Events

The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour appointed Peter Johnston as Senior VP Competition & Member Relations for the Tour to enhance the Tour’s operational support for its player and tournament members.

Cricket Australia, the sport’s national governing body, said that the Sheffield Shield would return as the showpiece trophy after an absence of nine years.

Lord’s Cricket Ground will host the International Cricket Council (ICC) annual conference in 2009.

Synergy appointed Amy Mansell to its Experiential division. Mansell arrives at Synergy after two seasons as Brand Marketing Manager at the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport.

Robin Gibson will head up the Golf Division at Octagon, working with a portfolio of brands across a wide ranging number of leverage programmes including HSBC and their Grassroots Programme Wee Wonders.

The popular image of the US as a reckless polluter is challenged in a new report from SportBusiness Group. The report, entitled Sustainable Sport, claims that in fact US sport is much more environmentally aware and active than its European counterparts.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will remain directly involved in the preparations for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi according to the local organising committee.

The International Rugby Board, owner of Rugby World Cup, said it will allocate the next two tournaments - Rugby World Cup 2015 and 2019 - at the same time in 2009 and will commence the tender process this month.

European football’s governing body, UEFA, is considering changing the name of its UEFA Cup competition to the UEFA Europa League, according to news reports.

Valentina Matviyenko, Governor of St Petersburg, said in a radio interview that St Petersburg will bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics. St Petersburg, Russia’s second largest city, bid for the 2004 Olympics but failed to be selected as one of the five candidate cities.

The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour opened its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Beijing, China. The office becomes the third global office of professional women’s tennis, adding to the Tour’s main headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida, USA and the European office in London, UK.

Melbourne will continue to host a Formula One Grand Prix until at least 2015 after agreeing to start the race at 5pm local time to make it more TV friendly for viewers in Europe and Asia.

The Prime Minister of Poland has said that construction projects needed to stage football’s 2012 European Championship will be completed on time.

Francis Graille will join the Strategy and Development department of Lagardere Sports, from July 1, 2008.

Britain’s leading racecourses are to launch a landmark £10 million flat racing competition, The Sovereign Series, linking 10 of the most prestigious races in the UK racing calendar to crown the champion British racehorse.

England is likely to be confirmed as the host of next summer’s World Twenty20 Cup within the next 24 hours, according to the UK's The Guardian newspaper.

A study conducted by EURO 2008 sponsor MasterCard into the financial effects of Euro 2008 has said the economic impact of Sunday's final could be worth €300 million.

The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) will launch its first World Cup at the end of 2008.