GOLFTV Adds First Major With Masters Deal

The Masters Tournament will be presented in Norway, Poland and Russia on GOLFTV following a new agreement announced today.

The 2019 tournament in Augusta, Georgia, will be the first men’s Major to be available anywhere on GOLFTV.

The live and on-demand video streaming service will offer exclusive live coverage of the Masters in Norway, Poland and Russia for all four rounds of the event starting April 11.

In addition, television coverage will be available in Norway and Poland on Discovery-owned Eurosport.

In a move to further grow the reach and engagement around the Masters in Europe, GOLFTV will also present a dedicated highlights programme in markets across the continent.

Alex Kaplan, President and General Manager, Discovery Golf and GOLFTV, said: “It is a privilege for Discovery to present the Masters in Norway, Poland and Russia and welcome the first Major of the year to GOLFTV in those markets. Augusta National has been home to some of golf’s greatest moments and we can’t wait to share many more with passionate fans of the game in these countries.

“Adding a Major in these markets to GOLFTV’s growing portfolio of live action is a further sign of our ambition and desire to build the best possible experience for golf fans everywhere.”

Dakar Rally Reported Set Move To Saudi Arabia

The Dakar Rally is getting ready to move to the Middle East after signing a five-year deal with Saudi Arabia, according to motorsport industry reports.

Dakar organiser Amaury Sport Organisation has run the cross-country event in South America since 2009, following terrorist threats to the route in Mauritania forced the cancellation of the last African event in 2008.

The event, previously called the Paris-Dakar Rally, was created in 1978 as a race from the capital of France to the capital of Senegal.

ASO declined to comment on the Saudi move when contacted by Autosport.

This year’s Dakar was run in Peru, the first held entirely within one country.

The 2019 Dakar Rally winner, Nasser Al-Attiyah of Qatar, told Autosport.com: “We are very happy to have the Dakar in our region. I can be in Saudi Arabia in 30 minutes.

“I did the Cross-Country Hail Rally twice in Saudi Arabia and it’s an amazing place with kind people. I’m sure the Dakar will be great in our region.”

“The plan seems to be a 100 per cent year in Saudi Arabia and then try to go to other countries like Oman, Jordan or Egypt.”

AAF Pulls The Plug, But FanDuel Pays Out

The Alliance of American Football has ended its first season prematurely and most employees were terminated yesterday.

Employees were notified in a letter from the board, which is essentially majority owner Tom Dundon, who also owns the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes.

The letter, obtained by The Associated Press, said only that the decision to suspend operations was made “after careful consideration.”

It also said a small staff would remain to seek new investment capital and “restructure our business. Should those efforts prove successful, we look forward to working with many of you on season two.”

The premature ending is not stopping FanDuel’s sportsbook from declaring a winner.

Reuters reports:

FanDuel Group, a unit of Irish bookmaker Paddy Power Betfair PLC, on Wednesday said the Orlando Apollos should have been the AAF champs and that it would pay out all straight futures wagers as winners.

“For the fans that bet on the AAF, the least they should expect is for a competition to conclude as it should,” FanDuel said in a statement. “We believe this is the very definition of a bad beat for sports fans everywhere.”

The payouts apply to bets in New Jersey since FanDuel did not take any bets on the AAF in West Virginia or Pennsylvania, where it also operates sportsbooks.

As the new legal U.S. sports betting market grows state by state, some operators have chosen to refund or pay out wagers where they think betters have gotten an especially bad break.

Such moves can serve to win over betters to legal, regulated bookmakers instead of the many pervasive illegal offshore websites.

In February, PointsBet refunded New Jerseyans’ wagers after Duke University star player Zion Williamson’s sneaker split open.

CityAccord Will Highlight The Smart Stadium

SportAccord, the annual global gathering for sporting business leaders who take part in the World Sport & Business Summit, has confirmed the latest details for its CityAccord conference programme: Mindful Event Hosting, Respecting the Past with a View to the Future, taking place on Tuesday May 7, 2019 in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.

