Electronic Arts Partners LPGA For Authentic Representation Of Women’s Golf

Electronic Arts Inc. and the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) announced the next phase of their long-term partnership with plans to bring the LPGA Tour, the longest-running women’s sports association; The Amundi Evian Championship, one of its five major championships; and more female golfers to EA SPORTS™ PGA TOUR™.

For the first time, the LPGA Tour will be experienced in high-fidelity on next-generation consoles and will feature a wide breadth of women’s golfing representation. In Spring 2022, all players will be able to tee-off as a female golfer at the truest representation of the Evian Resort Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains, France, thanks to the power of EA’s Frostbite™ game engine.


“We’re thrilled that the LPGA Tour is coming back to EA SPORTS PGA TOUR especially with the inclusion of a major global tournament like The Amundi Evian Championship,” said Brian Carroll, the LPGA’s senior vice president of global media distribution. “EA SPORTS has done a great job in continuing to expand female representation in the various modes throughout the game and featuring women’s golf in an authentic and modern way.”

To authentically represent the diversity found in the sport of golf and create a more welcoming community, the development team worked with a diverse group of golf professionals, including GOLFTV and Sky Sports broadcaster and former pro golfer Iona Stephen. Iona is a part of a larger Creative Council and has worked with the development team at EA for over a year on everything from design to audio, visuals, golf trends and community building. Iona is also joining the EA commentary team as the first female on-course commentator in game, bringing her experienced insights from both playing professionally and working in golf broadcasting.

“I’m incredibly excited that EA SPORTS PGA TOUR laid out a vision to represent female athletes and the LPGA in the game,” said Iona Stephen, GOLFTV and Sky Sports broadcaster, and EA SPORTS ambassador. “My goal in helping EA is to give women the satisfaction of playing a quality golf game while seeing themselves in a variety of ways that go beyond a handful of female character models.”

“I’m beyond excited to be included as one of the female golfers in EA SPORTS PGA TOUR,” said Jin Young Ko, professional golfer, and winner of The 2019 Amundi Evian Championship. “Women’s golf is growing so fast and having us included in this game is a great opportunity to reach fans all around the world. I can’t wait to see how it turns out — and I can’t wait to play the game!”

Ko joins a roster of LPGA Tour athletes coming to EA SPORTS PGA TOUR when it launches next year. Each of these athletes can be used to compete in multiple game modes — including a variety of challenges and The Amundi Evian Championship — from the start. First played in 1994 as the Evian Masters, The Amundi Evian Championship was elevated to major-championship status in 2013. Nestled at the base of the Alps, Evian Resort Golf Club provides spectacular views of Lake Geneva and sprawling snow-capped mountains. The course has served as the venue for some incredible moments in LPGA Tour history, including Ko’s two-stroke win in 2019, Angela Stanford’s first major victory in 2018 at age 40 and Hyo-Joo Kim’s first-round 61 in 2014, which still stands as the lowest round at a major by any golfer, male, or female.

The Amundi Evian Championship will be just one of the many additions to EA SPORTS PGA TOUR as a part of EA’s long-term partnership with the LPGA. Players will have the opportunity to play as several female athletes as well as create a female golfer of their own in the newly overhauled Create-A-Player feature. From having the chance to participate in a series of LPGA-themed challenges, amateur tournaments and events like The Amundi Evian Championship, EA SPORTS PGA TOUR is providing an in-depth women’s golf experience in 2022.

Credit One Bank Adds Naming Rights Of Charleston Tennis Stadium And WTA 500 Tournament

Credit One Financial, the parent company of Credit One Bank, one of the fastest-growing credit card providers in the United States, signed a multiyear naming rights sponsorship deal with Charleston Tennis, LLC, which includes title partner rights at the newly named Credit One Stadium located at the LTP Daniel Island tennis center in Charleston, South Carolina.

As part of the new sponsorship, Credit One Bank will be the title sponsor of the annual WTA 500 tennis tournament, to be held April 2-10, 2022 at Credit One Stadium.


