Super League Confirms Two-Year Extension With Steeden

Super League has confirmed a two-year extension to its current deal with Steeden, who will continue as the Official Match Ball supplier of Betfred Super League until the end of the 2023 season.

Alongside Super League, Steeden is currently the official match ball supplier of the NRL, New Zealand Rugby League, Queensland Rugby League and New South Wales Rugby League amongst many others.

Over the years, Steeden match balls have been synonymous with some of the greatest moments in Super League history, be it Rob Burrow’s unforgettable Grand Final try in 2011, Jack Welsby’s match winning Grand Final moment in 2020 or the acrobatic flying tries in the corner we see week in, week out from the likes of Tom Johnstone, Jermaine McGillvary, Tommy Makinson or Derrell Olpherts.

Super League chief commercial officer, Rhodri Jones said: “We are delighted to have extended our current deal with Steeden for another two years.

“I would like to thank them for all their hard work and support since re-entering the sport as match ball supplier in 2019.

“We look forward to many more great sporting moments being created on Rugby League pitches with Steeden match balls over the rest of our partnership.”

Nick Gray, Steeden Director: ‘’We are delighted to extend our partnership with Super League. We have received great feedback from the clubs and players and Steeden looks forward to working with them in the future.”

Dan Drew, Steeden Europe added: ‘’We are very proud to extend our agreement with Super League Europe, we have built a strong relationship with the league and clubs over recent years.”

Cleveland Cavaliers Agree Partnership With Socios.com

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Socios.com, the leading global blockchain provider for the sports and entertainment industry, announced an official team partnership.

While the direct, team-based fan engagement elements and activations alongside Socios.com are still in the review and development phase, the initial components of the partnership will focus on creating awareness and branding with Socios.com through the Cavaliers global asset platform.

Beginning with the upcoming 2021-22 season, the Socios.com logo will be on the abdomen of the Cavs practice jersey just below the player’s number. In addition, the blockchain provider will have brand presence in-venue with broadcast-visible LED courtside signage. They will also have the ability to use the Cavs marks and logos in their global marketing efforts outside the United States and Canada. Socios.com is the first Cavaliers partner to leverage this unique branding opportunity under the NBA’s International Team Marketing Program.

Driven by the central belief that transitioning passive fans into active fans is essential to the future of sport, Socios.com is a direct-to-consumer (D2C) platform that leverages blockchain technology to provide the world’s leading sporting organizations with the tools to engage with and monetize their global fanbases.

The partnership between the Cavs and SSocios.com adds another layer to the team’s continued ideation around blockchain technology and its current and future applications. Earlier this month, the team launched an NFT Art Collection that features basketball-centric works created by independent artists. The Collection is displayed in an online gallery and showcased physically on massive LEDs at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Cavs’ home, as part of the venue’s standing Public Art Program. The team also recently partnered with technology company, RECUR, to mint its first-ever NFT titled the Cleveland Cavaliers Locker Room. Over fifty of these inaugural NFTs were gifted to corporate partners at a special “Art of Business” private event. Future announcements are coming soon about how fans of the team can score their very own Cavaliers NFT ahead of the upcoming 2021-22 season.

“This partnership with Socios.com is another significant step forward as part of our on-going exploration into blockchain technology and how it can be utilized within our business to grow and enhance fan engagement,” said Mike Conley, Cavaliers and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse SVP & Chief Information Officer. “We share with Socios.com a mutual passion and drive for innovation and we are excited about the opportunities this relationship will bring as it continues to evolve into the future.”

Alexandre Dreyfus, CEO of Socios.com added, “I’m delighted the Cleveland Cavaliers have become the latest major US-based sporting organization to join our rapidly expanding network.

“Socios.com is fast developing into a global fan engagement powerhouse, where passive fans are being transitioned into real players in the day-to-day activities of their favourite teams.

“This is the start of an exciting partnership that we believe can eventually lead to greatly enhanced fan engagement for fans of the Cavaliers around the world.”

A rapidly expanding 40+ strong roster of leading sporting organizations have partnered with Socios.com to launch Fan Tokens on Socios.com, allowing their global followings to enjoy an enhanced fan experience and become part of a vibrant worldwide digital community of supporters.

Partners include major European soccer clubs FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, AC Milan, Atlético Madrid, Manchester City, Valencia, Inter Milan, Arsenal and the Argentina and Portugal national soccer teams, as well as MMA giants UFC and a number of leading teams from F1, esports and cricket. The Cavaliers become the third NBA team to join Socios.com’s roster of partners.

