Gillette Sponsors FIFA 20 Global Series

Gillette today announced its EA SPORTS FIFA 20 Global Series sponsorship. This Gillette sponsorship will drive engagement and connect the brand with younger audiences through football and esports.

Gillette will activate the EA SPORTS FIFA 20 Global Series sponsorship through Twitch and YouTube “Precision Play of the Day, Presented by Gillette” embedded broadcast segments, on-stream commercials, live on-air promotions, and unique branded content later this season.

Brent Koning, FIFA Competitive Gaming Commissioner for EA, said: “Gillette is a brand synonymous with its connection to the biggest sports in the world. EA SPORTS FIFA 20 Global Series sponsorships such as Gillette exemplify the worldwide power of this esport.”

Gary Coombe, CEO of Global Grooming at Gillette added: “The EA SPORTS FIFA 20 Global Series is an incredibly powerful esports platform, and to add it to Gillette’s long history in football, sports and esports is a true honour.

“We look forward to getting this season underway and working together with a world class video game publisher in EA SPORTS to connect with their fans and a whole new generation of Gillette consumers.”

BBC Agree Broadcast Deal For Copa Libertadores Final And International Swimming League

The BBC has acquired two new broadcast deals in the week it lost the rights to show the Masters live to Sky Sports.

South America’s major football competition the Copa Libertadores, will have its final broadcast on BBC as Flamengo play current champions River Plate.

They have also gained the rights to the International Swimming League’s event in London this weekend.

ISL is a brand new franchise competition launched this year, which has seen huge success, and the London match will be shown live this weekend.

ISL President Konstantin Grigorishin said: “We are very pleased to secure streaming coverage with the BBC for the ISL London match. This agreement shows the great interest that is developing around our ground-breaking professional league that regularly showcases our sport’s stars.

“We have partnered with premium networks in six continents for the first season of the ISL, and we expect more to come on board as awareness of the league grows amongst sports fans who enjoy this revolutionary competition.”

LaLiga Succeeds In Audiovisual Piracy Case

LaLiga has succeeded in a huge piracy case, after a court ruling in Andalusia ruled in favour of the Spanish football league.

The historic case will now see almost €500,000 in fines and compensation be paid, after penalising members of a dedicated network selling decoders with pirated content in the Criminal Court No. 4 of Malaga.

The sentence imposes 6 months in prison and a €1,800 fine to the administrator of the company that illegally distributed the content, as well as a €40,000 fine for the legal entity.

In addition, compensation of €200,000 to LaLiga, € 200,000 to Mediapro and €20,000 to EGEDA will be paid. The accused will also pay €10,000 for the procedural costs that have been generated.

This is one of the largest compensation settlements in the history of audiovisual piracy in Spain and the first sentence of its kind that LaLiga has achieved a regional operator.

This operation has resulted in the arrest of the twelve members of the organisation, the closure of seven web pages and two social media profiles where illegal services were announced, as well as visiting thirteen addresses across Spain.

WTA And ATP Merger Should Be More Seriously Considered

A possible combination between the Women’s Tennis Association and the ATP should be under real consideration, states WTA President Micky Lawler.

The male and female tennis tours are closely linked, in the main they operate almost separately to one another.

Lawler commented that she felt there needed to be a closer relationship between the two, and that merging both should be a greater possibility.

“I think that the closer we’re able to work together, the better it is for the sport. I think together is better. That’s how the sport became as popular as it is,” Lawler said at the SportsPro OTT Conference.

“So yes, I would like to see more collaboration and eventually coming together as one governing body, or at least to have an umbrella governance of the sport.

On a tour combination, she stated: “I think we should look at it more seriously. On the player side, I know that there isn’t always support for this, but it’s got to be fan-first.

“We do this for [the players] and they’re the only ones that have the leverage to grow the strength of every stakeholder in the sport,” Lawler added.

Puma Sign Huge Kit Rights Deal With Borussia Dortmund

Puma has signed a huge new deal to stay on as kit supplier of Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund.

The new agreement will begin in 2020 and run all the way until the end of the 2027-28 season, according to reports in the German press.

Those reports add that the deal is worth somewhere in the region of €250 million.

This is more than three times the amount of the current deal on a year by years basis.

