Trevor Steven: The method in Chelsea’s transfer madness – and why Todd Boehly is still taking a massive gamble January 31, 2023 Chelsea’s transfer strategy has been fascinating to watch since Todd Boehly’s consortium bought the club from Roman Abramovich last year. From the outside, the signing of more than a dozen new players for an outlay of around half a billion pounds in transfer fees looks like a scattergun approach. But I can’t imagine for one [...]
Saudi Arabia set to strengthen Fifa ties with deal to sponsor Women’s World Cup January 31, 2023 Saudi Arabia is set to make further inroads into sport by becoming a sponsor of the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup. Visit Saudi, the country’s state-owned tourism arm, is expected to become one of the main commercial partners of the tournament, which takes place in Australian and New Zealand in July and August. Saudi Arabia [...]
Chelsea ready to make World Cup star Premier League’s most expensive signing ever – and take spending past half a billion pounds under Todd Boehly January 30, 2023 Chelsea are attempting to make World Cup winning Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez the Premier League’s most expensive signing in a £105m transfer deadline day deal. The Blues have revived their interest in the Benfica player, 21, as the end of the January transfer window, at 11pm on Tuesday, approaches. If completed, the move would eclipse [...]
Premier League criticised by Football Supporters Association over NFT partnership with Serena Williams and Lionel Messi-backed company January 30, 2023 Football supporters groups have criticised the Premier League for entering the NFT market in a £120m deal with fantasy gaming and digital collectibles platform Sorare. After more than a year of deliberations, English football’s top division today announced a four-year contract with the French company, which is backed by sports stars including Lionel Messi, Kylian [...]
Premier League’s first NFT partnership explained: Inside the £120m deal with Sorare January 30, 2023 The Premier League has taken its first step into the NFT market by agreeing a deal with fantasy gaming and digital collectible platform Sorare. After more than a year of deliberations, English football’s top division has signed a four-year contract worth around £30m annually which includes an option to take equity in the French company. [...]
Derby County: Why West Ham United should fear a giant killing at the hands of resurgent Rams’ dad’s army January 30, 2023 It’s only six months since Derby County’s nightmare ended but already they are starting to dream big again. The former champions of England and founding members of the Football League spent two years with their existence in the balance – nine months of it languishing in administration, which they only exited after being relegated to [...]
EXCLUSIVE: Six Nations unions and Netflix producers yet to agree level of access for documentary January 29, 2023 Six Nations teams and producers of a new Netflix documentary about the Championship are yet to agree how much access will be granted just days before the opening matches, City A.M. understands. With the tournament kicking off in Cardiff and London on Saturday, questions still remain over how much intrusion will be allowed, with some [...]
Rugby MUST get off its moral high horse if it’s ever going to become global January 29, 2023 It’s about time rugby got off its high horse about its so-called values. For too long the oval balled sport has claimed moral superiority over every challenger because fans are silent for opposition kicks and can drink in stands (really?!). But the truth is, rugby is as rotten as the rest and only a rebuild [...]
Australian Open prize money 2023: How much can tennis players win in Melbourne this weekend and how does it compare to other Grand Slam tournaments? January 27, 2023 The Australian Open may be the first Grand Slam on the calendar, but it comes last of the four tennis majors for prize money. The men’s and women’s singles champions in Melbourne this weekend stand to receive AUD $2.98m, which equates to $2.08m or £1.67m at current exchange rates. That trails the £2m ($2.5m) Wimbledon [...]
Explained: Why replays are back in the 2022-23 FA Cup but face an uncertain future January 27, 2023 FA Cup replays were one of the casualties of the pandemic but they are back in football’s oldest knockout competition in 2022-23. The congested calendars caused by Covid-19 delays to English football’s normal schedule caused the Football Association to shelve replays in the last two seasons. Instead, all ties were decided on the day, going [...]