were, in our new streaming portal. To this end, we will be offering attractive cooperation opportunities to numerous sports leagues and associations. Axel Springer has always had a keen interest in the German sporting world and, thanks to its experience in the implementation of complex digital projects as well as its great strength in the marketing and distribution of digital offerings, is the ideal partner for this ambitious undertaking.”

Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Axel Springer SE says, “Sport belongs to Axel Springer, and is an area we have committed to invest in more and achieve more growth in. We are now bringing together the strengths of Axel Springer as a media and tech company with the outstanding experience and proven capabilities of Christian Seifert. Our joint media enterprise offers our future partners a unique platform.”

Apex Group Extends Partnership With Cricket West Indies To Become Title Partner Of Upcoming Test Series Vs England

Cricket West Indies (CWI) and Apex Group today announced an extended partnership which will see Apex Group (Apex) become the title sponsor of the three-match Apex Test Series between West Indies and England in March 2022.

Apex Group, a global provider of financial, sustainability and environmental services, will feature prominently on the global television broadcast, as well as prime pitch and wicket branding placements, and the Apex logo will also appear on the breast of the West Indies Test kit for the duration of the Apex Test Series. Apex will be granted access to the West Indies team for marketing activation and content and will deliver several sustainability initiatives involving the participation of West Indies players.

CWI’s and Apex Sustainability Partnership commenced in October 2021, ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup with the Apex brand appearing on the West Indies’ ICC T20 World Cup shirt. Apex is providing sustainability and environmental advisory services over a three-year period as CWI’s Exclusive Sustainability Partner. By providing CWI with annual carbon footprint assessments, Apex will help lead the way in driving sustainability in cricket across the region by supporting CWI in creating an action plan to reduce and offset climate altering outputs, including international travel.

The Apex Test Series will be played for the newly-minted Richards-Botham Trophy, named in honor of legends Sir Vivian Richards and Lord Ian Botham. The Apex Test Series opens appropriately at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua from March 8-12, followed by the second Apex Test at Kensington Oval, Barbados from March 16-20. The third and final contest will be at the idyllic Grenada National Stadium from March 24-28. All three Apex Test matches are part of the ICC World Test Championship with both West Indies and England vying for points to challenge for qualification for the World Test Championship final in 2023.

Johnny Grave, CWI’s CEO said:

“We’re delighted to build on our growing relationship with Apex for the upcoming Apex Test Series, which continues to be the most anticipated and highest profile international sports event in the Caribbean. With the West Indies versus England Test rivalry dating back nearly one hundred years, this deeper partnership with Apex enables CWI to make cricket more sustainable as we move towards a second century of West Indies cricket and build the next generation of cricketers across the Caribbean.”

Peter Hughes, Founder and CEO of Apex Group said:

“Following a challenging two years for sport, we are pleased to be a part of the return of International Test Cricket hosted in the West Indies. This is an important partnership for us, as we look forward to further leveraging the combined global platform Apex Group and the West Indies represent, to raise awareness for driving greater environmental sustainability in the sport; for fans, players and future generations.”

MATCH SCHEDULE

Apex Test Series, West Indies v England (10am local time/9am Jamaica Time)

  • March 8-12: 1st Apex Test at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua
  • March 16-20: 2nd Apex Test at Kensington Oval, Barbados
  • March 24-28: 3rd Apex Test at Grenada National Stadium, Grenada

LeBron James And The LeBron James Family Foundation Announce Multi-Year Partnership With Crypto.com

Crypto.com, the world’s fastest growing cryptocurrency platform, is partnering with LeBron James and the LeBron James Family Foundation (LJFF) to support educational and workforce development opportunities focused on Web3. Building on a strong basis of educational empowerment, the partnership will give students and families connected to the I PROMISE program access to the tools and educational resources needed to participate and succeed in building Web3, the future of the internet.

Web3 promises to deliver a more fair and equitable internet, owned by the builders, creators and users. That promise can only be realized through the active engagement of diverse participants. Through this partnership, I PROMISE students and families will get a strong foundation in Web3 and the innovations behind blockchain-based decentralized applications powering the future of many sectors from finance to media to art. In bringing Web 3 educational resources and workforce development through his Foundation, James continues to build his community from the ground up and create a model for supporting the underserved. 

“Blockchain technology is revolutionizing our economy, sports and entertainment, the art world, and how we engage with one another. I want to ensure that communities like the one I come from are not left behind,” said James. “Crypto.com and I are aligned on the need to educate and support my community with the information and tools they need for inclusion. I’m looking forward to working with them to bring these opportunities to my community.”

