Watford Football Club have inked a four-year catering contract with Lindley Venue Catering worth £5.6m ($8.8m)

The sports stadia catering arm of the Lindley Group will look after all aspects of the catering, hospitality and events business at the club’s 19,900 capacity Vicarage Road ground.

The services were previously provided in-house, but the club’s new chief executive Scott Duxbury aims to develop a new revenue stream with the appointment of a contractor.

“We have been looking at all aspects of the club and felt that catering and hospitality was an area where we could benefit from the expertise and experience of a specialist,” commented Duxbury.

“In speaking to other people in the business, Lindley’s name constantly came to the fore and I was aware of their reputation and had seen the results they were achieving at Premiership and other Npower Championship clubs.”

As well as catering, Lindley will be responsible for the sales and marketing function to increase use of the facilities for non-match day events.

Jonathan Davies, sales & marketing director at Lindley Group, added: “The fact that we were approached by Watford FC because they were looking for a caterer with a point of difference speaks volumes for how Lindley is now perceived.

“As a business with a new management team Lindley has also undergone something of an evolution over the past two years and with the creation of the Lindley Venue Catering division we have honed our skills in the professional stadia catering sector.”

NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes have announced today that the Coyotes have renewed their affiliation agreement with the Arizona Sundogs of the Central Hockey League (CHL).

Vice President of Hockey Operations and Assistant General Manager, Brad Treliving said: “We are pleased to have this relationship with the Arizona Sundogs as we look to continue to grow our sport throughout the state of Arizona.”

The Sundogs play their home games at Tim’s Toyota Center in Prescott Valley, Ariz. Arizona is one of 12 teams that compete in the CHL. The franchise was founded in 2005 and hosted the CHL All-Star Game last season.

“Last year’s affiliation with the Coyotes was positive for both organizations,” Sundogs General Manager Chris Presson said. “David Schlemko is just one example of why an affiliation between the Coyotes and the Sundogs is so exciting. We were proud to have him here and we’re looking forward to assisting the Coyotes in the future.”

Military sponsorship of sports is set to continue after a bill to end military sponsorship was defeated in a vote of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday night.

An amendment introduced by Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) and Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) attempted to prohibit the military from spending public funds on sports sponsorships, such as the No. 88 car driven by Dale Earnhardt Jr. that is backed by the National Guard. A similar measure authored by McCollum had failed twice previously, and the Kingston-McCollum amendment was initially defeated by a voice vote. But McCollum demanded a recorded vote, which occurred Wednesday night, where the measure was defeated by a narrow 216-202 margin.

On Monday, NASCAR and four other major sports leagues — the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball and IndyCar Series — sent an open letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) asking him to help ensure the amendment was not adopted. In addition to the National Guard’s presence, the Air Force is also an associate sponsor on Aric Almirola’s No. 43 car at Richard Petty Motorsports. The amendment was part of a much larger $608 billion Dept. of Defense appropriations bill for 2013.

Earlier Wednesday, House members vigorously debated the merits of military sponsorships in sports. Kingston, whose district includes Savannah, quoted published figures stating that the National Guard spent $26.5 million to back Earnhardt’s car at Hendrick Motorsports in 2010, but that the money produced no actual recruits. He also claimed that NASCAR audiences aren’t an ideal target of military recruitment, because 69 percent of the sport’s fan base is over the maximum age for enlistment.

“I’m as pro-military as they get,” Kingston said on the House floor. “… and the only thing that’s a bigger population [in my district] than my military are my NASCAR fans. And yet [what] they’re saying to me is, we’re pro-NASCAR, but … we can spend this money a lot better than we are today.”

McCollum used the Army’s recent decision to withdraw as sponsor of Ryan Newman’s car at Stewart-Haas Racing after this season as evidence that military sponsorship doesn’t work. “Over the past few days, professional sports have come out in full force to protect their taxpayer-funded subsidy,” she said. “For the purposes of the 2013 defense appropriations bill, those pro teams are military contractors, who have failed to deliver on their contract in the past with the taxpayers for recruits.”

But Kingston and McCollum were the only members of the House who spoke in favor of the amendment, and they were outnumbered by those rising in opposition. stment when factors like media exposure and apparel sales are factored in.

“This is a huge return for the buck,” he said. “This is why Fortune 500 companies actually advertise through NASCAR. Not because it feels good, but because it delivers results. And the fact is, no matter the size of the military, you’re still going to need recruits.”

Wednesday’s vote on military sponsorships was much closer than McCollum’s two attempts last year, when similar measures went down 281-148 and 260-167. The defeat of Wednesday’s amendment does not affect the recent decision by the Army to pull out as a NASCAR sponsor, which was announced July 10 because of what the branch called a “reallocation” of marketing funds that “will not include a presence in NASCAR.” The Army’s departure after this season will mark the end of a decade-long run in the sport.

With the tournament just on the horizon, drugs Rugby League World Cup 2013 has today announced three key partnerships in major categories for the licensing programme.

ISC Sports have been appointed to provide the official line of supporters apparel for the tournament.  As the official kit supplier to the RFL, sickness as well as several Super League clubs, ISC are looking to build on already strong partnerships with Rugby League in the UK and Australia.

In addition, Steeden have been named Official Ball Supplier for the tournament, across all training and matches.  Steeden is the leading ball supplier in the game and this reaffirms them as suppliers of ‘the ball of choice’ across the game of Rugby League.

