Soccer News & Notes, May 26, 2011

Bin Hammam denies FIFA bribery allegations
Thursday, May 26, 2011

FIFA presidential candidate Mohamed Bin Hammam has vehemently denied allegations of wrongdoing levelled against him by fellow Executive Committee member Chuck Blazer, suggesting the investigation is "little more than a tactic" on the part of election rival Sepp Blatter.

The race for the top job in world football was rocked on Wednesday as FIFA announced its Ethics Committee would meet on May 29 to discuss "possible violations" of the FIFA Code of Ethics. The violations were reported by Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) general secretary Blazer. They refer to a "special meeting" of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) on May 10-11 allegedly organised jointly by FIFA vice-president Jack Warner and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Bin Hammam (pictured).

A FIFA statement read: "This meeting was linked to the upcoming FIFA presidential election. In view of the facts alleged in this report, which include bribery allegations, FIFA secretary general Jérôme Valcke, in compliance with art. 16 of the FIFA Code of Ethics, requested the FIFA Ethics Committee to open ethics proceedings."

The investigation will also include CFU officials Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester and throws the FIFA presidential election, scheduled for June 1, into doubt. Bin Hammam is the only challenger to Blatter, who is seeking his fourth term in office, and the Qatari has stated his innocence and conviction that he will be allowed to stand against the incumbent president. "This has been a difficult and painful day for me today," said Bin Hammam in a statement. "But, if there is even the slightest justice in the world, these allegations will vanish in the wind. This move is little more than a tactic being used by those who have no confidence in their own ability to emerge successfully from the FIFA presidential election." He added: "I am confident that there is no charge to answer and that I will be free to stand in the FIFA presidential election on June 1 as originally planned."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

Valcke and Qatar deny allegations as FIFA presidential election looms
Tue, 24/05/2011

FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke has rubbished claims that he asked Mohamed Bin Hammam to withdraw from the presidential race against incumbent Sepp Blatter.

German broadcasters claimed on Monday that Valcke, who is overseeing the election campaign, put pressure on Bin Hammam to withdraw from the June 1 ballot following allegations of corruption surrounding Qatar’s successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup.

"Contrary to some media allegations I want to make it very clear that neither I nor anyone else at FIFA have asked Mr Mohammed bin Hammam at any point to withdraw his candidature for the upcoming FIFA presidency election," said Valcke, according to The Guardian.

"The last time I met the AFC [Asian Football Confederation] president was at the Conmebol Congress in Asunción on May 1, where we simply greeted each other. Again these allegations are totally untrue," Valcke added.

Qatari 2022 bid officials on Monday denied the allegations of corruption and sought to discredit an "embittered" whistleblower who is set to give evidence to FIFA on Wednesday. In a lengthy statement, Qatari officials called the claims of payments to FIFA Executive Committee members in return for votes during the tender for the 2022 World Cup as "distressing, insulting and incomprehensible".

The statement also raised doubts about the "credibility of the reporters, their motivations and extent to which…the evidence in any way can be relied upon".

Source: sportbusiness.com

Blatter defends FIFA on campaign trail
Monday, May 23, 2011

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has insisted football’s global governing body is not corrupt despite a swathe of recent allegations surrounding members of the organisation’s Executive Committee.

The Swiss, who will defend his FIFA presidency against Qatari challenger Mohamed Bin Hammam in an election on June 1, vehemently defended the reputation of the organisation during a press conference on Saturday. A number of leading FIFA officials have been accused of allegedly acting improperly during the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

"There is no evidence," Blatter said. "We have asked for evidence and this famous whistle blower will be in FIFA on Wednesday." Blatter confirmed last week that the whistle blower, behind allegations printed in The Sunday Times newspaper had agreed to meet FIFA in person.

Blatter added: "We have over 300 million people (in FIFA), and even in a family of 300 million people, there are one or two…these are what you say are the black sheep…somebody who is not good in the family. So stop please to say FIFA is corrupt, FIFA is not corrupt…definitely not." Blatter made the comments during a visit to South Africa to discuss the legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. "I have received a lot of compliments," said Blatter.

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

Man. United tops 60 million pounds in broadcast income
Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Manchester United has become the first English football club to earn more than 60 million pounds from Premier League broadcast and prize money.

United, the newly-crowned champion of the Barclays Premier League, earned 60.4 million pounds this season, largely thanks to lucrative new overseas TV deals brokered by the top flight. Blackpool, despite earning the lowest amount of any Premier League club, still generated 39.1 million pounds.

"We believe that our income distribution mechanism, the most equitable of Europe’s major football leagues, rewards sporting success while also guaranteeing a significant amount to each club in order that they can plan from one season to the next," said Premier League CEO Richard Scudamore.