“LeBron James and his foundation have been pioneers in truly transforming the lives of those in his community through education and our partnership is based on a true alignment of values,” said Kris Marszalek, Co-Founder and CEO of Crypto.com. “We couldn’t be more proud to join LJFF in providing opportunities to increase educational and workforce development while delivering the tools and access that will empower the next generation to build a better and more inclusive future.”

Opening doors and creating opportunities across various sectors is central to the work the LJFF does with the students and families served through the I PROMISE program. From hands-on experiences at major companies to behind-the-scenes tours in different industries, James strives to expose students to job opportunities and career paths they may have never known existed. As part of the Foundation’s commitment to workforce development, they are currently building out plans for House Three Thirty – an innovative, multi-use space for I PROMISE families and the entire community to gather and engage in immediately impactful programming. House Three Thirty will convene critical community resources under one roof including family financial health programming that is easily accessible and tailored to help families take control of their financial futures as well as job training opportunities in various sectors. Through partnerships like this with Crypto.com, James is able to expand the scope of what is offered at House Three Thirty, giving his students and their families knowledge and understanding of different sectors as they explore their passions and think beyond their horizons to consider what is possible for their future.

Crypto.com is committed to building the future of the internet where the power of cryptocurrency is fair and equitable and the potential rewards of the technology are owned by builders, creators and users alike. Through partnerships with the LJFF, Water.org and Angel City Football Club, among others, Crypto.com is joining forces with like-minded businesses, nonprofit organizations, individuals and institutions equally committed to helping people achieve financial independence and self-determination.

BT Sport To Broadcast Dart’s Inaugural Jenningsbet 2022 World Seniors Championship

BT Sport is to broadcast dart’s inaugural Jenningsbet 2022 World Seniors Championship, with every dart live between Thursday 3 February and Sunday 6 February.

Twenty-four of dart’s most decorated players – with 44 World Darts titles between them – will return to the iconic Circus Tavern to contest the championship, including ‘The Power’ Phil Taylor who won 16 World Championships. Taylor will line up against the likes of multiple World Champions Trina Gulliver, Martin Adam, John Part, Lisa Ashton and John Lowe.

The return of Taylor takes place on Friday 4 February where he will face either Peter Manley or the current WDF World Number one Woman player Deta Hedman.

BT Sport coverage will be led by Ray Stubbs alongside Bobby George, with reporting from Helen Chamberlain and commentary from Mark Webster, Paul Nicolson, John Gwynne and Chris Murphy.

Coverage begins on Thursday 3 February at 7pm on BT Sport 1, continuing as follows:

3 February – 7pm – Day 1 – BT Sport 1

4 February – 1pm – Day 2 – BT Sport 1

4 February – 7pm – Day 2 – BT Sport 2

5 February – 1pm – Day 3 – BT Sport 3

5 February – 7pm – Quarter-Finals – BT Sport 3

6 February – 1pm – Semi-Finals – BT Sport 2

6 February – 8pm – Final BT Sport 2

Low6 Announces Successful Completion Of Pre-IPOP Fundraising Round

Low6, the award-winning leaders in sports gamification, is pleased to announce the successful completion of the company’s latest round of funding, ahead of an Initial Public Offering (IPO), expected to take place later this year. The company raised USD $5million, which Low6 will use to fund continued growth, in particular its expansion into the U.S. 

“2021 was a successful year of growth for Low6, and the conclusion of our latest round of funding will allow us to accelerate our continued development in 2022,” commented Jamie Mitchell, Co-Founder and Group CEO, Low6.

“Throughout 2021, we we continued to build our products and service offering, enabling us to win new partners and significant new contracts. With these new funds secured, and a number of exciting new partners, we believe we are well placed to enjoy a successful 2022.”

Among its most recent announcements, Low6 has confirmed partnerships with the Detroit Pistons, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the PGA Tour. The company also won the EGR “Virtual and Fantasy Operator” and “Rising Star” awards at the 2021 EGR Operator Awards, and is poised for further growth in 2022 with a number of announcements planned throughout the year. For more details go to Low6.com. 

PDC & DAZN Announce New Deal For Germany, Austria & Switzerland

Fans in Germany, Austria and Switzerland will be able to watch more darts than ever before through DAZN following the announcement of a new five-year broadcast deal with the PDC.

DAZN, the world’s leading sports platform, has extended its association with the PDC across the DACH region to continue its coverage of PDC televised tournaments until at least 2027.

In addition to PDC Premier events such as the World Darts Championship, Premier League, World Matchplay and Grand Slam of Darts, DAZN will now be broadcasting PDC European Tour events in an exciting new development.

“Since 2016, DAZN’s coverage of the PDC events in the DACH region has proven to be very popular and helped to build a loyal fan base that loves the sport,” said PDC Chairman Eddie Hearn.

“Accordingly, it is fantastic news that we have been able to extend our broadcast partnership with DAZN in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, expanding coverage for the ever-growing number of subscribers.”

Thomas de Buhr, Executive Vice President DAZN DACH, said: “The recent World Darts Championship has shown once again that the interest and enthusiasm of fans for the sport is unbroken.

“With the long-term contract extension with the PDC and Matchroom we therefore meet the wish of all fans who can look forward to many more years of darts live on DAZN.”

DAZN’s coverage will continue to be presented by popular German broadcaster Elmar Paulke alongside Tom Kirsten, and will also include on-demand programming including “Elmar’s 9-Darter”, “Beat the Elmar” and “Road to Ally Pally”.

“This is great news for all fans and the darts community in Germany, Austria and Switzerland,” said Paulke.

“There is now more darts than ever on DAZN, and it starts on January 28 with me at the microphone and the tenth edition of The Masters.”

Fans can subscribe to a DAZN subscription here.

Fans can take advantage of a special offer of a DAZN subscription purchased before the end of January 2022, priced at €14.99 per month guaranteed until July 31 2022, or €149.99 for an annual subscription guaranteed for 12 months.

Subscriptions would include all PDC televised and European Tour events, as well as Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, LaLiga, SerieA, NFL, NBA and UFC.

Views From The Industry: This Week In Sport & Business

iSportConnect takes a look at some of the biggest happenings and talking points around sport and business over the past seven days and what the industry has been saying.

Esports Hits The Jackpot

ESL Gaming, the world’s largest independent esports company, was this week sold to Savvy Gaming Group in an all-cash transaction valuing ESL Gaming at $1.05 billion. Savvy Gaming Group also acquired FACEIT and merged the two organisations together.

https://twitter.com/ESL/status/1485723244309188609?s=20

It has also been reported that the price of FACEIT, outside of the billion dollars for ESL, was in the region of $500 million.

Savvy Gaming Group was launched by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, their latest major entry into the world of sports business, just months after taking full control of the Premier League’s Newcastle United FC.

Once again this is more Saudi money entering the sports world, which could be seen by many as highly controversial. It will be interesting to see how the esports community, particularly its many female participants and viewers, reacts.

Channel 9 Agree Deal To Show Men’s ICC Competitions Free To Air, But Not Women’s World Cup

Australian Women’s cricketer Alyssa Healy slammed Channel 9 for not picking up the free to air broadcast deal for the ICC Women’s World Cup in March & April, despite the broadcaster announcing they had acquired the rights to the 2022 T20 World Cup and 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.

https://twitter.com/rickeyrecricket/status/1485021059351199744?s=20&t=hOaiBBU6LhZVIT7xih6_ww

Following Healy’s tweets about the preferential treatment afforded to the men’s game, subscription service Kayo Sports announced they would show fixtures from the Women’s World Cup for free in Australia to viewers without a subscription.

Real Madrid Reportedly Agree Legends Bernabeu Deal

News in Spain is stating that Real Madrid have reportedly signed a huge 25-year, €400m euros per-year, deal with Legends to host events at the Bernabeu stadium. If confirmed, this will provide a massive cash injection for the Spanish club, who appear to have been suffering slightly on a financial basis in the past couple of years.

https://twitter.com/theMadridZone/status/1486753495336239105?s=20&t=QsgHOq54RhXc5i2sZDBJfw

This money is something that would likely be reinvested into the club for potential transfer targets such as Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, in order to push Real Madrid back into competing for the Champions League.

How Does This Sound?

Meanwhile, on the other side of El Clasico, Barcelona, who have been suffering financially to a much greater extent, are reportedly close to agreeing a large new shirt sponsorship deal with Spotify.

https://twitter.com/JoePompliano/status/1486706383298854915?s=20&t=hOaiBBU6LhZVIT7xih6_ww

The deal supposedly includes the naming rights to the Camp Nou, something which is sure to displease Barca fans who live by the ‘Mes Que Un Club’ motto.

https://twitter.com/ManagingBarca/status/1486765051595788290?s=20&t=QsgHOq54RhXc5i2sZDBJfw

In The Money?

Formula 1 this week renewed their Grand Prix deal in Singapore for another seven years, Ricardo Fort’s tweet on the numbers around the event could be a strong reason why…

And Finally… A Touch Of Class

If you missed the Kansas City Chiefs hosting the Buffalo Bills in the NFL playoffs on Sunday night, where were you? In an all time epic the Chiefs outlasted the Bills in overtime after a wild fourth quarter, but as Patrick Mahomes’ legacy grew he was quick to seek out his counterpart Josh Allen.

https://twitter.com/JoePompliano/status/1485616952202731520?s=20&t=hOaiBBU6LhZVIT7xih6_ww

There could be many more playoff battles between the duo over the next decade, and you can be sure the NFL’s marketing team will hope so…