Aleksander Ceferin elected new Uefa president — here’s where he stands on the key issues facing European football September 14, 2016 Uefa has elected slovenian lawyer Aleksander Ceferin as its new president to replace the disgraced Michel Platini. The 48-year-old will take control of European football's governing body until 2019, after routing rival Michael van Praag by 42 votes to 13 at the election in Athens. Read more: Uefa urged to consider alternative format to liven up low-scoring European [...]
Manchester United: Are the football finance kings in danger of becoming a busted flush with an ageing business model? September 14, 2016 Earlier this week, Manchester United announced a staggering £515m in revenues. I tip my hat to their commercial team, because whilst the TV money flowing through from the Premier League represents a significant chunk of this you have to admire how they have built competitive advantage on others. When you consider that their EBITDA figure is [...]
Sky invests $1m in air Drone Racing League in the UK September 14, 2016 Sky said today it has invested $1m (£757,600) to bring drone racing to its new channel next month, as it announced plans to launch the first professional drone race in UK. The distribution deal with organiser The Drone League (DRL), whose competitions allow pilots to fly drones through three-dimensional racecouses, will enable the broadcaster to put on live events and screen [...]
Bake-xit: Two Great British Bake Off hosts to leave programme after move from BBC September 13, 2016 Great British Bake Off hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc are to step down when the programme leaves the BBC for Channel 4. The Bake Off move, which emerged last night, has caused a stir and sparked front page news today. Read more: Government set to make BBC reveal pay packets of stars on more [...]
Rosé wine: Move over red, white and sparkling – this summer belonged to pink booze September 13, 2016 Sparkling wine has been stealing the show in the UK's drinks scene as the new high-flier, but rosé wine has been the true winner of this summer's heatwave as sales of the pink stuff doubled. Marks and Spencer has reported a 100 per cent increase in its sales of English-produced rosé offerings, with its Chapel Down [...]
A toast to Edinburgh’s ‘Flat White Economy’ as tech firms are lured north September 13, 2016 The burgeoning ‘Flat White Economy’ is likely to play a vital role in the future of the post-Brexit UK economy. Now the second largest business sector in the UK, it accounts for 8.7 per cent of GDP. The term, originally penned to capture the explosion of digital businesses in London’s EC1V postal district, is spreading [...]
We want you bake: BBC makes plea for Great British Bake Off maker to accept “very strong offer” September 12, 2016 The BBC is set to lose the Great British Bake Off after the current series. The company behind the show, which stars Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, has said it has been unable to reach a renewal agreement with the corporation. Read more: Brands set to benefit from Bake Off’s return A BBC spokesperson said: [...]
The future of London: Is the city edging towards independence? September 12, 2016 It is increasingly easy to characterise London as a “city state”. Its scale, wealth and multi-dimensional differences (as compared to the rest of the country) mean it has more in common with New York or Toronto than with Yorkshire or Scotland. The creation of the office of mayor of London, a glamorous Americanised form of government, makes [...]
These are the FTSE 100 social media winners and losers September 12, 2016 FTSE 100 firms are finally getting the hang of social media and even jumping on the Snapchat bandwagon to build their profile, new research reveals. Seven firms in the blue-chip index now have official accounts on the fledgling messaging service with a further six using the platform in some form. Read more: Google, Facebook and Twitter blasted over [...]
£4bn UK music industry calls for Brexit protection September 12, 2016 Music contributed £4.1bn to the UK economy last year, a new report has found. Calling for the industry to be protected after the UK’s Brexit vote, research by UK Music also revealed that exports generated £2.2bn in revenue in 2015. The report estimated that export revenue in live music grew by an estimated 35 per [...]