This season, each club received 13.8 million pounds as the equal share of domestic TV rights and 17.9 million pounds as the equal share of overseas broadcast rights. On top of that, every place in the Premier League table is worth 756,000 pounds with title-winner United earning 15.1 million pounds. Facility fees of 582,000 pounds are also paid every time a club plays in a game that is televised live by either Sky Sports or ESPN. Clubs receive a minimum income of 5.82 million pounds for facility fees even if they have been involved in fewer than 10 live games.

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

Japan to stage 2011 FIFA Club World Cup
Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Earthquake-hit Japan will host the 2011 Club World Cup, FIFA confirmed on Monday.

There had been doubts over the country’s ability to stage the December tournament after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami left nearly 25,000 dead or missing. The disaster also caused mayhem to Japan’s sporting calendar.

Japan hosted the lucrative Club World Cup, involving the champions of FIFA’s six confederations, from 2005-08 before it went to the United Arab Emirates for two years. "We are absolutely confident that Japan will organise this competition," Blatter said after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and football officials, according to Reuters.

Blatter, who pledged money towards helping reconstruction work in the areas that suffered severe damage, added that Kan had assured him of Japan’s "will and determination" to return to the forefront of world sport. "Money from the FIFA emergency fund will be available to Japan for reconstruction efforts," Blatter said. "I expressed to the Prime Minister my sympathy and our solidarity with the Japanese people in these troubled times."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

Fox Sold Out Inventory In UEFA Champions League Final In Mid-April
By John Ourand, Staff Writer

Published May 23, 2011

Fox sold out its ad inventory for the UEFA Champions League Final in mid-April, when Gatorade picked up the last two spots. Last year, the same game did not sell out until early May. Fox is reporting that pricing is up about 10-15% this year. In addition to Gatorade, Apple and Burger King are new advertisers on Saturday’s telecast, having opted not to buy time in the semis. Geico signed on as the sponsor of the pregame show; Pizza Hut will sponsor the halftime show; and DirecTV will have the postgame show. The story is similarly as good for Fox Deportes, which also is sold out with pricing up 10-15%. Fox’ Spanish-language sports channel sold the full auto category sponsorship for both TV and online to Ford, which is an official UEFA Champions League sponsor. Snickers’ sponsorship will include two customized vignettes using Fox Deportes talent.

Source: sportsbusinessdaily.com

France names host cities for Euro 2016
Mon, 23/05/2011

The French Football Federation (FFF) has unveiled the nine cities that will stage games during UEFA Euro 2016.
Saint-Etienne and Toulouse were the major losers in the announcement, with the two cities having been omitted from the list and instead named as reserve locations.

Bordeaux, Lens, Lille, Marseille, Nancy, Nice, Paris and Saint-Denis were selected, as was Lyon, which took a major step forward last week in plans to build a new 60,000-seat stadium in the suburb of Decines-Charpieu when the project was put forward for public consultation.

Lyon’s stadium will be one of four new facilities built for the tournament, with stadia also set to be built in Bordeaux, Lille and Nice. The northern town of Lens was chosen for Euro 2016 matches despite its club being relegated to Ligue 2 this season.

"All the bids were of a very, very high standard, but the choice was very clear and decided at the first round of voting," said FFF president Fernand Duchaussoy. Euro 2016 will be the first edition of the European Championships to feature 24 teams, increasing from 16 at Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine.

Source: sportbusiness.com

UEFA announces Champions League rights in Asia
Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Astro, Ten Sports and S Media have snapped up major packages of broadcast rights to the UEFA Champions League and Europa League in Asia.

In Malaysia and Brunei, pay-TV operator Astro has been awarded exclusive media rights for Europe’s two leading club competitions from 2012-15. The deal will guarantee at least six Champions League and four Europa League matches per match week, as well as highlights and delayed match coverage. Astro, which has replaced ESPN Star Sports, will also exploit the rights across its Astro SuperSport pay platform throughout Malaysia and Brunei.

In the Indian Subcontinent, Taj TV-owned Ten Sports has renewed its exclusive rights through to the conclusion of the 2014-15 season. Ten Sports will broadcast live at least four matches per match week as well as delayed coverage and highlights for both club competitions. Live and delayed broadcasts of the matches will be available on Ten Sports and Ten Action+, with highlights being aired on Ten Sports. Ten Sports has acquired the rights across all broadcast platforms, covering India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

In Myanmar, S Media will carry at least six Champions League and Europa League games per match week as well as highlights and delayed coverage on its pay-TV channels. All of the rights, which were negotiated by TEAM Marketing AG, have been awarded on a ‘platform-neutral’ basis, enabling all broadcast partners to carry action across television, internet and mobile.