American professional tennis player Madison Keys, WTA CEO Steve Simon and Charleston City Council Members Carol Jackson and Marie Del Cioppo attended the announcement today to celebrate Credit One’s sponsorship and investment in the greater Charleston region. Charleston Tennis, LLC, and Credit One also unveiled a design for the stadium’s marquee signage, a symbolic start of a new chapter for the 20-year-old venue that is currently undergoing extensive renovations to enhance the stadium experience.

“We’re proud to be working with Charleston Tennis, LLC, and the City of Charleston to build on the great history of this tournament and give the passionate fan base in the area and women’s tennis players from around the world a great experience at a state-of-the-art venue,” said John Coombe, senior vice president of marketing at Credit One Bank. “We want to grow the Credit One Bank brand name throughout the region while continuing to invest in entertainment and community programs important to our customers and fans.”

Credit One first partnered with Charleston Tennis, LLC, in June of 2020 for the Credit One Bank Invitational, which was the first large-scale tennis event to be held after the sport went on pause during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament featured 16 players, received more than 40 hours of live coverage on Tennis Channel, and helped raise critical funds for the Medical University of South Carolina’s frontline healthcare workers.

Vollyball World Partners Italian Professional Volleyball Leagues To Expand Globally

Volleyball World, as part of its global expansion of volleyball has announced ground-breaking partnerships with the Lega Pallavolo Serie A Maschile and Lega Pallavolo Serie A Femminile, the men’s and women’s Italian Professional Volleyball Leagues.

Volleyball World’s partnership with both leagues will focus on leveraging the men’s SuperLega Credem Banca domestic media rights and Lega Pallavolo Serie A Femminile (A1 and A2) domestic and international media rights. In addition, the partnerships will aim to accelerate the development of the overall men’s and women’s flagship league products with a focus on gameday presentation, fan experience, digital opportunities, sponsors’ visibility and much more.

Furthermore, VBTV, the new subscription based streaming channel from Volleyball World, will showcase all matches of both leagues together with additional digital content, exposing the premier professional volleyball action to an even greater audience. VBTV demonstrated its new cutting-edge TV production during the most recent edition of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) in Rimini, Italy last June and July.

Volleyball World is the newly formed commercial driver for the sport of volleyball around the world, and aims to increase the profile and popularity of the sport through fresh investment for the benefit of fans, players, professional leagues and National Federations. Volleyball World is responsible for the commercial operation of key volleyball and beach volleyball international events, including: the World Championships, Olympic Qualifiers, Volleyball Nations League and Beach Volleyball World Tour.

Volleyball World CEO, Finn Taylor said: “Volleyball World’s mission is to drive commercial growth within the sport by focusing on the volleyball product, fan experience, media, sports data/digital opportunities and sponsorship. This will ensure the long-term success of volleyball and deliver lasting legacies for the whole ecosystem of the sport.

“We are delighted to have taken another huge step on this journey by partnering with both the women’s and men’s Italian Professional Volleyball Leagues. Of course, there is still much work to be done, but I have no doubt that these partnerships will be incredibly successful and bring benefits to all stakeholders including the players and fans.”

Volleyball World Chief Business Officer, Guido Betti said: “The women’s and men’s Professional Volleyball Leagues are respectively already among the best women’s and men’s leagues in the world. And yet, they both have huge untapped fanbases and commercial potential both domestically in Italy and worldwide.

“As part of our commitment to improve media production from the offset, this journey immediately started with the acquisition of media rights. The ultimate goal is to improve the overall product and commercial value of these leagues to enable fans in Italy and globally to access and enjoy two of the best volleyball leagues in the world.”

BT Sport Extends WRC Deal Until 2024

British rally fans can continue to follow the fortunes of their heroes in the all-action FIA World Rally Championship on BT Sport until 2024.

BT Sport have screened the WRC since 2014, tracking the rise of young British drivers like Elfyn Evans and Gus Greensmith to become established stars of the line-up.

