Sponsorship & Marketing

Sporting goods company Umbro is planning to launch a content and e-commerce website in September backed by a major advertising campaign.

The Prost Formula One team, run by the French four-times world champion Alain Prost, has appointed Credit Suisse First Boston to arrange its sale for about #45m. According to reports, potential buyers include Hidden Creek, a US private equity company, and Vector Motor Sports, a Canadian motor racing concern.

Golden Bear Golf, Inc. has completed its ?going private? merger with its wholly-owned subsidiary, G.B. Golf Corp.

Major Japanese Internet investor Softbank Corp has affirmed that its affiliate will start an online sports news service in a joint venture with Rivals.com Inc, a U.S. operator of Internet sports news.

SportsLine.com is to offer its entire suite of Commissioner.com fantasy products free of charge on its flagship CBS SportsLine.com site.

Sports.com, the mobile and fixed internet provider of European sports content, community and commerce, has been designated as the Official Internet Sports Partner of The Open Championship (opengolf.com) by the Championship Committee of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club.

Adidas America is to feature the full collection of official U.S. Olympic apparel online on their Olympic concept shop located at thestore.adidas.com.

Sydney Olympic Games marketeers have cruelly ignored the two animals most associated with Australia in their choice of Olympic mascots. Kangaroos and Koala Bears have been sidelined to make way for a new cast of animal stars: the duck-billed platypus, the kookaburra and the echidna (a spiny anteater).

The Australian Olympic Committee and host broadcaster Channel 7 have created a web address, olympics.com.au, in competition with the official Games site, olympics.com, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

The Extreme Sports Channel has signed a deal for the ISF World Junior Snowboarding Championships and Freestyle Frenzy with ISP, the Utah based distribution company.

USA Swimming's Board of Directors have voted 15-6 to lift a ban on full bodysuits for the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Swimming.

Five carmakers, including Ford , Daimler Chrysler and Toyota , are in talks to buy a third of Bernie Ecclestone's SLEC Formula One business, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Eurosport, the European sports channel, is setting up a separate sales team to handle advertising and sponsorship sales of events and youth programming, under the YOZ (Youth Only Zone) banner.

Major League Baseball?s Baltimore Orioles are set to sell the naming rights to their Oriole Park ballpark.

Fila USA has renewed its agreement with the USTA as official footwear and tennis apparel sponsor of the 2000 U.S. Open Tennis Championships.

NASCAR has signed a deal with Midtronics to become one of the motorsports? licensed products.

Sports channel Eurosport is setting up a separate sales team to handle advertising and sponsorship sales of events and youth programming, under the YOZ (Youth Only Zone) banner.

Goal Media Group, the digital media company that produces.goalnetwork.com and todogol.com, has signed an exclusive internet partnership with a Hong Kong and Chinese market online soccer publisher.