EP:42 Newbury, Kelso, Doncaster & Hong Kong March 5, 2021 It has been a very difficult week for racing with the emergence of horrendous footage of a trainer and jockey in Ireland showing an enormous lack of respect for horses in their care City AM racing editor Bill Esdaile discusses the implications of these images as well as the public’s response as racing looks to [...]
The football club of the future? How Lewes FC’s principles have started to pay off – and their aim of becoming the world’s most owned team March 5, 2021 They take pride in doing things differently at Lewes FC, the small football club with big ideas. From the beach huts that act as hospitality boxes at the Dripping Pan, their distinctive ground with the sunken pitch, to the prosecco served at matches and the pop-culture inspired posters that advertise fixtures, the East Sussex outfit [...]
Week in Sportbiz: Formula 1 takes the pain; Budweiser buys NBA rights; watch every PGA Tour shot; World Rugby’s bad timing; squash, the great survivor March 4, 2021 “Our goal was to try and take the pain in 2020,” Greg Maffei, president of Formula 1 owners Liberty Media, told investors this week. Maffei can consider that mission accomplished after Liberty laid bare the devastating effect of the pandemic on F1’s finances last year. F1 slipped from a $17m profit in 2019 to a [...]
Barcelona and Real Madrid handed multi-million tax bills as European Court of Justice issues ‘definitive’ verdict in state aid case March 4, 2021 Barcelona and Real Madrid must pay millions of Euros in extra tax after the European Court of Justice found they benefited from state aid. The verdict from the European Union’s top court settles a long-running legal battle involving four of Spain’s leading football clubs. Athletic Bilbao and Osasuna are the other teams facing bills for [...]
Cazoo, Dettol and Tik Tok: How the pandemic has changed the sport sponsorship landscape March 3, 2021 The pandemic may have halted the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, but in the world of sport sponsorship it has sparked some dramatic moves. New entrants are making major investments while more established sponsors have moved aside to make way. A combination of enforced changes of habit and the uneven nature of Covid-19’s [...]
Cricket, horse racing, tennis and women’s football set to benefit from £300m summer sport aid package March 3, 2021 Sport is to receive a £300m recovery package as part of the Budget announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak today. Cricket, horse racing, tennis, women’s football and rugby league are expected to be among the sports to benefit from the financial support. It follows similar aid granted to winter sports in November to mitigate the cost [...]
beIN Sports wins legal battle to prevent Fenerbahce manipulating the broadcaster’s logo for ‘beFAIR’ protest campaign March 2, 2021 beIN Sports has succeeded in its legal bid to stop Fenerbahce using the beIN logo for the club’s “beFAIR” campaign against the broadcaster. The network lodged an application for an emergency injunction against Fenerbahce for breach of intellectual property last week – as revealed by City A.M. On Friday Turkish courts ruled in beIN Sports’ [...]
Hong Kong Racing Tips: Fownes to hit back at the Valley March 2, 2021 WITH runaway jockeys’ championship leader Joao Moreira forced on the sidelines once again with a two-meeting suspension, it’s over to Zac Purton to produce the spoils for his many thousands of supporters at Happy Valley. The reigning champ has a strong book of rides in all nine races, with at least a half-a-dozen of his mounts guaranteed [...]
Hong Kong Racing Tips: Chariot in with an Excellent chance March 2, 2021 REIGNING champion trainer Ricky Yiu has found it tough going in Hong Kong this season, with only 18 winners and languishing mid-table in the trainers’ championship. This is due to having a stable full of handicappers who, after last season’s successful exploits, are too high in the ratings and are waiting for some relief from the [...]
Hong Kong Racing Tips: All aboard the ‘Poon Train’ March 2, 2021 MATTHEW Poon is the jockey to follow when racing takes place under floodlights at Happy Valley in Hong Kong on Wednesday. The ‘Poon Train’, as he’s nick-named by the locals in the territory, has been on the crest of a wave over the past month, riding seven winners including a hat-trick at the city track three weeks back. He [...]