Rugby League World Cup Forges Link With Netball World Cup

The organisers of Rugby League World Cup 2021 have signed a co-operation agreement with Vitality Netball World Cup 2019.

The two international tournaments will cooperate and share knowledge on a regular basis. The agreement covers everything from operational matters, volunteer strategy, recruitment, legacy initiatives, marketing, the customer journey and women’s sport.

Jon Dutton, Chief Executive of the RLWC2021, said: “Since we started work on our project back in 2015, we have proactively met with a number of events to improve our knowledge and learn as much as possible, something I passionately believe in.

“We are delighted to formalise a MOU and to be working alongside the Vitality Netball World Cup 2019 team, who I am sure will deliver a world-class tournament this summer. We’ve already received some brilliant insight from their team, and we hope that some of our support can help them achieve their goals.”

Lindsay Impett, Event Director of the VNWC2019 said: “I’m thrilled that these two prestigious sports events are coming together in partnership to share insight so we can help each other achieve our event visions. By working closely together we’ll be building on our learnings and sharing knowledge, hopefully taking our respective sports from strength to strength.”

 

US Soccer And MLS To Meditate With Headspace

U.S. Soccer and Major League Soccer have entered a three-year partnership with meditation app Headspace.

As part of the deal, Headspace will annually provide thousands of app subscriptions to all U.S. Soccer and MLS athletes, coaches, and league and club staff. Headspace will conduct in-person introductory training sessions with U.S. Soccer and MLS athletes and coaches.

Dr. Margot Putukian, MLS Chief Medical Officer. “The Headspace app provides top-line meditation training and is a wonderful supplement to the preexisting health and wellness resources the league and our clubs already provide. We look forward to members of the soccer community utilizing the Headspace app to advance their mindfulness skills to help them achieve their goals both on and off the field.”

U.S. Women’s National Team head coach Jill Ellis said: “We know that mental preparation is as important as physical preparation for elite athletes, We are excited that Headspace has partnered with U.S. Soccer to provide the players another tool to help them perform at their highest levels heading into, and through the tournament this summer.”

Lindsay Shaffer, Head of Sports and Fitness at Headspace said: “While athletes go to great lengths to physically train their bodies, the mind is often neglected. Mental training is the future of sport, and meditation and mindfulness are proven techniques to improve mental fitness.

“We are thrilled to provide Headspace as the mental training tool to some of the world’s greatest athletes, helping them to achieve their performance goals, support their overall health and happiness, and work with U.S. Soccer and the MLS to create a future of sport in which athletes focus as much on training their minds as they do their bodies.”

LA2028 Teams With NBCUniversal To Sell Sponsorships

LA 2028 has joined forces with NBCUniversal to sell media and sponsorship deals in tandem in connection with the Olympics and Paralympics from 2021 to 2028.

NBCUniversal will collaborate with the joint venture formed by the LA 2028 Organizing Committee and the United States Olympic Committee – U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Properties (USOPP)  to build a select sales team.

In 2011, NBC agreed to a $4.38 billion contract with the IOC to broadcast the Olympics through the 2020 Games and in 2014 agreed to a $7.75 billion contract extension to air the Olympics through the 2032 Games.

The partnership covers rights to the LA 2028 Games and Team USA’s participation in four Olympic and Paralympic Games: Beijing 2022; Paris 2024; 2026 (host city to be chosen in June 2019); and Los Angeles 2028, which will be the first Olympics hosted in the U.S. since Salt Lake City 2002, and the first Summer Games in the U.S. since Atlanta 1996.

Linda Yaccarino, Chairman, Advertising and Partnerships at NBCUniversal, said: “Nothing brings people together like the pure emotional power of the Olympic Games. This partnership between NBCUniversal and LA 2028 is a true first for the industry, and gives marketers the opportunity to make an unrivaled economic and cultural impact.”

“Together, we’re building what’s never been available before — the chance to be an exclusive partner of a monumental global movement for the next decade, culminating with the first Summer Games in the U.S. in more than three decades.”

LA 2028 Chairperson Casey Wasserman said: “At no other time in Olympic and Paralympic history have the stakes been higher, and yet more rewarding. We are at an inflection point in the sports, lifestyle and live event business that demands a complete reimagining of the model and approach to embracing and involving marketers.

“I am so proud to partner with NBCUniversal and their team of innovators to bring the true promise of the Games to audiences in a way that is more connected and relevant. NBCUniversal’s commitment to our partnership guarantees 2028’s success like no other Games before it.”

