U.K. ministers have decided to boycott the opening stages of the Euro 2012 football championships due to concerns about human rights in Ukraine.

The European Union has called for opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko to be freed from prison, after she was jailed for seven years over a gas accord she signed with Russia in 2009, when she was premier. EU commissioners and Swedish and Dutch officials have also said they’ll boycott the tournament, which is being co-hosted with Poland.

“The government fully supports England’s participation in Euro 2012,” the British Foreign Office said in an e-mailed statement today. “No ministers will be attending group games at Euro 2012. We are keeping attendance at later stages of the tournament under review in the light of ministers’ busy schedules ahead of the Olympics and widespread concerns about selective justice and the rule of law in Ukraine.”

England plays all its three group matches in the tournament, which starts tomorrow, in Ukraine. The first game is against France in Donetsk on June 11.

A major partnership has been agreed between the US Ski Team and knitted sweater manufacturer Neve Designs to run until 2019, the team have announced.

The partnership will therefore encompass the next two Winter Olympic Games, beginning with Sochi in 2014.

Neve will be the official sweater of the team as part of its desire to break into the European market and the deal gives Neve access to top US skiers including Ted Ligety and the highly marketable Lindesy Vonn and Julia Mancuso.

The US team’s chief revenue and marketing officer Andrew Judelson stated: “Neve has amazing product which is both functional and attractive to our athletes. Most importantly, though, Neve understands how to creatively merchandise around our US Ski Team brand globally.”

Neve president and chief executive Tom Irvine called the association with the team “our own call to excellence”, adding: “It pushes everyone involved to work harder and maintain uncompromising standards. This isn’t a mere marketing decision – it’s a long term strategic business direction for Neve.”

Based in Colorado, Neve – Italian for snow – has been a licensing partner of the team for nearly four years. The new deal, however, represents a major uplift on its involvement. Though it only has ten employees, the company experienced 40 per cent growth between 2009 and 2010 and now has its products in over 700 stores across North America.

The UK’s Channel 4 have agreed a deal to broadcast the upcoming BT Paralympic World Cup, which takes place in Manchester from 23rd to 28th May, extending their support to Paralympic events after becoming host broadcaster for the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

The announcement will provide the BT World Cup with the strongest broadcast coverage ever received on UK television for a competition which will see elite international athletes competing in events such as wheelchair basketball, athletics and swimming, while boccia and sitting volleyball will be represented for the first time.  

Channel 4 has revealed they will show a two hour live programme on 28th May, with daily highlights on 26th and 27th, and live streaming from each sport will be available on the Channel 4 website. 

Deborah Poulton, sports editor for Paralympics at Channel 4, stated: “Alongside the London 2012 Paralympic Games, the BT Paralympic World Cup is another opportunity to help increase awareness of Paralympic sport and make the British viewing public the best informed and most engaged in the world. 

“We believe the combination of online streaming and TV highlights coverage will attract new audiences to the BT Paralympic World Cup and give the event and its competitors the profile they deserve.”

Chairman of UK Athletics, Ed Warner, has conceded that it will be practically impossible to fill the Olympic Stadium post 2012 for athletics events.

UK Athletics main event is the two-day London Diamond League Grand Prix, currently held in Crystal Palace, but this draws a capacity crowd of just 17,000, under a third of the 60,000 capacity promised by West Ham’s bid which is still pending approval.

Some of the lesser meetings are likely to struggle even more to attract spectators, with the likes of the UK Championships being the next in line in terms of prestigious events, bringing a capacity crowd of around 8,000 to Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium.

The success of West Ham’s bid to the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) to occupy the stadium involved a crucial commitment to 20 days of “top-class athletics” per year. Warner however, has stated: “‘Top-class’ is not a technical term in athletics as ‘first-class’ is in cricket. By ‘top-class’ we mean the two days of the Diamond League, down to championships for each major age group. Some will attract a significant paying public, others a smaller paying public. We will also be able to bid for major European and world championships.”