B&M Leisure have also joined the programme as Ties Licensee and more companies are expected to sign up as the event draws closer.  An extensive range of merchandise will be available throughout the tournament, with licensees also able to take advantage of the global nature of RLWC2013 by producing country collection ranges using national colours and emblems of competing nations.

RWLC2013 will be hosted by England and Wales and will form an integral part of ‘the golden decade of sport’ in the UK. The event takes place in autumn 2013 and will see 14 competing teams at 18 different venues across England, Wales, Ireland and France. Upwards of half a million people are expected to watch the 28 matches live over the six-week tournament period with a further 20 million viewers from 120 countries tuning in around the world.

Rob Singleton, commercial manager for RLWC2013 said: “It’s vitally important to get the right deals done quickly for RLWC2013. VBM’s experience and knowledge of Rugby League makes them the ‘go to’ licensing agent for us. They are very much a safe pair of hands and we look forward to a successful partnership.”

James Ashworth, managing director of Velocity Brand Management, the worldwide licensing agent for the tournament, added: “Our aim with this licensing program is to not only tap into the passion that exists for the game across its established fan-base but to also capitalise on the new supporters that RLWC2013 will bring to the game.  The increased profile you only get by hosting a tournament such as this and the true international exposure and appeal provides a fantastic opportunity to extend our licensing footprint across the UK and competing nations.”

by Ismail Uddin

Fox Sports have lodged an appeal looking into blocking the sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team’s television-broadcasting rights.

The appeal is the first step in its attempt to persuade a federal district court to overturn a decision by the bankruptcy judge overseeing the Dodgers’ case to allow the team to solicit bids for the rights.

The filing didn’t include any legal arguments or details about why Fox believes the Dec. 8 decision by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross in Wilmington, bronchi Delaware, should be overturned.

Dodgers, owner Frank McCourt is selling the team, which filed for bankruptcy in June. To increase the value of the team, the Dodgers are soliciting separate offers for the rights to televise future games, which Fox holds through next year.

Gross gave the team permission to begin trying to sell the rights months before the Dodgers’ current contract with Fox allows. Fox argued in court that it will be harmed by accelerating negotiations.

Mohamed Bin Hammam will run unopposed to retain the presidency of the Asian Football Confederation on January 6.

The Qatari power-broker is set for his third and final four-year term at the helm of the AFC, having confirmed earlier this year that he won’t challenge current FIFA president Sepp Blatter for his position in 2011.

Jordan’s Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein and Chung Mong-Joon of South Korea will contest the position of FIFA Vice President.

The latter is a potential challenger for Blatter’s leadership though, having been critical of the 74 year-old and his organization in the past.

Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein is the president of the Jordan Football Association, as well as the West Asian Football Federation – which he founded – which consists of 13 member associations, including the likes of Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Bin Hammam’s FIFA executive seat is secure through 2013, after he won a bitterly fought election against Bahrain’s Sheik Salman bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa in May last year.

Asia provides four members of FIFA’s 24-member ruling panel, whose most important task is choosing World Cup hosts.

The current FIFA executive committee will vote for the 2018 and 2022 host nations in a secret ballot on Dec. 2 in Zurich.

The AFC has four contenders in the 2022 poll, with Australia, Japan, Qatar and South Korea taking on the United States.

The prime ministers of Poland and Ukraine have dismissed criticism of the countries’ preparations for the 2012 Uefa European Football Championships.

Donald Tusk and Mykola Azarov have said that the stadiums for the tournament will be ready on time, despite Uefa president Michel Platini’s concerns over the construction work of the Kiev and Liviv stadium projects.

Platini has since withdrawn his threat to strip Ukraine of its co-hosting role after an acceleration in construction of the two projects.

Tusk, prime minister of Poland, said: “We are confident that the championship, which is important for Europe, will take place in four Ukrainian and four Polish cities.”

Martin Kallen, operations director for the 2012 event, has said the 69,000 seat stadium in Kiev could be complete by next June, while the 35,000-capacity Liviv venue is on target for completion in August.

 

The 2018 US Women’s Open has been awarded to Shoal Creek, located near Birmingham, Alabama.

The event will take place from May 31 to June 3 of that year.

“Shoal Creek has a great track record as a championship site and the USGA is quite pleased to partner with the club for a US Women’s Open,” US Golf Association vice president Daniel B Burton said on Tuesday.

“We regard Shoal Creek as a wonderful test of golf and are confident it will again shine as a competitive venue for a USGA national championship.”

Shoal Creek has previously hosted the 1986 US Amateur Championship and the 2008 US Junior Amateur championship.

Burton said the tournament dates signal the implementation of the USGA’s plans to hold the Women’s Open prior to the US Open, the second major on the men’s calendar which is always held in June.

“Conducting the US Women’s Open earlier in the year will allow the USGA to provide optimum playing conditions for the world’s best players across a broader variety of the country’s finest golf courses,” Burton said.

The US Women’s Open has been held prior to the US Open only three times in its 69-year history, in 1996, 1999 and 2001.

This year’s US Women’s Open is scheduled for June 19-22 at Pinehurst, North Carolina – the week after Pinehurst hosts the US Open, second men’s major of the season.

This marks the first year that the two national championships will be contested on the same course in back-to-back weeks.

The 2015 US Women’s Open will be conducted at Lancaster Country Club in Pennsylvania on July 9-12, the 2016 championship will be conducted July 7-10 at CordeValle in San Martin, California, and the 2017 US Women’s Open will be conducted July 13-16 at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey.