Keine Toleranz gegenüber Krawallmachern und zusätzliche Mittel für Präventionsaufgaben: Im Rahmen einer gemeinsamen Sicherheits-Konferenz haben sich die Klubs von Bundesliga, unhealthy | 2. Bundesliga und 3. Liga heute in Berlin auf ein erstes Maßnahmen-Paket für zusätzliche Sicherheit im deutschen Fußball verständigt. Auf Einladung des Deutschen Fußball-Bundes (DFB) und des Ligaverbandes bekannten sich die Vereinsvertreter in Anwesenheit von Bundesinnenminister Dr. Hans-Peter Friedrich sowie des Vorsitzenden der Innenministerkonferenz der Länder, apoplectic Lorenz Caffier, zum Schutz der einzigartigen Fankultur in Deutschland. Die Stehplätze in den deutschen Fußball-Stadien bleiben erhalten.

Vor diesem Hintergrund wird der Fußball, der schon jetzt in Summe mehr als 25 Millionen Euro jährlich in die Stadion-Sicherheit investiert, seine wirtschaftlichen Zuwendungen für Fan-Projekte ab sofort um 50 Prozent erhöhen. Damit werden Länder und Kommunen, die zuvor im Rahmen einer Drittel-Finanzierung beteiligt waren und nun jeweils nur noch für ein Viertel der Kosten aufkommen müssen, erheblich entlastet. Gleichzeitig sind deutliche Verschärfungen in Bezug auf die Dauer von Stadionverboten vorgesehen – von bislang drei auf fünf Jahre, in besonders extremen Ausnahmefällen sogar zehn Jahre.

Die 2007 vorgenommene Aufweichung wird somit auf Grund der neuen Intensität von Ausschreitungen und Regelverstößen zurückgenommen. In einem gemeinsamen Verhaltenskodex wurden zudem die Regeln für die Gewährleistung eines friedlichen Miteinanders dargelegt. Dieser Kodex sieht neben der Verurteilung und konsequenten Bestrafung von Gewalt eine eindeutige Ablehnung jedweder Art von Pyro-Technik in den Stadien vor. Zuwiderhandlungen sollen, wenn nicht ohnehin von staatlichen Organen oder Sportgerichtsbarkeit zu ahnden, von den Klubs individuell konsequent sanktioniert werden. Bei gewalttätigen Zwischenfällen und Abbrennen von Pyro-Technik sollen künftig dementsprechend Fan-Privilegien, wie beispielsweise der Zugang zu Ticket-Kontingenten, auf den Prüfstand gestellt werden.

Mit Beginn der Bundesliga-Saison werden sich die Kapitäne der Vereine der Bundesliga, der 2. Bundesliga und der 3. Liga mit einer Erklärung gegen jede Form von Gewalt und Pyrotechnik an die Fans im Stadion wenden. Darüber hinaus wurden weitere Handlungsfelder definiert, mit denen sich die zuständigen Gremien bei DFB und Ligaverband ab sofort intensiv befassen werden, um entsprechende Regelungen in die Statuten einzubringen.

Um die einzigartige Fan-Kultur zu erhalten, werden zudem weitere technische, infrastrukturelle und organisatorische Maßnahmen geprüft, wie z. B. der flächendeckende Einsatz modernster Video-Systeme, die an einigen Standorten bereits vorhanden sind. Auch eine neutrale Zertifizierung des Sicherheitsmanagements wird diskutiert werden.

“Wer für den Fußball ist, ist gegen Gewalt. Der Schulterschluss der Vereine ist ein wichtiger Schritt und die beschlossenen Maßnahmen sind für mich ein dringend notwendiges Zeichen, dass sich alle der Verantwortung stellen und für mehr Sicherheit eintreten wollen. Zusammen mit Politik, Polizei, Justiz und der großen Masse der friedlichen Fans muss es uns im Sinne des gesamten deutschen Fußballs gelingen, die kleine Gruppe der Störer und Gewalttäter noch besser in den Griff zu bekommen. Ein klares Bekenntnis zu präventiven Aufgaben und gleichzeitig keine Toleranz bei jeder Form von Gewalt – das wird auch weiterhin unser Weg sein”, sagt DFB-Präsident Wolfgang Niersbach.

