Tickets for the London 2012 Olympic football tournament have gone back on sale today.

Around one million tickets have already been sold for the football, capsule but there are still 1.5m left.

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) will also announce later this week arrangements for the sale of remaining tickets for all sports at the Games.

Football tickets have gone on sale since 11am today and will be available until 11pm on Sunday, ampoule May 6 on a first come, generic first served basis at www.tickets.london2012.com.

The Olympic Football Tournament will take place at six venues across the UK – Hampden Park in Glasgow, Old Trafford in Manchester, Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, St James’ Park in Newcastle, City of Coventry Stadium and Wembley Stadium in London.

The draw for the football tournament took place last week. Team GB’s women’s team will start the Olympics with a match against New Zealand in Cardiff.

In the men’s tournament, current world champions Spain will play Japan at Hampden Park while New Zealand will face Brazil at St James’ Park.

LOCOG commercial director Chris Townsend said: “Now that the draw has taken place, we are delighted to put remaining tickets on sale to see some of the world’s most exciting young footballers in the Olympic Games.

“This is a great opportunity for people across the UK to be part of the Games, and see great matches at great prices.”

Tickets for the football start at £20 for adults, with special prices available for under 16s and over 60s at many matches.

by Ismail Uddin

Vector International has announced today the launch of British powerboat team Vector Offshore Racing.

The team, adiposity whose crew is comprised of three experienced English powerboat specialists, will compete in a series of challenging Endurance Racing and World Record attempts over the course of the next two years including the much coveted Cowes to Monte Carlo ‘Venture Cup’ race and a highly anticipated London to St. Petersburg nautical World Speed Record.

Vector Offshore Racing’s crew will be led by multiple-World Record holder Peter Dredge. Veteran racer Peter is the current holder of 15 World Endurance records and has two World and three European Championships to his name. Team co-Founder Mal Crease joins Peter as the second member of the crew. Mal has long held a passion for the sport and worked closely with the Sunseeker XS Racing Team before founding XSMG and Offshore Quest. Tom Montgomery-Swan makes up the permanent three-man crew. Tom was the youngest person to circumnavigate the British Isles in a powerboat, and since then has gone on to take 29 podiums in professional racing, both in circuit and offshore competition.

Vector Offshore Racing will announce its arrival on the world stage when it competes in the highly-prized Cowes – Torquay race in August. This will be followed later in the year by the team’s first World Record attempt, from London to St. Petersburg. This fully UIM-sanctioned attempt will see the crew complete a 2000 nautical mile challenge passing Esbjerg, Copenhagen, Visby and Helsinki along the way. The London to St. Petersburg attempt will break new ground, as no powerboat team has yet made a bid to conquer this route.

An ambitious competition schedule will also see the crew race in the Venture Cup in 2013.  At 2400 nautical miles, the Venture Cup, also known as the Cowes to Monte Carlo Grand Prix, is widely regarded as the most prestigious and toughest powerboat race in the world. At 14 days long, the race is likely to provide the sternest test for the team’s experienced crew in its new V40R powerboat, currently under construction at Vector’s factory in Canada.

The Company also continues to develop in the corporate entertainment and hospitality market. Throughout its busy racing calendar the crew will be offering corporate brands and passengers a chance to participate in its exclusive iRace Programme. Vector Offshore Racing is unique in that it is the only powerboat team in the world insured to carry corporate passengers at high speed, where individuals have the opportunity to become a fully certified member of a World Record breaking crew. The team will offer VIP guests the chance to ride ‘shotgun’ with the drivers and become a fully trained crew member during any of its World Record attempts. Throughout the programme, Vector Offshore Racing will also be enlisting the help of high profile ‘celebrity pilots’ who will also be trained to participate in these World Record attempts. The Vector Offshore twitter feed has already achieved an impressive following, with over 2400 joining in its first few hours of operation.

