Media

Kirch, Germany?s second-largest media company is reported to have started talks with FIFA about acquiring further broadcasting rights to the next two soccer World Cups.

After a week of accusations and counter accusations, the FIFA ISL/ISMM crisis took another turn at the weekend with the revelations that ISL/ISMM had received a Sfr277m($155.9m) syndicated loan in 1999 from Swiss bank UBS and that FIFA withdrew support for a Sfr700m($349m) bond issue that the bankrupt marketing agency was hoping to help keep itself afloat.

A rival series to Formula One is unlikely to happen although leading car makers have the resources and cannot be underestimated, International Automobile Federation (FIA) president Max Mosley said on Saturday.

Chairman of bankrupt International Sports Media and Marketing (ISMM) Christoph Malms denied in a Swiss Sunday newspaper article any suggestions by FIFA president Sepp Blatter that ISMM may have improperly diverted funds paid to it by Brazil's TV Globo.

Racetrack owner Arena Leisure has secured funding for the Go Racing consortium after raising #85.6m ($121.1m) through a placing and open offer of 90 million shares in the company at 95p.

ITV won seven out of the fourteen main awards up for grabs at the RTS Television Sports Awards 2000 held last night. The UK terrestrial broadcaster narrowly beat main rival BBC which scooped six of the categories, although the latter?s Olympic programming received the major plaudits of the evening.

The BBC?s sport website, BBC Sport, will provide live pictures over the internet of UK racing festival Royal Ascot at the end of June.

Telecommunications giant Vodafone has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with the Ferrari Formula One team for an undisclosed sum.

Soccer's most powerful administrator will face the world's media today as pressure mounts for him to sort out his organisation's finances or quit.

The McLaren Formula One team claimed a record in sports sponsorship on Friday by announcing a five-year extension to their partnership with fashion brand Hugo Boss.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said on Friday he would not step down following the collapse of marketing agent ISL and refused to call an extraordinary meeting of FIFA's executive committee.

Princeton Video Image (PVI), the US-based virtual advertising and imaging company, will create an expanded virtual enhancement package for ABC?s coverage of the Indy 500.

Over seven million viewers tuned in to UK terrestrial broadcaster ITV?s coverage of Bayern Munich?s penalty shoot-out defeat of Valencia in the Champions League Final on May 23.

The National Soccer League final in Australia next Sunday has been brought forward three hours to allow the Seven Network media company to broadcast the match live.

Writing exclusively for sportbusiness.com, Tom Simpson, a member of UK law firm Ashurst Morris Crisp's Communications Media and Technology group, explains how legal principles of `fair dealing? operate to safeguard exclusive sports broadcast rights.

Teleglobe Broadcast Services have been selected by News Corps units Fox Digital and Fox Sports to provide digital video transmission of National Football League Europe games to North American viewers on Fox Sports, Fox Sports Net and DirectTV.

Basketball?s governing body FIBA is believed to be locked in talks with sport marketing?s new super group after the collapse of ISL.

The UK?s Singer & Friedlander Football Fund, the first investment fund dedicated to football related businesses, is to change its name to the S&F Global, Media and Leisure fund.