“Der Fußball in Deutschland ist ein Erfolgsmodell und soll es auch künftig bleiben. Wir können stolz sein auf eine traditionsreiche Fankultur mit Stehplätzen und moderaten Eintrittspreisen. Diesen Zustand wollen wir schützen. Und deshalb stellen sich die Klubs ihrer Verantwortung im Sinne von Millionen friedlicher Fans. Vor diesem Hintergrund sind die beschlossenen Maßnahmen unverzichtbar. Dialog und Kommunikation bleiben immer die Grundlage unseres Handelns, ebenso unerlässlich ist aber eine konsequente Bestrafung von Fehlverhalten”, erklärt Liga-Präsident Dr. Reinhard Rauball.

Multimillion-dollar racing sponsorships and other sports marketing activities by the U.S. military could be banned, under amendment attached last week by the House Appropriations Committee to the bill that will set the US Department of Defense budget.

Specifically targeted are agreements such as the one between the National Guard and NASCAR’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The amendment, co-sponsored by Minnesota Democrat Betty McCollum and Georgia Republican Jack Kingston, would prohibit the military from spending any money “to sponsor professional or semi-professional motorsports, fishing, wrestling or other sports.”

The National Guard’s investments, according to McCollom’s Web site, are valued at $20 million for fishing and $90 million for motorsports in 2011-’12. The Army and Air Force both have active sports-marketing programs. Sponsorships by the Navy and Marine Corps have been phased out.

The action comes as auto racing’s biggest weekend approaches. Last year, National Guard-sponsored cars nearly swept the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 races, with J.R. Hildebrand crashing and Earnhardt running out of gas, both while leading their respective races on the final lap.

Last week’s action in the House reprises McCollom’s effort last year to introduce legislation banning such efforts.

“At a time when Congress is increasing defense spending by cutting ‘Meals on Wheels’ for vulnerable seniors and nutrition programs for hungry children, it’s time to eliminate wasteful Pentagon spending on NASCAR, fishing and ultimate fighting sponsorships that have nothing to do with our national security,” McCollom said in a statement posted on her Web site.

Over the past few decades, following the advent of the all-volunteer military as the draft was phased out after 1972, branches of the armed forces have expanded their advertising and marketing campaigns to include sports sponsorships.

The service budgets also pay for conventional media advertising and outreach programs, including involvement in events such as high-school ball games, with displays, exhibitions and an interactive presence by military recruiters.

Those budgets are part of the Department of Defense spending plan, all elements of which are coming under hard scrutiny as the federal government goes deeper and deeper in debt and the economy stumbles.

Sponsorship of sporting events by the military dates from the 1991 Daytona 500, when five unsponsored cars were decorated in the livery of the five military services. The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard did not pay for the advertising.

Cricket’s Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise the Sahara Pune Warriors (SPW), owned by the Sahara Group, have signed-up sportswear brand adidas as the apparel partner for the team.

SPW Director Abhijit Sarkar stated: “Adidas is the apparel partner for Pune Warriors. We are also talking to several other companies for sponsorships which will be finalised soon.”

Sports marketing company, Percept Sports has marketing mandate of the Pune franchise.

Apart from SPW, adidas is also the apparel partner of league rivals the Mumbai Indians and Delhi Daredevils.

Earlier, Team Kochi which has been named Indi Warriors Kerala had signed-up Italian sportswear brand Lotto as official apparel partner.

Sao Paulo-based agency Traffic, marketers for the media rights to major soccer tournaments, have completed a string of deals with European broadcasters for the television rights to major South American matches.

Among the competitions that Traffic market the rights for include the Copa America in Europe, and top European competitions – including England’s FA Cup – in South America.

An agreement has been reached in Portugal with Sport TV, who will broadcast the 2011 Copa America, the continental championship for national teams, as well as the biggest tournament in South American club soccer, the Copa Santander Libertadores, in 2011 and 2012. Sport TV will also air matches from the Copa do Brasil, the Brazilian domestic knock-out competition.

Sport1 of Germany, have secured TV and internet rights to this year’s Copa America. Meanwhile, Argentina’s home qualifying matches for the 2014 Fifa World Cup will be shown on TV2 in Norway and Supersport in a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

As well as its operations in broadcast media and sponsorship activation, Traffic manages an investment fund worth just over US$24 million to take leading soccer players to new clubs. In January, this group was central to a deal that brought former Fifa World Player of the Year Ronaldinho home to Brazil from AC Milan to play for Rio de Janeiro club Flamengo.

Steve Lawrence, the architect who wrote the original masterplan for the London Olympics and Paralympics, has written to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, stating that he should not approve West Ham’s bid for sole use of the Stratford venue after the 2012 Games.

The architect has constantly stood by his view that West Ham should ground-share with Tottenham Hotspur at a revamped Olympic stadium – with the revenue being used to build an adjacent athletics venue to preserve the legacy.

