UK Sport has announced an extra £2.3 million investment will be put into Olympic and Paralympic sports in the build up to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
The decision was made due to the Annual Investment Review and is aimed at enhancing medal potential at next year’s Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Read more HERE.
Premier League runners-up Liverpool have elected Carillion to carry out the £75m work on their expansion of Anfield.
The ground will increase to approximately 59, pills 000 people if planning permission is granted, cure making Anfield the third largest ground in the league – behind Manchester United’s Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal.
The work is expected to take 20 months and there are hopes that the construction will start later this year.
Richard Howson, chief executive of Carillion, said: “Being selected for this prestigious project reflects Carillion’s reputation for high standards of quality, Health and Safety and sustainability.
“We look forward to working closely with Liverpool Football Club to create new world-class facilities at its famous Anfield Stadium.”
The news means that Liverpool are edging ever closer to their plans to renovate their iconic home ground, rather than move to a new home.
For many years Liverpool have debated whether to upgrade Anfield or find a new location, with Stanley Park often touted as a possible site for a new stadium.
The upgrade to Anfield will see the Main Stand expand by 8,500 seats and the Anfield Road stand collect a further 4,800 seats.
The corporate and hospitality areas will also be expanded as Liverpool aim to close the gap in this area on their Premier League and European rivals.
Tom Doyle, project manager for the construction of the Olympic Stadium in London, has been hired to oversee the project.
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The International Cycling Union (UCI) has refuted claims they helped cover up Lance Armstrong’s doping.
United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) chief executive Travis Tygart said that Armstrong has evidence suggesting that the UCI covered up his doping.
A spokesperson for the UCI said: “The fact is that Mr Tygart has no evidence of any wrongdoing and has chosen to make headlines on a convenient interpretation of a conversation he had with Lance Armstrong.
“He should establish the facts before jumping to conclusions. The UCI welcomes any assistance and clarification that Lance Armstrong may wish to give Mr Tygart on the matter.”
The UCI disbanded an independent commission it established to investigate the contents of the USADA report which helped expose Armstrong.
Tygart hoped the UCI would carry on investigating older claims of a cover-up and failings regarding Armstrong
The UCI spokesperson added: “It’s all very well Mr Tygart talking about co-operation, but let’s not forget that the independent commission was only disbanded because of Usada’s and Wada’s point-blank refusal to co-operate with it.
“Simply, the UCI was left with no choice but to close it down; it made no sense to go forward without the participation of these two bodies.
“One can only assume that their refusal to co-operate with the independent commission was due to their fear that their own shortcomings would be exposed.
“After all, Usada and Wada also tested Armstrong over many years and also failed to catch him. It was only with the benefit of the US federal investigation that Usada was finally able to gain evidence of Armstrong’s doping.
“No attempt by Travis Tygart to rewrite history will change the fact that Usada failed to catch Lance Armstrong having tested him just 49 times during his career. The UCI by comparison tested Armstrong 189 times.
“As Mr Tygart himself admitted Thursday in other media reports, it was the UCI in its campaign against doping, not Wada or Usada, which caught Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton.
“And it was the UCI catching these two high-profile riders which ended up with them confessing and so enabled the investigation to move against Armstrong.”
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The German Football League (DFL), allergy which encompasses the top two tiers of German football, unhealthy has allocated broadcast rights for the next four years for countries including Switzerland, Austria, Lichtenstein and Luxembourg.
From the beginning of the 2017-18 season, broadcast in the aformentioned countries will be provided by Sky Deutschland, Eurosport and DAZN.
Sky is set to offer 572 games per season, with Eurosport airing games on Fridays, Sundays, and Mondays. DAZN will concentrate on providing highlights clips in the digital arena.
Bayern Munich currently lead the Bundesliga, just ahead of RB Leipzig.