The new deal, which kicks in next season, means BT Sport will show live coverage of every stage from round as the WRC launches an exciting new era of hybrid-powered cars from Evans’ Toyota Gazoo Racing squad to Greensmith’s M-Sport Ford team.

As ever, BT Sport will provide fans with expert analysis from rallies, key interviews with the top stars and behind-the-scenes features with live coverage of every special stage as it happens.


A pre-event magazine show, daily highlights capturing all the twists and turns on the leaderboard and a post-rally review programme are also part of the extended agreement.

Philipp Maenner, media rights director at WRC Promoter said: “British rally fans have celebrated some stellar moments over the years, cheering on as they watched TV coverage of Colin McRae and Richard Burns bringing WRC championship glory to their shores.

“Now a new generation of British drivers is focused on emulating those amazing achievements. I’m delighted that, as the WRC travels the globe to compete in picture-postcard locations and gruelling conditions, BT Sport will continue to screen the thrills and spills from every round.

“The introduction of sustainable hybrid technology next year for the WRC’s headline category marks one of the biggest milestones in the sport’s history and this extension means British fans will be right there from the beginning.”

Rachel Knight, Sports Rights Director, BT Sport added: “Today’s news not only extends our successful long-term relationship with WRC Promoter, it builds on our existing motorsports coverage of Moto GP, Extreme E and Moto E.


“BT Sport is passionate about sustainability and we aim to become one of the greenest broadcasters globally, so we welcome the chance to showcase WRC’s landmark hybrid evolution from 2022.”

BLAST Teams Up With Amazon And Twitch For Apex Legends

BLAST will team up with Twitch and Amazon ahead of this week’s inaugural Apex Legends event BLAST Titans – where Europe’s best teams will compete against each other for a €40,000 prize pool.

Twitch and BLAST will work together to focus on enhancing viewer and fan experience of the tournament through unique features like Twitch chat and Drops – that will reward fans tuning in and watching the second weekend’s Arenas Mode action unfold online.

As part of the deal, BLAST Titans will broadcast exclusively on Twitch, where the English language broadcast will be shown live from Twitch.tv/BLASTTV.

Amazon will own the ‘match predictions’ segment of the broadcast and social media activations, providing visibility to its Prime Gaming and online shopping offering. BLAST and Amazon will also work with influencers to engage the Apex Legends community throughout the tournament, offering a more integrated viewing experience to fans.

Leo Matlock, VP of Commercial at BLAST, said: “BLAST Titans is our first venture into the fast-growing game of Apex Legends and we’re thrilled to have two premium brands on board in Twitch and Amazon, this collaboration will help elevate the viewer experience for fans by integrating and capitalising on their leading channels.”

“Working together with this holistic approach will help bring another exciting dimension to the tournament, adding to our renowned broadcast and production. Apex Legends has become a popular game with fans and provides another opportunity for BLAST, Twitch and Amazon to further grow and diversify our esports offerings.”

Stuart Wettenhall, Business Development Director EMEA at Twitch, added: “Apex Legends has held a special place on Twitch since its launch and we are delighted to bring this event to our European community, providing them with a truly unique, live, interactive and engaging experience like no other.”

Fulham FC Onboards Webexpenses As New Partner

Fulham FC has signed a new partnership with Webexpenses, a digital expense management  software provider. 

Webexpenses is a leading global expense management provider with over a billion expenses claimed  worldwide and 99% client retention. 

During the term of the partnership, Fulham FC will adopt Webexpenses’ solution to help save time, reduce costs  and improve visibility of company spend with ease. 

Webexpenses will receive brand exposure across Fulham FC’s digital platforms, entertain clients, and build  relationships with prospects using match-day corporate hospitality at Craven Cottage. There are also  opportunities during the term of the partnership to create a series of case studies about the benefits Fulham FC  have received using their innovative expense management software. 

Jon Don-Carolis – Sales Director of Fulham FC, said: “We are delighted to launch our exciting new partnership with Webexpenses which demonstrates and reinforces  the Club’s versatility as a marketing platform for both business to consumer and business-to-business brands.  We look forward to working closely with Webexpenses and forging a successful long-term association of our  brands.” 

