Philippines

A shortage of cash has forced the Philippines to pull out of the South East Asian (SEA) Games soccer tournament, the Philippines Football Federation (PFF) has stated.

Makati City, the Philippines? chief financial district, will bid to host the 2005 Southeast Asian Games.

ESPN Star Sports (ESS) will develop its broadcast feeds in Asia with the addition of the Philippines.

Asian sports broadcaster ESPN STAR Sports (ESS) has acquired the exclusive terrestrial, cable and satellite television broadcast rights of the English Premier League for the next three seasons beginning August 2001.

A legal battle has begun in the Philippines with the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) taking the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) to court to force it to recognise the BAP leadership.

Sporting group Royal Clicks Ltd said on Thursday its new joint venture with Sports Equipment (Far East) Pte Ltd had secured exclusive distribution and licensing rights for soccer brand Umbro for nine countries.

The NBA, constrained by the ?mature? domestic market are seeking new markets in Asia, according to a report in the Asian Wall Street Journal.

Video-on-demand (VOD) firm Yes Television ? which hopes to become one of the leaders in on-demand sport ? has formed a joint venture with Sky Vision Corporation.

Macau Cable TV has concluded a deal to carry ESPN and STAR Sports.

The English Football Association and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) have put the finishing touches to a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which will lead to long-term technical co-operation between the two governing bodies.

The Southeast Asian Games, currently being hosted by Malaysia, is set to take place less frequently as organisers try and recapture its attraction to both the public and sponsors.

The ASEAN Football Federation has announced that Singapore and Indonesia will share the hosting rights for next year's Tiger Cup.