ESPN STAR Sports (ESS), doctor Global Media Rights partner of the Inetrnational Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket World Cup 2011, is gearing up its production to make sure that the one billion people who tune in from more than 180 territories around the world will enjoy an unrivaled spectator experience all from the comfort of their living rooms.

ESS are launching an array of on-air enhancements and compelling graphic presentation to accompany the insightful and trusted voices of its expert group of commentators.

For the first time, production of the ICC Cricket World Cup with be broadcast in the High Definition (HD) format and audiences will enjoy the most riveting experience as each and every match will be covered by at least 27 cameras, including such innovative features as movable slips cameras and new, low 45-degree field cameras.

ICC chief-executive Haroon Lorgat stated: “We expect the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 to be the most viewed cricket event in the history of the game. The unique passion and enthusiasm for our great sport in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka will help to make this an event to remember and the biggest sporting event anywhere in the world this year.

“And for those people around the world who can’t be there in person, ESS’s production with an unrivaled array of expert commentators and exciting production initiatives will mean that more than a billion people can view every single game across all 13 venues from the comfort of their own home.”

Manu Sawhney, ESS Managing Director, said: “With less than 48 hours to go until the most iconic cricket event, we continue to receive a very positive response from our partners globally and from the sub-continent. The popularity and the significance of the tournament is well reflected in the fact that we have syndicated this event to more than 180 territories across the globe, making it the most widely distributed ICC Cricket World Cup so far.

“The 2011 edition will see many first-of-its-kind initiatives. It will be the very first time that an ICC event will have the Decision Review System (DRS) thus further enhancing the overall presentation of the game. For the very first time, the ICC Cricket World Cup will be shown across platforms in such an extensive manner as online and mobile 3G. Complementing this is a stellar line-up of cricket legends from various countries who will further augment the viewing experience for fans with their insightful and engaging commentary and expert comments.”

A five-member family of mascots for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011 was revealed at a glittering function at the Aspire Park in Doha on Thursday.

The mascots are Jerboas, medstore a rodent found in the deserts of Qatar. The characters are named after different locations in the North, pills South, medical East and West of Qatar.

The launch of the mascots put the preparations of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011 into top gear following the launch of countdown clock, tournament logo and physical ticket sales.

The characteristics of the mascots represent the spirit and values of the host country as well as the tournament itself.

Zkriti, father of the mascot family, is named after the Zekreet area in the west of Qatar while the mother – Tranaa – is named after the Turayna area in the south of the country.

Their eldest daughter, Freha is named after the Freha area in the north of Qatar while the first son Saboog is a common name for Jerboas in the Arabian Gulf, and is associated with speed.

The youngest son in the family, Tmbki is named after the Timbic area in east of Qatar.

The AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011 will be played between 7 and 29 January, 2011.

International Rugby Board chief executive Mike Miller has said that it is a question of “when, not if” a rugby world cup will be played in the United States.

New Zealand will host the Rugby World cup in 2011 and England will host the 2015 Rugby World cup. The rugby world cup will then break the mould by moving to Japan which is not one of the sports big nations.

IRB Boss Miller says that the United States or even Russia could soon follow in the list of countries to host the Rugby World Cup.

“It’s a question of when – not if – it’s going to happen,” Miller told AP.

Rugby has joined the world’s major sports by being included in the Summer Olympics starting from 2016 but only in the 7-a-side format as the 15 man format requires players to have longer rest periods between matches which makes rugby tournaments last much longer.

The IRB wants the Olympics and the Rugby World Cup to raise the game’s profile in countries outside the currently participating outside Europe and Australasia.

The masses in America will be introduced to rugby next year when NBC broadcasts the World Cup from New Zealand for the first time.

2019 World cup hosts Japan have played in all of the past Rugby World cups but have only won once in 20 matches and are considered an emerging nation when it comes to rugby.

Miller says that the IRB named two host nations last year as established rugby nation England will make a big profit while Japan might not be as profitable but it will grow the game. Naming host nations so may years in advance gives planners more time to prepare and work for the event.