 

Webexpenses Sales Director, Andy May, said: “On behalf of Webexpenses, we are thrilled to be partnering with Fulham FC as their official expense  management provider. We are excited to get involved in attending upcoming networking events and sharing  digital exposure across our channels. It’s great to be working closely with a fantastic football club like Fulham  FC and we look forward to seeing the partnership grow.” 

Six International Sports Federations Granted IOC Recognition

GAISF President Raffaele Chiulli praised the six International Sports Federations (IFs) who were granted full International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition at IOC Session. The six fully recognised IFs granted full IOC recognition at the 138th IOC Session in Tokyo, Japan, are as follows:

• The International Cheerleading Union (ICU)

• The International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA)

• The International Sambo Federation (FIAS)

• The International Federation Icestocksport (IFI)

• The World Association of Kickboxing Organisations (WAKO)

• World Lacrosse (WL)

GAISF President Chiulli said: “This is a historic day for the global sports community and an incredible milestone for each of these respective sports. Today’s decision will provide a major boost for each of these now fully recognised IFs to continue to grow their sports around the world. GAISF will continue to provide its expertise and support throughout the next stage of their journeys, in addition to the ongoing support provided by ARISF and AIMS.”

Leeds United Extends Partnership With JD

Leeds United has extended its partnership agreement with global brand JD becoming the club’s Official Retail Partner for the 2021/22 season.

JD is widely recognised as the leading retailer of branded sports fashion apparel and footwear, with a strong relevance and connection to a youth audience.

The new agreement incorporates an extensive distribution programme that will see Leeds United replica kit and training wear stocked in JD stores across the UK, Europe and the USA and through JD’s website. The JD logo will also appear on the front of all the Junior replica shirts.

Peter Cowgill, Chairman of JD Sports Fashion PLC said: “We’re delighted to renew our partnership with Leeds for the forthcoming season. The positive intent shown by the club both on and off the field is something which we want to be associated with and we wish them every success in the new campaign.”

Leeds United Executive Director Paul Bell added: “JD is one of the most recognised names on the high street and one of the world’s biggest retailers and we’re delighted to extend our strategic partnership with them.

“JD has an impressive portfolio of over 3,000 stores across 20 International territories including some key target markets for the club.

“The extension of our agreement will help the club to broaden its global retail footprint and allow Leeds fans easier access to our merchandise on the high street.”

Brisbane To Host 2032 Olympics And Paralympics

International Olympic Committee Members today voted to elect Brisbane 2032 as host of the Games of the XXXV Olympiad.


The secret ballot was held at the 138th Session in Tokyo, two days before the Opening Ceremony for the Olympic Games, under strict COVID-19 restrictions. The Session heard presentations by Brisbane 2032, including by video link-up from Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, as well as a final report from Kristin Kloster, Chair of the Future Host Commission for the Games of the Olympiad – the IOC body responsible for monitoring and analysing interest in hosting the Olympic Games and the Youth Olympic Games.

Brisbane received 72 yes and 5 no votes from 77 valid votes.

Before the vote, IOC Members were able to pose questions to Mrs Kloster about the election process, and to Brisbane 2032 about their proposal to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Brisbane and South-East Queensland.

IOC President Thomas Bach said: “We encourage Olympic Games projects which are sustainable and economically responsible, which deliver the best possible Games experience for athletes and fans, and which leave solid legacies for local communities. The Brisbane 2032 vision and Games plan fit into long-term regional and national strategies for social and economic development in Queensland and Australia, and complement the goals for the Olympic Movement outlined in Olympic Agenda 2020 and 2020+5, while focusing on providing memorable sports experiences for athletes and fans. Today’s vote is a vote of trust that Brisbane and Queensland will stage magnificent Olympic and Paralympic Games 2032. We have heard a lot of positive feedback from IOC Members and International Federations in the past few months.”

