Peter Ridsdale Banned from Being a Company Director for Seven Years

Peter Ridsdale, ampoule the former chairman of Leeds United, Barnsley and Cardiff City football clubs, has been disqualified from acting as a company director for seven-and-a-half years, following an investigation by Company Investigations team in Manchester, part of The Insolvency Service.

Mr Ridsdale, 60, of Carnforth, Lancashire, has given an undertaking to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) barring him from acting 
as a company director, and from managing or in any way controlling a company, from 19 October 2012 to 18 April 2020, due to his conduct as a director of W H Sports Group Limited (WHSG).

Sophie Victoria Ridsdale, 45, Mr Ridsdale’s wife and co-director of WHSG, has also been disqualified after providing a similar undertaking which will run for three-and-a-half years from 19 October 2012 to 18 April 2016.

Investigators found that WHSG traded from 2003 to 2007 and was used by Mr Ridsdale to provide sports and leisure consultancy services to football clubs.

The company went into liquidation on 22 April 2009 with assets of £22,592 and liabilities of at least £478,698, including £442,353 owed to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

In a statement, the Insolvency Service said: “Between May 2007 and March 2009, he (Ridsdale) acted improperly and in breach of his duties to WHSG by causing payments totalling £347,000, received for invoices raised by WHSG for services provided to a football club of which he was the Chairman, to be paid into personal bank accounts held in his own name, to the detriment of WHSG and its creditors.”

Commenting on Mr Ridsdale’s ban, Claire Entwistle, Director of Company Investigations North at The Insolvency Service, said: “As someone who has had many directorships, Mr Ridsdale ought to be aware of the responsibilities that come with such a position.”

Best of Times Secures Licensing Agreements with 30 College Team & Nine Nascar Drivers

Best of Times, an entertainment equipment and lifestyle company, announced today that it has secured the licenses for more than 30 new college teams, as well as 9 of the top NASCAR drivers.

The agreement will increase offerings of the company’s flagship product, the Best of Times Bar & Entertainment System, a professional-quality, fully customizable party display. In addition to all 32 NFL teams, 50+ colleges and NASCAR designs, party themes and custom print options are available to the public — all with interchange functionality.

Themed print sets allow customers to transform the unit from one party to the next, taking it from a tiki theme to a tailgating or backyard party centerpiece in less than five minutes. The expanded licensing substantially increases the Best of Times product line, which now offers more than 100 interchangeable designs and limitless options through custom printing.

“Sports fans are enthusiastic, vocal and proud of their teams. All year long, no matter what the sport is or where a game is held, the fans are supportive every step of the way,” says Alex Dinsmoor, president of Best of Times. “We’re thrilled to provide a product that allows die-hard fans to celebrate their teams and show off their pride anytime, anywhere. We truly believe that our product is the most versatile piece of indoor/outdoor furniture someone can buy.”

The Best of Times display is a patented, professional-quality event centerpiece that is engineered for everyday use. The entire system fits in a wheeled travel case for easy transportation and can be assembled or disassembled in minutes, without tools. 

The new licensing agreements mark another milestone in the growing company’s mission to expand its line with quality partners. Best of Times’ pursuit of additional licensing means it’s continually adding new image options.

Los Angeles Dodgers Sale Finalized

The Los Angeles Dodgers, Guggenheim Baseball Management LLC GBM”) and Frank McCourt today announced the completion of the sale of the Dodgers to GBM for $2 billion.

The Dodgers’ new ownership includes Mark Walter as the controlling owner, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and Stan Kasten as CEO of the organization.

The Los Angeles Dodgers stated, “The Dodgers emerge from the Chapter 11 reorganization process having achieved its objective of maximizing the value of the Dodgers through a successful Plan of Reorganization, under which all claims will be paid. The Dodgers move forward with confidence – in a strong financial position; as a premier Major League Baseball franchise; and as an integral part of and representative of the Los Angeles community.”

The Dodgers have won six World Series titles but none since 1988, when they were still owned by the O’Malley family that moved the team from Brooklyn to California after the 1957 season.

Kentaro Secure Renewed Sponsor for Leading Boxing Promoter

Guenstiger.de, sale the leading German online price comparison website, order  will continue to reach millions of television viewers on Saturday evenings after extending its contract as main sponsor of Europe’s biggest boxing promoter, Sauerland Event.

The logo of guenstiger.de will continue to be displayed exclusively on the ring mat. The presence on advertising boards and backdrops as well as billboards, tickets and on the official boxen.com website is also guaranteed by the deal.

Heiko Krink, project manager at Kentaro Germany, stated: “We are delighted to have been able to convince guenstiger.de to commit to boxing in the long-term. Sauerland Event’s fights regularly reach between four and eight million viewers on public television. They provide an excellent advertising platform and guarantee a high visibility of the advertising message throughout the whole of Germany.”

