Ed Warner: Does it really matter if Chelsea buyers are true Blues fans? March 24, 2022 Who are the wannabe owners of Chelsea trying to impress when they flaunt their fandom? Investment bank the Raine Group is only likely to give a jot when someone first stood in the Shed, or how long they’ve sat in the same seat in the Matthew Harding Stand, if this matters to HM Treasury. If [...]
Ed Warner: This year could be huge for those with a stake in Formula 1 March 17, 2022 The rubber hits the road again this weekend as Liberty Media’s $8bn Formula 1 circus fires up its engines for the 2022 season. The tumultuous end to last year’s race series has yet to be resolved. It’s not clear whether the inquiry report will be published on the eve of the Bahrain GP as originally [...]
Saudi Arabia’s PIF and Amanda Staveley should have waited to buy Chelsea instead March 10, 2022 I can’t help thinking that Amanda Staveley and her consortium have bought the wrong football club. Had they waited just five months they could have had Chelsea FC rather than Newcastle United. A mooted £3bn price tag may be 10 times the price paid for the Magpies, but still well within the means of Saudi [...]
Ed Warner: Sport needs a united front against Russia, not patchwork of policies March 3, 2022 On the opening day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the Polish wheelchair rugby team decided not to take to the court in their Euros group match against Russia in Paris. A classy move. If only others were so decisive. The leaders of world sport are already divided in their response to Vladimir Putin’s war. It [...]
Ed Warner: Russia has taken us all for fools, especially spineless Thomas Bach February 24, 2022 Second in the table of overall medals won isn’t half bad for a nation denied a place at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Russia has taken us all for fools. You if you watched any of it. Me for doing just that. All the sporting politicians who allow Russian athletes to compete. The greatest fool [...]
Ed Warner: Commonwealth Games has earned extra life by embracing esports February 17, 2022 If you want to win a full bore rifle shooting medal at the Commonwealth Games you’ll need a keen eye, steady hand, ability to lower and control your heart rate, thousands of hours of practice – and a host city willing to include the event. However good you might be, then, Birmingham 2022 isn’t your [...]
Ed Warner: Spare a thought for golfers locked out of Saudi Arabia and Greg Norman’s gilded cage February 10, 2022 In the Year of the Sportswash it should be no surprise that Saudi Arabia is at the centre of the struggle for control of pro golf. But would the beefed-up Asian Tour arouse such a frenzy if it had a different backer? The PGA Tour has been accused of greed that is “beyond obnoxious” by [...]
Ed Warner: Why the Olympics is frozen by complacency February 3, 2022 Curl up for the curling. Settle down for dust-ups on the rink. Thrill at the sliders and skiers. Swoon over the skaters. Grumble about geo-politics and overbearing branding. The Olympics are here again. Not the Olympics Olympics, obviously; rather their smaller Winter sibling. Less than half the number of competing nations, a quarter of the [...]
Ed Warner: Stand up for English cricket January 27, 2022 Wanted: someone to stand up for English cricket. National governing body the ECB is hunkered in its bunker, losing the PR battles over racism and the Ashes debacle. This simply won’t do. Challenging though the circumstances are, the sport needs visible leadership with a strong voice, prepared to defend what is good about it while [...]
Sports must protect its precious human capital like Djokovic and Hamilton January 20, 2022 Picture Novak Djokovic. Do you see a villain sticking two fingers up at vaccine orthodoxy, or a heroic advocate for personal freedoms you’d risk a pepper-spraying for? What of Lewis Hamilton and his rainbow helmet and sloganed T-shirts? Gesture politician or vital diversity campaigner? And what say you as one football team takes the knee [...]
