Media

The ICC has banned star cricket player Brian Lara from using a new bat carrying the logo of an internet betting company.

British Eurosport will cover all 16 legs of the 2001 MOTO GP season live on the cable channel, including 500cc, 250cc and 125cc races.

With the NHL play-offs little more than a week away, ABC has reported lower than hoped for ratings for the three of five broadcasts scheduled for the 2000-2001 season to date.

Sports media technology company Sportvision is to appoint co-founder Stan Honey as president, in addition to his existing position as chief technology officer.

Online betting and gaming company Ladbrokes eGaming Ltd has stepped up its Far East recruitment campaign by signing an exclusive representative deal with Asia's leading independent sports marketing agency, Total Sports Asia Ltd.

The Rugby Football Union (RFU), MBNA Europe Bank Limited (MBNA) and global licensing agency Copyright Promotions Licensing Group (CPLG) have launched the official England Rugby Visa Card.

Bill Gates and Microsoft are throwing their financial support behind next year's Commonwealth Games in Manchester, signing up as an official sponsor and technology supplier.

French media giant Vivendi is the company locked in buy-up talks with troubled Swiss marketing firm ISL.

ISL?s parent company, the ISMM Group, has admitted for the first time it is in dire financial straits and is on the verge of bankruptcy ? with its future now in the hands of a Swiss court.

India's government has told the country's cricket board it should not send a team to the forthcoming Sharjah tournament in which Pakistan are also competing.

Hong Kong, weary of trying to crack down on illegal football betting, is instead thinking of legalising soccer wagers to head off crime and reap millions of dollars in tax revenue. For the full story see the FEATURES section of sportbusiness.com.

Ireland's three remaining Six Nations rugby union internationals have been postponed until next season because of the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

The monetary value of Champions League football to English soccer clubs has been dramatically emphasised with the revelation that Leeds United has increased turnover by 67% for the last six months of last year.

The delay in holding a public referendum in Memphis on whether to finance an NBA-worthy arena could kill the city's chances of getting a team, officials have warned.

Interactive sports content company Sportal has unveiled a demonstration version of an interactive broadband sports channel.

The Salt Lake Organising Committee is confident that its computer network will perform well for next February's 2002 Winter Games.