Sport Republic Acquires Ownership Of Southampton Football Club

Southampton Football Club can confirm that Sport Republic has completed the acquisition of a controlling stake in the club.

Sport Republic is an investment firm in the sports and entertainment industry. They have purchased the shareholding of the club held by Mr Gao and will work in partnership with Katharina Liebherr who retains her minority shareholding.

Everyone within the Southampton community would like to wish Mr Gao and his family well for their future.

Martin Semmens, CEO of Southampton Football Club, said:

“Over the last two years, together with the shareholders of our club, we have searched for the right partner to take the club forward. Today we have found the perfect solution for our club.

“Sport Republic are experienced investors, but also experienced within the world of elite professional sports. That combination is very hard to find, and we are thrilled to have reached an agreement that secures our short and long-term future.

“We are grateful for the support of Mr Gao and Katharina that allowed us to take our time, turn away the wrong options and ultimately find the right partner for the future of this great club, its fans, staff and the people of Southampton.

“Today we welcome a new beginning with a new ownership group. We have found partners with ambition for the future, but with a clear understanding of what Southampton stands for and the direction we must go in now. The strategy is to push forward with the plans we have had in place over the last two years, but with their support we can now do this with a renewed focus and speed. Continuity, stability, and clarity of the way forward are equally as important as the new initiatives and ideas we can now bring to the club.

“Sport Republic is being built to provide a network of people, clubs, and technology that allows the clubs within it to grow every day and gain the advantages you need to be successful. As a club, we have never wanted to buy success, but to earn it. Sport Republic gives us the power to improve our operations at every level, helping us to reach for the success our staff work so hard for, and our fans crave.

“Everyone at Southampton welcomes Dragan, Henrik, Rasmus and the people within Sport Republic to our great club. We searched the world for good people with the ambition and resources to lead us into the next era and I am happy to confirm we have found them. We can’t wait to get started and be part of the future of Sport Republic.”

Commenting on the agreement, the Lead Investor of Sport Republic, Dragan Šolak, said:

“My partners and I have experience in long-term investments in the sports and entertainment industry and Sport Republic has been founded to combine this expertise and deliver something unique to the market. Southampton has so many of the qualities we have been looking for in a major sports organisation. It has a great management team, excellent talent development, talented teams playing attractive football and a dedicated fan base. We are delighted to be able to complete this acquisition as a first step towards execution of our investment strategy. Southampton will be a cornerstone of the organisation we plan to build.”

The Chairman of Sport Republic, Henrik Kraft, added:

“We will be an active and engaged owner, but we will not be starting any revolutions. We were attracted to Southampton because it is already a well-run club that follows a clearly defined strategy.

“Southampton’s CEO Martin Semmens will continue to run the day-to-day operations of the club, and Sport Republic will be working closely with him and his team to help the club grow.

“Whilst Southampton is Sport Republic’s first acquisition, we expect more investments to follow over the coming years. Our ambition is to build a portfolio of high-influence stakes in football clubs and other sporting assets across the world.

“At the same time, we will also invest in early-stage sports technology companies and use our portfolio to accelerate the development of these companies. The acquisition of Southampton is a great first step and we are very excited about the journey ahead.”

About Sport Republic:

Sport Republic is a London-based investment firm in the sports and entertainment industry. Founded by Henrik Kraft and Rasmus Ankersen and backed by Lead Investor Dragan Šolak, Sport Republic’s vision is to apply proprietary intelligence and data analytics to help sports businesses and sports technology companies reach their full potential. More information about Sport Republic can be found on www.sportrepublic.com.

Dragan Šolak is the Lead Investor of Sport Republic. He is also the Founder and Chairman of the Advisory Board of United Group.

Infront And Turkish Basketball Federation Extend Partnership Until End Of 2024/25 Season

Infront has prolonged its partnership with the Turkish Basketball Federation in a four-year agreement which will take the collaboration to beyond a decade.

The deal includes the exclusive media and marketing rights to the men’s, women’s and youth national teams as well as the ING Turkish Super League, one of Europe’s top basketball leagues.