“If you only award one at a time, because all of our funding depends upon (the) Rugby World Cup, you’re more likely to take the safe, conservative option,” Miller said.

“If you do two together, you can take a longer-term view. You can say, ‘2015, that’s England, that’s a banker. Loads of money, that’ll work – full stadia, great press coverage.”

“Japan should work and should spread rugby in Asia. Coupled with England? Great, let’s do it. Japan versus England? Not quite so sure.”

If the IRB continues with their plan of rotating emerging nations and bankers the IRB could take the Rugby world cup to the United States in 2027 or Russia who’s broadcast times would be more favourable to the bulk of the rugby population.

“We need to grow the game all over the world and Asia’s a huge market,” Miller said.

“Europe’s a big market with 300 million, but then you look at India and China and you see 2.5 billion.”

The USA would also need to show the IRB that if they did hold a world cup in the region it would grow the game enough to leave a suitable legacy even though they might not need to build much in the way of infrastructure and stadiums.

“There’s no doubt they can hold it,” Miller said. “There’s no point having it if you then don’t have the infrastructure in place to benefit from it. “

“We would need to see what happens as a result of the exposure on NBC and the Olympics as Rio gets closer.

“It’s too early to tell what will happen in the USA in the next three or four years. It will be crucial seeing 2016 and Rio if the U.S. qualify. There’s no doubt the game is growing in the U.S., it’s just a question of how fast it is growing.”

Rugby will be boosted in Russia, who are in the same Pool as the USA in 2011, as they only allow schools to teach Olympic sports and they also allow teams to draw upon funding from national Olympic committees and their facilities.

“Rugby is now on the curriculum in the Moscow region. That’s of huge benefit to rugby in Russia,” Miller said.

“Previously you had after-school clubs, but you were one step removed and it makes things that little bit harder.

“In England, Australia and New Zealand, you start at 6, 7 or 8 years old. If they start at 15 or 16 in Russia or somewhere else, it’s really difficult to catch up those years lost.”

Anheuser-Busch has told Richard Petty Motorsports that the NASCAR team “will not receive the final payment on its 2010 sponsorship contract,” according to sources cited by Dave Moody of Sirius NASCAR Radio.

Anheuser-Bush’s contract with RPM “called for Kasey Kahne to be the driver of the Budweiser Ford, and when Kahne left the team five races early to join Red Bull Racing, that contract became null and void.”

There has been “no confirmation from either the team or Budweiser, and no word on what the final installment of that sponsorship would have been worth to the team.”

Budweiser was on RPM’s No. 9 car driven by Aric Almirola for Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series Amp Energy Juice 500, but ESPN’s Terry Blount noted it is unclear whether they will be on the car the rest of the way and how that affects whether the 9 car will finish the season.

RPM’s future is in jeopardy due in part to co-Owner George Gillett’s financial woes, but Blount said, “It does no one any good — not Richard Petty if he hopes to take over the team, not Roush Fenway and not the creditors — to shut things down with three races to go. I think they’re going to do everything possible to have all four cars finish the season for the last three races.”

The success of this summer’s FIFA World Cup in South Africa has led the president of the African Athletics Confederation to announce the continent is considering a bid for the IAAF World Athletics Championships in 2017.

Hamad Kalkaba Malboum said: “We are encouraged by the recent FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Morocco is most likely to bid for the 2017 World Championships and, if they do, we think they can win.

“Besides Morocco, we know that South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria and Egypt can all stage a successful World Championships but because Morocco tried the bid for 2015 we think they stand a good chance in 2017.”

The 2011 World Championships will be held in Daegu, South Korea, while the 2013 event will be in Moscow, Russia. London and Beijing have announced bids for the 2015 Championships. The event had never been held in Africa.

The German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB) has extended its exclusive cooperation with the international sports marketing company Infront Sports & Media by a further three years.

Infront will continue to market all sponsorship, link advertising and licensing rights of the association, sale the national teams and their home games up to and including 2017.

