Norway

Seeking to stabilise opinion on the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, the chairman of the International Olympic Committee's co-ordination commission, Swiss lawyer Marc Hodler, whose allegations of bribery against his colleagues triggered the biggest Olympic scandal in history, has said the hiring of IMG to recruit more 2002 Winter Games sponsors will help the Salt Lake City games to recover.

A sell-out crowd and record viewing figures have all but been ensured by the presence of the US team in next Saturday's Women's World Cup Final at the Pasadena Rose Bowl.

FIFA has ordered Portugal's Benfica to deliver immediately a bank guarantee to Norway's Rosenborg Trondheim to honour a transfer agreement for striker Sigurd Rushfeldt, the Norwegian Football Association has said.

The Nordic Golf Federation is to launch a campaign to have golf included in the 2008 Olympic Games.

English Premier League soccer club Charlton Athletic will be the first team to test the Football Association?s new laser system to help assistant referees judge offside decisions more accurately.

English soccer club Leeds United has joined forces with two of Scandinavia?s largest retail distributors in a bid to increase brand awareness and maximise marketing opportunities worldwide.

Only clubs which can prove they are financially stable and soundly managed will be allowed to compete in fixtures organised by UEFA from the 2003-04 season, European soccer's governing body has announced.

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.

Setanta.com, the Irish sports content provider, has signed two contracts worth #1million ($1.45m) with mobile phone companies in Norway.

Newcastle United's St. James' Park will host England's World Cup qualifier against Albania, the FA has said.

Austrian and Swiss soccer officials will meet in Bern on March 9 to discuss a possible joint bid to host the 2008 European Championships, officials said on Tuesday.

Debt collecting agency Intrum Justitia has clinched a unique ice-hockey sponsorship agreement with four Nordic countries.

Just when Norwegian football appears to be resolving its internal crisis over three national team players refusing to sign the Norwegian Football Association's sponsorship deal, the Norwegian Track and Field Association (NFIF) is facing the same ordeal.

The second annual Oslo Racing Festival will not be held this year after a dispute between festival organisers and the Swedish Touring Car Championship (STCC) over costs failed to be resolved.

The international careers of four of Norway's top players are still hanging in the balance following a last minute hitch over a compromise deal on marketing rights with the Norwegian Football Association.

Finland's government should invest at least 43.3 million markka ($6.91 million) on stadium improvements to boost the joint Nordic bid for Euro 2008, a working group has proposed.