Is chess a sport? It soon may be chasing the Olympic Holy Grail August 10, 2023 Columnist Ed Warner discusses chess, funding fringe sports and what makes a solid sporting body chief executive. Where do you draw the line between games and sports? Mine is at the door of the pub, so ruling dominos, bar billiards, space invaders and darts out of the sporting firmament. I realise of course that this [...]
‘Sooner The Hundred is scrapped the better, the Ashes shone’ August 3, 2023 I’ve had a tough summer so far on behalf of readers, dragging myself from Ashes to Ashes – a day at each of the five men’s Tests plus one of the women’s T20s. From the maddening Rubik’s Cube of ticket application ballots last autumn, through the tyranny of rail strikes, to the final dose of [...]
Ed Warner: Commonwealth Games must be stripped down and redesigned July 27, 2023 Victoria’s premier Daniel Andrews expertly channelled Kath of Kath & Kim fame with his “look at moi!” presser last week when he pulled the state out of hosting the next Commonwealth Games. Behind his baleful blue eyes sat a brain programmed to local politics – and a truth about the “friendly games” that must be [...]
Ed Warner: I found a solution to cricket’s privilege problem in the South Downs July 20, 2023 Cricket can tackle its elitism problem by supporting initiatives take the sport to new audiences such as disadvantaged kids, says Ed Warner. Back in my investment banking days, I was responsible from across the Atlantic for a US research department. Every time I headed for JFK after a visit to my team of analysts I [...]
Ed Warner: English football might need multi-club question July 13, 2023 Football may be a big industry, but it still operates like a village. Everyone knows everyone else – and their business – and is still prepared to trust their creditworthiness, often in spite of abundant evidence to the contrary. Much like ticks available at the local store or the chalkboard of debt behind the bar [...]
Ed Warner: Thompson’s ECB era will always have report in its shadow July 6, 2023 Ed Warner writes about ECB chair Richard Thompson and how his tenure – much like Seb Coe’s – will always have its connotations despite best efforts. Through the cloud of orange powder, I couldn’t check the privilege of the protester hauled off the Lord’s pitch by Jonny Bairstow last week to see whether he is [...]
Ed Warner: When risk in sport is a smart choice June 29, 2023 This week columnist Ed Warner looks at risk in sport and how sometimes, such as in Bazball in cricket, it can be the smartest choice. A team of sub-10 second sprinters can be beaten to 4x100m relay gold by a quartet who have never broken that magic barrier. The trick is risk management in the [...]
Ed Warner: Rugby, boxing, netball, Para sport – what should Saudi Arabia buy next? June 22, 2023 Challenge accepted! A reader last week asked what the most investable sports worldwide are from the perspective of a sovereign wealth fund such as Saudi Arabia’s PIF. He had rugby union in mind, but wanted a long train journey to dredge up others. A return trip on Avanti West Coast to the first Ashes Test [...]
Ed Warner: What’s next for the losers in the rush to embrace sovereign wealth? June 15, 2023 City A.M. columnist Ed Warner discusses the recent LIV Golf merger, the Saudi Arabia PIF deal and what comes next for the losers in the rush to embrace sovereign wealth. Elite runners focus on every step of every run. Us mere mortals seek displacement tricks to block out the pain. And so I found myself [...]
Ed Warner: Remove Fifa toxicity to get Women’s World Cup on the box June 8, 2023 When a global sporting event takes place without TV coverage, does it really happen? Or at least, does it really matter? That question should be front of mind for all the protagonists in the standoff over broadcast rights for next month’s Fifa Women’s World Cup. Blank screens are looming larger with every passing day in [...]