Location: Middlesex, diagnosis UK
Closing date: 19th December 2016
Overview:
Middlesex CCC, cough in conjunction with Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), are looking to appoint a newly-created role of Head of Women’s Cricket. This is an exciting opportunity for a suitably-qualified candidate to drive women’s and girls’ performance cricket in Middlesex and at Lord’s.
The role has three key areas of focus:
1. MCC/MCCC Women’s Academy (15 – 19 year olds)
2. MCCC Women and Girls Performance Pathway
3. Development of Female Coaching Workforce/Community Engagement. See attached Job Description.
Please email your up to date CV and covering letter outlining your suitability for the role, to Rory Coutts (rory.coutts@middlesexccc.com). Please list two referees, who will only be contacted after interviews have been held.
Please click here to view the full job description for this role.
Please note only shortlisted applicants will be notified and invited to interview.
The position offers a competitive salary.
Closing Date for Applications: Monday 19th December 2016, 5pm.
Interview Dates: Early January.
With less than one month to go before World Rugby Conference and Exhibition 2016 (ConfEx) gets underway at the Hilton London Metropole on 14-15 November, troche World Rugby has announced the speaking line-up for its Rugby sevens beyond Rio – the golden opportunity panel.
Osea Kolinisau, order Fiji’s Rio 2016 flag bearer and captain of the Fiji team that won an historic gold medal in Rio, the country’s first ever Olympic medal, will join leading figures from the world of rugby sevens to reflect on the sport’s successful Olympic debut at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
The full panel will be:
The speakers will come together to provide expert analysis on what the future holds for rugby sevens following its game-changing moment at Rio 2016. The panel will examine how the sport’s inclusion on the Olympic programme has been central to its transformation and how the dynamic, fast-paced game, which has experienced record growth since the vote for inclusion in 2009, can make the most of its appearance on sport’s greatest stage.
World Rugby Chief Executive Brett Gosper said: “Rugby sevens made a brilliant debut at the Olympic Games in Rio, underscoring exactly why we believed that it would be a perfect fit. There is no doubt rugby’s inclusion on the Olympic programme was a game-changer, giving the sport unprecedented global exposure and allowing us to reach inspire and engage new players and fans worldwide.
“It’s vital that we continue to review and consider the sevens journey to ensure this golden opportunity can be maximised. We are excited to have four excellent speakers in Mark Egan, Mike Friday, Osea Kolinisau and Giles Morgan join us at World Rugby ConfEx 2016 to add their considerable insight and wealth of experience to the conversation.”
Friday added: “Rugby sevens has become the ideal foothold for countries trying to find their way into the sport and the globalisation of rugby has provided developing countries an easier route. More importantly, we’ve seen these countries succeed.
“In sevens it’s always been the case that a player’s decision making, skill and fitness are put under the microscope, and now more people are looking down through that lens. This can only be a good thing for the sport of rugby as a whole.”
World Rugby ConfEx offers a dynamic platform to discuss, learn and create partnerships that will project rugby’s values worldwide. Under the theme, The future of rugby, the leading conference will build on the success of previous editions, gathering senior representatives from across the global rugby, sporting and business spectrum, to discuss the key topics, opportunities and challenges of a sport now played by a record 7.73 million men, women and children across 121 member unions.
The World Rugby Awards 2016 will be held on the eve of the event for the first time. Taking place at the Hilton London Metropole on the evening of 13 November, the World Rugby Awards will celebrate the accomplishments of players, coaches and teams from across the globe during 2016.
KeyBank have been officially unveiled as sponsor of the newly renamed home of the Buffalo Sabres, asthma KeyBank Center.
The bank acquired the naming rights to the former First Niagara Center in connection with parent company KeyCorp’s acquisition of First Niagara Financial Group this year.
After the multi-year sponsorship was announced by KeyCorp Chairman and CEO Beth Mooney in May, ed work began to replace all exterior and interior signage of the venue, erectile as well as rebrand all on-site ATMs. In addition, the 200 level has been renamed the KeyBank Club and will include the KeyBank Lounge located near the Harbour Club. The Lounge offers a space for KeyBank Club ticket holders to relax, socialize and enjoy food and beverage items.
