iSportconnect, Author at iSportConnect

International Media Executive (Thai Proficient) – Leicester City

Location: Leicester, discount UK

Closing Date: Open until filled

Overview:

Key Responsibilities

To effectively and efficiently work with the media and marketing teams at King Power International to ensure delivery of their LCFC media-specific requirements.
To develop a regular stream of LCFC content for a Thai audience that will adequately populate the Thai-specific LCFC platforms managed by King Power’s media and marketing teams – both adapting existing content for a Thai audience and exploring specific, targeted content that will be used exclusively in Thailand.
To explore opportunities for the Club to penetrate other target territories through establishing media contacts, recommending new and emerging content channels and developing a more acute understanding of our international audiences.
To effectively manage the International PR Executive and make best use of their skills to achieve our goals.
To aid the development of the Club’s relationship with King Power International through facilitating regular e-meetings and, where necessary, international visits that might improve the media team’s working processes.
To develop potential PR opportunities and campaigns in Thailand and in other target territories so that a tailored content plan can be developed for major club events and announcements

Skills & Experience Required

Desired:

Fluency, spoken and written, in both English and Thai. Thai written copy should be up to professional publication standards.
At least three years of experience as a media professional and an excellent understanding of both the UK and Thai media landscapes.
An appreciation for Thai culture and an acute understanding of the country’s values.
Excellent organisational skills and the agility to adapt to changing circumstances at short notice.
Outstanding, creative and accurate Thai copywriting skills, particularly skilled in translation from English and proof-reading experience.
A creative, open-minded approach to work. • The ability to listen to others and to work well as part of a team.
The ability to work under pressure and to deadlines. • Competence in IT, including the use of standard Microsoft Office programmes.
An awareness and experience of social networking, including platforms used in the UK, Thailand, China and other territories around the world.
The ideal candidate will be flexible to work unsociable hours including home and away matches as well as attending to work on Club events.

How to Apply: visit http://www.sportsrecruitment.com/jobs/details/2422/international-media-executive-thai-proficient

London’s sports tech industry boosted by announcement of new sport technology incubator

The Digital Revolution Continues event advances ambition to make London the sports tech capital of the world by bolstering connections between technology and sport sectors in the capital

London’s sports technology industry was boosted today with the announcement of a new tech hub to support London’s fastest growing SportTech and FitTech start-ups. Backed by a partnership between London Sport and London & Partners, herbal | the incubator will be London’s first sports tech hub to bring together leading sports industry companies and start-ups under the same roof.

The new facility will be housed in London Sport’s four-story forthcoming ‘House of Sport’ project, denture providing tech, ambulance digital and data start-ups with direct access to the sport sector in an environment designed to foster innovation and collaboration.

Set to open in early 2017, the tech hub will help to advance national efforts to bring the sport and technology industries closer together while providing bespoke support to start-ups focussing on SportTech and FitTech.

Backed by London & Partners, the Mayor of London’s promotional company and London Sport, the tech hub will support early-stage tech that can help create happier, healthier and more active populations in London, nationally and globally.

Peter Fitzboydon, Chief Executive, London Sport said, “Building effective partnerships with technology is the biggest opportunity for getting more people active in the foreseeable future. London’s standing as a global hub of tech innovation makes it the perfect place to form these partnerships, and this new tech hub will create an environment which breaks down barriers and opens up opportunities for start-ups, for the sport-sector and, ultimately, for people in London and around the world who want to be more active in a way that works for them.”

Scott Thompson, Chief Commercial Officer, London & Partners added,“London is a leading global centre for sport and is open to innovation and technology from all over the world. The success of London’s booming tech sector has been built on a culture which encourages entrepreneurs, large corporates and start-ups to share ideas and collaborate. This is the essence of the sports tech lab which will be London’s first dedicated sport and health tech lab to bring together some of the country’s biggest sports bodies and London’s best sports tech start-ups under the same roof.

“From sports tech to events tech, we see an opportunity across a range of technology sectors to establish incubators which bring together the right people from London’s tech community. We have already had some great success supporting the growth of some of London’s most exciting travel technology start-ups with our Travel Tech lab and we look forward to replicating this with the sports technology incubator.”

The London Sport and London & Partners Sport Tech Hub will be open to start-up and early-stage tech companies focussed specifically on making it easier for people to be involved in physical activity and sport, and will support up organisations looking to build relationships with the sport sector in London.

Nottingham Rugby agree IT deal

Nottingham Rugby have announced Air-IT as their official IT partners for the second season running, which will once again see the local IT support firm’s logo being proudly worn on the back of player’s shorts throughout 2016/17.

Air-IT’s sponsorship came about in 2015, after supporting the club’s ICT systems over several years previously.

