Lego builds record sales on World Cup and F1 fever Retail Lego has posted record first-half sales as its World Cup and Formula 1 ranges helped extend a red-hot run for the toymaking giant. The Danish firm saw revenue grow by 21 per cent to 41.9bn Danish kroner (£4.8bn) in the six months to June, while pre-tax profit jumped by a third to 11.3bn Danish kroner [...]
Holiday Inn owner suffers Middle East slowdown as Iran war hits tourism Hospitality The owner of Holiday Inn has suffered a slump in revenue at its Middle Eastern business as the Iran war knocked the region’s tourist economy. Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) said its revenue per available room in the Middle East slipped by 19 per cent in the three months to June. This followed a two per [...]
World Cup leads UK spending boost as confidence rebounds Banking Consumer spending across the UK jumped in July as Brits’ splurged on a summer of sport and sunshine, fresh data from Barclays has shown. Card spending jumped two per cent to its highest level in 12 months following a surge in transactions at pubs, bars and clubs during England’s World Cup run. Overall hospitality and [...]
Domino’s battles for slice of fried chicken market as revenue jumps August 4, 2026 Domino’s has scored a World Cup boost from its bet on fried chicken, as the recovering pizza delivery chain looks to draw in new customers. The FTSE 250 pizza chain said the World Cup and its new ‘Chick’n’dip’ range drove a six per cent jump in revenue to £825m in the six months to June, [...]
Meet the top lawyer challenging Gianni Infantino’s Fifa power play August 3, 2026 Uefa has enlisted a leading US white-collar expert as legal tensions escalate over Gianni Infantino’s unsuccessful Fifa World Cup sell-off. US legal giant Dechert’s former Chair, Andrew Levander, has been nabbed by the European body, which informed Zurich-headquartered Fifa his client was “actively considering legal action, arbitration, and/or regulatory complaints”. Fifa has promised that raising [...]
Burnham says Infantino ‘wrong man’ to lead Fifa as Brits back World Cup boycott plans July 31, 2026 Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said Gianni Infantino is the “wrong man” to lead Fifa as Brits back Uefa plans to boycott the next World Cup. The football-loving Prime Minister told reporters in Sheffield on Friday that Fifa’s plans to sell of stakes in the World Cup to private investors, spearheaded by Infantino, “was an [...]
Fifa want to sell the family silver but should World Rugby do the same? July 31, 2026 Selling stakes in commercial entities is like selling the family silver. So should World Rugby copy Fifa? Selling stakes in commercial entities – much like Fifa announced it wanted to do with the World Cup – is like selling the family silver. Global tournaments are pillars of sports with revenues and reach that soar during [...]
UK government backs British business to get slice of £33bn in Morocco World Cup contracts July 30, 2026 British businesses hoping to get in on £33bn worth of World Cup contracts in Morocco have been boosted by government backing. The Foreign Office is aiming to help British firms get a piece of the construction cake as a number of projects ramp up in North Africa ahead of the next Fifa World Cup, which [...]
Adidas shares plunge after hike in World Cup marketing spend July 30, 2026 Adidas shares sank this morning after the sportswear behemoth missed quarterly profit expectations amid a hike in World Cup marketing spend. Shares in the German firm opened more than 15 per cent down after missing second quarter profit expectations. The dent came despite revenues rising 14 per cent to £5.7bn but the firm maintained its [...]
Investors – and fans – should welcome Fifa’s $20 billion World Cup stake sale July 29, 2026 Ignore the outcry, Fifa’s plans to sell a minority stake in the World Cup will make international football more transparent and accountable and raise huge sums to develop the game, says Chad Teixeira Football’s governing bodies agree on almost nothing, so when UEFA announces that the World Cup “isn’t Fifas to sell”, it’s worth asking [...]