TAG HEUER SIGN WITH LA LIGA
Swiss watch manufacturer Tag Heuer has agreed a sponsorship deal with Spanish football’s La Liga and newly named La Liga 2 to become the official timekeeper. La Liga becomes the third league to join ranks with Tag, who are also official timekeepers for the Bundesliga, Premier League and Chinese Super League.
La Liga legends Raúl and Fernando Sanz joined La Liga President, Javier Tebas, and TAG’s Spain General Manager, Blanca Panzano at a special event to celebrate the new deal, unveiling a special clock, counting down to kick-off for the new La Liga season on Saturday August 20th.
Under the agreement, Tag Heuer’s branding will feature on the substitution boards used by fourth officials during games, which, like the Premier League, are styled to look like the £3,500 Carrera watch.
CR7 & PORTUGAL DOMINATE EURO 2016
Over 109 million tweets related to #EURO2016 were sent out by Twitter users across the month-long tournament. However, the Euros falls some way behind the World Cup with 672m tweets related to #WORLDCUP2014 sent during the tournament in Brazil – with 32.1m in the final.
Sunday’s final between Portugal and France saw 14.2 million tweets on the platform, with the full-time whistle driving the biggest spike in conversation in the tournament. Unsurprisingly Cristiano Ronaldo was the most mentioned player in both the final and the entire tournament, with Euro 2016 winners Portugal the most mentioned team.
England’s elimination at the hands of Iceland was the fourth biggest moment on Twitter, behind Ronaldo’s injury in third and Eder’s winning goal in second, leading to Roy Hodgson being the most mentioned manager at the tournament.
FORBES TOP 50
NFL side the Dallas Cowboys have clinched number one spot in Forbes Top 50 most valuable sports teams in the world, knocking Real Madrid down to second place. Los Blancos had topped the table for the last three years and are currently valued at $3.65bn, but after a 25% value increase in the last year the Cowboys are now worth $4bn.
Forbes found that the Cowboys’ failure to reach a Super Bowl in the past two decades had not impacted upon premium seat revenue, which stands at $125m, and sponsorship revenue ($120m).
The Top 50 is made up of twenty-seven NFL teams, eight European football teams, seven MLB teams, eight NBA sides. However the list does not feature a single Formula One team. Ferrari, the richest of the F1 teams, is valued at $1.35bn but slipped out of the top 50 after ranking 32nd last year.
UFC $4BN SALE
The Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) was sold this week, with a group of investors led by WME-IMG paying $4bn. Dana White, president of the UFC, broke the news saying he will stay on to run the series but his 9% stake will be cut.
Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, the former owners of the UFC, purchased the sports network for $2m in 2001 and under their parent company, Zuffa, owned 80%. The $4bn sum will be the most expensive in sports history and sees Zuffa make a 2,000% return on their original $2m.
Following the UFC’s sale, investment company Temasek Holdings announced a major investment into Asia’s largest MMA organisation, ONE Championship. Chatri Sityodtong, Chairman of ONE Championship, said the reported sum will give ONE CHAMPIONSHIP a potential value of $1bn in 18 months.
CHINA CUP
An agreement between the Chinese Football Confederation (CFC) and Wanda Sports Holdings Co has been reached allowing the conglomerate to host the first ever ‘China Cup’ in January 2017. The week long competition will comprise of China and three first-class nations from Europe and the Americas, offering fans a glimpse of the highest levels of international football whilst providing the Chinese team with challenging fixtures.
The China Cup will be the first ever FIFA-approved international football tournament to be played in China, allowing nations to earn FIFA points for global ranking. The 2017 cup coincides with China’s attempt to reach the 2018 World Cup in Russia, whilst President Xi has greater ambitions of winning the World Cup within the next 15 years.
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