Speaking about the club’s continuing relationship with the award-winning managed service provider Steve Smith, General Manager of the Green and Whites said: “The support that Air-IT has been able to give to the club has helped us to improve what we do off the field. The company has been extremely supportive and we have developed an excellent partnership, which is constantly helping the club to improve and move forward.”

Paul Judge, Marketing Director at Air-IT, then added: “We’re always keen to help support our local sports teams and are delighted to get behind the Green and Whites for the second year running. It’s a fantastic local club, steeped in history with promising plans for the future.

“It’s great to help contribute in some way and be part of the Nottingham Rugby family. We wish the new head coach, team and club every success in this coming season – both on and off the pitch.”

Air-IT are also continuing their Corporate Player Sponsorship of Morgan Eames for the second successive season.

Basketball Champions League (BCL) and Canal+ agree three year deal

Basketball Champions League (BCL) and Canal+ have reached a three-year agreement for the French broadcaster to carry full coverage of the Basketball Champions League, cheap running each season from October to April.

Canal+ will show a minimum of 56 games during the regular season (from October to January), medicine followed by the Playoffs and all Final Four games (from March to April).

Basketball Champions League CEO Patrick Comninos endorsed the partnership with Canal+.

“It is a great pleasure for us to announce this signed agreement with Canal+, prostate a leading broadcaster group in France and in Europe,” he said. “The Basketball Champions League exposure will be maximised thanks to the various offer of Canal+ channels, and we are glad to see the Basketball Champions League extending its experience through digital coverage. This broadcast agreement also complements the contribution of Canal+ to basketball, offering the best of its experience to its viewers, and to each and every basketball fan.”

In the same vein, Thierry Cheleman, Sports Director of Canal+ Group: “The Canal+ Group is very pleased to strengthen its sports offering. We wish to offer the best of the sport to our viewers and the return of basketball during weekdays on our channels is great news. The Basketball Champions League is a brand new European competition where the best French teams will be facing the rest of Europe.”

West Ham agree deal with Thomas Cook Sport

West Ham United have announced that sports travel and accommodation specialists Thomas Cook Sport are to become an Official Match Breaks Supplier of the Club.

As part of the agreement Thomas Cook Sport will be offering Match Break packages to the Hammers’ truly global fan base, discount including tickets to matches at the Club’s fantastic new home, apoplectic accommodation and match day programmes.

West Ham United’s Vice-Chairman Karren Brady said, impotent “We are delighted to be teaming up with Thomas Cook Sport as we enter such an exciting era for the Club.

“It’s fantastic that our fans from all over world will have the opportunity to experience Match Breaks expertly organised by Thomas Cook Sport sampling the famous West Ham United atmosphere in our iconic new home on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.”

Rob Slawson, Head of Thomas Cook Sport said: “We’re delighted to be working closely with West Ham United on an amazing Match Breaks product. West Ham United are a truly global club and we look forward to creating and offering a special Match Breaks experience for the club’s fan base.”

EXCLUSIVE: Developing Football around the World

FIFA is going through, perhaps, its toughest time ever. A scandal removed its last president, courts around the world are combing through its documents, and the newly elected president is fighting ethics charges.

While the antics of the executive committee get the press talking, and have hit FIFA’s reputation hard, FIFA have been trying to get on with their day to day purpose – developing football around the world. FIFA announced in March it will spend nearly $1.5 billion on developing the sport globally- a new record.

Mike Pfister is the senior development manager at FIFA, and said that investment in the game has never been so high:

“Right now what you can definitely say is that we are on the upwards trend in terms of the investment that we are putting into football development. The means that FIFA is putting at the disposal for the development of football across the world – that’s never been so high. There is a strong upward trend in terms of the focus and the investment. We are putting in a lot of financial might and power into the investment of of football. We are reinvesting the money that comes into football, back into football.”

However, the scandals that have engulfed FIFA over the last few years have hurt the organisation. Its 2015 accounts showed a loss of $105m, the first time since 2002 that FIFA has posted a loss. Such a turbulent time affects all areas of the business. Pfister admits the current climate is challenging, and that changes are needed, but is confident people will regain trust in the organisation:

“The landscape which is gaining the attention of the global media is a small segment of the whole work that FIFA does. FIFA has always been a strong player in the development of football. Going forwards, a lot of changes need to take place, and are taking place. Reforms are never easy. Reform is a marathon without a finish line, you’ll never feel finished. In terms of development, there has never been as much focus on development as there is now. We believe in this model, we are absolutely confident that eventually people will start to regain trust in FIFA as an organisation – when all this hard work comes to the fore again and shines through the negative news stories that come out.”