CityAccord is always a popular conference with SportAccord delegates and this year will be no exception. The World Sport & Business Summit will welcome over 160 cities and regions to the Gold Coast edition of SportAccord.

CityAccord will be opened by Co-Chairs Mélanie Duparc, Secretary General, World Union of Olympic Cities and David Simon, Senior Advisor, Los Angeles Sports Council who said:

“CityAccord is a unique opportunity for cities, regions and sport commissions to expand their horizons by hearing from some of the world’s foremost experts on various aspects of hosting major events. This is especially true of this year’s program, whose theme is ‘Mindful Event Hosting: Respecting the Past with a View to the Future.”‘

Following the Host City Welcome given by Honourable Kate Jones, Queensland Tourism Industry Development Minister, Paul Yeomans (photo above), Managing Director, PMY Group, an independent technology strategy, investment and management company will give the Keynote Address: Rise of the Smart Stadium.

“SportAccord is bringing the world of sport, entertainment and technology to the Gold Coast in 2019.”

“Come along to hear from global experts in their field, build relationships and share insights across this exciting sector.”

“I will be involved in chatting about how digital and technology investments are transforming the stadia environment and look forward to catching up!”

“See you on the Goldy!”

To hear Paul Yeomans in person and take part in the Audience Q&A following his Keynote Address, delegates can register for the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit.

CityAccord delegates will also hear from leading experts in four Tool Box Sessions: Innovative City/Event Ticketing Approaches moderated by David Eades, Journalist & Anchor, BBC World.

Case study presenters will include: Brian Nourse, Former Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games; Essar Gabriel, World Urban Games 2019 – Budapest, Consultant, GAISF; Marne Fechner, CEO, Netball Australia; Maria O’Connor, Managing Director, Ticketmaster Australia and New Zealand; and an international sports federation.

A mid-afternoon panel session: Major Event Fan Safety in Arenas, Cities, Fan Zones will discuss what cities and event organisers are doing to protect their fans and their reputation, followed by an Audience Q&A.

Panellists will include: Susanne Schödel, Secretary General, World Air Sports Federation (FAI); Craig Sheridan APM, Managing Director, Sheridan Consulting Group; Ian Stuart APM, Commissioner, Queensland Police Service; a city regional representative and an international federation (IF).

The final CityAccord panel session followed by an Audience Q&A will cover: Sport Destination Cities Branding – What Works.

Delegates will hear insights from leading experts in the field to include: Damien de Bohun, General Manager Major Events, Visit Victoria; Carol Hudson, VP Sports Development, Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau; Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, EventScotland, also a Silver Partner and exhibitor (Stand 50) at SportAccord.

DAZN Reported Near Deal For Sale Of Perform

DAZN Group is close to a deal to sell its Perform content business to Vista Equity Partners, according to Bloomberg.

The business, which includes data collection and distribution and services for betting operations, will be sold to help DAZN fund acquisitions of live sports rights, Bloomberg reported, based on information from a source close to the deal.

The Bloomberg report continues:

It wasn’t immediately clear how much Vista was paying. No final decision has been made and the sale may still not materialize, the person said.

A representative for DAZN said that the company, controlled by Len Blavatnik, is engaged in talks with a potential bidder for Perform, as part of a strategic review announced in October, declining to comment further. A representative for Vista wasn’t immediately available to comment.

PJT Partners Inc., which is handling the review for DAZN, declined to comment.

A potential deal would mark the third, large sports data provider to change hands in the past year, following EQT Partners’s sale of its minority stake in Sportradar in July, and Apax Partners acquisition of Genius Sports Group.

Vista invested in Stats LLC, a Chicago-based sports data and content provider, in 2014.

DAZN streams live sports events with a focus on boxing in the U.S., charging customers $19.99 a month or $99.99 a year for matches featuring fighters such as Canelo Alvarez, Daniel Jacobs and Anthony Joshua. DAZN also buys up a variety of other sports rights, including elite soccer matches, and sells services in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, Italy and Spain, according to its website.

