Events
QUARTERBACKS SET FOR INVESTMENT WINDFALL
Past and present National Football League quarterbacks are looking to score big with an investment in a company that produces television-style programming for the Internet.
OLYMPICS CHIEF APOLOGISES FOR TICKET FIASCO
Sydney's Olympic Games chief has apologised to Australians for a misleading public ticket ballot and promised to refund thousands of fans who had ended up with third-choice tickets.
CBS LOSE OUT ON LANDMARK NASCAR DEAL
NASCAR has reached television deals with NBC, Turner Sports and Fox television networks beginning in the 2001 season.
E*TRADE SPONSOR SUPER BOWL SHOW
E*TRADE Group, a global leader in electronic personal financial services, has signed an agreement with the NFL to sponsor the Super Bowl XXXIV Half-time Show.
BSKYB AND KIRCH AGREE DEAL
British Sky Broadcasting, 40% owned by News Corporation, has agreed to pay $1.5 billion for a 24% stake in KirchPayTV, the German pay-TV operator.
CHICAGO WHITE SOX SIGNS INTERNET PARTNER
Major League Baseball's Chicago White Sox and Internet venture Ignite Sports Media have agreed a multi-year Internet media rights licensing contract.
MARCONI NAMED NEW TITLE SPONSOR OF CLEVELAND’S CART GP
IMG Motorsports and Marconi have agreed that Marconi Systems will become title sponsor of Cleveland's CART racing event.
PRIVATE EQUITY FIRMS CONSIDER PREMIER LEAGUE RIGHTS
Several private equity firms are looking into the possibility of competing for Premier League broadcast rights, according to the UK's Sunday Business newspaper.
NTL AND EUROSPORT JOIN PREMIER LEAGUE BIDDERS
NTL, the $14.4bn cable and communications company, is lining up a #1bn bid for exclusive Premier League football rights, according to the UK's Sunday Business newspaper.
MURDOCH MEETS OPPOSITION TO CL RIGHTS TRANSFER
A leading German politician has spoken out against Rupert Murdoch's plans to buy outright and then close down the Munich-based analogue channel tm3, which currently holds the broadcast rights to Champions League football.
SCOTTISH SOCCER IN #30M TV BREAKAWAY
Scotland's top football clubs are close to signing a #30m deal with broadcasters BSkyB and Scottish Media.
IRANIAN WOMEN SOON TO PLAY SOCCER, OFFICIALS SAY
Iranian women will soon be able to play football, one of the Islamic republic's most prominent sports officials has said.
KNIGHT ANNOUNCES OLYMPIC TICKET PRICES.
Average ticket prices for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Game will be around A$57 (US$24), according to New South Wales Olympic Minister Michael Knight.
NASCAR PUTS STAMP ON MUSIC EVENTS
Nascar is to stage 15-25 branded concerts from May-August next year in partnership with CBS and TNN, in a move to attract a younger and more geographically diverse audience.
REAL MADRID TAKES A FINANCIAL SHOT AT THE INTERNET
The Spanish football club Real Madrid, which won the European Champions Cup last month for the first time in 32 years, has bought back part of the Canal Plus empire in Spain for Pta12bn ($80m) from Gesport.
GERMAN CHALLENGE TO TOBACCO AD BAN
The German government is set to launch a legal challenge to the European Union ban on tobacco advertising which threatens to cut off a financial lifeline to some sports and events.
ATP TOUR ANNOUNCE NEW MARKETING PARTNERSHIP
Men?s tennis is to undergo a commercial revolution from 2000. The ATP has partnered with ISL and Octagon to develop television and sponsorship on the back of a re-structured, heavily branded sport.
2002 HOSTS BUILD FOR WORLD CUP, DESPITE ASIAN CRISIS
Japan and South Korea, co-hosts of the 2002 World Cup, are pushing ahead with their plans to build new stadiums despite the economic crisis in Asia.