Football Partnerships

By Alex Kotler

Football’s Gamble

Theo Leggett, a business reporter for BBC News has published a fair survey of English football’s winners and losers, accounting for the sports main revenue streams and how clubs fall off the ‘financial tightrope’.

A point of interest is that, despite the recession, deals made in early 2009 reflected no signs of the faltering economy. Another is the gamble made by ambitious teams striving for promotion or tournament places within the league table, that may catapult a side upwards or, catatrophically, downwards.

Learn from Coventry City’s ‘community approach’ and read about Dr. Simon Chadwick’s suggestion that regulation may be a necessary evil to ‘protect [the clubs].

Read Theo Leggett’s article on Football’s Winners & Losers

It Takes Balls

Congratulations to four Baldwin-Wallace College men’s soccer student-athletes, Nate Smith, Russ Mika, Jamie Shipley and Zac Gaydosh, who have launched an initiative charged to provide soccer balls to the children in Haiti.

Their program, known as Soccer Balls 4 Haiti, set a goal of collecting a 250 new or gently-used soccer balls to send to the children affected by the devastating earthquake.

What are some of the soccer-related charitable programs that you are involved in?

Learn more about Soccer Balls 4 Haiti

Bartender, Another Round of “_______”!

According to research by Dr. Fiona Davies at Cardiff Business School, there is no significant statistical correlation between sports sponsorship awareness and attitudes to alcohol use.

In summary, boys with interests in sport are driven to drink by traditional machismo rather than by the presence of alcohol sponsorship. Girls’ attitudes are also unaffected.

The study will certainly be embraced by the football industry, which counts alcohol brands as a major source of sponsorship revenue. The pertinent questions on the flip side are (1) whether the absence of alcohol sponsorship would coincide with a decrease in alcohol consumption and (2) how would a decrease in sponsorship revenues from alcohol brands impact English football.

What do you think?

Have another pint and read more in SportBusiness

Togo appeals CAF ban

According to SoccerexBusiness Daily, “the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) has confirmed Togo’s appeal against the banning of its national team from the next two editions of the African Cup of Nations.”

The appeal will allow the Togolese national team to be included in this Saturday’s draw for the 2012 Cup of Nations qualifying. The formal request has been lodged by Football Federation of Togo (FTF), which will submit a written report to the court for consideration.

The Togolese team withdrew from the 2010 competition following a gun attack on the bus carrying the players and staff. Three people died in the assalut.

While the ban is purportedly a response against government and political intervention in football affairs, the question undoubtedly remains - is this necessary?

Be certain to wear your goggles…

Sports broadcast ESPN has announced that Sony will serve as an official sponsor of its new 3D network. Coverage will begin on June 11 when South Africa faces Mexico in the first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The significance is that ESPN will enjoy rights to utilize Sony’s professional HD cameras to present programming to its subscribers.

But what will the googles look like?

Read the original source (with or without special glasses)

By Alex Kotler

How Revolting!

Manchester United supporters, outraged by the club’s spiraling debt load, have recruited Keith Harris, a football finance specialist and broker, to lead a possible takeover bid.

“You sense that the momentum is gathering and this time these fans truly mean it,” he told the BBC in a recent interview. A United fan for 50 years, Harris is known for the sale of Chelsea FC to Roman Abramovich and Aston Villa FC to Randy Lerner.

The most important question, though, Harris pointed out explicitly: “What you don’t know is whether the Glazers can be made to listen.” Can they and should they?

Watch the Keith Harris interview

LA Sol eclipsed

After one year of operation, Women’s Professional Soccer club and 2009 runner-up LA Sol folded, following failed attempts by the league to sell the team.

Apparently, two original ownership groups pulled out mid-year, leaving LA Galaxy owners Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) to run the team until season’s end.

As the league heads into its second term, in which two new teams will join - the Atlanta Beat and the Philadelphia Independence - one cannot help but remember the fate of the now defunct WUSA. Surely we mustn’t let players like Marta find other leagues in which to flourish, right?

Read Nick Green’s take

But what I meant to say was…

The oft-criticized president of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, has clarified comments which seemed to point to Europe as the preferred choice and likely destination for World Cup 2018.

“I said it’s a possibility only if other associations do not bid. It is not a decision for the executive committee to change that right of every association to bid for a World Cup,” Blatter was quoted by news agency Reuters.