For the first time it will also include gaming rights, allowing Infront to ensure the full scope of Turkish basketball is represented properly in video games and esports. In addition, national and international betting video and data rights as well as coaching and scouting rights feature within the scope.

This is another example of Infront’s commitment to long-term collaborations. Find out how our work with Turkish basketball has helped the federation and the sport achieve phenomenal growth.

Infront and the Turkish Basketball Federation (TBF) first began their partnership in November 2013 with the aim to raise Turkish basketball’s commercial game for “all its stakeholders – most importantly the fans, the clubs, the athletes and the sponsors.”

The results of the partnership certainly back up the initial aspirations of the TBF and this success forms the backbone of the four-year prolongation between the two partners, taking the relationship to 11 years.

“In the seven years since we first began our work with TBF – and in fact opened Infront’s office in Turkey – we have helped bring a broader and more international audience to Turkish basketball,” says Ender Uslu, Managing Director of Infront Turkey. “Domestically, that has led to an increase in attendance of 66 per cent, selling over one million tickets a season before Covid-19 hit.

 “Of course, the increased audience had a direct impact on sponsorship, leading us to broker over 40 agreements across the whole period including global brands like Sony, ING Bank, Total, Head&Shoulders, Rexona, Lenovo and Perfetti. It is an incredible effort and just underlines how well our collaboration is working.

“What we wanted to bring to the table was an astute knowledge of how TBF can reach specific demographics through specific activations. The only way you can achieve that level of detail is through a long-term collaboration. It isn’t something that can be achieved in just a season or two as it doesn’t allow for the seeds you plant early on to fully grow.

“Take the increase of international broadcasters as an example. We now have 24 for the ING Basketball Super League, which by itself creates a substantial amount of revenue. That sort of result doesn’t happen overnight and requires planning and adaptations to your core product. Everything from the gamedays to our online presence needed to align, and creating those synergies is not a quick fix. It is the same with our social media following, which has increased by 700 per cent over the last seven years.”

For TBF, bringing in an external agency was a big step, but it also allowed new ideas and concepts to be introduced, paving the way for an improved commercial package.

“We have a strong product both at national level with our men’s, women’s and youth teams as well as at club level and the proof is the continued attraction of sponsors,” TBF President Mr. Hidayet Turkoglu adds. “Covid-19 has acted as a reset in some ways, and the sports industry has changed fundamentally as a direct result. However, we feel that with Infront at our side we can evolve once again and, in four years’ time, set a new benchmark for the future of the sport in our country.”

The combination of knowing how to navigate a world that is constantly changing and ensuring you maintain a direction to reach the ultimate goal forms part of why multi-year deals work according to Julien Ternisien, Infront’s Senior Vice President of Summer Sports.

“Long-term partnerships are a core part of Infront’s DNA,” he explained. “This is why we put such an emphasis on truly getting to know the properties we work with. Maximising as much revenue out of a property as quickly as possible without looking at the product as a whole can only bring short-term benefits. It is important to work with clients and offer ways to improve the full picture, which is ultimately mutually beneficial for all – including the fans who get the best product possible.”

Creating a foundation for the future and gradually building strong properties may take time, but the result can form a platform for long-term commercial success, even overcoming unseen challenges such as Covid-19. Whilst these circumstances do still have an impact, it becomes less a question of how to survive and more about digging into the opportunities it brings up.

LaLiga Launches Amazon store In Collaboration With 13 LaLiga Santander Clubs

As of December 29th 2021, LaLiga fans will be able to purchase  merchandise and products from 13 LaLiga Santander clubs through Amazon. Thanks to a new collaboration between the Spanish football league and Amazon, there will be a dedicated LaLiga store available on Amazon.uk, Amazon.it, Amazon.fr and Amazon.de. 

This project from LaLiga and Amazon will allow thousands of fans of LaLiga Santander to get their merchandise such as kits, clothing, and other fan items through the LaLiga store on Amazon. At first, this experience will be available to fans in the UK, Italy, France or Germany, with plans to expand to other areas throughout 2022 to share the passion for LaLiga and its teams with more fans around the world.  

