The International Rugby Board (IRB) have announced today that the organisation will undergo a major rebrand and will be known as World Rugby from November 19, 2014.

The new brand, including a new logo, will be launched at the IRB World Rugby Conference and Exhibition in London on November 17-18.

Global Rugby participation has boomed by more than two million to 6.6 million players over the past four years, driven by the commercial success of Rugby World Cup, the IRB’s development strategies and record investment, strong and vibrant Unions and Rugby’s re-inclusion in the Olympic Games.

The rebrand will have no impact on Rugby World Cup 2015 branding or positioning, which will remain as it is with its iconic logo throughout the current event cycle.

IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: “Rugby continues to thrive, reach out and engage new audiences and participants in record numbers and the IRB has been at the heart of that growth.”

“We are committed to furthering that growth beyond our traditional family and fan base with a public that expects to be entertained, informed and interacted with. This move is more than just a name change, it is a mission statement.”

IRB Chief Executive Brett Gosper added: “In a crowded global entertainment and sporting marketplace, the role of the IRB has evolved from Game regulator to Game inspirer.”

“With this we must continue to appeal to those who know and love the sport and its heritage, while attracting, engaging and inspiring those who have no connection with the sport across multiple cultures and languages around the world.”

“World Rugby collectively has the ingredients and tools to do just that. Rugby’s global appeal is founded and positioned on its unique character-building values and inclusive ethos and we want everyone to feel connected with the sport and Rugby’s ongoing success story.”

“World Rugby clearly aligns our name with our mission and allows us to organise new and existing consumer facing properties in a way that they will be more impactful and more appealing to the sport’s growing global fan base.”

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BMW have selected agency TRO to activate their sponsorship of the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, viagra 40mg Scotland between the 23th and 28th September 2014.

As Official Car Partner, BMW has enjoyed an excellent partnership with the PGA European Tour and the Ryder Cup since 2006. TRO was responsible for delivering the event experience on behalf of BMW at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor.

The project involves the design, build and event management of the BMW Lounge, an interactive brand experience in the Tented Village and management of the BMW courtesy car service.

Michael Wyrley-Birch, chief operating officer TRO EMEA commented: “We’re delighted to have been selected to support BMW with the delivery of an exciting and interactive brand experience at this year’s Ryder Cup. We have worked with BMW for over 20 years and are proud to have produced some of their most high-profile sponsorship activations, including the PGA Championship at Wentworth, which we’re delivering for the 10th time this May.”

He added TRO will also be delivering its tenth sponsorship activation for the brand at the PGA Championship at the Wentworth Club in Surrey on 22-25 May.

Manchester City’s hopes of expanding their stadium have been officially granted after planning permission was approved. 

The Premier League club want to increase both ends of the 47,670-capacity arena by 6,250 and add up to 2,000 additional seats around the pitch.

Manchester City Council confirmed that a planning application to add up 14,500 extra seats at the Etihad has been approved allowing City to boast one of the largest Premier League stadiums at 62,170. They stadium will only be in the shadow of Manchester United’s Old Trafford.

It will be the club’s second major construction project in quick succession following the building of the £200m City Football Academy adjacent to the stadium.

Current Premier League Stadium capacity:

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Former Los Angeles Lakers Shaquille O’Neal has revealed he has purchased a minority stake in the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, despite the fierce rivalry he had with the team in his playing days.

Kings majority owner Vivek Ranadive was introduced to ‘Shaq’ through fellow investor Mark Mastrov, who combined with O’Neal to introduce his 24 Hour Fitness gyms to Florida after the centre was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004.

“I wanted to find somebody to add to the ownership group who truly represented 21st century basketball, who represented my vision of NBA 3.0,” Ranadive said.

“The most iconic person on the planet was Dr. O’Neal.

“Dr. O’Neal and I spent a day at my house shooting hoops, hanging out with my kids, and just talking about how to create the franchise of the 21st century.”

Sports network ESPN recently labelled Sacramento last in its annual ranking of NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB franchises, and O’Neal is looking forward to rising up in the future.

“Worst is at the bottom, which means you can’t get no worser. There’s no such things as worser, which means we can only get better. And we will get better.”

‘Dr. O’Neal’ – who holds a doctorate degree in education – is enthused about the prospects of returning the Kings to its former glories, but the television identity must first win over the Sacramento fans.

The Lakers eliminated the Kings from the 2002 playoffs in one of the most controversial series in NBA history, which involved a referee who was later sentenced to prison on match fixing charges.

Prior to the 2002-03 season, O’Neal referred to the Kings as the “Sacramento Queens” but now says he only made the remark because he is “an expert at marketing.”

“What interested me in this deal is the new vision, the new Kings, the new everything,” O’Neal said.

“I’ve always wanted to be part of something like this. It’s going to be great.”

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone will have to wait until next year to learn if he will stand trial for bribery charges, a Munich court has revealed. 

English-born Ecclestone, was charged in July with bribing a German banker to smooth the sale of a stake in the motor racing business to private equity firm CVC eight years ago.

At the time, the court had said a decision on whether to proceed with a trial was not expected before mid-September. But the decision has been delayed.

Ecclestone’s lawyers have said they plan to submit further extensive statements related to the case, and an imminent staffing change at the court will further delay the matter, the court said in a statement on Friday.

“The counsel of the defendants have announced they will make further submissions that the court should wait for,” the court said in a statement. “Taking that into consideration as well as an imminent change of judge in the relevant chamber, a decision on opening the case can no longer be expected this year.”

The 82-year-old has denied wrongdoing and said he will fight to clear his name. The case could mean a further delay to tentative plans to float Formula One on the stock market in Singapore and will revive speculation about an eventual successor to the man who turned the sport into a major global business.

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The National Football League (NFL) have announced sell-outs for its two regular-season games in London in 2013.

Speaking in his annual eve-of-Super Bowl press conference in New Orleans, generic | Commissioner Roger Goodell said:  “We are announcing today that our 2 games on London (in 2013) are already sold out. It is a sign that the game is growing globally.”

After six successful games at Wembley Stadium since 2007, the NFL recently confirmed that two games would be played there in 2013, with the Minnesota Vikings hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday September 29 and the Jacksonville Jaguars at home to Super Bowl finalists San Francisco 49ers on Sunday October 27.

All tickets released for sale in the UK have sold out over the past month, with allocations set aside for the competing teams to sell to their local fan-base. 

“I think the message is clear,” Commissioner Goodell continued. “There are passionate fans who love the NFL in the UK. There is another step we now need to look forward to.

“What is the next step? Do we move to three games, are there other ways to grow the game in the UK? This is a market where we need to be more active and to grow our game.”

Any tickets remaining unsold by teams will be returned for sale to UK fans later in the year.

Sunday sees the Wembley-bound 49ers bid for a record-equalling sixth Super Bowl victory when they face the Baltimore Ravens in the Mercedes Benz Superdome, kick-off 11:30 pm UK time. 

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