 

India’s Hotstar Reports Massive IPL Viewing Figures

Star India’s OTT platform Hotstar has touched a record viewership of 267 million viewers in the first three weeks of this year’s IPL season.

It further witnessed a doubling of growth in viewing time over the same period last year.

Hotstar set a record of of 12.7 million viewers during the Royal Challengers Bangalore v/s Mumbai Indians match on March 28.

This year Hotstar introduced social cricket-watching experience called ‘Koi Yaar,Nahi Far’ (no friend is too far), through which irrespective of their location, viewers have the opportunity to invite their friends and family to the platform, watch the matches, and participate in the Watch ’N Play game together.

Varun Narang, Chief Product Officer, Hotstar, said: “The remarkable rate at which the viewership has grown over the years is testament to the audience pull that Vivo IPL enjoys. On the back of this, Hotstar continues to break records by raising the bar in reinventing the sporting experience for millions of Indians.

“These staggering numbers in just three weeks signify the platform’s immense reach and scale, as well as our technological ability to deliver an uninterrupted, immersive cricket watching experience for consumers.”

 

Redskins Reach Long-Term Retail Deal With Fanatics

The Washington Redskins have agreed a 10-year omnichannel deal with Fanatics.

As part of the partnership, the company will lead all online and retail store operations for the team. The new e-commerce destination, store.redskins.com, will provide all Redskins fans worldwide with an online and mobile shopping experience.

Fanatics will also operate the team’s brick-and-mortar retail locations, including the Hall of Fame store at FedExField and kiosks around the stadium.

Gary Gertzog, Fanatics President of Business Affairs, said: “The Redskins are one of the most iconic, tradition-rich franchises throughout the NFL, and we’re excited to join forces to provide their passionate fan base with a world-class shopping experience that features an incredible assortment of products distributed across several retail touchpoints.”

“Through this new omnichannel offering, Fanatics’ commitment to cutting-edge technology and faster speed-to-market of merchandise will significantly enhance the fan experience for all members of the family.”

Redskins President Bruce Allen said: “We’re excited to team up with Fanatics to offer our fans a superior shopping experience.”

“We know our fans are shopping for Redskins merchandise through a variety of channels, and by emphasizing the strengths of Fanatics, we have the ability to meet their demands, while also positioning our franchise for the next phase of retail.”

 

Philadelphia Will Host MLB All-Star Game Celebrating 250th Birthday Of USA

Major League Baseball has confirmed Philadelphia as the venue for the 2026 All-Star Game to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

It will be the fifth time the city has hosted an All-Star Game. It most recently hosted at Veterans Stadium in 1996 and 1976, which was the country’s bicentennial.

The game will be held at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies and will host approximately 100,000 fans.

Phillies managing partner John Middleton said: “It was a really easy sell to baseball to host the game here in Philadelphia. It’s the logical place.”

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said: “We’d been talking to David about it for a while. I think it was something that was really important to him for the city of Philadelphia. He was passionate about it. It’s not easy to do seven years out. There’s a lot of logistics that need to be handled with extra lead time. Everybody worked hard to make it happen. I think a big part of that was wanting to deliver for Dave, not just me but the Phillies organization and a lot of people in New York.”

“I really don’t believe we would have made this announcement today without David being the driving force behind it. He has that quiet ability to persuade, and because he’s such a good person, he’s very difficult to say no to. It’s a tribute to his devotion to the city that he took this project on.”

 

 

Aser Group Makes Strategic Investment In Sports Data Labs

Aser Group, in collaboration with Eleven Sports, has made a strategic investment in Sports Data Labs (SDL), a technology provider for in-game capture, analysis and distribution of real-time human data.

Aser, Leeds United Football Club’s parent company, will take an active role in the global commercial strategy for the company. Furthermore, SDL will make its debut in team sports with a Leeds United partnership to focus on developing commercial and performance-related opportunities.

Aser’s investment in Sports Data Labs makes the group the single biggest investor in the company.

Aser was founded by Andrea Radrizzani (in photo), who is Chairman of the group as well as te Leeds club.

Aser CEO Massimo Marinelli said:“SDL has been relentless in putting the pillars in place to create an entirely new data stream available for commercialisation in sports. While commercialisation of human data is still in its infancy, we believe the longer-term monetisation opportunities are significant. Our evaluation has concluded that SDL has the right proprietary technology, vision and team to be the leader in this space.”