World Netball Unveils ‘Your Netball World’ Mosaic

World Netball reveals their ‘Your Netball World’ mosaic, filled with over 1,400 inspirational stories from athletes, officials and grassroots netball players from around the world.

With individual messages from over 30 countries, big netball names such as England Commonwealth Games gold medallists Beth Cobden and Eboni Usoro-Brown, South Africa’s Netball World Cup 2019 player of the tournament Karla Pretorius, former England player and current Scotland head coach Tamsin Greenway, former Australia coach Lisa Alexander AM, Malawi’s Mary Waya and Uganda’s Mary Cholhok have all added tiles in the mosaic, celebrating a world united by our unique sport. 

Here are just some of the inspirational stories from the mosaic’s entrants:

Beth Cobden: “Working together with a group of awesome women all chasing the same goal. Can’t beat the friendships, fun, challenges and memories netball provides!”

Tamsin Greenway: “Netball is my passion. It has given me friends, adventures and memories to last a lifetime.”

Mary Nuba Cholhok: “Netball brings the best version of myself emotionally, mentally and physically. It’s one thing that take[s] all my worries away and makes [me] push myself because I’m a role model to my son and always want to make him proud every time I step on court.”

Lazarous Tembo: “Netball has given me the opportunity to reach out to vulnerable girls in slums, it has given the opportunity to give back to my community, the opportunity for me to grow as coach, umpire, leader and as a person helping empower young women and girls.”

Chrismarie Grundlingh: “To me netball is not only a sport which i love to play, it is a place where I can be who I truly am. Netball has thought me valuable lessons and helped to sculpt me in the strong, courageous woman I am today.”

Asive Lerato Mrwebi: “Netball is the one place that has been my saving grace throughout many troubles I have faced but it has helped me build life friendships and memories. It has provided me with fun and hard challenges and learnt so many things about life on and off the court.”

Maddison Johnson: “After years of not feeling confident and being subject to bullying, when I started to play netball at my local club, I gained so much self-esteem. I fell in love with the sport so quickly and since beginning to play three years ago, i haven’t looked back.”

Shezelle Botma: “Netball to me is an escape from reality, it’s the one place that I can let go and be myself. It is the most beautiful sport I have ever played it has helped me grow as a person and taught me valuable things such as perseverance, respect and teamwork.”

Marking the start of the two-year countdown to the Netball World Cup  in South Africa, a prize draw will now take place, with one lucky winner winning a trip of a lifetime to be a spectator at the world’s most prestigious netball competition, which takes place in Cape Town from 28 July – 6 August 2023.

As well as this, World Netball will shortly be announcing their Courage Ambassador. Standing alongside fellow ambassadors, who will be globally recognised athletes, officials and sporting figures, the Courage Ambassador lives and breathes netball.

Barack Obama Joins NBA Africa As Strategic Partner

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has announced that former President Barack Obama has joined NBA Africa as a strategic partner.

President Obama will help advance the league’s social responsibility efforts across the continent, including programs and partnerships that support greater gender equality and economic inclusion. In this capacity, President Obama will have a minority equity stake in the new venture, which over time he intends to use to fund Obama Foundation youth and leadership programs across Africa.

NBA Africa conducts the league’s business in Africa, including the Basketball Africa League (BAL), which held its inaugural season in May featuring 12 of the top club teams from 12 African countries. NBA Africa is focused on expanding the NBA’s presence in priority African markets, deepening the league’s engagement with players and fans across the continent, and continuing to grow Africa’s basketball ecosystem through programs like the Jr. NBA, Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Africa and NBA Academy Africa. In addition, NBA Africa has launched several social responsibility initiatives aimed at raising awareness of gender-based violence, supporting girls’ education, and improving the livelihoods of African youth and families.

“The NBA has always been a great ambassador for the United States—using the game to create deeper connections around the world, and in Africa, basketball has the power to promote opportunity, wellness, equality, and empowerment across the continent,” said President Barack Obama. “By investing in communities, promoting gender equality, and cultivating the love of the game of basketball, I believe that NBA Africa can make a difference for so many of Africa’s young people. I’ve been impressed by the league’s commitment to Africa, including the leadership shown by so many African players who want to give back to their own countries and communities. That’s why I’m proud to join the team at NBA Africa and look forward to a partnership that benefits the youth of so many countries.”