DAZN began as part of Perform Group Ltd., a London-based company Blavatnik formed in 2007. Perform acted as a middleman for content, buying rights to games and data from sports teams, and packaging them for broadcasters. DAZN soon went on a multi-billion-dollar spending spree, Bloomberg reported in January.

Jockey Club Turns Race Champions Into Marvel-Style Superheroes

Red Rum, Frankel and Kauto Star have joined the likes of Spider-Man, Black Panther and Captain Marvel by being immortalised in their own comic book, Magnificent Racehorses, being released in the run-up to the Randox Health Grand National at Aintree this weekend.

The world’s first comic book showcasing British racehorses as heroes has been published in an effort to increase the profile of the sport’s greatest stars and promote Britain’s second biggest spectator sport. The comic is the brainchild of The Jockey Club, which runs some of the world’s leading racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and Newmarket.

The Magnificent Racehorses comic tells some of the greatest stories of British racing with its most iconic runners given the superhero treatment by Marvel artists Martin Griffiths and Simon Furman. The ten hero racehorses were selected after a poll by The Jockey Club involving several thousand racing fans.

Her Majesty The Queen, who is The Patron of The Jockey Club and has been a Champion Racehorse Owner twice, even makes an appearance in the comic alongside one of her prized horses.

Paul Fisher, Chief Executive of Jockey Club Racecourses, said: “Horseracing is the second biggest spectator sport in Britain and we want to ensure a new generation of fans are constantly discovering the drama and excitement of its stories.”

“Working with some of the best artists to immortalise British racing’s greatest stars in comic book form will hopefully appeal to our sport’s existing fans and inspire new ones including youngsters to experience the thrill of racing themselves.”

The 24-page Magnificent Racehorses comic is available for free via The Jockey Club’s website here.

 

 

 

Rugby League World Cup Names Barwick As President

The Rugby League World Cup 2021 has confirmed the appointment of Brian Barwick as the tournament’s newly appointed President, stepping down from his current role as Chair of the Board from July 2019.

Barwick wrote: “I was delighted to be the Chairman of the successful Rugby League World Cup 2021 ‎bid and subsequently the Chairman of the organisation tasked with delivering the biggest and boldest Rugby League World Cup there has ever been.”

“I will stand down from that post too, but am absolutely delighted to accept an offer to be the organisation’s President and will continue to do my bit in helping deliver a stand-out international event in this country, a World Cup that will encompass men’s, women’s and wheelchair team competitions staged in ‎some of the country’s finest stadiums and in the heartland of the game.”

RLWC2021 Chief Executive, Jon Dutton said: “Brian has been an integral part of the RLWC2021 journey from chairing the original bid back in 2016. Brian has overseen significant progress since that point including the recently announced selection of venues.”

“On behalf of the RLWC2021 Board I would like to record our appreciation to Brian for his significant contribution, leadership and guidance. His new role as President will give him the chance to continue to influence the tournament at a senior level.”

The RFL’s Nominations Committee will now agree the process for the appointment of a successor as Chair of RLWC2021.

Spurs Announce Rugby Deal As They Open New Stadium

The new home of Tottenham Hotspur will hosts its first Premier League match tonight as the club takes on Crystal Palace.

White Hart Lane Stadium has been undergoing renovation since 2016 and the new arena, officially named the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, seats 62,062 fans, making it the second largest club ground in the country, behind Old Trafford in Manchester.

The new stadium is thought to have cost around £850 million, according to BBC, slightly more expensive than the £789 million to build Wembley. The final cost is at least double the original £400 million estimate.

The new stadium will be strictly contactless payments only and the first in the country to not accept coins and notes, with 878 payment points around the facility.

Yesterday, Tottenham announced a new five-year deal with Saracens that will allow the Premiership Rugby champion team to play its annual ‘Big Game’ fixture at Spurs’ new stadium from 2020.