In defence of why having a 60,000-seat venue still makes sense for events watched by crowds in the hundreds, Warner said: “We have never argued that athletics makes the stadium commercially viable. But we want our athletes to aspire to run on the track in a facility of such quality, and the warm-up track underneath is also important. West Ham made the call that they can make the stadium work financially, and we were able to piggy-back on that.”

Additionally he attempted to allay fears that West Ham may be forced to pull the athletics track promise which was so integral to their bid, adding: “We have a commitment to an IAAF category one facility, to be maintained in the stadium, for the duration of the lease.”

English Premier League soccer giants Manchester United are set to become the first ever club in the league’s history to break the £100m (US$161.24m) mark for commercial revenue.

It has been revealed that the club’s revenue has risen up to $38.7m over the first quarter of the accounting year with media reports suggesting that the second quarter will be just as strong. The last annual figures put the club’s commercial income to $130.5m, a growth of 16 per cent.

A new ‘territory specific’ approach to commercial opportunities implemented by Ricahrd Arnold, United’s commercial director, and agreed with the Glazer family, has allowed the club to rapidly expand that area of revenue.

Chief executive David Gill said: “One of the strengths of this club compared to others is that we get income from all revenue streams.

“Our match day revenue is around 40 per cent of our overall turnover, we are part of a great competition in the Premier League that continues to grow and the commercial sector has gone up from 20 per cent to 30 per cent. They are all high margins and will continue to give us the money Sir Alex Ferguson needs to keep the club at the top.

“That will stand us in very good stead. They are all high margins and will continue to give us the money Sir Alex Ferguson needs to keep the club at the top. There is a strong desire within our great supporter base for that to happen.”

The association’s discontent comes after FIFA President Sepp Blatter appeared to make a major u-turn in the proposals to reschedule world soccer’s flagship event. Blatter had previously backed the plans to move the event to the winter months due to soaring temperatures in the Middle Eastern gulf during the tournaments regular schedule. On Monday, February 7, Blatter and FIFA revealed that the Qatar based event had been “settled for summer”.

ECA chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge spoke after he 136-member association’s general assembly in Geneva, stating: “The time for monopolies is over. Football needs democracy and transparency.”

“ECA members agree that all clubs must be meaningfully involved in all decisions affecting club football. Now is the time for change.

In a statement, the ECA expressed its “concern on the way matters of such importance are managed by football’s world governing body” and its opposition to the “disruption” of the possibility of a winter World Cup.

The 2018 Winter Olympics Bid of PyeongChang has received further backing ahead of this year’s decision from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on who will host the quadrennial event.

Approximately US$450,000 has been donated to the Bid Committee by Hyundai Motors Group, with a message promising support until the 2018 host city decision.

The Korean Association of Newspapers (KAN), an organisation that has 47 members comprised of daily newspapers and a news agency, has also agreed a sponsorship agreement which offers PyeongChang 2018 exposure via the member media outlets for the remainder of the bid campaign.

PyeongChang 2018 chairman and CEO, Yang Ho Cho stated: “On behalf of the PyeongChang 2018 Bid Committee, I would like to express great appreciation for the committed support from the Hyundai Motor Group and KAN. Their support and the nation’s passionate backing for our bid gives us an extra boost as we prepare for the important International Olympic Committee Evaluation Commission visit to PyeongChang next month.”

The 2011 European Tour will feature three new events in a season that will contain a minimum of 50 tournaments and finish in December for the first time.

The Race to Dubai starts on 9 December, 2010 at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa and ends on 11 December at the Dubai World Championship.

New tournaments in Bahrain, Sicily and Malaysia punctuate the year.

The December finish in 2011 should allow following European Tour seasons to be completed in a calendar year.

European Tour chief Keith Waters said: ” The Race to Dubai will conclude in December for the first time in 2011, enabling us to introduce a schedule based on the calendar year, which has been our stated intention for some time now.

“We anticipate, therefore, that the 2012 season will commence in January that year and conclude in late November.”