Tom Montgomery-Swan, Global Sales and Marketing Director commented: “After 12 months of hard work behind the scenes, we are delighted to launch Vector Offshore Racing with so many exciting plans already in place for both the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

“As a team, we have significant experience and pedigree in this sector and I am confident this will help us in our quest to push the boundaries of man and machine, whilst providing strong credibility to support the retail product. We believe that our future achievements on the water will translate into commercial success; once people see what the powerboat ‘lifestyle’ is all about and how accessible it really is, they will want to participate.

“What we offer through our iRace programme is a completely unique and unprecedented opportunity for corporate guests to actually experience, rather than watch from the side-lines. We have already sold seats in the London to St Petersburg record attempt and that’s only the beginning. Our platform can be transported easily all over the world and we are already in discussion with representatives from Qatar, China, India and even Japan about a number of high profile record attempts along their respective coastlines.”

Australian cricketer, Brett Lee’s partnership with H&A, an Alok Group enterprise has reaped its rewards as he launched his sports and casual wear collection.

H&A would show case Brett Lee (BL) active wear and other products in select Mumbai’s stores, and roll out to other stores in the coming weeks, said Mr H&A head Varun Jiwrajka.

The BL product range to be retailed through H&A stores include tees, track pants,  Capri, shorts, bags, sippers and a complete range of accessories. BL Active Wear will be available in $17-$31 price range.

H&A has as on date 204 EBOs (Exclusive Business Outlets) and 173 SIS (Shop-in-Shop) stores on an all India basis and plans to expand its footprint to 241 EBOs and 259 SIS stores by 2012.

Jiwrajka said: “Brett Lee is one of the well known Australian cricketers in India and enjoys huge popularity. With a focused sales and marketing efforts, H&A would help reach out the Brett Lee collection to customers across India.”

H&A president Reshabh Raizada added further, “Brett Lee Active wear line would be a value premium offering. We are offering BL branded active wear products at select stores in Mumbai from today and would like to scale it up to other cities at the earliest.”

Launching his BL clotheslines, Brett Lee said, “I am very proud to present my brand to Indian fans and customers. My association with H&A is in sync with my desire to reach out to all of my fans across India. I am very happy and humbled by the large fan-following in cricket-loving India and hope that they would like and support my active wear line.”

“India with its huge youth population is all set to emerge as a great retail market for active wear and accessories and I am confident that my product range would be a great hit.”

Meanwhile, H&A, which reported revenues of $8.7 million in FY 2011 said it is eyeing over major jump in revenue to $22.220 million this fiscal year.

Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Los Angeles Dodgers, who have been driven into bankruptcy by what the teaam called “a perfect storm,” is to seek court permission to draw on a US$150m loan in a bid to salvage its finances.

According to court documents, the Dodgers have a US$150m financing commitment to support operations while trying to complete a television-rights deal.

MLB Commissioner, Bud Selig, last week rejected a proposed deal with News Corp’s Fox Sports, leaving the Dodgers unable to pay its staff. Frank McCourt, the owner of the franchise, said the 17-year agreement, valued by him at about US$3bn, would have assured the financial stability of the Dodgers.

William Snyder a managing partner at CRG Partners Group LLC and former chief restructuring officer for the American League’s Texas Rangers, said: “He has to get financing in place and according to the financing immediately enter into an arrangement to sell the media rights and get that done in the next six months.”

At the court hearing, the Dodgers are set to ask U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross for permission to borrow US$60m on an interim basis. The financing is provided by JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Highbridge Capital Management LLC.

The Dodgers said in court papers: “The team is now on the verge of running out of cash, the result of a perfect storm of events.”

McCourt claimed that the bankruptcy was triggered by Selig’s refusal to approve the deal with Fox.

He said: “He’s turned his back on the Dodgers, treated us differently, and forced us to the point we find ourselves in today.”

Selig, in response, said the bankruptcy “does nothing but inflict further harm to this historic franchise.