“We are honored that President Obama has become a strategic partner in NBA Africa and will support our wide-ranging efforts to grow the game of basketball on the continent,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “In addition to his well-documented love for basketball, President Obama has a firm belief in Africa’s potential and the enormous growth opportunities that exist through sports. NBA Africa will benefit tremendously from his engagement.”

“We have ambitious growth plans for NBA Africa and having President Obama join our efforts is a recognition that through sport, Africa can take its rightful place on the world stage,” said NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams. “We look forward to working with President Obama and our strategic investors to use basketball as an economic growth engine across the continent and as a platform to improve the health and wellness of one of the world’s youngest and fastest-growing populations.”

Strategic investors in NBA Africa include a consortium led by Babatunde “Tunde” Folawiyo, Chairman and CEO of Yinka Folawiyo Group, and Helios Fairfax Partners Corporation (HFP), led by Co-CEO Tope Lawani. Additional investors in NBA Africa include NBA Legends Junior Bridgeman, Luol Deng (South Sudan), Grant Hill, Ian Mahinmi (France; ties to Benin), Dikembe Mutombo (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Joakim Noah (ties to Cameroon).

New Zealand Rugby Inks Performance Partnership With INEOS Until 2027

New Zealand Rugby (NZR) has announced INEOS as the Official Performance Partner of its seven Teams in Black* in a unique new six-year partnership kicking off in 2022.

The Performance Partnership will see NZR’s Teams in Black including the All Blacks and Black Ferns join INEOS Sport teams; Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team; INEOS Grenadiers cycling team; INEOS TEAM UK sailing team; and football clubs OGC Nice and FC Lausanne-Sport as part of a unique sport performance group.


The INEOS Sport performance group will bring together some of sport’s best people and teams to tackle the greatest sporting challenges, through technology and human performance, and will officially launch later this year.

The teams involved will work together to identify opportunities for performance gains that can be shared and applied across the group, utilising the unique knowledge and skill of the world-leading experts who operate across the full sports performance spectrum.

“To partner with INEOS and be part of such a unique and diverse global sports performance group is an exciting new venture,” said NZR CEO Mark Robinson.

“We are committed to nurturing the development of rugby over the next six years with INEOS Sport and are looking forward to working alongside some of the best sports teams in the world.

“INEOS will bring an innovative approach and dedication to the partnership with our Teams in Black, qualities we see across all aspects of their business, particularly around sustainability with their commitment to deliver a zero-carbon emission future in line with the Paris Agreement,” said Robinson.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman of INEOS, added: “We’re delighted to partner with the All Blacks. They have consistently shown the grit and determination needed to perform at the highest level of sport and there will be a lot that we can learn from them.”

All Blacks Captain Samuel Whitelock has welcomed INEOS to the All Blacks family of sponsors.

“INEOS is involved in high-performance sport all over the world, which is something we have been really impressed with. The All Blacks are looking forward to being part of this performance partnership and learning from some of their incredible sporting partnerships as well,” said Whitelock.

Black Ferns Head Coach Glenn Moore said, “It’s great to have INEOS onboard as the Performance Partner for the Black Ferns and we look forward to developing with their high-performance teams next year.”

On Location Acquires Ticketing Platform Qcue

On Location announced its acquisition of Qcue, the leader in dynamic pricing software for sports and entertainment ticketing, integrating cutting-edge technology into its growing suite of premium experiential hospitality offerings spanning sports, entertainment and lifestyle.

“We are thrilled to join forces with Qcue, bringing top-of-the-line dynamic pricing technology and a stellar team of ticketing experts in-house,” stated Jon Lavallee, CFO of On Location. “Together, we will optimize On Location’s approach to ticketing and pass that benefit on to our valued partners.”

Qcue specializes in providing ticket pricing, analytics, data visualization, inventory management and efficiency tools to sports teams and entertainment organizations. Its proprietary SaaS software and direct partnerships with all major primary and secondary market platforms enable rights holders to optimize ticket pricing and drive incremental revenue and sell-through. Since its founding in 2007, Qcue has made over 35 million price changes and generated over $300M in incremental revenue for its partners.

Like On Location, Qcue is rooted in sports; it currently serves over 85 teams and organizations, including MLB, Australian Football League and leading college athletics departments. In 2019, Qcue acquired Everfest, a festival database and discovery site connecting vendors and artists to festivals, expanding its capabilities into entertainment and lifestyle in parallel with On Location’s growth and expanded reach through the Endeavor network.