Sauerland Event general manager Chris Meyer added: “We offer our advertising partners a premium product with great appeal and an enormous reach. Our cooperation with guenstiger.de has been very successful, thus extending the deal is the logical consequence of a win-win situation.”

 

Breeders’ Cup sets record for ticket sales

The Breeders’ Cup, which began Friday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, has hit a new record for ticket sales and expects to set records for attendance as well, said Breeders’ Cup President & CEO Greg Avioli.

“We have just gone over $10 million in sales and the previous record was $6.9 million in 2006,” Avioli said.

Avioli cited the return to Kentucky after five years as well as interest in undefeated mare Zenyatta, who will go for her 20th win in as many tries in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the event’s finale at 6:45 p.m. Saturday, as reasons for the boost in sales. “It absolutely would be a positive thing for the sport of horse racing for Zenyatta to win this race and to move to 20 and 0,” Avioli said. “That type of publicity is exactly what the horse racing industry needs.”

Avioli said that the media attention the event has drawn is three to four times what it normally is because of the presence of Zenyatta, who has been featured on “60 Minutes” and in a “Sports Illustrated” story, among other media outlets. Avioli said he expects attendance at the two-day event to exceed 100,000. The previous record was 96,000 in 2009.

He predicted that wagering on the races in the two-day event would exceed $200M, up from $178M last year. One reason Avioli said he expects an increase is Churchill has a dirt main track whereas Santa Anita Park, the host of last year’s event, had a synthetic track. High roller horseplayers prefer to bet on dirt tracks, he said.

2015 Turkish Ladies Open Set to Become First Golf Tournament to Finish on Wednesday

The 2015 Turkish Ladies Open is set to become the first tournament on any major golf tour to finish on a Wednesday, it has been revealed today. 

In a bid to boost the profile of the women’s game, the arrangement will ensure that the tournament receives extended live television coverage on Sky Sports and Golf Channel and will be watched in more than 50 countries worldwide.

“The Ladies European Tour (LET) strategy includes exploring new ways to provide maximum exposure to women’s golf, widening the fan base beyond traditional golf fans, reflecting the reality of changed consumer behaviours and avoiding busy weekends which are over populated with so many sports,” said Ivan Khodabahksh, the LET’s CEO.

The Turkish Ladies Open will be played from Sunday 17th to Wednesday 20th May, with record prize money of 500,000 euros, an increase of 100 per cent on 2014.

The President of National Golf Club, Dr Bulent Göktuna, recently shook hands to an equal stake joint venture with Mr. Fikret Özturk, the Chairman of Opet and Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort. The tournament will now alternate annually between the National and Carya Golf Clubs with next year’s event taking place at the beautiful Carya Golf Club, designed by the great Australian golfer, Peter Thompson.

Dr Bulent Göktuna, the Chairman of Mineks International, the promoters of the six previous Turkish Ladies Opens, which have all been played at the National Golf Club, commented: “It is our intention that the Turkish Ladies Open will continue to improve and grow as an international sporting occasion. I believe that playing the two courses on alternate years adds a new dimension to the tournament. We all look forward to continuing our strong partnership with the Ladies European Tour and the players, many of whom we have developed strong relationships with through the last seven years.”

Dr Göktuna also stated that he believes that the cooperation between the Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort and the National Golf Club will have a very positive effect on the future of the Ladies European Tour in Turkey: “The doubling of the prize fund to 500,000 Euro is the first step. Our ambition is to put the event on to the world stage. The Wednesday finish is unique for all, but will have a massive effect on the TV exposure worldwide.”

The 2015 Turkish Ladies Open will be the seventh edition of the tournament.

FIFA to Discuss Reducing Number of Stadiums Used at 2018 World Cup

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has revealed soccer’s world governing body will discuss the possibility of reducing the number of stadiums to be used at the 2018 World Cup

Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko recently unveiled detailed background about Russia’s plans for their World Cup in four years’ time which involves 12 stadiums in 11 cities, but Blatter is looking to downgrade. 

He said: “It’s a footballing country but we will have meetings there in September to see if 12 is the right number and even if they could be reduced to 10.”

Blatter’s comments came as a complete surprise to Alexei Sorokin, the chief executive officer of the Russian Organising Committee, who said: “This is the first I have heard about it, we know nothing about this.” 

Blatter described the Brazil World Cup as “very, very special”, giving it a mark of 9.25 out of 10, but said he was troubled that it cost in the region of $11billion to stage. Mutko has suggested the Russian event will cost $20billion to stage the event.

“It’s obvious the World Cup has taken such a dimension that the organisation is a hard work for the organising country and also for the FIFA,” he said.

“FIFA is looking at 2018 now and we are in discussions on what is the ideal number for the organisation and to keep it in such a manner that it’s feasible, reasonable and controllable.

“We are not going to be in a situation as is the case of one, two or even three stadiums in South Africa where it is a problem of what you do with these stadiums.” 