From December 29th onwards, it’ll be possible to visit the LaLiga store on Amazon and find products from the following LaLiga Santander clubs: Getafe CF, Cádiz CF, Granada CF, Athletic Club, Levante UD, Villareal CF, Real Sociedad, Deportivo Alavés, RCD Espanyol, RCD Mallorca, RC Celta de Vigo, Real Betis Balompié and Club Atlético Osasuna.  

Discussing this collaboration, LaLiga Executive Director Óscar Mayo says: “For LaLiga, it’s very important to offer LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank clubs all possible tools in order to bring our league closer to our fans around the world. Through this exciting collaboration with Amazon, we are continuing to develop our internationalisation strategy and we can boost the growth of the competition and its clubs.”  

Mayo continued: “For now, we have 13 LaLiga Santander clubs participating in this project, with the LaLiga store to launch from December 29th in the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Germany. Our goal is to bring more LaLiga clubs on board and to be present in more regions around the world, with these to be announced during the first quarter of 2022.” 

“I am thrilled about launching this multi-year collaboration with LaLiga, bringing official products and tailored shopping experience to thousands of LaLiga fans so they can celebrate and share their love for Spanish football. At Amazon, we are proud to help LaLiga in its efforts to expand internationally, bringing fans closer to their passion wherever they are,” says Hernando Moncaleano, Head of Fans 360 at Amazon. 

Within the LaLiga store on Amazon, browsing fans can find more than 1,600 different products from the participating 13 teams. There will be a great variety of items available, from sportswear to other men’s and women’s clothing, while mugs, toys, household items and much more from these LaLiga Santander clubs will also be on sale via Amazon. 

A new e-commerce opportunity for Spanish clubs 

LaLiga is continually looking for ways to work with new technologies as well as for commercial opportunities that will allow the clubs of LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank to evolve and thrive. Thanks to the collaboration with Amazon, Spain’s professional football clubs have been presented with the chance to reach more customers outside of Spain 

As this initiative takes off, LaLiga will coordinate with each of the participating clubs in order to guarantee the timely production and availability of the products put on sale, to provide their customers with a great new shopping experience. The clubs benefit from Amazon’s infrastructure and can easily update their inventory and merch offerings within the online store.  

• United Kingdom: Store in Amazon.uk (www.amazon.co.uk/laliga)  

• France: Store in Amazon.fr (www.amazon.fr/laliga)  

• Italy: Store in Amazon.it (www.amazon.it/laliga)  

• Germany: Store in Amazon.de (www.amazon.de/laliga) 

InCrowd Welcomes John Beale As CFO

After an incredibly successful 18 months, InCrowd continues to drive forward and expand its digital and data offering in international markets by appointing John Beale as it’s new CFO. John will be stepping into the role with the retirement of current incumbent David Johnson, who has been instrumental in the rapid expansion of InCrowd as a business in its 6 years.

With a proven ability in implementing corporate control and commercial flexibility in high growth technology markets, John has been part of a senior management team that led the development of a multi geographical £200m digital content sales organisation from VC, to AIM and subsequent sale. John specifically oversaw the finance function as well as data compliance and cyber security, GDPR and development of payment fraud IP via the use of deep data technologies.

John’s more recent experience of engaging legacy retail consumers with the world of recurring digital content purchasing in order to drive long term, profitable revenue streams stands him in good stead for the role, bringing a new set of experiences and technological understanding that will be paramount in the next phase of business growth for InCrowd as the company progresses its data capture and monetisation model.

“John brings some great technology sector experience to the business as we lay the foundations for the next phase of growth,” says InCrowd CEO Aidan Cooney. “I am delighted that he has agreed to join us on our journey.”

Outside of work John has always been a keen sportsman, playing a lot of football, cricket and running the odd half marathon over the years and in the post ‘kids era’ running local teams in the community across many sports.

“I am really looking forward to my journey at InCrowd and aligning my true love for sport, both as a participant and a fan, with my experience in helping to build high growth technology and specifically data services enterprises” John says.