Lawrence was commissioned by Stratford Development Partnership over 10 years ago, to carry out an alternative feasibility study for the Olympics. He proposed that any venue in Stratford should, after the Games, be shared by Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United as anchor tenants with the idea being rejected by local land-owners, who were fearful of rowdy fans.

Johnson, along with two UK government officials, are believed to be ready to ratify the decision to award West Ham the rights to the Olympic Stadium after the Premier League strugglers secured preferred bidder status from the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) last week.

However, Lawrence says that the solution is doomed and has urged Boris Johnson not to let it happen for fear of wasting public money, and instead to support the ground-share scheme he initially proposed.

Lawrence wrote to the Mayor, as well as the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, stating: “It is appalling that the original proposal for a shared use of the Olympic Stadium by Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham with the revenue stream being used
to fund a Centre for UK Athletics has not been considered appropriately.

“I wrote to your predecessor, Ken Livingstone, several times from 2000 on about this, your office has therefore been aware of the proposal for ten years.

“I cannot understand why this proposal has not been considered, it is far and away the most cost effective and in not considering it properly, your office is complicit in wasting vast sums of taxpayers and ratepayers money.

“I hope you will now set aside the OPLC recommendation which is highly flawed and instigate a more accountable analysis of proposals including the possibility of a shared use of the stadium.”

Related Discussion: West Ham Olympic Stadium Financing by Stephen Pearson

Switzerland and in particular, Zurich’s best-known soccer side, Grasshopper-Club may be forced to leave the nation’s capital, home to the likes of FIFA and the IOC, after a major disagreement with the city’s authorities.

The club, who have been inhabitant’s of the city since being founded 125 years ago, are considering a provisional move to ground-share with league rivals Aarau.

Grasshopper have been Swiss champions on 27 occasions and cup winners on 18, but president Urs Linsi stated: “Better for the club to live in Aarau than die in Zurich. We have no alternative but to move out.”

The falling out has come with regards to rental costs that the club has to pay for its Letzigrund stadium, almost US$900,000 per season, as well as policing costs of nearly $867,000 for match days.

June 2013 is being lined up by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the inaugural Test World Championship. The governing bodies CEO Haroon Lorgat has revealed that the current rankings will be used to decide the four play-off spots.

There is currently no tournament in Test cricket to determine the top test nation and the form of the game has struggled to keep up with the ever popular Twenty20 version of the sport. In light of this the ICC has proposed a tournament in which the four best performing nations will contest in semi-finals before the winners meet in a fight for the world title.

Lorgat released a statement explaining the new proposal, saying: “I think the first possible opportunity for us to have a play-off is in 2013 which means that the current rankings table would need to be used

“For example, right now Australia would be struggling to qualify for the play-offs. But there may be another scenario with somebody else would also be in the frame depending on this result they might slip in.

“Going forward we’re looking at a league table that would be worked on points and for match winnings, Lorgat said, but details on how to treat draws, which occur regularly in test cricket, were yet to be decided.

“One option is whichever is the highest ranked team would progress through. There’s the possibility of the timeless test, you’ve got to get to a result”

Lorgat also confirmed the 2015 one-day international World Cup hosted by Australia and New Zealand will be stripped from 14 teams to 10, while the biennial Twenty20 World Cup tournament to be hosted by Sri Lanka in 2012, would be expanded from 12 to 16.

Richard Thompson is confirmed as the new Chairman of Surrey County Cricket Club. Thompson, cialis 43, becomes the youngest Chairman in the country and also the youngest in the Club’s history. He replaces the outgoing Chairman David Stewart, who led Surrey for seven years.

Speaking after his confirmation, Mr. Thompson said: “I am honoured to become Chairman of Surrey County Cricket Club. David Stewart will be a tough act to follow and Surrey owes him a great deal of thanks for the contribution he has made in the past seven years as Chairman and further seven as Honorary Treasurer before that.

“Surrey is a unique and great club. Despite a period without trophies, I am confident that with the players coming through, the foundations are in place for a period of success in the future. Our Members and supporters have been patient and supportive over the past few seasons. I hope with a policy of growing and developing our own talent wherever possible, that any success Surrey CCC may enjoy will be built on firm foundations with Surrey grown talent at the core.

“Cricket is going through a period of great change. I will do all I can, to help steer Surrey through those challenges and be a stronger Club as a result.”

David Stewart added: “It has been most enjoyable and a real privilege to have steered the Club through such exciting and challenging times these last seven years. I am convinced that Richard is the right person to lead the Club through the next chapter in its rich history.”