“We have consistently communicated to Mr McCourt that any potential solution to his problems that contemplates mortgaging the future of the Dodgers franchise to the long-term detriment of the club, its loyal fans and the game of baseball would not be acceptable.”

The team is the third most valuable baseball team, with its worth stated at about US$800m.

The Dodgers aim to agree a sale of the TV rights while in bankruptcy, the team said in court papers. The Fox Sports agreement included a US$385m loan, of which US$211.5m was to go toward the team’s operations and working capital.

Earlier this year, McCourt obtained a US$30m personal loan from Fox Sports and used US$23.5m of it to fund the Dodgers’ payroll and other expenses.

The team’s bankruptcy attorney, Bruce Bennett, said that the team is “very substantially solvent” given the value of the rejected Fox Sports contract. He added that the aim of the Dodgers’ bankruptcy is to buy time to negotiate a new TV rights contract and use the money to exit court protection.

Snyder, who acted as chief restructuring officer during the Rangers bankruptcy, predicted McCourt will be successful in selling the TV rights.

He concluded: “He is taking a good approach in auctioning the rights so no one can point a finger.”

The National Hockey League (NHL) has announced it will stage games in Finland, Sweden and for the first time, Germany, to launch its 2011-12 regular season.

The Anaheim Ducks will take on the Buffalo Sabres in Helsinki and the New York Rangers face the Los Angeles Kings in Stockholm on October 7. The Sabres and Kings will then bring the NHL’s first regular-season game to Berlin the next day when the Rangers also meet the Ducks in Stockholm.

The games will represent the fifth consecutive season the League has played games in Europe and NHL Players’ Association executive director Donald Fehr said in a statement: “We want to grow the NHL game around the world, and the games are an important part of that effort.”

Anaheim and Los Angeles will additionally stage exhibition games on October 4 against Jokerit in Helsinki and the Hamburg Freezers in Hamburg, respectively.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman added: “The games underscore the strength of our game, the popularity of our players and the international appeal of our brand.”

League One side Charlton Athletic have rejected a takeover bid from a group led by Swiss-based fund manager Sebastien Sainsbury.

A senior source at the club said the offer had not provided proof of funds.

Sainsbury, a member of the supermarket dynasty, fronted a failed attempt to buy Leeds United in 2004.

Former Leeds United and Cardiff City chairman Peter Ridsdale has denied recent press speculation he is involved in a rival US bid for the Addicks.

That bid is being advised by Bradley Rangell, the managing director of Citibank’s sports finance unit.

Rangell, who has been involved in a number of high-profile takeovers in American sport, has previously made attempts to buy Cardiff City and Hull City.

Sainsbury’s interest in the club first came to light when he registered a takeover vehicle called Charlton Athletic 2010 Ltd in July.

Sainsbury, the great grandson of supermarket chain founder John James Sainsbury, is listed as the sole shareholder of that firm but his group is understood to also include a local property developer.

BBC Sport understands his offer has divided opinion on Charlton’s five-man board with at least two directors concerned about the level of borrowing involved.

World football’s governing body Fifa is set to remove the system for regulating agents, as around 70 per cent of international transfers are conclude without licensed agents.

Fifa’s current agent regulations came into force in January 2008, but the organisation has been meeting over the last year to review how the system is working.

Fifa released a statement that said: “A possible new approach could be to regulate the conduct of clubs and players, and extend the scope of the regulations to include all kinds of intermediaries. In other words, the regulations would stop attempting to regulate access to the activity, and instead control the activity itself.

“This would mean that players and clubs could choose any parties as intermediaries, be they legal entities, lawyers, relatives or spouses, but would have to meet certain criteria and respect certain principles. This approach would also result in the annulment of the current licensing system.”

 

Women’s Rugby Sevens will be included in the 2018 Commonwealth Games which are being held on Australia’s Gold Coast.