“Aligning these two passions makes this a really exciting proposition for me. What is truly exciting is to be part of a technology business that has already proven the value of it’s core proposition with multiple key global clients and partners, combined with the obvious need across all walks of life for successful, collaborative digital transformation to optimise customer experiences. I am really looking forward to joining the InCrowd team and being part of the continued growth story!!”

About John Beale

John has over 10 years of experience in the IT Managed Services and Telecoms sectors, working specifically in growing entrepreneurial businesses undergoing both organic and inorganic change. As an ACMA qualified accountant and graduate in Mathematics with Economics, John has held the position as CFO of Evoxus, Telinet and niu-solutions in VC backed, leveraged environments focusing specifically on understanding and delivering the corporate control and commercial understanding requirements of companies in high growth technology markets. John joined Mi-Pay in February 2011 as CFO and now joins InCrowd in a period of exceptional growth.

For more information, contact enquiries@incrowdsports.com

ITV Racing To Broadcast Racing League in 2022

After a successful launch in 2021, Racing League will return in 2022, with six Thursday evening fixtures offering over £2 million in prize money, and will be broadcast by ITV Racing alongside long term partner Sky Sports Racing.

All licenced racehorse trainers in the UK and Ireland have been invited to register their interest in representing one of seven regional teams, to compete in this year’s competition. Teams representing Ireland, Scotland, Yorkshire, The North, The East, Wales and The West and London and The South will eligible to run two horses in each race across the six fixtures. Final teams will be announced later this month.

Racing League fixtures in 2022 will take start at Doncaster on 4 August, and include meetings at Lingfield Park, Newcastle, Royal Windsor and Southwell racecourses. The final two meetings of the 2022 competition, at Southwell and Newcastle, will be held under lights.

Chief Executive of Racing League, Jeremy Wray, said, “We are delighted to confirm this broadcast agreement with ITV Racing to bring the Racing League live to terrestrial television, which we see as an excellent next step for the competition. Sky Sports Racing have, of course, been a hugely important partner in establishing the Racing League, and we look forward to also continuing our association with them and their team over the course of this year.”

Niall Sloane, ITV Director of Sport, said, “ITV Racing are delighted to be able to bring free to air coverage of the Racing League to a terrestrial audience. We look forward to working with the team and the participating racecourses across the late summer to help widen the appeal of the competition in its second year.”

The dates for Racing League 2022 are as follows:

Doncaster – 04/08/2022
Lingfield Park – 11/08/2022
Newcastle – 25/08/2022
Royal Windsor – 01/09/2022
Southwell – 08/09/2022
Newcastle – 15/09/2022

BT Sport To Broadcast The Spanish Super Cup 2021/22

BT Sport is to broadcast live and exclusive coverage of the Spanish Super Cup 2021/22, an annual football competition featuring last season’s winners and runners-up of Spain’s La Liga and the Copa del Rey. Presented by Lynsey Hipgrave alongside Rio Ferdinand and Joe Cole, BT Sport’s coverage of this season’s tournament will be contested by Atletico Madrid (La Liga champions), Real Madrid (La Liga runners-up), Barcelona (Copa del Rey winners), and Athletic Club (Copa del Rey runners-up), starting with the semi-finals on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th January and culminating with the final on Sunday 16th January 2022.

This season marks the third edition of the Spanish Super Cup in the new format of four teams, with BT Sport broadcasting all four games live and exclusive from King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Athletic Bilbao (also referred to as Athletic Club) enter the tournament as the current holders of the trophy after beating 13-time winners, Barcelona 3-2 AET in a dramatic Spanish Super Cup 2020-21 final which saw the competition’s all-time leading scorer, Lionel Messi receive the first red card of his career with the Catalans.

The first semi-final will be an enticing El Clasico between last year’s La Liga runners-up, Real Madrid and Copa del Rey winners, Barcelona, live from 6.30pm on BT Sport 1 on 12th January (7pm kick off). The Catalans will be looking to make up for last year’s final defeat at the expense of their old adversaries, Los Blancos who currently sit at the top of La Liga and claimed the bragging rights over their rivals with a 2-1 victory in the league earlier in the season.