In addition to the rebranding of the venue, the organizations announced several enhancements to the KeyBank Center that are new for the 2016-2017 season, including the following.
“We are proud to expand our relationship with KeyCorp to official naming rights sponsor of our arena,” said Buffalo Sabres President Russ Brandon. “We would like to thank First Niagara Financial Group for its years of support and welcome KeyBank as a premier corporate partner that has pledged a commitment to the Western New York community. Guests at KeyBank Center this season will enjoy upgraded amenities including enhanced Wi-Fi and premier lighting to optimize the viewing experience. Together with KeyBank, we look forward to maximizing the fan experience in 2016-2017.”
The television audience for the UEFA super Cup was far higher than for the Rio Olympics Tuesday in Spain. Real Madrid’s 3-2 win over Sevilla drew 3.944 million viewers last night on Antena 3 with a share of 32.8%. The biggest Olympics audience on La 1 was 1.277 million and a 9.8% share for women’s gymnastics.
In Italy, capsule the Olympics did better the Super Cup. RAI 2 pulled 2.078 million and a 10.8% share for judo from Rio, while the all-Spanish football match on Italia 1 was 1.265 million and a 6.9% share.
In Germany last night, shooting scored the biggest audience from Rio with 6.32 million viewers and a 21.0% share on ZDF, followed by women’s football between Germany and Canada with 5.90 million / 22.4%.
French channel France 2 averaged 1.774 million viewers and a share of 17.7% for its Rio, well behind French drama Joséphine, Guardian Angel on TF1 with 3.982 million and 20.2%.
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The way brands target different demographics is constantly changing with a plethora of social media channels and platforms through which audiences can consume products.
This is an interesting area for ESPN, specifically when you look at what they offer in terms of content to the EMEA market.
Obviously in America ESPN has a large TV arm with multiple channels broadcasting content, as well as online/mobile video streaming.
Across EMEA it’s TV arm is much smaller, which leads to more focus on the digital side.
iSportconnect spoke to Charly Classen, VP and General Manager of ESPN for EMEA.
iSC – What would you define as ESPN’s role across EMEA – is it a lot more digital focused?
CC – “It’s very hard these days to draw a linear line separating TV and digital; consumers consider ESPN as a wide brand that connects them to sport. We bring the joy of sport to the fans – whether that’s through our TV channel or through digital content.”
“We use our ESPN FC show on our TV channels and also use clips from that on our digital channels and website. You can say we are doing activity to drive digital, but actually, we are doing something much, much wider.”
“One of the great things at the moment is that we are working with social influencers and that it’s a very much video-led activity associated with the ESPN brand. Whether the consumer takes things from our website or via TV, we really don’t mind.”
iSC – What are your main target audiences in Europe and what services do you offer them?
CC – “Our very strong focal point is English language speaking language – we don’t have local language versions in Germany or France. So traffic in the UK is much stronger – we have quite a strong following across Europe, especially with our NBA coverage from the NBA finals and our Spanish content in Spain and Portuguese content as well.”
“We have three main business lines – the digital side is one of them, which is growing nicely and we’re bullish about where that is going. We also have the media distribution business, which is representing our rights and third party rights.”
“That business has grown tremendously over the last few years – we see this as a real growth area of the business for us. Our third-area is the business we do with BT Sport in the UK, which is for the long-term, and that has given us a lot of confidence and helped us look at new ways of doing business in different areas.”
iSC – Obviously the European Championships are currently taking place, what content are you producing for that and how challenging is it to come up with original and engaging content for a widespread audience?
CC – “We’re really excited by what we’re doing at the Euros. We’ve produced an enormous amount of quantity around the Euros, from the TV coverage in the US, we’ve got fan bloggers from all the teams, not just the analysis but all of the context around it.”