“Integrating our talent and capabilities into those of the world’s leading experiential hospitality company is an incredible opportunity that will enable us to extend our services to the world’s foremost sporting and cultural events and their rights holders,” added Barry Kahn, CEO of Qcue. “We are proud to join the On Location team at this exciting moment in the company’s history and firmly believe that our shared vision of the live entertainment industry will allow us to continue to be at the forefront of bringing about change.”

BLAST Premier Signs Two-Year Deal With WePlay Esports

BLAST Premier has announced a two-year deal with WePlay Esports to broadcast its global Counter-Strike tournament series exclusively in the CIS region.

Under the nature of the deal, media holding company and esports tournament organiser WePlay Esports will own exclusive Russian language media rights to broadcast this year’s BLAST Premier Fall Groups (September 16-26), Showdown (October 12-17), Final (November 24-28) and World Final (December 14-19) and the entire 2022 season.

BLAST Premier is a global Counter-Strike tournament series that unites all major events, offers opportunities to all regions across the globe and crowns the world champions of CS:GO. Up to 32 teams will take part in the seven BLAST Premier events over the course of 2021 with a combined prize pool of $2,475,000 on the line.

The CIS region represents one of BLAST and CS:GO’s most popular countries for viewership, with it regularly featuring in the most watched regions for each event. A recent study by Esports Charts, reported that Russian-language esports broadcasts in 2020 amounted to a total of 200M hours watched, growth of 10% compared to 2019, with Counter-Strike remaining the second most watched esport in the region.

Alexander Lewin, VP of Distribution and Programming for BLAST, said: “We’re delighted to welcome WePlay Esports as our latest broadcast partner – with their extensive expertise in Counter-Strike production, WePlay Esports will help to bring the very best of BLAST Premier to Russia for the remainder of the 2021 season and beyond. BLAST has always enjoyed great support and viewership in the CIS region and we look forward to maintaining our industry leading esports production and entertainment for the community to enjoy.”

Maksym Bilonogov, Chief Visionary Officer and General Producer at WePlay Esports, said: “We at WePlay Esports recognize BLAST Premier as one of the best CS:GO circuits out there, which uses technology and creativity to deliver world-class entertainment. Our team will go all out to bring the same level of show to the CIS audience and make sure that the love for the game in the region only grows stronger with time.”

BLAST’s portfolio of media rights currently stands at over 35 partners, meaning BLAST Premier is shown in 18 different languages and over 150 TV territories.

TikTok Named As Official Creator Platform For British & Irish Lions Tour

TikTok are now the official creator platform for The British & Irish Lions’ Tour to South Africa!

With fans not being able to travel to the matches, the Lions are without their famous ‘sea of red’ behind them in stadiums this year. But we have no doubt that rugby fans across Britain, Ireland and beyond will be coming together on TikTok to throw their support behind head coach Warren Gatland’s men as part of TikTok’s incredible ‘Summer of Sport’, continuing to show #WhereAllFansPlay.

As part of the new partnership, TikTok will be hosting a series of LIVEs with both teams to take you behind-the-scenes and bring you closer to the action. The official creator platform will be giving you the inside look at life on tour – from pre and post-match takeovers, interviews with the players and an exclusive look at the team’s training sessions.

One of these exciting LIVEs will be ‘Cooking For Performance’ with the team chef Andre Moore. Make sure you tune in to get a tour of the kitchen and hear what meals he cooks for the team, how he plans ahead to source ingredients and even see how he makes his favourite healthy, protein-based snacks!

RealFevr Names Bruno Fernandes As Brand Ambassador; Launches Marketplace Of Official Football Video NFTs

RealFevr, a Portuguese startup specializing in fantasy football and boasting over 1.2 million registered users, has just launched a marketplace of official football video NFTs.

The technology company based in Lisbon is presenting fans with the possibility of collecting videos of the most memorable moments of global stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Ángel Di Maria, James Rodríguez, Casemiro and many others. 

The officially licensed football video collectibles will soon be available at www.realfevr.com for those who want to purchase one of the three packs available: Basic, Rare and Super Rare. 

Inside the packs, there are collectibles from five different tiers, which vary depending on their rarity: Common, Special, Epic, Legendary and Unique – for the latter, as the name implies, only one will be launched for the entire market. Moments like goals, assists, dribbles, or saves from over 500 world-class players will be included in these packs. 