Franz Reindl, view DEB-President, said: “It’s just great that this successful and intensive partnership is to be continued through until 2017. Particularly at the current time, it is important to have a strong partner supporting German ice hockey. I am overjoyed that the Infront team, with Philippe Blatter and Bruno Marty at the helm, will accompany the DEB and its national teams professionally, dedicated and success-oriented with a view towards the future and the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.”

Bruno Marty, Executive Director Winter Sports at Infront, added: “Ice hockey is a core sport in Germany and due to its popularity has the potential to set off nationwide euphoria. Long-term TV contracts guarantee the sport and its sponsors comprehensive media coverage in the coming years. We thank the DEB for the continued trust. Through our commercial efforts and the subsequent economic impact, we will do our part to ensure the national team can build on past sportive success and prepare in the best possible way for the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship which will be held on home ground.”

The successful marketing partnership between the DEB and Infront has been in place since 2006. As part of a joint venture, the DEB and Infront also form the German organising committee for the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship which will take place in Cologne, Germany and Paris, France.

Hyères, ambulance France and Weymouth, look Great Britain have been named as the European venues for the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup series.

Bids to host the two European regattas of the ISAF Sailing World Cup were carefully considered by the International Sailing Federation with key criteria including a compact venue, first class sailing areas and facilities.

The selection of Hyères and Weymouth adds to the 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup line-up which kicks off in Melbourne, Australia in December 2014 before visiting Miami, USA in January 2015. With the best Olympic class sailors competing for a place at the Final in Abu Dhabi in November 2015 the stage is set for intense racing.

Scheduled for the last week of April 2015, ISAF Sailing World Cup Hyères will be the first regatta to adopt the used 40 boat per event format (25 for the Skiff events), reinforcing the status of the ISAF Sailing World Cup as the premiere series for Olympic class sailors.  

Returning to the London 2012 Olympic waters, ISAF Sailing World Cup Weymouth will take place between 8-19 June with the racing conducted over five days.

ISAF added in a statement: “ISAF thanks all of the venues who submitted a bid for these regattas and their support for the ISAF Sailing World Cup. The strength of the European regattas is clear in the quality of the bids submitted with the selection of the two venues and their qualification regattas indicating a clear pathway from the EUROSAF Champions Cup to the ISAF Sailing World Cup.”

Ticketing provider Paciolan today announced that the University of Colorado Boulder (Colorado) has extended its 29-year partnership with the company.

Colorado will continue leveraging Paciolan’s best-of-breed ticketing, marketing, fundraising and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solutions, and has implemented the company’s data warehouse solution. The university has also utilized Paciolan’s strategic partnership with 3D venue visualization leader Ballena Technologies (Ballena). Colorado has been a Paciolan partner since 1985. Paciolan is a subsidiary of the Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment firm Comcast-Spectacor.

“We have had a long-term relationship with Paciolan and appreciate the level of expertise and services provided by their entire staff,” said Rick George, Athletic Director at the University of Colorado Boulder. “Continuing our partnership allows us the flexibility to unveil new initiatives that expand our relationship with fans and donors to provide a better experience for them.”

Colorado will continue to efficiently sell tickets and process donations in real-time using Paciolan’s industry-leading eVenue online ticketing solution at their branded website CUBuffs.com. Fans and donors are provided with a one-stop eCommerce site that offers the ability to purchase tickets via interactive pick your own seat maps for football and basketball events, as well as online account management.

“Revamping how we organize our seat upgrade process through Ballena’s integration with Paciolan has been one of the most positively received initiatives from our fans,” said Matt Biggers, Associate Athletics Director of External Affairs and Chief Marketing Officer at the University of Colorado Boulder. “Paciolan enables us to deliver creative and technological savvy tools our fans can use to better their experience with Colorado Athletics.”

“Colorado Athletics has seen significant growth and sustained success through new initiatives led by Matt Biggers, along with the entire athletics staff,” said Dave Butler, Chief Executive Officer of Paciolan. “We are excited to continue our partnership with Colorado and continue to see their athletics department grow revenues through innovative programs that allow them to further enhance the fan and donor experience.”