King and Ascend could deliver Eustace a Swift double January 2, 2026 RACING continues to come thick and fast in Hong Kong, with an 11-race programme at Sha Tin on Sunday following hot on the heels of the New Year card at the same venue on Thursday. The feature race on the card, the Group Three Bauhinia Sprint Trophy (8.05am), a handicap over five furlongs, is full [...]
Sagacious Life looks Smart enough for Purton January 2, 2026 WITH the all-important Four-Year-Old Classic Series starting with the Classic Mile at the beginning of next month, it is imperative for many stables that their potential contenders have a rating high enough to take part in the contests. One horse that has no such worries about his present rating is lightly raced, but potentially smart, [...]
Why Squad Cost Ratio rules can’t afford to ruin joy of Premier League January 2, 2026 Trevor Watkins, global head of sport at Pinsent Masons and Former director and chairman of AFC Bournemouth, discusses why changes in Premier League football’s financing rules cannot afford to ruin the sport With the Christmas period behind us, the traditional festive season of football fixtures – once a full list on Boxing Day but now [...]
Prem to Champ to sevens: Four rugby business stories to follow in 2026 January 2, 2026 How do I feel about rugby in 2026? I am not too sure. We were supposed to have the launch of Ultimate Sevens and R360 but one of those has been mothballed until 2027, we were supposed to have an exciting promotion race in the Champ but ring fencing may stop that, and we’re still [...]
Why Mexico, Dubai and Italy are the countries to watch in sport in 2026 January 1, 2026 This time last year, City AM asked me to identify three countries for which 2025 would be an important year in sport. My three choices were Saudi Arabia, Morocco and the United States. Judging by recent standards, Saudi Arabia’s year was relatively quiet albeit interspersed with some rowdy moments, notably the Public Investment Fund’s acquisition [...]
Why 2026 is the year sport needs to confront the man vs machine question January 1, 2026 Man vs machine is the future of sport, whether we like it or not, but what do we want it to look like? If you want to understand where sport is heading, don’t look at the Olympic programme or the Premier League fixture list. Look instead at the strange, noisy, algorithm‑friendly world growing just outside [...]
Trust in Sky to get 2026 off to a winning start December 31, 2025 RACEGOERS will arrive for an 11-race programme at Sha Tin in Hong Kong on Thursday, armed with all their ‘Lucky Start 2026’ merchandise, and hoping to begin the New Year with a fistful of dollars. The feature race of the day, the Group Three £400,000 Chinese Club Challenge Cup, a handicap over seven furlongs (8.05am), [...]
Legendary Bowman can be punters’ Golden Knight December 31, 2025 LEGENDARY pilot Hugh Bowman, having visited the winners’ circle seven times in the past month, can keep the fire burning into the New Year, when he takes the ride on a host of winning chances on the Sha Tin card. He climbs aboard talented but wayward galloper Crossboderpegasus, who makes his seasonal appearance for the [...]
IMG’s three sports sponsorship trends to watch in 2026 December 31, 2025 Look out for higher demands on AI, more prediction markets and greater sophistication in women’s sport sponsorships next year, says IMG partnerships expert Sam Galet. As we close out 2025 and look ahead to 2026, the sports business landscape is once again at an inflection point. Rightsholders, brands and agencies are all asking the same [...]
The top 20 sporting events by bets placed in 2025, according to Entain December 31, 2025 Betting behemoth Entain has revealed the sporting events punters bet on the most during 2025. The iconic Grand National, run at Aintree, maintained its top spot but the number of footballing events in the top 50 fell slightly, largely down to 2025 being a year without a major men’s tournament. The Grand National was joined [...]