The new events in 2011 are the Volvo Golf Champions at the Royal Golf Club in Bahrain from 27-30 January, the Sicilian Open from 17-20 March and the Iskandar Johor Open in Malaysia from 17-20 November.

Wentworth will host the European Tour’s flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship, for the 31st time and 28th in succession, from 26-29 May.

Three tournaments will have new venues with the Ballantine’s Championship taking place at the Blackstone Golf Club in Seoul, the Hassan II Golf Trophy at the Golf de Palais et Golf de L’Océan, in the Moroccan town of Agadir and the Omega Mission Hills World Cup being held at the Mission Hills Resort, Hainan Island.

Waters added: “We are extremely encouraged that The 2011 Race to Dubai comprises not only many of our established tournaments in addition to some new events and venues but also three significant month-long runs in designated locations.

“We start with four weeks in South Africa then four in the Gulf and later in the year there is a similar sequence with the Iberian Peninsula Swing.”

Samsung, apoplectic a TOP sponsor of the Olympic Games, viagra 40mg has partnered with VisitBritain to help promote Britain as a popular tourism destination before, remedy during and after the Olympic Games.

At a high profile event held beneath the iconic Tower Bridge today, Gyehyun Kwon, Vice President & Head of Worldwide Sports Marketing, Samsung Electronics, David Song, Managing Director of Samsung UK & Ireland and Sandie Dawe, CEO, VisitBritain revealed the detail behind an exclusive agreement designed to help promote Britain as a compelling destination for tourism before, during and after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The agreement sets out the commitment to celebrate the Games in Britain and make available fresh information and content provided by VisitBritain to be preloaded on the Samsung Galaxy Tab from December 2010.

Seb Coe, Chair of the London 2012 Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games said: “The London 2012 Games will be a fantastic way to showcase the best this country has to offer – to the spectators, tourists, athletes and media alike. Now visitors will have a chance to find out the best things to do and see in Britain, making sure their experience during the London 2012 Games is the best it can be.”

Secretary of State for Media, Culture and Sport, Jeremy Hunt, commented, “The London 2012 Games provide a fantastic opportunity to boost UK tourism and stimulate lasting economic growth. The Government is investing around £50 million in tourism marketing, and challenging industry to match that to create a £100 million marketing fund to capitalise on 2012 and beyond. This partnership between VisitBritain and Samsung is a great example of what can be achieved when the public and private sectors come together. The UK has one of the most vibrant and varied tourism offers in the world and innovative ideas like this, along with our new marketing fund, will help to encourage more visitors to our shores.”

Sandie Dawe, CEO VisitBritain added, “This exciting partnership with Samsung is about creating an increase in tourism in Britain in the run-up to the London 2012 Games and after. VisitBritain believes that by sharing stunning images, video and information that shows Britain at its best we will encourage people in growing markets around the world – and particularly younger travellers – to visit. We hope that tourists who consult the Samsung-VisitBritain app will be inspired to explore the whole of the UK.’’

Reflecting on the announcement, Mr. Kwon of Samsung Electronics offered: “Samsung is committed to Britain and London 2012. Customers can look forward to consuming exclusive content from VisitBritain on the Galaxy Tab and we hope this combination of great content on a great wireless device will enrich the experience for all of us.”

Samsung renewed its contract with the International Olympic Committee as a TOP sponsor of the Olympic Games in 2007, through to 2016.

The Football Association (FA) has appointed Procter & Gamble marketer Adrian Wells as its head of marketing.

He will lead the marketing of FA assets including Wembley Stadium, sale the FA Cup and the England national teams.

Wells replaces Simon Freedman, doctor who left to become head of sponsorship at O2 earlier this year.

The sport’s governing body has also hired Julian Eccles as group director of marketing and communications and promoted head of broadcast Stuart Turner to lead the commercial department.

Eccles says that Wells will help the FA develop “informed, vibrant and engaging marketing to reach a wider range of audiences.”