Amstel Expands Sponsorship Deal With Conmebol

Amstel have expanded their current sponsorship deal with Conmebol to include the Copa Sudamericana.

The beer company, owned by Heineken, are already sponsors of the Copa Libertadores, South America’s ‘Champions League’ and the UEFA Europa league. The new deal will run until 2024.

Juan Emilio Roa, Conmebol’s Commercial Director, said: “We believe that this agreement is a sign of the growing interest from sponsors in South American football and its international exposure.

One Week To Go: Leadership Masterclass – Speaker Spotlight: Chloe Targett-Adams

Our final speaker spotlight heading into the Leadership Masterclass next week focusses on Chloe Targett-Adams. Chloe is Global Director of Promoters and Business Relations and will be taking part in our Diversity and Inclusion panel.

The Leadership Masterclass is being held at Withersworldwide in London on Wednesday the 27th of November, where we will hear from esteemed guests Javier Tebas, President of LaLiga, and European Tour CEO, Keith Pelley.

We have a limited number of spots remaining for the Leadership Masterclass, so to register your interest in attending, please contact Joe at joe@isportconnect.com

Chloe Targett-Adams

Chloe has worked for Formula 1 for more than a decade, now holding the position of Global Director of Promoters and Business Relations, leading and managing the race promotion operations.

She previously held the position of Senior Counsel with the company, working across F1’s business activities on a global level. Chloe went to the University of Leeds prior to graduating from BPP Law School.

Invitation Policy: The Leadership Masterclass is a complimentary event for iSportconnect members who are from governing bodies, sports teams, brands and broadcasters. There is no fee to become an iSportconnect member. No sports agencies, professional service providers & suppliers are allowed.

For limited partnership opportunities, please contact brandon@isportconnect.com

Sky Sports Takes Exclusive Masters Broadcast Rights In UK

Sky Sports has become the exclusive UK broadcaster for the Masters golf tournament, ending the BBC’s live coverage of the event.

From next April’s event, Sky will be the only channel in the UK able to access live coverage of golf’s iconic event at Augusta National.

Sky Sports managing director Rob Webster said: “The Masters has provided some spectacular moments on Sky Sports – not least Tiger Woods’ unforgettable comeback this year – and we look forward to broadcasting many more at one of the most iconic global sporting events.

“We are proud of our 10-year association with Augusta National, and our golf team does a great job sharing the magic of the Masters with our viewers.”

European Tour Forced To Cancel Hong Kong Open

Due to the ongoing protests in the Chinese province, the European Tour have been forced to abandon the upcoming Hong Kong Open.

In a statement released today, they say:

“Regretfully the European Tour, in conjunction with our tournament co-sanctioning partner at the Asian Tour, has taken the decision to postpone next week’s Hong Kong Open, scheduled for the Hong Kong Golf Club, Fanling from November 28 to December 1. An attempt will be made to reschedule the tournament to early 2020.”

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “The decision has been taken due to the ongoing level of social unrest in Hong Kong. As the safety of our players, staff, stakeholders and everyone involved in each and every one of our tournaments around the world is our top priority, we feel this is the correct, but unfortunate, course of action.

“The European Tour thanks everyone at the Hong Kong Golf Association, the Hong Kong Golf Club and all persons associated with the Hong Kong Open for their hard work in endeavouring to stage the tournament and we look forward to hopefully returning early next year.”

Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the Asian Tour said: “It is regrettable that the Hong Kong Open has to be postponed due to the ongoing unrest in the city.

“The unpredictability of the current situation in Hong Kong makes it very challenging to sanction the tournament especially with the safety of everyone of utmost importance. However, we are optimistic that once the situation in Hong Kong stabilises, we will be in a better position to sanction the 61st edition of the Hong Kong Open in the very near future.”

Election Investigation Prompts Serie A President To Resign

Serie A President Gaetano Miccichè, has resigned in the wake of an investigation into his election earlier this year.

Results of the investigation into Miccichè are likely to be revealed in the coming days, but he has opted to avoid any formal punishment from the league and step down before any of the details become public knowledge.

Because of roles he was also holding at the same time, his election had required all 20 of Serie A’s sides to vote for him unanimously, however it now appears that some may have had their hands forced.

One thing is for sure we are likely to know the full details of Miccichè’s reign at the Italian league in a very short time.