Pfister and his team are looking globally, but one country in particular is moving at a sensational speed in their quest to develop the game: China. Many are predicting China will become a footballing superpower one day – they have ambitions of hosting a World Cup in the 2030s. But Pfister believes they are already there:

“It depends what you consider a world superpower. That could be in the performance of its club teams and of its national team. But I think that in terms of the masses that support the sport, it is already a global power. Some of our European clubs would dream to have some of the fan bases that the Chinese clubs have. In many ways it is already a power. Of course you have to translate that into high performance football, and go on elite football and focus on the communities and the countryside and increase inclusiveness of football participation.”

“Football is a global phenomenon, but football trends also follows economic trends. So Asia is looking like one of the key points on the radar. That’s not only because of the talent that you see which has growing momentum, but also it is backed by financial might, and high growth rates within this market. That’s a very good ingredient to the popularisation of football.”

Such a ringing endorsement of the state of Chinese football, by one of the key men tasked with growing football globally, is significant.

Businesses linked to football would do well to listen closely to Pfister – as football continues to expand into emerging markets.

Everything you need to know about the IOC’s decision to allow Russians at the Olympics

What does it mean?

That Russian athletes can compete in the Olympics, subject to meeting the conditions the International Federations and the IOC lay down.

What conditions are they?

For the IOC it has two main ones – the first, no Russian ever convicted of doping can compete. The second, that they have been subjected to anti-doping control outside of Russia. For the 28 IFs, they will have to make their own decisions, in line with their own rules, with under two weeks to Rio.

Can other previously banned athletes, not from Russia, still compete?

Oddly, yes. This was an element of the judgement that caused controversy. Many still think that an Olympic life ban should be in place for anyone caught doping.

Have any IFs reacted to the decision?

The IAAF have already banned Russian athletes, with a handful of exceptions. The weightlifting federation has also banned Russia, along with two other countries. These two sports have had the biggest problems with doping, as outlined by the McLaren report. Generally the bigger the sport, the more likely it is that Russians will be able to compete, as they will be more likely to be training outside the country. The ITF (tennis federation) has already cleared their athletes for Rio. The International Equestrian Federation President Ingmar De Vos said “there is no indication of any organized doping malpractices within the Russian equestrian delegation.” and as such will likely send a full team. The International Sailing Federation and World Archery have also cleared the Russians to compete.

What did WADA recommend?

The executive committee of WADA recommend a blanket ban of Russian athletes. WADA said they were ‘disappointed’ with the decision, but accepts the IOC’s authority on the matter.

So how many Russians will be in Rio?

The original Russian squad was 387 members – but with the IAAF’s decision to ban most athletes, that will drop to around 325. Estimates vary on the eventual size of the Russia squad, but many think it will still be large: from around 250 to 270.

What’s the reaction been?

Several anti-doping and government agencies are furious.

– The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), launched a scathing attack on the IOC, claiming they had “refused to take decisive leadership”.

– New Zealand’s anti-doping authority, Drugfree Sport NZ, said the IOC “failed to show adequate leadership in protecting the integrity of sport”.

– The UK’s sports minister Tracey Crouch said that “the scale of the evidence in the McLaren report arguably pointed to the need for stronger sanctions rather than leaving it to the international federations at this late stage”.

– Australian sports minister Sussan Ley said it was a “horrifying thought” that clean athletes might not be able to compete on a level playing field at Rio

However several IOC members felt the IOC got the decision correct.

Triathlon president Marisol Casado said “I truly believe this is a good way of protecting the clean athletes & still fighting against doping”.

John Coates, a IOC vice-president, said “We did not want to penalize athletes who are clean with a collective ban and, therefore, keeping them out of the games.”

Naturally, the Russians were also pleased. “We’re grateful to the IOC for allowing Russian athletes into the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro,” said the sports minister, Vitaly Mutko.

What does this mean for the Games commercially?

The fear is that sponsors will shun working with the Olympic movement generally – guilty or innocent. Sophie Morris, Strategic Marketing & Sponsorship Consultant at Millharbour Marketing said:

“The IOCs decision not to enforce a blanket ban on all Russian athletes raises the issue of a rights holders responsibility to uphold the principles and values of their sponsorship property. If they don’t and, if a sponsor deems there to be potential damage to their reputation as a result, they should reconsider whether that sponsorship still fits in their strategy.”

“If the property still achieves their objectives, reaches the right audience, is part of their long-term strategy and fits their brand values, then they should consider staying and supporting the effort to reform, if it is not out of control. If it doesn’t fit their brand values any longer and they can prove that reputational damage has been done to their brand, then sponsors could consider walking away and should have clauses in their contract and reputational risk insurance that would allow them to do so.”

