China

An IOC report says preliminary results indicate that the XVIII Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, were broadcast in more countries than ever before and that the global cumulative audience is likely to equal Lillehammer's record??.

China's soccer champions are seeking a new corporate sponsor because Dalian Wanda Group Co plans to withdraw support before the end of 1998, officials said on Wednesday.

Chinese sports officials have waded into the Olympic bribery row, saying Beijing may have been a victim of IOC corruption when it lost to Sydney in the contest to host the 2000 Games.

Pepsi has won soccer?s Far Eastern cola wars - beating arch-rival Coca-Cola in the race to sponsor China?s football league for the next five years.

CSI has signed a deal with German sports marketing agency SportA to represent, with immediate effect, its programming catalogue.

Tom.com, the media and advertising company controlled by Hong Kong businessman Li Ka-Shing, has won the broadcast and advertising rights to China?s national basketball league, adding to its portfolio of Chinese volleyball, table tennis, rowing and college soccer rights.

Osaka is not ready to throw in the towel in the race to stage the 2008 summer Olympic Games, bid officials have said.

Beijing would have liked a quiet period just now as the city bids to bring the Olympic Games to China for the first time. For the full story see the FEATURES section of sportbusiness.com.

A cabinet minister and kimono-clad young women turned out to greet Olympics inspectors when they arrived on Sunday in Japan's western metropolis Osaka to evaluate its bid to stage the 2008 Summer Games.

Manchester United's Alex Ferguson has revealed his "roving ambassador" plans after retiring from the manager's job at the end of next season.

Many of snooker?s top stars look set to join a breakaway tour which threatens to split the sport and end the domination of the game by its governing body, the WSA, following plans announced by The Sportsmasters Network (TSN).

Toronto's bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games picked up momentum this week with a timely convergence of enthusiastic public support and a C$1.5-billion ($1 billion) pledge by government to redevelop Toronto's waterfront - the centrepiece of Toronto's Olympic vision.

Brazilian soccer legend Pele has taken on a new role as goodwill ambassador for the Brazilian oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro.

FIFA will not change the result of the vote that gave the 2006 World Cup finals to Germany despite an appeal being mounted by narrow losers South Africa, a FIFA official said on Thursday.

Basketball's ruling body, FIBA, is to move its headquarters from Munich to Geneva by the end of 2002.

Kai Tak airport in China is one of two new locations being considered for a world-class stadium, along with a site near Tuen Mun.