London Olympics 2012: Now is the time for sport to take centre stage July 26, 2012 WHAT persuades a normally rational person to part with hard-earned cash to watch Turkey play Angola in the preliminary stages of a women’s basketball tournament? With apologies to the female basketball players of said countries, and the otherwise right-thinking friend of mine in question, it can only be the excitement of a home Olympics. It’s [...]
Sports Direct hits bonus goal as JJB struggles July 19, 2012 SPORTS Direct won a game of two halves on the high street yesterday, with a flair for discounting and online retail helping it trounce sales at ailing rival JJB Sports, which made a plea for fresh funding. Sports Direct, controlled by billionaire Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, yesterday said its underlying pre-tax profit rose 17.3 [...]
Diving deep into the void July 19, 2012 IT’S dark side of the moon stuff, it’s like exploration.” So says Sebastien Murat, the free-diver, of life at the bottom of an ultra-deep plunge into the void. “There’s no one down there with me, and the idea of actually having air is really completely foreign.” Murat, a 43-year-old Australian, now lives in a tiny [...]
Sports Direct profit soars July 19, 2012 Sports Direct posted a strong rise in full year profit boosted by buoyant online sales, which helped it win market share from rivals. The sports retailer, controlled by billionaire Newcastle United soccer club owner Mike Ashley, on Thursday said its underlying pretax profit rose 17.3 per cent to £162.1m in the 53 weeks to 29 [...]
BEST of the BROKERS July 15, 2012 BOOKER Peel Hunt rates the wholesale retailer “buy” with a target price of 100p ahead of an interim management statement on Wednesday. The broker is expecting to see a two per cent rise in like-for-like sales, excluding tobacco, and sees an opportunity to buy into the shares if the figures end up disappointing the market. [...]
LONDON REPORT July 15, 2012 A SLEW of company results this week culminates with a busy Thursday, when retail giant Sports Direct, Halfords, Kingfisher and Mothercare are all set to update the market. Accountancy software maker Sage is set to give an interim management statement today, which will be followed with a Capital Market Day for investors tomorrow. Panmure Gordon [...]
JJB Sports fails to score as Euro 2012 sales drag July 9, 2012 SPORTSWEAR RETAILER JJB blamed poor summer weather and disappointing sales of football shirts during the European Championship for a profit warning yesterday, which sent shares tumbling more than 24 per cent. The company warned “sales have fallen materially short of expectations”, after consumer demand for replica football kit during Euro 2012 “did not materialise to [...]
Consumers cool on buying replica kit July 9, 2012 YOU can buy plenty of all-weather gear from the JJB Sports website, but that didn’t help the retailer’s performance in May and June, which yesterday it partly put down to the dismal summer weather. With its shares falling off a cliff on the news, down almost 25 per cent over the day, markets clearly aren’t [...]
All the West End wonders July 5, 2012 CHARIOTS OF FIRE Celebrate one of this country’s greatest ever sporting achievements this summer as Chariots of Fire, a new play, lights up the West End at the Gielgud Theatre. Adapted from the Oscar-winning movie, and featuring the original Vangelis score, this is a moving tale of rivalry, and determination in the face of prejudice [...]
Becklash: Stars and fans hit out at Olympic snub June 28, 2012 TEAM GB football manager Stuart Pearce was facing a backlash last night after controversially omitting former England captain David Beckham from his final squad for London 2012. Ex-players Gary Lineker and Robby Savage criticised the decision, while some fans vowed to boycott Team GB matches, having bought tickets in the hope of seeing Beckham’s international [...]