“A blanket ban would remove not only the large number of athletes from the competition but also the large viewing audience from the Russian market that sponsors are already activating heavily in. Whilst no one wants to see clean athletes prevented from taking part, the rights holder needs to ensure the long-term value of sport is upheld, but also sponsors should be working actively with federations to help them improve, making sport better, and sponsorship value better, as a result.”

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FIFA accept Scala resignation

FIFA has accepted Domenico Scala’s resignation as Chairman of the Audit & Compliance Committee with immediate effect.

The decision was made to permit the Council to appoint members on an interim basis to the vacant positions of the new committees so they can start fulfilling their roles as part of the ongoing reform process until the next FIFA Congress in 2017.

In addition, arthritis the measure allows for the swift removal of members who have breached their obligations.

The Council fully respects the independence of the Audit and Compliance and the Ethics committees, anabolics and any suggestions to the contrary are without merit.

Find out more HERE.

The Kia Oval becomes official venue partner of Ticketing and Hospitality Masterclass

iSportconnect, pills the world’s largest global private network of sports business executives, is delighted to announce the Kia Oval as the official venue partner for our Ticketing and Hospitality Masterclass.

The masterclass on the 19th May will be partnered by Sportsworld, the specialist hospitality, travel and event services company.

We’re also pleased to announce Darrel Pugh from SAP and Nick Reynolds from Populous will be panellists at the Masterclass.

Reynolds and Pugh will be joining:

– Paul Fisher, Group Managing Director of The Jockey Club

– Richard Harris, Head of Ticketing at the RFU

– Robert Byrne, Managing Director of AXS (AEG)

– Matthew Botten, Senior Director of Premium Seating at The O2

– James Elliot, Vice President and General Manager EMEA of UFC

The Kia Oval, based in Kennington, London is home to Surrey County Cricket Club while also hosting England International Cricket matches.

The Oval, with a capacity of over 24,000, is one of the premier cricket venues in the United Kingdom.

Nicholas Reynolds is Director of the London office of Populous, he lead the 60,000 seat football stadium for Olympique Lyonnais, a new arena for Bristol and the transformation of the London 2012 Olympic Stadium, taking the iconic building from its successful games use to its long-term multi-functional legacy.

In 2004, Nicholas founded their internal brand activation and experience agency, Populous Activate. Populous Activate specialises in connecting brands to sporting and entertainment venues and fans, delivering commercial value through innovative design. Recent clients include the Premier League, Manchester City FC, O2 and Cadburys.

Darrel Pugh is Head of Sport and Entertainment , UK and Ireland at SAP.

They are the market leader in enterprise application software at the center of today’s business and technology revolution.

With Run Simple as their operating principle, SAP helps streamline processes, giving companies the agility to create new growth opportunities for business with the world’s most innovative platform.

SAP innovations help 300,000 customers worldwide work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively.

The event will consist of three panels looking at a range of topics:

Panel 1 – Getting the right balance

This panel will discuss if some sports have gone too far in pricing the fans out.

Are sporting events becoming too corporate? What is the answer and how do we get the balance right?

Panel 2 – What does the modern hospitality client want?

This panel will look at what clients want from hospitality and if the industry is meeting their expectations.

What are the right hospitality tiers to offer? How do you maintain the loyalty of long-standing customers while increasing the value to the business? How can a venue revise and reposition long-standing hospitality facilities?

Panel 3 – Technology & the Future of Ticketing

This panel will look at what trends, innovations and technologies will deliver the next generation of live sport & entertainment ticketing solutions.

How do you balance the commercial requirements and public demand to tickets at major events? How do you balance constitutional and contractual obligations while trying to grow new data? How we can use that data – below the line use of data, intelligent use of insight – to help us to grow the ticketing business?

iSportconnect Chairman Michael Cunnah said: “We are pleased to announce that such prestigious brands as the RFU and AEG will be part of our Ticketing and Hospitality Masterclass. The variety of experience will provide an interesting insight in how companies operate differently within the sector.”

About the Masterclass Invitation Policy: The Ticketing and Hospitality Masterclass is an exclusive invite only event to senior industry executives and other similar positions at governing bodies, federations, teams/clubs and brands only

The discussions will be held without the press and under Chatham House Rule, allowing for an open and free flowing debate.

To register your interest please contact Calum Watkins at calum.watkins@isportconnect.com

Event Partner:

Global Partners

Ironman Acquires Lagardère Sports’ Endurance Division

Ironman has announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Lagardère Sports’ endurance division.

Ironman will therefore own and/or operate an additional five International Triathlon Union (ITU) events, order four marathons, medstore six cycling races as well as a number of other participation events.

Full story HERE.