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

EPL Attendance Jumps 2.7% From ’09-10; ManU Averages 75,109 At Old Trafford
Published May 25, 2011

English Premier League clubs averaged 35,060 fans per game this season, up 2.7% from last season, but down 1.5% from the ’08-09 campaign. Manchester United led all clubs by a large margin with 75,109 fans per game at Old Trafford. The league’s year-over-year attendance boost was aided by the return of Newcastle to the top level after being relegated for the ’09-10 season. Newcastle finished third in the EPL with 47,718 fans per game, up 10% from an average of 43,387 in the lower level last season. Fulham and Bolton saw the biggest EPL year-over-year attendance gains, up 4.7% and 4.5%, respectively. West Ham United, who were relegated following this season, saw the sharpest drop among all EPL clubs, down 13.3%. Listed below is team-by-team attendance for the ’10-11 EPL season, with comparisons to last season (THE DAILY).

’10-11 ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE ATTENDANCE
CLUB GMS TOTAL AVG. % CAP. PREV. % +/-
Manchester United 19 1,427,071 75,109 99.1% 74,864 0.3%
Arsenal 19 1,140,475 60,025 99.4% 59,927 0.2%
Newcastle United* 19 906,642 47,718 91.2% n/a n/a
Manchester City 19 869,782 45,778 95.9% 45,513 0.6%
Liverpool 19 812,725 42,775 94.0% 42,864 -0.2%
Chelsea 19 787,265 41,435 97.6% 41,423 0.0%
Sunderland 19 760,209 40,011 81.7% 40,355 -0.9%
Aston Villa 19 707,180 37,220 87.0% 38,573 -3.5%
Everton 19 684,741 36,039 89.7% 36,725 -1.9%
Tottenham Hotspur 19 678,091 35,689 98.5% 35,794 -0.3%
West Ham United 19 554,762 29,198 82.7% 33,683 -13.3%
Wolverhampton 19 526,224 27,696 94.5% 28,366 -2.4%
Stoke City 19 510,302 26,858 97.7% 27,162 -1.1%
Birmingham City 19 483,778 25,462 84.7% 25,246 0.9%
Fulham 19 475,817 25,043 98.3% 23,909 4.7%
Blackburn 19 475,000 25,000 80.2% 25,428 -1.7%
West Bromwich* 19 468,977 24,683 93.1% n/a n/a
Bolton 19 434,530 22,870 81.4% 21,881 4.5%
Wigan Athletic 19 319,428 16,812 66.9% 17,998 -6.6%
Blackpool* 19 299,820 15,780 98.0% n/a n/a

EPL TOTALS 380 13,322,819 35,060 90.6% 34,150 2.7%

NOTES: * = Team played in lower-level Football League Championship last year. Hull City, Burnley and Portsmouth were relegated following last season.

Source: sportsbusinessdaily.com

China ready to enter bold new era
Thursday, May 26, 2011

World Sport Group has revealed the first details of its plan to reinvigorate the development of football in China.

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) and the China Football Industry Development Corporation (CFIDC) struck a multi-year deal with the sports marketing company in March with the goal of developing the brand of the country’s national team. June 3 will now see the start of a new era when the country’s Olympic team meets DPR Korea in Shanghai as part of a match schedule put together by the CFA in conjunction with CFIDC and World Sport Group.

The country’s national and Olympic teams will both play twice in the early part of June as the pair prepare for important qualifying matches later in the summer, and they will do so under a new CFA Team China brand. The new CFA Team China logo features a dragon and a phoenix at its centre, with the entities representing the men’s and women’s teams respectively. The plans will also see the development of a new website – www.cfateamchina.com.

"With a comprehensive match schedule, a new brand identity and a whole raft of other initiatives planned for the coming months, this is another major step forward for football in China," said Nick Mould, president of East Asia for World Sport Group.

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

UEFA warns fans over black market Champions League final tickets
Wednesday, May 25, 2011

UEFA has issued a warning over black market tickets for this Saturday’s Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium in London.

European football’s governing body released a statement on Tuesday to highlight the "unauthorised and unlawful" sale of tickets for the showpiece match, and warned fans against splashing out money on the tickets and hospitality packages, with many carrying "vastly inflated prices".

The UEFA statement added: "Fans who wish to attend the UEFA Champions League final should be aware that the only authorised sellers of tickets are UEFA and the two finalist clubs and their official agents (details of which should be checked with each club directly). Official hospitality packages can only be purchased from the English Football Association (FA)."