“The depth and breadth of what we do is astonishing. Our challenge as a sports media company is to make sure as many people as possible see this content and get different demographics to see the content.”
iSC – As part of your work around the Euros you are working with ‘Social influencers’, what was behind that decision and how is that complementing the ESPN brand-message?
CC – “Working with social influencers like KSI, Manny and Calfreezy is a great thing to do to compliment and amplify our content. Last week we had 1 and a half million views to the ESPN brand through their social channels. It’s not just about watching those clips, it’s about accessing all of our content, whether it’s an article, the lots of other content which supplements our news. The social influences compliment what we do.”
“It’s really important we stay true to the brand, all the feedback I’ve had is that the talent embraced doing it because it’s them doing what they do in a natural way, we fit them in with us and do what is right for us. We wouldn’t get our editorial team trying to do something that KSI does for example – it’s about representing who you are. We’re working with Copa90 and people like that. It’s about seeing what works and what is really effective, not just from a content perspective but a viewership perspective – it’s an ongoing learning experience.”
iSC – You work with BT Sport with a co-branded TV channel in the UK, how does that work?
CC – “We work with BT Sport a lot as you can imagine. We’re in the fourth year of the partnership, we have ESPN on BT Sport so we have added an element of the BT branding into the channel. But the channel has a very strong ESPN identity and we’ve done a lot of work on that collaboratively and you can see how that works well with our digital identity. We want to make sure BT Sport gets the most value from it.”
“One of the things we’ve found is that people valued the BT Sport channel with the ESPN channel but most people didn’t always know they were getting the ESPN channel with the BT Sport bundle. So we worked hard not only on the branding of the channel but the promos on air.”
“Having the goals show of the Champions League on the ESPN complements the live-game coverage on the other BT Sport channels – it’s a very collaborative e effort, in fact, we’re screening the documentary OJ Simpson: Made in America which debuted in the US a few weeks ago to rave reviews; we’re doing a screening with BT Sport in a few weeks’ time and they will debut it July I believe. It’s about great storytelling and providing great content, that’s what we do with our ESPN films and we get different demographics to view that content.”
“We’ve got a long-term relationship with BT and we’re delighted with the partnership. In the digital side, we run things by ourselves and we’re happy where we are.”
Charly Classen is Vice President and General Manager, ESPN – Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), a role he has held since January 2014. He is responsible for the strategic guidance, development and oversight for all of ESPN’s business and operations in the region – including digital media, television syndication, as well as the company’s relationship with BT Sports (who operate an ESPN-branded TV channel).
He also is responsible for identifying and developing new business opportunities in the region, whether through organic growth, acquisition or partnership.
Based in London, Classen works closely with ESPN executive management and with the company’s global syndication, sales and digital media teams in developing best-of-breed content, businesses and sales and marketing solutions.
Charly’s 
Suning Holdings Group will acquire a majority stake in Inter Milan as part of a strategic partnership
International Sports Capital will become the sole minority shareholder in the Club and Erick Thohir retains his position as President of Inter.
Internazionale Holding will cease to be a shareholder and former President, capsule Massimo Moratti, order will exit the Club.
Inter President, pills Erick Thohir, commenting on the acquisition, said: “This new partnership with Suning Holdings Group is a game changer for Inter Milan. Over the past two and a half years we have been building on the existing solid base at the Club and this new partnership will enable us to take the next step in the project and return Inter Milan to its rightful place in world club football.”
“The popularity of the game, particularly in Asia and China, is going through a period of massive growth. This agreement with Suning Holdings Group will allow us to get much closer to our huge fan base in China and the Asia Pacific region. We are looking forward to a hugely successful partnership together.”
Chairman of Suning Holdings Group, Mr Zhang Jindong, added: “The acquisition of Inter Milan is part of Suning’s strategy in the development of the sports industry and driving our campaign in the health and lifestyle consumer market. This will not only improve Jiangsu Suning F.C.’s technical set-up and operational capabilities, but will also help Suning to grow internationally, enabling us to become a household brand name in Europe and across the world.”
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