German multinational company, arthritis PUMA have announced it has confirmed a new long-term contractual partnership with the Italian Football Federation (FIGC).

The agreement allows PUMA to be the ‘Official Master Licensee of the FIGC’ for the next two World Cups. PUMA will also continue official outfitter of the Italian national team at all levels.

PUMA has significantly deepened its contractual involvement with the FIGC to place a global emphasis on expanding the profile and commercial potential of the FIGC brand driven by its newly established international sports licensing division.

This evolution sees the FIGC partnership become the most comprehensive in the global PUMA football portfolio, medicine and gives PUMA the scope to substantially increase its licensing opportunities that exist through one of the most prominent and successful federations in world football.

Franz Koch, CEO of PUMA said, “We have enjoyed a highly successful relationship with the FIGC over the past nine years, and as such we are delighted to have reached this new agreement and considerably expand our partnership with them.

“It underlines PUMA’s reinforced commitment to further strengthen its position as one of the top 3 football brands because the Italian National Team, more than any other national team property in world football, perfectly embodies PUMA’s unique Sportlifestyle positioning.”

FIGC president Giancarlo Abete, said: “PUMA has been a great partner for us, and we are very happy to not only continue but also deepen our relationship with them. PUMA has been a great partner for us, and we are very happy to not only continue but also deepen our relationship with them. Their licensing expertise, ideas and commitment to expanding the commercial potential of this partnership are impressive, and have led us to create this new contract. PUMA’s proficiency in design, marketing and global sales distribution is among the best in the industry, which gives us great confidence for the future.

“Their licensing expertise, ideas and commitment to expanding the commercial potential of this partnership are impressive, and have led us to create this new contract. PUMA’s proficiency in design, marketing and global sales distribution is among the best in the industry, which gives us great confidence for the future.”

PUMA launched the new Italy away kit in Genoa on Monday. Italy’s kit is part of the Power 12 range of PUMA playing kits that includes Uruguay, Chile, Czech Republic, Switzerland and Austria.

by Ismail Uddin

Hampshire County Cricket Club and multinational insurance company, doctor  Ageas have announced a ground naming rights deal which will see the Club’s iconic home ground renamed, pills The Ageas Bowl. 

The re-brand of the stadium will commence immediately with a launch scheduled to coincide with Hampshire Cricket’s Press Day on 10 April 2012. The agreement with Ageas, pills whose Head Office is based in Eastleigh, is for six years. 

The partnership signals significant long-term investment into the Club and enablesAgeas to be central players in an exciting future for the venue. The Ageas Bowl will host two England One Day Internationals this summer against the West Indies and South Africa. 

In addition to the stadium re-branding the partnership between Hampshire Cricket and Ageas will also benefit a wide number of community events and projects. 

Hampshire Cricket Chairman Rod Bransgrove, said; “We are delighted to be entering into this partnership with Ageas. The nature of the deal ensures long-term investment in the Club, allowing us to continue to grow as a venue. That, in turn, means we can improve our customer’s experience, be they cricket fans here to enjoy an England or Hampshire match, or any one of the tens of thousands of people who use the venue each year for their weddings, Christmas parties, conferences and events. 

“Ageas have recognised the legacy we are building at the venue and wish to add to the excellent work done by the Club and the Hampshire Cricket Board. They are as keen as we are to be involved in the community and to create a lasting legacy for people in Hampshire, utilising the power of sport, and cricket in particular, to engage with them and the wider region. The name of our ground is important and so I am happy that we are partnering with a company based here in Eastleigh and together we can share an exciting future.” 

Barry Smith, CEO at Ageas UK commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with Hampshire Cricket to launch The Ageas Bowl. This partnership provides us with an excellent platform to continue to raise the profile of the Ageas brand in our local area. The Rose Bowl has generated local and international recognition for cricket but also hosts a number of prestigious events including concerts and family events. With the developments of a new hotel and golf course, we very much look forward to continuing to work with the Club on what will prove to be a very exciting partnership.” 