Perhaps, like the fans of Manchester United, we should all revolt against the conspiracy of the misquoting media.

Lubing up for 2010

Castrol has reached an with UEFA to be an official sponsor of UEFA EURO 2012, set to be jointly hosted by Poland and Ukraine.

Awarded with a worldwide rights package for the duration of the tournament, Castrol will provide insight into performances via the Castrol Index, a system that uses playercam technology to analyze and compare the performance of each player throughout the competition.

Grease your wheels in euFootball.biz

The ridiculosity of it all

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that Togo will be banned from the next two Africa Cup of Nations and fined $50,000 due to the team’s withdrawal from this year’s tournament held in Angola.

Readers will remember that the Togolese team was attacked at gunpoint and fired upon. Three people died during the affair, and more were left injured and shaken.

Such a ban is more ridiculous than even the word ridiculosity.

Read more in the Epoch Times

By Alex Kotler

To Stay or Togo

A bus carrying Togo’s national football team was ambushed last Friday by Flec-Position Militaire, a rebel group opposed to Angola’s occupation of Cabinda, on its return from training camp in the Democratic People’s Republic of Congo. Three people were killed, including the Angolan bus driver and two Togolese officials. The attack also left several players wounded, and has marred the start of the African Cup of Nations tournament. The Togolese team has pulled out of the competition, amidst safety concerns.

More, the incident has brought the matter of security in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup back to the forefront. Sepp Blatter, President of FIFA, and Danny Jordaan, CEO of the LOC for the 2010 World Cup, have each responded to refute such claims and to assuage fears about South Africa’s preparedness.

Eloquently put by Togo’s captain and striker for English Premier League club Manchester City, Emmanuel Adebayor, clearly shaken up by the attack: “Africa has to change its image if we want to be respected.” For the moment, the problem sadly requires more than a public relations campaign.

The latest from the BBC

Ready, Setanta, Go!

Reports surfaced that News Corp., parent of Fox Soccer Channel, will take over some or all of the broadcasting rights previously held by Setanta USA, once linked to its now-defunct UK counterpart. After the network’s publicized dispute with Time Warner Cable, the Setanta USA went dark, failing to show the weekend’s Arsenal v. Everton fixture - which featured the much-anticipated debut of American star Landon Donovan.

The collapse, while unfortunate, is not unexpected. However, it leaves subscribers disenchanted and pubs infuriated - many of which paid upwards of $1,000 to DirecTV and DISH to show matches on Setanta. The opportunity meant fans of America’s top player missed seeing him notch his first Premier League points.

First Touch isn’t sorry tosee Setanta go

It pays to be good looking (and decent at football, too)

According to Tariq Panja of Bloomberg, Beckham Brand Ltd., the company created to exploit the image rights of soccer star David Beckham and his wife Victoria, posted a 60 percent increase in profit following his first season in Major League Soccer.

The business is jointly controlled by Beckham, his wife and Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment, and earns income from the footballer’s revenue share agreement with the LA Galaxy and arrangements with Coty Inc., the fragrance company. Following the year ending Decemeber 31, 2008, Beckham Brand’s net income $6.4 million. It rose to $15.4 million in 2009. The tally does not include deals with Adidas AG, Motorola Inc. and Newell Rubbermaid Inc.’s Sharpie pen company.

But keep your boots on Beckham: Elvis Presley Enterprises made $55 million in 2009. We’ll see what you’re really worth when you’re All Shook Up!

Tap into the Tariq technique

A bank earns its stripes

Argentina’s top flight club Racing has unveiled its new kit, produced by Brazilian brand Olympikus and sponsored by Banco Hipotecario. Refreshingly unique to the jersey is that the bank, which reportedly paid $1 million for a one-year deal, will not have its identity printed on the shirt.

The decision is a strategic - and symbolic - marketing gesture, designed to demonstrate to fans that the club, effective, is their own. The inherent risk is that this value is lost if the story is not told. Meanwhile, the choice is a gift for Olympikus which, presumably, will enjoy greater exposure and possibly be considered as both manufacturer and sponsor.

Check out the new kits

NASL reveals visual identity

Following the news that the United States would have a professional second division competing in 2010, comprised of both the United Soccer Leagues (USL) teams and those representing the North American Soccer League (NASL), the NASL released its new logo.

Have a look-see at the new logo