UK Sport has been boosted by a 29% increase in funding given to them by the UK government as part of its autumn Spending Review.
The agency was fearing a cut to its budget but the government says it is committed to building “on the success of Olympic and Paralympic games at London 2012”.
Full story HERE.
The Milwaukee Bucks released the following statement from President Peter Feigin on the Milwaukee Common Council’s passage of the arena financing proposal:
“Today is a truly historic day for Milwaukee and Wisconsin, unhealthy and the culmination of months of hard work from an incredible coalition passionate about our community’s future. Thanks to the support of Sen. Kohl, Mayor Barrett and the Common Council, and other elected officials in both Milwaukee and Madison, this transformative public-private partnership is now a reality. Now it’s time to get to work creating jobs and building a better Milwaukee – not just for the Bucks, but for all citizens of this great state.”
Read more HERE.
Sports marketing company Infront Sports and Media has entered into a joint venture with the Danish Ice Hockey Association.
The two parties will support the organisation of the 2018 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.
Read more HERE.
Formula One team Williams have announced a loss of £42.5 million for 2014.
This is in huge contrast to the £11.9m profit they made in 2013 and with the team finishing in their lowest ever position of ninth in the 2013 Constructors’ Championship, the loss can be attributed to a reduction in prize money and sponsorship.
They posted an overall turnover of £71.2m, significantly lower than the £106m in 2013.
Mike O’Driscoll, Group Chief Executive Officer, said: “The financial performance of the Group in 2014 reflected the poor on-track results of the prior three years, which resulted in a marked deterioration in commercial rights and sponsorship income.
“Last year was also adversely impacted by the costs of relocating our Advanced Engineering activities. Our much improved performance in the 2014 Championship will be seen in higher commercial rights and sponsorship income in 2015, coupled with improved performance from our Advanced Engineering division.
“Our ambition in 2015 is to consolidate the progress we made last year, continue building the necessary foundations for future sporting and commercial success, and consequently to materially improve our financial results for the coming years.”
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Paul Downton has been sacked as the Managing Director of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
Downton only spent 14 months in the role but has paid the price for England’s poor showing at the recent Cricket World Cup.
Read more HERE.
A number of bids were placed this week to buy National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise the Atlanta Hawks with the highest bid believed to be $800 million.
The deadline for bids to be submitted was Tuesday after Hawks owner Bruce Levenson put the NBA team up for sale in September.
The Hawks are currently enjoying an impressive season and top the Eastern Conference in the NBA with a 41-12 record.
Read more HERE.
The ATP has announced that an ATP World Tour 250 tournament will be held in Geneva from 2015.
The tournament, therapy which will relocate from Düsseldorf in Germany, viagra will be staged at the Tennis Club de Genève at the Parc des Eaux-Vives in Switzerland.
The Geneva Open will take place from 16 to 23 May in 2015, returning to the Swiss city for the first time since 1991.
Chris Kermode, ATP Executive Chairman & President, said, “We’re delighted to welcome an internationally renowned city like Geneva back onto the ATP World Tour from 2015.
“The Tennis Club de Genève is a beautiful club that carries a lot of history in the sport. This new event will make an excellent addition to the ATP clay court season in the Spring.”
Ion Tiriac & Rainer Schuettler, Tournament Owners, said, “Geneva is a beautiful city and the Tennis Club de Genève is the most traditional Club situated in the wonderful Parc des Eaux-Vives.
“Not only did it stage a prestigious tournament for years in the 80s, but Swiss tennis in general has produced some of the best players over the years; winners of Grand Slams, Olympic Medals and now competing for the Davis Cup title.
“We are delighted to have the pleasure to organise this new professional tennis tournament together with the close collaboration of the City and Canton of Geneva and the Tennis Club de Genève.
“Our recent discussions in Geneva have convinced us that all the ingredients are there in order to organise a first class event that will please the fans, players and partners alike.”
Alain Tripod, President of the Tennis Club de Genève, said, “The Tennis-Club de Genève welcomes an ATP 250 with international reach in the wonderful Parc des Eaux-Vives.
“We are looking forward to working with the experienced organisers and the local authorities in order to continue the tradition of the Club to stage high-level events over its 100 years of history.”
New Zealand has confirmed there will be a team in the 35th America’s Cup in 2017 after the team secured the finances to compete.
The Emirates Team New Zealand’s participation in the event had been thrown into doubt after reports surfaced that raising funds had been difficult and that the government was not willing to contribute.
However, ampoule the team has now said that sufficient private and sponsorship funding had been secured for them to partake in the next stage, clinic despite the lack of government assistance.
Chief Executive Grant Dalton said in a statement: “The funding support for the team that has coalesced over the past week means we can continue the design and engineering development, and keep racing, until main sponsorship funds begin to flow.”
He also confirmed that designers and engineers were working on the software needed for the next challenge.
There will always be internal conflict in any business when it comes to Social Media. Sales v marketing v communications!
According to some experts in the field of social media it is all about reach, retention and revenue and this is refreshing and a message that is often lost in the world of Facebook and Twitter. Don’t get me wrong fans love to see their hero wearing a Santa hat but if they look and then don’t even consider buying anything then the contact has been a waste.
As mentioned any social media campaign should reach the right customer, retain their interest and generate revenue. Working in sport the battle is to make sure that the revenue element is the main purpose of any customer contact, although not so overtly commercial that the fans opt out or switch off.
Communication departments will always want to use action shots and emotive images to excite the fans but will it sell a ticket or a shirt?
The debate will always rage and the route taken will be determined by who leads the business, the CEO will influence. The sales arm of the business will want to sell, sell, sell but the communications side will simply want to inform. If it doesn’t push people towards a purchase or raise the profile of a sponsor then consider it carefully.
It isn’t simply about how many followers you have but how quickly this continues to grow and what you say to them. Sports clubs will always be nervous about using the players they have to help sell their brand but pick your players carefully and make sure they are on message for you. They will soon realise that the more followers the more they could benefit should they decide to release a clothing range!
Acting quickly and making the message relevant is the key with any message, leave it too long and the interest has gone. You only need to look at the NFL Superbowl, while the lights were out for 34 minutes Oreo tweeted an image with “you can still dunk in the dark” which ultimately got them as much coverage for almost nothing as their multi-million dollar advert. It was retweeted 10,000 times within the hour.
If you can find a way to ensure that Communications realise the importance of sales and the sales realise the importance of engagement then the marriage can be a happy and profitable relationship that bears fruit or at least lots of people who follow you on Facebook and less time looking for kittens that sneeze.
Adrian Blackburn is the Head of Corporate Relations for Bolton Wanderers FC. Adrian is responsible for all business to business sales including matchday hospitality, sponsorship and advertising. He has worked at BWFC fr five years and also held a similar position with The Wigan Warriors Rugby League Club.