Brisbane 2032 is the first future host to have been elected under, and to have fully benefited from, the new flexible approach to electing Olympic hosts. The reforms enable the IOC to work in partnership with cities, regions and countries, to encourage Olympic projects which use a high percentage of existing and temporary venues, which align with long-term development plans, and which have a strong vision for sports and local communities.

President Bach said: “This new approach is lighter, more collaborative, more compact, and has a positive impact. Now we always have a significant pool of Interested Parties for 2036, and even for 2040, which is almost 20 years from now. I can’t remember that we have ever been in such a favourable position 20 years before an Olympic Games.

“We enter Tokyo 2020 with full confidence for the future of the Olympic Movement.”

Prime Minister of Australia, the Honourable Scott Morrison MP, said: “The 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Queensland will forge an enduring legacy for our entire nation. They will support economic growth and investment, deliver lasting community benefits and inspire the next generation of Australian athletes.

“I am proud of Australia, proud of Queensland and proud of our team that secured this win for our country. The Commonwealth Government has supported Brisbane’s candidacy for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games right from the very start. We believe in this bid. We know it’s a huge opportunity for our nation, just like the Melbourne Games in 1956 and the Sydney Olympics in 2000.”

Following the election, the Host Contract 2032 was signed by the Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk MP, Premier of Queensland and Minister for Trade, Councillor Adrian Schrinner, the Right Honourable Lord Mayor of Brisbane, and Mr John Coates AC, President of the Australian Olympic Committee.

Ms Palaszczuk said: “Queensland’s fundamental approach is to align Games legacy with long-term plans.

“We will work with all three levels of government to embed Games legacy opportunities in existing programmes and will create a special Games Legacy Fund. This is to ensure the effective delivery of legacy over the next 10 years – and the 10 years after that. That means we develop not just a new generation of Olympic athletes, but we give our small businesses the opportunity to participate too, grow their business and export to the world.”

Chelsea Signs Zapp As Official European On-Demand Convenience And Grocery Delivery Partner

Zapp, the fast growing start-up that delivers snacks, drinks, essential groceries and other everyday items within minutes, 24/7, has been chosen as the official European on-demand convenience and grocery delivery partner of Chelsea Football Club.


The partnership brings together the current European champions and the UK’s only 24/7 rapid delivery service, with both aiming to deliver in 2021. Zapp celebrates the passion that goes into football and the unique way sport brings people together, from celebrating the wins to commiserations – and everything in between. Whether it’s drinks and snacks on match day, half-time refreshments or the final whistle after party, Zapp lets fans live in the moment.

The partnership with Chelsea FC will run for two years initially, extending across Chelsea’s men’s team, Chelsea Women and the Academy sides. The collaboration includes a number of exciting Zapp and Chelsea Football Club promotions, from player activity to exclusive fan opportunities and Zapp football moments.

The partnership will be supported by an expansive Zapp stadium advertising campaign and the debut of Zapp’s first TV ad to be shown at half-time at a Chelsea home game in the forthcoming Premier League season.

‘We’re very excited to be partnering with Zapp’, says Guy Laurence, Chelsea’s chief executive. ‘On demand convenience and grocery delivery has become more and more present in our lives during the last decade, with the pandemic giving the category an unexpected accelerator. With any partnership, we want to work with leaders in their field – Zapp is the UK’s most loved brand in this space, with many of our fans and team members being Zapp customers already. The fact that Zapp has been able to grow so fast while deeply caring about its values and community made it a very obvious fit as a partner for the club.’

Steve O’Hear, Zapp’s vice president of strategy, says: ‘At Zapp, we focus on delivering for the community of our customers, day in and day out. When we look at prospective partners, we first and foremost look for an overlap of our values – championing diversity, sustainability and obsessing about the perfect delivery. We couldn’t be more proud to be partnering with one of the biggest sports franchises in the world that celebrates our values in such a symbiotic way.’

Operating its own ‘Zappstores’, supported by an-electric fleet of bikes and employed riders, Zapp caters for the ‘need it now’ occasions, delivering in minutes, 24/7.