Italy

Shares in soccer side AS Roma fell sharply on Monday after the Italian first division leaders lost 3-1 to Fiorentina, recording only their third league defeat of the season.

Roman soccer rivals Lazio and Roma are preparing to create a joint financial holding in the city?s Stadio Olimpico in a buy-out deal expected to cost 500bn Lira ($230m).

A study by the Sports Consulting Group of Andersen, SCORE, has found that England is ?Europe?s football related tax paradise? and that France has the most problems in attracting well-known international players.

Inter Milan have claimed they have been victimised over their alleged role in a false passports scandal after learning they will be the first club to be hauled before the Italian league.

ENIC, the London stock market-listed sports and leisure company, is looking to transfer its market listing from the main market to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) so that it can comply with UEFA rules on dual ownership of clubs.

The long-running split between the top European basketball clubs is at an end after an agreement to reunify the competing leagues.

ABC and ESPN have bought the exclusive broadcasting rights in the US market for premier IAAF events in a three- year agreement with the IAAF and ISL Worldwide.

Spain's Football Federation (RFEF) said on Monday it had provisionally withdrawn the playing licence of Alaves goalkeeper Martin Herrera. A further five players were facing investigation in its passports inquiry.

Lazio shares leapt more than seven percent on Monday after its victory over rival soccer team Juventus at the weekend, while league leaders AS Roma looked as flat on the bourse as they did on the pitch.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter called on Friday for worldwide bans against players who are found guilty of using false passports.

Italian football fans will be able to watch match highlights on third-generation (3G) mobile phones from the summer of 2002, according to Hutchison 3G Italia.

The toe-dipping around the Olympic pool is set to stop and the serious contenders are preparing to dive into the race for world sport's most powerful job - the International Olympic Committee (IOC) presidency.

Snai, Italy's leading betting shop operator, expects turnover to grow by 20-25 percent in 2001, CEO Maurizio Ughi said on Thursday.

Brazilian lawmakers investigating corruption in soccer are to provide FIFA with information on the illegal transfer of players to European clubs, they said on Wednesday.

A small Utah software company is keen to find a distributor, while a biomedical firm needs a partner and both hope they can meet with international companies at next year's Winter Olympics.

Britain's foot-and-mouth crisis has underlined the importance of the Six Nations, England coach Clive Woodward said on Friday.