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Ukraine Stripped of 2015 European Men’s Basketball Championship

FIBA Europe have confirmed today that Ukraine will no longer host the 2015 European Men’s Basketball Championship.

In a stement they said: “The decision was taken after a careful consideration of the continuous political situation and security issues in Ukraine, which deemed as less than favourable for the staging of such an important and demanding event.”

“The Board took note of the efforts made by the Ukrainian Federation and the country’s giant strides in recent years, including a 6thplace finish at EuroBasket 2013 and their participation in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.

“In that regard the Board declared its willingness to help the Ukraine Federation in its efforts to promote basketball and decided to authorize the President of FIBA Europe Turgay Demirel and the Secretary General Kamil Novak to start negotiations immediately with the Ukrainian side on the possibility of the country hosting EuroBasket 2017 and provided that some necessary conditions are met.”

The organisation will now search for a new location for EuroBasket 2015 and are inviting bids from all European Federations inviting single or multi-country bids.

All interested parties will have to present the required official documentation and guarantees by 31st July, 2014.

A decision on the new EuroBasket 2015 hosts is expected by 30 September, 2014 at the latest.

Maldonado Expects to be Unaffected as Venezuela Looks to Cut Sponsorship in Motorsport

With Venezuela’s new sports minister set to cut the country’s financial support for motor racing, F1 driver Pastor Maldonado believes the new policy will not affect his race seat at Lotus.

Maldonado has long been supported, either directly or indirectly, by Venezuela’s state-owned oil giant PDVSA. 

Since Maldonado entered F1, PDVSA have provided sponsorship, initially to his maiden team Williams and now current marque Lotus, understood to be around £27million per year.

But in light of Venezuela’s current financial crisis, sports minister Antonio Alvarez has categorically stated “there will not be another dollar for motorsport”.

Alvarez added: “It is unfair to use state money in disciplines that do not contribute to the development of sport in this country.”

Alvarez’s comments come in light of a currency scam that has engulfed motor racing in Venezuela, with at least five drivers involved.

It is understood the drivers have been earning considerable sums by manipulating Venezuela’s strict controls on currency exchange.

Maldonado, however, insists neither he nor PDVSA are affected as he said: “The sports minister is not sponsoring me, and PDVSA is not part of his programme. They are separate.

“The oil company doesn’t talk about sponsorship in Formula One. This was a communication from the sport minister, and that’s it.

“The ministry of sport does not support Formula One, but they were sponsoring a lot of drivers before.

“Last year this had a big impact on motorsport because most of these drivers were apparently taking money from the government.”

New Investors Bring Cash Injection for Formula E

Formula E Holdings, series promoters of the FIA Formula E Championship, has revealed today a new wave of investors securing 50 million euros for the electric racing series.

The main investors in this round are Qualcomm Incorporated, through its venture capital arm Qualcomm Ventures, and Andorran-based private equity fund Amura Capital. Both have committed to the new electric race series, alongside existing investor Causeway Media Partners – owners of the Boston Celtics NBA basketball team. The three join current shareholders Spanish entrepreneur Enrique Bañuelos and Alejandro Agag, CEO of Formula E Holdings.

A further three shareholders are expected to be announced shortly with all receiving a seat on the Formula E board of directors.

Formula E Holdings is a privately funded consortium which holds the exclusive licence from the FIA to promote its new fully-electric racing series, which hosts its inaugural event on September 13 racing around Beijing’s iconic Olympic ‘Bird’s Nest’ Stadium.

Steve Pazol, GM of Wireless Charging for Qualcomm, which is also a Founding and Technology Partner to Formula E, said: “We are very excited to deepen our relationship with Formula E. We look forward to demonstrating our technology throughout the race series, including our Qualcomm Halo wireless charging on the Qualcomm Safety Car, and wireless data connectivity and other technologies on the race cars themselves. Formula E is the perfect way to demonstrate the leading edge of technology of this next generation of environmentally responsible transportation.”

Ivan Comerma, CIO of Amura Capital, said: “As a private equity fund, this investment makes sense in a diversified portfolio of best-class and unique opportunities for our clients. It is a project that shares many of the same values of our company, going that one step further by investing in the environment and sustainability with large doses of innovation. All of this is done without forgetting about the main keys to our investment offers: exclusive and profitable products for our clients.”

Alejandro Agag added: “I would like to welcome the new investors that have joined us in this exciting venture. I want to thank them for their belief in this project, which will see the first ever low carbon cars racing in cities all around the world. Our new investors also show their commitment to sustainability, and add great experience and solidity to the FIA Formula E Championship. What started out as an idea, is now becoming a reality. With the first cars delivered to the teams in just over a week, and works beginning around the Olympic Park in Beijing, Formula E is moving closer to its goal to show fans around the world the true potential of electric cars.”