This is followed by the second semi-final between reigning La Liga champions, Atletico Madrid and Copa del Rey runners-up, Athletic Club. Diego Simeone’s side haven’t lifted the trophy since 2014 and will have their sights set on clinching their third piece of silverware in the competition, while Bilbao will be hoping to be the first club to secure consecutive titles in the Supercopa de España since Barcelona in 2010. Coverage of this clash gets underway from 6.45pm on BT Sport 1 on 13th January (7pm kick off).

The winners of each semi-final will go head-to-head in the Spanish Super Cup final on 16th January which will be broadcast live and exclusive on BT Sport 3 from 6pm.

Australian Open Announces New 5,000 Seater Court As Kia Arena In Multi-Year Agreement

Melbourne Park’s new 5,000 seat show court has been named Kia Arena, with the official signage to be unveiled later in the week.

“Kia has been on the Australian Open journey with us for the past 21 years and worked with us side-by-side to grow the event exponentially during that time,” Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said.

“The naming of Kia Arena today is another example of the strength of our partnership and provides a year-round platform for Kia to showcase the great relationship between Kia and the AO.

“Kia Arena is a spectacular new asset and provides another premium space for our fans to enjoy great tennis in January.”

The multi-year agreement includes:

  • Kia Arena signage around the stadium, both externally and internally
  • Digital signage on the totems outside the entrance
  • 20 flagpoles circling Kia Arena

“The past two decades have been an incredible journey for Kia at the Australian Open, and we are excited to continue our partnership with the world’s most exciting tennis Grand Slam,” Head of Kia’s Global Brand and Customer Experience Artur Martins said.

“In line with our brand belief that “movement inspires ideas”, we hope to see many memorable moves unfold at the Kia Arena.”

More than 130 Kia vehicles will make up the Australian Open fleet in 2022, including 10 of the brand-new EV6 all-electric cars, as part of Kia’s commitment to sustainability. The fleet will be officially launched during the traditional Kia handover ceremony the week before the AO begins.

Arctos Sports Partners Reportedly Invests In Two NHL Franchises

Arctos Sports Partners has invested in two National Hockey League franchises, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Minnesota Wild, according to a new report by Sportico.

Arctos Sports Partners is a private investment platform dedicated to providing growth capital and liquidity solutions to professional sports franchise owners in major North American leagues and European soccer.

Just a few months ago Arctos had raised $2.1 billion, taking their overall assets to a reported a $3 billion.

During this announcement Ian Charles, co-founder and managing partner of Arctos, said: “In forming Arctos, we saw an opportunity to bring institutional capital to a previously inaccessible ecosystem and create a new asset class in the process.”

“Sports franchises and leagues benefit from numerous qualities that make them particularly valuable: deep customer affinity and loyalty, global must-see content, the live experience ecosystem, and scarcity. We’re privileged to collaborate with the greatest leagues, owners, and institutional investors to create the investment platform that is Arctos.”

Doc O’Connor, co-founder and managing partner of Arctos, added: “At Arctos, we’ve built a firm exclusively focused on, and dedicated to, the sports ecosystem, and our firm has been built to reflect that dedication. We are a special combination of institutional investing experience combined with deep sports domain knowledge and operating experience.”

“We bring investment capital and unique expertise to leagues, franchises, and owners to support and enhance their incredible growth trajectory.”

In December, the NHL reportedly gave their franchises the go ahead to allow private investment into each team, for up to 30% of the ownership stake.

Any single investment fund looking for a stake may not purchase more than 20% of a team, so teams looking for the full 30% would require more than one partner.

Other investments Arctos have been involved in include Fenway Sports Group (owner of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club, among others) and NBA franchises the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.

FIFA Announces Visa As First-Ever FIFA Women’s Football Partner

FIFA has been collaborating with Visa since 2007 and announced Visa as the first Global FIFA Women’s Football Partner to come on board under the newly launched commercial partnership structure, which comes into effect in 2023.

The new opportunities afforded under the revamped structure highlight the commitment of both parties to making football truly global and supporting the growth and development of the women’s game.

As the Exclusive Payment Service for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™, Visa will implement its innovative payment technology at tournament venues and deliver exclusive experiences for fans and clients, ranging from delivering innovative ways to pay to utilising Visa’s exclusive marketing campaign assets and thus drive mutual business priorities with clients.

Visa will also incorporate its highly successful Team Visa programme, activate the Player of the Match award and create unforgettable experiences for fans in 2023 – all with a view to elevating and building on the unparalleled momentum around the women’s game.

“As a long-standing FIFA Partner and a proud supporter of women’s football, it was a natural choice for Visa to become the first-ever Women’s Football Partner at FIFA,” said Sarai Bareman, FIFA’s Chief Women’s Football Officer.

“Visa is well known for supporting athletes and seeing the positive benefits that can come through sport. They are advocates for equality, diversity and inclusion, core values that are shared by FIFA and the FIFA Women’s World Cup, as we grow and celebrate the women’s game.”

“Through our continued partnership with FIFA, we believe we can shine a brighter light on equality, diversity and inclusion for women footballers, both on and off the pitch,” said Andrea Fairchild, Senior Vice-President, Global Sponsorship Strategy at Visa.

“Our commitment to women’s football is not short-term – we see these women as game changers in the biggest sense of the word and love to see the new heights women’s football continues to reach. We are thrilled to continue this trajectory as we look toward Australia and New Zealand in 2023.”

As one of the world’s most active sponsors of women’s football, Visa’s partnership with FIFA strives to be a catalyst for change and contribute to the growing recognition of women’s football.

Visa’s support also extends off the pitch with programmes that are designed to help athletes in their careers and beyond, including Team Visa, which has championed more than 500 athletes, including 22 female footballers, since its inception in 2000.

The expanded FIFA Women’s World Cup™ will take place in nine cities across Australia and New Zealand in 2023, marking the first time that the tournament will head to the southern hemisphere and that 32 teams will take to the pitch. For more information on the event, visit FIFA.com.

BetMGM And PGA TOUR Extend Official Betting Operator Agreement

The PGA TOUR and BetMGM announced today a three-year extension through 2024 to its marketing and content relationship designating BetMGM as an Official Betting Operator of the PGA TOUR. 

The PGA TOUR and BetMGM will work together to provide odds to fans via TOUR digital platforms. BetMGM will serve as the exclusive source for odds on the leaderboard and player pages on PGATOUR.COM and on TOURCast, the TOUR’s award-winning platform that allows fans to follow every shot from each group with a 3D rendering of the golf course.

“We look forward to working with BetMGM to integrate its advanced betting technologies for PGA TOUR fans on our digital platforms,” said Norb Gambuzza, PGA TOUR Senior Vice President, Media and Gaming. “Over the years, BetMGM has been a strong supporter of golf through sponsorship of various PGA TOUR players and tournaments. We are excited to continue the relationship.”

Currently available for download on iOS and Android, the BetMGM mobile app offers the latest betting odds, enhanced offers and multiple betting formats, from money line and point spread bets to parlays and futures.

Matt Prevost, BetMGM Chief Revenue Officer said, “The PGA TOUR has been a fantastic partner and we look forward to continuing our relationship. In the last year we’ve seen an increase in our players betting on golf and are excited to now be the exclusive odds provider for PGATOUR.COM.”

By joining the TOUR’s Official Betting Operator program, BetMGM will have rights in the United States to use PGA TOUR marks, rights to advertise within TOUR media and TOUR partner platforms, plus content and video rights allowing BetMGM Sportsbook platforms to create pre-game and post-game betting programming, as well as distribution of highlights to users who have placed bets.

BetMGM has access to existing sponsor relationships with several members of the PGA TOUR, including Max Homa, Jimmy Walker, Kevin Na, Pat Perez, Ryan Moore, Joel Dahmen and Jason Kokrak.