The statement continued: "We urge you not to buy tickets and/or hospitality packages which include tickets from unauthorised sellers as such tickets will be invalid. Identity checks may be carried out at Wembley Stadium and ticket holders will be denied entry if their tickets have been purchased from unauthorised sources. In addition, the unauthorised offer or sale of tickets to this match is a criminal offence under UK law. UEFA and the FA are working with the authorities to minimise ticket touting activities in the lead-up to the final."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

Euro 2012 host suffers new stadium problems
Thursday, May 26, 2011

Poland’s organising committee for UEFA Euro 2012 has denied construction problems at Warsaw’s National Stadium will pose risks for tournament preparations.

The 55,000-seat National Stadium is the cornerstone of Poland’s staging of Euro 2012 and is set to host six games, including the opening match and one semi-final. Scheduled to open by the end of June, Polish media reports have stated that problems with the construction of evacuation stairs could see the project delayed by up to 10 months.

Mikolaj Piotrowski, spokesman for PL.2012, the state-owned company responsible for tournament preparations, told reporters: "We have identified such risks, as well as some related to quality and security. The key issue now is talks with the builder that should result in a detailed schedule for fixing this." He added: "It’s too early to speak precisely about exact dates. There is no risk for Euro 2012 as it’s still 380 days ahead of us."

The news comes just days after another host stadium, Gdansk’s PGE Baltic Arena, was stripped of the right to stage Poland’s friendly game with France on June 9. The match was intended as a high-profile opening event for the facility, but the stadium is now not expected to be completed until the end of June.

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

New York Red Bulls on right road with Kia
Thursday, May 26, 2011

Red Bull New York has entered into a deal that will see Kia Motors America become the official partner of the team and its Red Bull Arena.

In 2010, Kia recorded its best-ever U.S. sales and 16th consecutive year of market share growth. The automaker aims to use the partnership with the Major League Soccer franchise to further promote its brand in North America. The partnership will grant Kia intellectual property rights for the team, as well as Red Bull Arena and the Red Bulls Academy and Training Programs.

"Kia Motors has been expanding its sports marketing partnerships around the world to raise awareness and consideration for the Kia brand, and we are excited to partner with the New York Red Bulls and expand our presence with the game of soccer," said Michael Tocci, Eastern Region director for Kia Motors America. "Kia has partnerships with FIFA and CONMEBOL’s Copa America, and the Red Bulls and Red Bull Arena are the perfect partners for us to continue the growth of our brand by leveraging the most popular sport in the world right here in the United States."

Red Bulls managing director Erik Stover added: "We believe this venture demonstrates the accession of soccer in the United States and the New York Red Bulls’ positioning throughout the world."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

The Football League’s Mitre partnership rolls on
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Mitre will become the longest serving commercial partner of The Football League in England after sealing a new agreement through to 2015.

Mitre has been the official ball supplier of The Football League for more than a quarter of a century and will now continue to provide match balls to the Npower Championship, League 1 and League 2 as well as the Carling Cup and the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy for a further four years. The official match ball of The Football League, the Mitre Tensile, will continue to be used for the 2011-12 season.

"Our relationship with Mitre is one of the longest running in UK Sport and this extension during difficult economic times represents increased value for The League," said The Football League’s director of business development, Kieron Kilbride.

Mitre managing director Gary Hibbert added: "The Football League is one of the most exciting competitions in the world and we’re thrilled to extend the deal to be the official ball supplier. We’re looking forward to a long and successful partnership with The Football League and another four years of unrivalled excitement, drama and goals being scored with our Mitre balls."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily

EPL Chief Scudamore hopeful of goal-line technology by ’12-13 season
Monday, May 23, 2011

Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore is hopeful goal-line technology could be introduced into the professional game in the next two years, and has admitted the lack of such systems in the sport is "an embarrassment".

Scudamore (pictured) told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek that the Premier League is keen to introduce the technology as soon as possible, with the start of the 2012-13 season being a realistic target after FIFA agreed to carry out further tests. "We’d like it now, and the good news is FIFA are now prepared to listen," Scudamore said. "It has gone on far too long. It’s an embarrassment to us as football administrators."

He added: "We feel the technology is there, we should be able to use it and it’s just a question of how we can persuade FIFA it can be done. I would like to have it the season after next – next season is too early but certainly the season after next, I don’t see any reason why we shouldn’t."

Scudamore also revealed that the Premier League is due to consult with other major domestic football authorities this summer to launch initiatives designed to stop players from putting pressure on referees in the 2011-12 campaign. "We said at the end of March that we would take the summer to look at it and launch a set of initiatives to reduce those incidents," he added. "By the time we get to August there will be some new initiatives."

Source: Soccer Ex Business Daily