Tottenham already has a long-term agreement in place with the National Football League (NFL) to host regular-season games at the stadium.

Spurs Chairman Daniel Levy said in statement: “We look forward to welcoming Saracens and their fans to Tottenham and delivering world-class rugby matchday experiences, showcasing our new stadium and all the surrounding area has to offer.”

The big Saracens match, which usually takes place in March during the international soccer break, has been played at Wembley Stadium in the past.

The New York Times has a feature today on the new stadium.

Cuba Announces List Of Players Free To Sign MLB Contracts

Cuba’s Baseball Federation has unveiled a first list of players authorized to sign contracts directly with Major League Baseball organizations, moving Cuban-U.S. cooperation in the sport forward despite tense broader bilateral relations.

Reuters reports:

The list announced of 34 players between 17 and 25 years old who classify as international amateurs under MLB rules did not include any major stars.

Some, however, have already played professionally abroad like Raidel Martinez, who has played in Japan.

The move comes after the federations reached a historic agreement last December allowing Cuban players to sign with U.S. teams without needing to defect, seeking to end the practice of their being smuggled off the island on speedboats.

“A first step forward for baseball and against the trafficking of human beings,” the Cuban Baseball Federation said on Twitter as the list was announced.

MLB teams will pay their Cuban counterpart a release fee for each player to be signed, providing a huge windfall for Cuban baseball, which has suffered from dwindling budgets and the defection of its best players.

Under the deal, Cuban players 25 years old or under or who have not yet done six years of service in the Cuban leagues must have their federation’s permission to sign up with MLB organizations.

Older, more experienced players are free to sign with MLB teams. The Cuban Federation said it would send the MLB a list of its over-25 “free agents” in July.

Some of the biggest stars in MLB are Cubans who have defected like Yasiel Puig of the Cincinnati Reds, Yoenis Cespedes of the New York Mets and Jose Dariel Abreu of the Chicago White Sox – all of whom have signed multiyear, multimillion-dollar contracts.

The mininum salary for players in Cuba is $50 per month, so the payoff was huge for the stars, although they often had to undertake dangerous journeys to get to the United States.

More than 350 Cuban ballplayers have defected since the start of 2014.

 

Also In The News

Energy group ENI will again be a top sponsors of Italy’s national football squad under a renewal announce today of its partnership with the Italian Football Federation until 2022. ENI will be a top partner of all of Italy’s 19 national football teams at all levels.

The first edition of the World Urban Games will take place from September 13-15, 2019, in Budapest. Organized by the Global Association of International Sports Federations, the event will include six competition sports: 3×3 basketball, BMX freestyle park, breaking, freestyle flying disc, parkour and freestyle roller skate. Laser run and indoor rowing will feature as showcase sports.

The 2019 Miami Open by Itau set attendance records almost throughout the two-week ATP tournament, where Roger Federer won his fourth title. Fifteen of the tournament’s 24 sessions had higher attendance than the previous records, including an all-time singles-session attendance mark of 32,831 during the Saturday session on March 23.

Nivea Sun has become official sun protection of the German Volleyball Federation (DVV) and premium sponsor of the Techniker Beach Tour, with eight beach volleyball events in Germany. Laura Ludwig will be the face of Nivea’s new sun products campaign.

Online sponsorship marketplace Connexi has launched a platform update to encourage brands to invest in women’s sports opportunities. Tim Crow, Non-Exec Director of Connexi, said: “Women’s sports sponsorship is now a high-profile industry, but still needs nurturing to accelerate growth. Connexi is perfectly positioned to do just that, by providing women’s sports organisations with a global online platform.”

iSportconnect will hold its 2019 Ticketing & CRM Masterclass in London on May 22.

An estimated 22.3 million fans in the U.S. listened to live sports on ESPN Radio from September-January, according to a study by Nielsen. That’s 9.2% of the population (age12 and over). ESPN Radio has company-owned stations in four major markets and a network of affiliates across the country.