”Since the last Commonwealth Games program in Glasgow was announced, women’s Rugby Sevens has gone from strength-to-strength,” ARB chief executive Bill Pulver said. ”Our men’s team have been wonderful ambassadors for Rugby Sevens since the sport’s introduction to the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur in 1998.

”As members of any Commonwealth Games squad – past and present – will testify, the atmosphere surrounding the Games is truly unique and we believe this news will truly leave a lasting legacy for women’s rugby in Australia.”

Rugby Sevens has long been a major fan attraction at the Commonwealth Games with a world-record 171,000 fans attending one of the must-see events at Glasgow 2014, and comes at a time when Women’s Rugby Sevens is going from strength to strength across every continent as the sport counts down to its Olympic Games debut at Rio 2016.

IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset welcomed the news: “The IRB has been a champion of the inclusion of Women’s Sevens in the Commonwealth Games and today’s decision is fantastic news for players and fans of what is one of the world’s fastest-growing team sports.”

“Rugby Sevens is one of the must-see Commonwealth Games events with its winning blend of highly-competitive action, star players and festival atmosphere, reflected at Glasgow 2014 where a world-record crowd for Rugby Sevens of 171,000 were thrilled by an incredible two-day event.”

“We can now also look forward with great excitement to an historic Gold Coast Sevens where Australia will welcome the top women’s players from Commonwealth nations alongside their male counterparts.”

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., herbal the Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Wireless Communications Equipment category, price pills has unveiled a new marketing campaign – “Live the Beats, Love the Games” – for the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games.

The campaign represents Samsung’s extended commitment to the Olympic Movement.

Samsung’s campaign for Nanjing 2014 has been especially designed to engage today’s youth to truly enjoy sports and music—anytime, anywhere—leveraging the unique features of Galaxy S5. 

“As a longstanding Olympic Partner, we are delighted to bring our latest smartphone technology to the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games. Samsung’s ambition for Nanjing 2014 is to spread the Olympic spirit to today’s youth through sports and music, as well as interactive digital experiences,” said Younghee Lee, Executive Vice President of Mobile Marketing, IT & Mobile Division at Samsung Electronics. “Our people-inspired technologies are the perfect companion for young people around the world, encouraging them to pursue their passions, channel their creativity and follow their dreams.”

In the lead up to Nanjing 2014, Samsung will spread the excitement of the Youth Olympic spirit to fans worldwide through a variety of fun and exciting programs. Beginning in July, fans will be able to enjoy musical performances with popular artists who will inspire creativity and connect young people around the world. In addition, Samsung Mobilers will embark on their journey to five cities throughout China, using the Galaxy S5 to capture and share the experiences of summer like never before. Samsung will also collaborate with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on the Young Ambassadors and Young Reporters Program by providing them Galaxy devices for communicating key information to young athletes competing during the Games, fully enjoying all exciting moments and sharing their experience with others through Samsung’s innovative technology.

A range of onsite activities will continue throughout the Games, including the Nanjing Youth Olympic Games Studio, where fans will find exciting ways to interact with the latest Galaxy devices, participate in competitive events and share their experiences.

“We look forward to Samsung’s exciting marketing activities, as they will invite more youth to engage in the Games through its innovative smartphone technology. Samsung’s “Live the Beats, Love the Games” campaign will make Nanjing 2014 a truly inspiring and unforgettable Olympic Games for youth with Samsung,” said Hao Jian, Marketing Director of Nanjing Youth Olympic Games Organizing Committee (NYOGOC).

“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Samsung, a long-standing partner of the Olympic Games and the global leader in mobile technologies. We are especially pleased to announce that we will collaborate with Samsung on the IOC Young Ambassadors and Young Reporters Programs for Nanjing 2014, enabling the young athletes and journalists to maximize their experience through Samsung’s latest technology,” said Timo Lumme, Managing Director of IOC Television and Marketing Service SA.