Commenting on what has been a busy few months for the executive team at Hampshire Cricket, Rod Bransgrove added “This is the second major announcement that we have been able to make in the off season and I must thank my team, and all our partners including Eastleigh Borough Council and Ageas for their support and commitment to what we are trying to achieve. 

“Our aim has always been to deliver the first model test venue and with the continued support of our partners, I know that The Ageas Bowl and Hampshire Cricket will go from strength to strength. 

The deal does not affect the rights of any other sponsors of Hampshire Cricket or Team England.

Derrick Rose, point guard of the Chicago Bulls has inked one of the richest athletic endorsement deals in sports history, signing a contract extension with Adidas that could pay him almost $250 million though 14 years, according to Yahoo! Sports.

Adidas confirmed the deal Sunday night as the NBA All-Star Game was tipping off in Orlando but wouldn’t cough up details details.

“It’s a blessing, man,” Rose said before Saturday morning’s All-Star practice. “Definitely a blessing. They’ve been with me, they stuck with me from the beginning and I’m happy that I’m a part of them for the rest of my life.”

“It’s great, man,” Rose added. “We’ve been trying to get it out of the way for a long time. I just remember them bringing it up to me and I couldn’t really think about the amount. I’m just blessed and feel grateful right now.”

The athletic company just launched the 23-year old Rose’s latest signature shoe, the adizero Rose 2.5.

Lawrence Norman, Adidas’ vice president global basketball for Adidas, said in a statement: “We’re extremely excited to extend our partnership with Derrick Rose. Derrick is a tremendous partner whose humility, commitment to the community and exciting play on the court is a perfect match for the adidas brand.”

by Ismail Uddin

 

The Japanese manufacturer SHIBUYA Archery has signed an agreement with World Archery to become one of their Development Fund Partners.

SHIBUYA is well-known among archery competitors in particular for their line of target sights.

They have had also produced many other accessory items such as stabilisers, plunger buttons, recurve rests, v-bars and bow cases to name a few. SHIBUYA has been used by top recurve and compound archers for 40 years.

SHIBUYA has joined World Archery to coincide with the manufacturer’s 40-year anniversary in 2012. They also hope to have a strong presence among participants of the Archery World Cup Final on 22-23 September 2012, which will be held in SHIBUYA’s home town of Tokyo, Japan.

Philipp KNALL, from SHIBUYA’s International Sales Division, said: “We are excited about this opportunity to help grow our sport of archery, and we are sure we will be able to ensure a mutually rewarding relationship with World Archery.”

The Development Fund Partners are a pool of archery manufacturers that actively support the development of archery worldwide with donations and programmes.

by Ismail Uddin

 

Worcestershire CCC has announced that MKK Sports has signed a three year arrangement to be the Official Kit Supplier.

As part of this joint venture ID Sports & Leisure LTD will be running the Club Shop at New Road. The Malvern based sports retailers will be stocking a wide range of specialist cricket equipment as well as the new MKK replica kit, unhealthy which will be on sale in April.

To mark the launch of the new partnership, vcialis 40mg ID Sports will be hosting a Cricket Show on Thursday 1st March in the Cricket Suite at New Road. The Cricket Show will run from 6:30pm until 9:00pm and will be a great opportunity for you to meet the staff from ID Sports, doctor as well as some of the Worcestershire CCC players, while getting kitted out for the new season.

by Ismail Uddin

BAMMA USA have announced a new strategic partner and introduce The Great American Lager, hospital  Budweiser, story as the official beverage of the Badbeat cage.

Budweiser has played a large role in supporting almost every professional sport and BAMMA USA is extremely excited to be the only MMA provider for the world renowned lager.

“I am very pleased to be allowed the opportunity to represent the Budweiser name. Budweiser has been an icon in professional sports for many years and now with their added support, it feels that we have crossed yet another milestone in MMA,” said BAMMA USA promoter Brett Roberts.

“This long-term relationship has been something we have been working towards and we are proud Budweiser has chosen to work with BAMMA USA.”

The annual agreement begins when Badbeat 5 features an all pro fight card on March 16 including a main event lightweight fight between Mike “Joker” Guymon (12-5-1) and Cris “The Lightning” Leyva (9-3-0). This major announcement comes off the heels of the promotion recently signing MMA veteran Mike “Joker” Guymon to a multi-fight contract.

by Ismail Uddin

Apollo Bet, main sponsors of Love Rugby League, have signed a deal to become the official betting partner of Wigan Warriors for 2012.

The initial one year deal will see the Apollo BET logo on the home and away shirt sleeve of the first team for all games in the 2012 season. The company will also be offering an on-line betting service for Warriors supporters as well as match day concourse betting at the Stadium.

Apollo BET is a relatively new company established in 2011 and offer a full range of sports betting with great odds, casino and poker.

Speaking about the partnership, Sales Director Geoff Warburton said: “We are delighted to welcome Apollo BET as the Club’s official betting partner for this season. It is always extremely pleasing to be able to attract new companies to be associated with the Wigan Warriors Club brand and we look forward to welcoming the management and staff to the DW Stadium throughout the year.”

Sportsbook Director Chris Calderbank from Apollo BET added: “We are delighted to have secured sponsorship with Wigan Warriors for the 2012 season. It was an easy choice for us to sponsor Wigan as the Club has a worldwide following and the supporters are amongst the most passionate in the game. We aim to provide a unique betting service for the fans covering all aspects of Rugby League both domestic and International.

“Apollo BET is looking forward to building a long lasting relationship with the Warriors for many years to come.”

by Ismail Uddin

Northern Racing, a group of UK racecourses, has concluded a deal with Betfred as the provider of pool betting services and on-course betting shops at all of its UK racecourses.

The deal secures the future of on-course pool betting through Betfred’s Totepool brand for customers at Bath, Brighton, Chepstow, Fontwell Park, Ffos Las, Great Yarmouth, Hereford, Newcastle, Sedgefield and Uttoxeter, for at least the seven year-duration of Betfred’s license.

In addition Betfred will continue to operate the on-course betting shops at all ten Northern courses for the duration of the Totepool license.

Northern is the first major racecourse group to sign such a deal with Betfred since it took ownership of the Tote in July 2011.

Tony Kelly, Group Managing Director of Northern Racing said:

“I am pleased to confirm that we will continue to offer our customers a recognised pool betting service and a re-branded and refreshed betting shop experience.

The deal closely mirrors the partnership we enjoyed with the Tote and I am confident that customers will not experience any disruption.

“We will be working closely with Betfred to help develop the business and the service we offer, including the rebranding of Tote betting shops to the Betfred brand and on-going capital investment in the pool services.

“In addition we have reached agreement with Betfred to sponsor a number of our principal racedays including Uttoxeter’s Midlands National meeting, Newcastle’s Eider meeting, and Chepstow’s Silver Trophy Day. These long-term arrangements will allow us to build the profile of these days whilst maintaining prize money levels for our feature racedays.”

Betfred Chief Executive Trevor Beaumont commented: “We are delighted to have signed a deal with Northern Racing which will ensure that pool betting remains at their racecourses for at least the next seven years and hopefully beyond.

“Punters can look forward to an enhanced betting experience through both the Betfred and Totepool brands whilst the sport as a whole will benefit from increased turnover and sponsorship.”

by Ismail Uddin

Mac Tools, buy cialis an industry-leading hand-tools manufacturer, will return as a primary sponsor of the Doug Kalitta-driven Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster.

The partnership will begin at the 2012 Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis and run through the remainder of the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and continue through the 2013 and 2014 racing seasons.

The company made the announcement this past weekend at its annual sales conference, the Mac Tools Tool Fair. Mac Tools distributors and their families were on hand to show their support as Brett Shaw, president of Mac Tools, made the announcement at the kickoff meeting for the Mac Tools Tool Fair.