Mark Gorski, Co-founder and CEO of Sports Data Labs, said:“We are solving foundational issues that are at the heart of what is required to move the human data ecosystem forward. Aser’s commitment will enable us to continue our growth within the sports vertical and focus our efforts on areas that we believe have significant revenue potential for all stakeholders.”

ISG Bags Virtual Advertising Rights For LaLiga

Interregional Sports Group (ISG) has signed a three-season agreement with MediaPro to secure the rights for virtual perimeter and virtual goal-side advertising for LaLiga games.

As part of the deal, UK-based ISG will have the package of 53 games featuring either FC Barcelona, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid with multi packaged geo-targeted broadcast feeds being distributed around the world.

The agreement with ISG runs until the end of the 2021/22 season and will allow brands to select the regional markets in which their advertising appears. ISG will be working with partner agencies Lagardere Sports and Sportseen on the sale and distribution of these rights.

Julian Fernandez, Commercial Director of MediaPro Media said: “We have worked successfully with ISG across a number of rights packages in recent years and believe they are the right partner to manage and deliver our virtual services. They understand the value of LaLiga and the importance of building strong relationships with brands in each of the regions. We see this as re-setting of these markets and are very excited about what can be achieved.”

Tony Ragan, joint Chairman of ISG said: “We are delighted to have strengthened our virtual rights portfolio adding LaLiga to the assets we already operate extensively in Serie A and Formula 1. We are world leaders in the sale and delivery of virtual advertising and have a proven track record of enabling brands to access their target markets through premium sports events. We were instrumental in the creation of this rights package back in 2011 and so are very excited at the prospect of taking them to market again for the next three seasons and beyond.

“ISG were very early adopters of virtual advertising within sport and we bring with us the vast experience we have gained to help ensure the market receives the premium product and level of customer service that should be associated with La Liga.”

 

 

 

ICC Partners UNICEF To Deliver ‘One Day For Children’

ICC has joined forces with UNICEF to deliver ‘One Day for Children’ program at the Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019.

As part of the agreement, there will be #OneDay4Children activity throughout all 48 matches of the event. The money raised will support UNICEF’s work in cricket playing nations to help children learn to play and be healthy.Celebrities and legends of the game will join the action with activations and fundraising both in stadium and across the live broadcast.

The campaign will end with the England v India game at Edgbaston on 30 June.

David Richardson of the ICC said: “As part of our continuing work with UNICEF through Cricket for Good, we are delighted to launch #OneDay4Children and use the platform of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 to help more children to play and be healthy. This is our most ambitious charity project to date and we know that cricket’s one billion fans will come together to help build a better world for every child.

“Our partners have got right behind #OneDay4Children, with global broadcast partner Star Sports ensuring it will be seen by hundreds of millions around the world, whilst locally in the UK Sky have also committed to promoting it to their viewers. Booking.com and Gray Nicolls have committed to a significant donation whilst our other global partners are working on in-venue activations and promotions to drive fundraising ensuring our #OneDay4Children match really captures the imagination of cricket fans.”

ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019, Managing Director, Steve Elworthy said: “#OneDay4Children is such an important tournament wide campaign which we are extremely proud to be delivering. We have a unique opportunity while the eyes of the cricketing world, and beyond, are watching, to show how we can harness the power of the fans to help support the wonderful work UNICEF do for children across the globe.”

Mike Penrose, Executive Director at Unicef UK, said: “We are delighted to see the world of cricket unite for #OneDay4Children at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. Players, teams and one billion cricket fans will come together for Unicef. The money raised through #OneDay4Children will support Unicef’s work to help children learn, play and be healthy through cricket. It is a shared belief that cricket has an incredible power to raise vital funds and inspire and empower millions of children.”

Real Madrid Secures Mega-Funding For Stadium Remodelling

The Board of Directors of football club Real Madrid has approved the closing of funding for the remodelling of the Santiago Stadium Bernabéu for a total amount of €575 million.

The total amount will be with a term of 30 years and a fixed interest rate of 2.5% . This financing has been structured through a loan with three tranches, July 2019, July 2020 and July 2021, coinciding with the needs foreseen for the payment of the works.

The loan also includes 3 years of lack of amortisation of the principal, which will make Real Madrid pay a fixed annual fee of 29.5 million euros, from July 30, 2023 and until its expiration on July 30, 2049 .

The financing has been structured by JP Morgan and Bank of America Merrill Lynch with the collaboration of Banco Santander and Société Générale. Meanwhile, CaixaBank will act as agent of the operation. Key Capital Partners has acted as financial advisor and coordinator of financing for Real Madrid.