Business of Sport FIFA World Cup hosts Qatar win bid to stage 2023 Asian Cup Qatar has won the bid to host the 18th edition of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, state-owned Qatar News Agency reported. Qatar is the reigning AFC Asian Cup champion and will be hosting the tournament for the third time after staging the 1988 and 2011 editions. The Gulf nation’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup […] October 18, 2022
Business of Sport Qatar upgrades land border to handle 4,000 football fans per hour World Cup fans arriving at the Abu Samra crossing in private vehicles or on buses must have an entry permit from the Hayya portal October 17, 2022
Business of Sport Qatar may change dismantling plans for World Cup stadiums With plans to bid to host more major events, such as the Olympics, Qatar may alter its plans to dismantle its stadiums after the World Cup, the Qatar Tribune reported, citing Mohamed Nabeel Al Atwaan, FM director, Stadium 974 Operations at the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy. The dismantling of Stadium 974 (previously called […] October 17, 2022
Business of Sport Real Madrid renews sponsorship deal with Emirates until 2026 Spanish soccer club Real Madrid has renewed a sponsorship deal with the airline Emirates until 2026, the team said on Friday. While the parties did not disclose financial details, Spanish sports newspaper Marca reported the contract’s value at about €70 million per year plus variables. The United Arab Emirates flag carrier’s logo has been emblazoned […] October 16, 2022
Business of Sport Smiles and some sadness for Vettel on Japan’s Suzuka farewell It was smiles and some sadness for four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel on Saturday after his last qualifying lap around a Suzuka circuit that has played a big part in his Formula One career. The 35-year-old German is retiring at the end of the season and every race is a farewell of sorts, but Suzuka […] October 9, 2022
Exclusive Business of Sport Saudi’s Newcastle Utd deal looks to kick start regeneration funding The purchase of Newcastle United FC by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund could open doors to wider investments in regeneration projects in the North East of England, according to the executive director of the Saudi British Joint Business Council, who will visit the area later this month to review potential opportunities. Chris Innes-Hopkins said that […] October 7, 2022
Business of Sport Four golfers drop out of LIV lawsuit against PGA Tour Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson and three other golfers dropped out of a lawsuit on Tuesday which was filed against the PGA Tour last month over its decision to suspend players who participated on the new LIV Golf circuit. Mickelson, who counts six major championships among his 45 career PGA Tour wins, asked to be […] October 2, 2022
Business of Sport Egypt to bid for 2036 Olympic Games Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has approved the Egyptian sports authorities to make a bid to host the 2036 Olympic Games, the Daily News Egypt reported. He highlighted the country’s efforts to develop and modernise the sports infrastructure, as well as the construction of the Egyptian City for the Olympic Games in the New Administrative […] September 25, 2022
Business of Sport Abu Dhabi-owned firm offers $190m for Brazilian soccer club City Football Group (CFG), the owner of Manchester City English Premier League soccer team, made an offer of 1 billion reais ($190 million) for 90 percent of Brazilian club Esporte Clube Bahia, CFG said on Friday. The purchase is part of a funding bonanza in Brazilian soccer, following the approval of a law that allowed […] September 25, 2022
Tourism Qatar to suspend visit visas during World Cup 2022 Qatar will suspend entry of all visitors from November 1, 2022, allowing only Hayya cardholders during the World Cup, the state-owned Qatar News agency reported, citing a Ministry of Interior official. Visit visas will resume from December 23, 2022, said the ministry’s director of public relations Abdullah Khalifa Al Muftah. The FIFA World Cup Qatar […] September 22, 2022
Analysis Business of Sport Dubai plays vital World Cup role with GDP goal in its sights Germany and Japan are setting up training camps in Dubai ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The football associations’ plans demonstrate that the emirate has adopted the same model for sports as has proven so effective in tourism and real estate. The World Cup squads are following in the footsteps of several English […] September 13, 2022
Exclusive World Cup 2022 Qatar 2022 will change views of Arab world, says football legend Former England and Liverpool footballer John Barnes believes the World Cup in Qatar will help change the perception of Middle Eastern countries and dismantle negative narratives in the West. The tournament, which is held every four years, is set to take place in Qatar between November 21 and December 18. It is the first World […] September 10, 2022
Exclusive Business of Sport Samba in the sand: Arab investors set sights on Brazilian football A 51 percent stake in Atletico Mineiro could fetch $200m Liverpool legend John Barnes says European-sized deals unlikely Libra league expects broadcasting revenues to rise 56% to $1bn A new law allowing Brazil’s soccer clubs to seek foreign investment is already attracting investors from the Middle East. But experts say Brazilian teams are unlikely to […] September 8, 2022
Business of Sport Saudi Arabia signs MotoGP deal as sporting push accelerates Saudi Motorsport Company and MotoGP rights holder Dorna Sports have signed a memorandum of understanding for a race in the kingdom September 6, 2022
Business of Sport Qatar to allow beer at World Cup three hours before kick-off Qatar will permit ticketed fans to buy alcoholic beer at World Cup soccer matches starting three hours before kickoff and for one hour after the final whistle, but not during the match, a source with knowledge of plans for the tournament said. Budweiser, a major World Cup sponsor with exclusive rights to sell beer at […] September 4, 2022
Business of Sport LIV Golf players ineligible for PGA Tour membership renewal The PGA Tour players, who have been indefinitely suspended by the US-based circuit for joining LIV Golf, were informed this week that they are not eligible to renew their membership for the season 2022-23, Reuters confirmed on Friday. As first reported by Sports Illustrated, a letter sent on Thursday to 22 players who had not […] September 4, 2022
Business of Sport Abu Dhabi punches its way into global boxing reckoning Having won the battle to become the international home of UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), Abu Dhabi is now looking to rival Las Vegas and Saudi Arabia as a destination to host the world’s top boxing matches. UFC, the multi-billion dollar mixed martial arts organisation, signed a deal with the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and […] September 1, 2022
Business of Sport Smith defects to Saudi-backed LIV in major blow to PGA Tour Australian golf fans may be split over Cameron Smith’s defection to the LIV series but the Saudi-backed circuit could ultimately find fallow ground in a country left to wither by the increasingly dominant US and European tours. World number two Smith, who claimed his first major at the British Open in July, confirmed he had […] September 1, 2022
Business of Sport US firm joins Yankees owners to complete AC Milan takeover US investment firm RedBird Capital has joined forces with the owners of the New York Yankees to complete the 1.2 billion euro ($1.2 billion) acquisition of Italian soccer champions AC Milan, it said in a statement on Wednesday. Yankee Global Enterprises (YGE), owner of the New York baseball team, will take a minority equity stake […] September 1, 2022
Business of Sport Qatar sends on Beckham amid questions over World Cup legacy Qatar Tourism has launched a marketing campaign starring David Beckham as it counts down to the start of the FIFA World Cup in November. The former England captain – who is reportedly being paid £150 million ($174 million) over 10 years to promote Qatar – is advertising holidays in the country as tourism chiefs seek […] August 31, 2022
Opinion Business of Sport Bad boys of sport can be a good investment for brands Tennis star Nick Kyrgios attracts sponsors and Instagram followers by being maverick August 29, 2022
Business of Sport Brazil soccer clubs poised for gold rush to rival Europe’s elite A new law allowing soccer clubs in Brazil to seek outside investment is attracting hundreds of millions of dollars to a country renowned as football’s biggest source of talent, a change that could see Brazilian teams rival Europe’s top tier. The surge of fresh, mostly foreign, cash coincides with an agreement last May by Brazil’s […] August 29, 2022