“Our relationship with Kalitta Motorsports is a testament to Mac Tools’ commitment to driving our brand, building product awareness with fans and technicians while engaging with our distributors at all the NHRA events across the U.S,” Shaw said. “We’re truly excited to offer our continued support to the Kalitta organization, the NHRA, and look forward to a successful partnership for everyone involved.”

Kalitta Motorsports and Mac Tools have celebrated a long-standing relationship that dates back to 2001, when Mac Tools began serving as the primary sponsor on Kalitta’s Top Fueler through 2008. In 2012, Mac Tools entered its 12th year as an associate sponsor for the Ypsilanti, Mich.-based multicar team, which also includes the DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car driven by Jeff Arend, the Optima Batteries Top Fuel dragster driven by David Grubnic, and the Tequila Patron Toyota Camry Funny Car driven by Alexis DeJoria.

Kalitta, a 47-year-old resident of Ann Arbor, Mich., and a 15-year veteran driver of the world’s quickest and fastest race cars, has amassed 32 NHRA Top Fuel title trophies in 64 final-round appearances. He has finished in the top 10 in Full Throttle championship points in every year of his straight-line career. He was the 1994 USAC national sprint-car champion.

Jim Oberhofer, Kalitta Motorsports vice president of operations, said: “Despite the tough economy, Mac Tools has been committed to Kalitta Motorsports and to NHRA Drag Racing. We are thrilled they are back as primary sponsor of Doug Kalitta. We’ve enjoyed a lot of success over the years with Mac Tools on the side of our dragster, and we look forward to continuing to share that success with them. We also look forward to representing all of the hardworking distributors who have always been big supporters of Kalitta Motorsports.”

by Ismail Uddin

India’s largest food products marketing organization Amul has announced today it has inked a sponsorship deal with the Indian contingent going to the London 2012 Olympic Games following the signing a MoU with the Indian Olympic Association.

The MoU was signed by Raja Randhir Singh, ampoule Secretary General, IOA and Member, International Olympic Committee and Mr. R S Sodhi, Managing Director, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul) in a function presided by Prof. Vijay Kumar Malhotra, Acting President, Indian Olympic Association in presence of Shri Anil Khanna, Chairman, Finance Commission of the IOA. Amulhas become the Official Sponsor of the Indian team in the category of Dairy products.

Mr. R S Sodhi said that , “Amul is committed to strengthening the Olympic movement in India and encourage young generation from all corners of the country to take up Olympic sports. I take great pleasure and pride in announcing our sponsorship of the Indian contingent to the London 2012 Olympic Games as ‘Olympic Partner’.”

Explaining the rationale of this association, he said that milk is nature’s original energy drink and plays a pivotal role in building the physical and mental strength of the athletes. Nutritious dairy diet comprising of milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, ghee etc. is an important part in the diets of athletes around the world. India is the largest producer of milk in the world and Amul is not only India’s but Asia’s largest milk brand. Further, he said that this association and activities around it will help in engaging the youth so that they can enjoy a healthy life and strive to become swifter, higher and stronger in their endeavours.

Amul has recently associated with sports events like Cricket World Cup and Formula 1 to engage the youth. Mr Sodhi mentioned that the Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate. Participation in Olympics is the aspiration of every athlete and with the kind of investments made by our country in this arena to select, nurture and train the best athletes, we are confident that Indian contingent will deliver the best ever performance in the London games and make our country proud.

Lauding Amul’s support to the Indian Olympic contingent, Prof VK Malhotra, acting President, IOA said that the sponsorship funds will be used for the athletes. RajaRandhir Singh, Secretary General, IOA said, “I would like to congratulate Amul for flagging off its Olympic initiative today.” 

Amul will launch a series of advertising campaigns for milk, butter, cheese, paneerand ghee to promote this association in the coming months.