RealFevr’s “Season Premiere” – the one that is historically seen as the most valuable – will be divided by several pack drops. In the “First Edition Drop”, it will be possible to collect the Unique NFT of Manchester United and Portugal midfielder Bruno Fernandes. It’s a stunning goal he scored from outside the box for Sporting Clube de Portugal in the 2017/18 season. In one of the upcoming drops, it will also be possible to acquire Cristiano Ronaldo’s first ever official goal also as a Unique, when the Portugal captain was also at Sporting CP. 

Bruno Fernandes, who was named as launch ambassador for the RealFevr NFTs launch said, “I think it’s very cool that football lovers around the world can acquire iconic moments from some of their favourite players. Engagement with fans is really important for me and that is why I am supporting the launch of RealFevr’s NFTs. Some of my best goals scored for Sporting CP are part of the marketplace and I hope my fans around the world will be excited by the prospect of owning them.” 

There many other memorable moments that will feature in this series of drops from players like Iker Casillas, Rúben Dias, James Rodríguez, David Luiz, Radamel Falcao, Casemiro, Hulk, Ricardo Quaresma, Deco, Ángel Di María, among others. 

Soon, there will be a pre-purchase of packs and a few days after that, the users can open them to discover the everlasting moments they obtained. In addition to the opportunity to collect some of the best football moments, the RealFevr marketplace will create the possibility of buying and selling NFTs “peer-to-peer”, allowing each user to complete their collections more easily. 

“From the beginning, our approach was to seek to deliver an immersive experience, based on a unique visual context that matches the level of the moments we are delivering to users”, said Fred Antunes, CEO of RealFevr.

“If we look at the data from cryptoslam.io, the sports NFTs market represented in the last months a turnover in the order of 700 million dollars. Our strategy is not only to capture a part of this market, but also to ensure that more and more people know about blockchain technology and discover what this fascinating world has to offer”, he adds. 

UEFA Inks Deal With Engelbert Strauss Until 2024

UEFA has announced that the German-based work and utility brand, Engelbert Strauss, has agreed to partner with the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Europa Conference League in a deal which will run until 2024.

This is the first time that Engelbert Strauss, a family-owned business and worldwide leading maker of workwear and safety products which, is headquartered in Biebergemünd, Germany, has become an Official Partner of a UEFA competition.

Guy-Laurent Epstein, UEFA marketing director said: “As we have been able to grow the number of European club competitions starting in 2021/22 simultaneously, we are delighted to have been able to agree a new partnership with a similarly growing brand in Engelbert Strauss. For clubs and players on the field of play achieving honours on the pitch takes hard work and dedication. Supporting those who work hard is something UEFA and Engelbert Strauss have in common. It’s terrific that Engelbert Strauss is now a part of the UEFA club competition partner family, and we look forward to a promising future together.”

The UEFA Europa League is undergoing major changes in its 51st season, the 13th since it was rebranded from the UEFA Cup to UEFA Europa League. The group stage will be reduced from 48 to 32 teams – eight groups of four. The eight group winners progress automatically to the round of 16.

There will be additional knockout round play-offs prior to the round of 16; these will be between the eight UEFA Europa League group runners-up and the eight third-ranked teams of the UEFA Champions League groups.

Meanwhile, the newly formed UEFA Europa Conference League will not only give more players the chance to experience European club football, which can only help to develop their footballing careers, it will also give clubs an additional chance to compete for European honours.

Henning Strauss, Engelbert Strauss CEO and creative director said: “With this move, we are further building our momentum as Europe’s leading workwear and utility brand, and we are taking our sponsorship activity to the next level. As the Official Partner of the UEFA Europa League and the brand-new UEFA Europa Conference League, we are bolstering our international visibility with world-class international coverage of something we know our core and future customers are passionate about.”

The new UEFA Europa Conference League and the UEFA Europa League will both use the same anthem when the players enter the pitch during the team line-ups. Sponsors will enjoy rights across both the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League, meaning exposure and activation opportunities, as well as exclusive association, for all UEFA matches that will be played on Thursday evenings.

With over 100 years of experience in producing and selling modern and innovative workwear, Engelbert Strauss is Europe’s leading workwear and utility brand. Their utility products have gained a cult following, establishing Strauss as one of Europe’s most popular lifestyle brands. The UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League presents Engelbert Strauss with broad opportunity to reach and engage sports fans across the world at an exciting time of the brand’s European growth.