Women’s semi-pro football league kicks off

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Women’s semi-pro football league kicks off The profile of women’s football looks set to be greatly raised by the developments in the game recently. Firstly, on Wednesday, it was announced that the first Women’s semi-pro league in now underway. As if that wasn’t enough, it has also been announced that A super league backed by the FA will be played over the summer.

The top 8 women’s teams – Birmingham City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Bristol Academy, Doncaster Belles, Liverpool, Lincoln and Everton will compete against each other to try and become the first champions of the Women’s Super League. The FA has invested over £3m in the league, which runs from April until October. The timing is aimed so that is isn’t overshadowed by the Men’s league, thus increasing attendances.

There is a break in May however, so that England can compete in Germany in the World Cup. The FA Chairman, David Bernstein, spoke enthusiastically about the Super League, which will have 5 of its matches broadcast live on ESPN. He said that this was a landmark in women’s football, and that it was a great opportunity for game in England. The league being launched and the fact that England were also taking part in the World Cup made it a very exciting time for the game, he added.
The league kicks off with a thrilling encounter between arch rivals Arsenal and Chelsea, and Faye White, captain of Arsenal and England, can’t wait for it to start. She says she has been waiting for this for a long time, and is thrilled that it has happened while she is still playing. She thanked the FA for investing in the women’s game and said it was going to be a very exciting summer.

South Asia combines to aim for 2030 World Cup

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South Asia combines to aim for 2030 World Cup The combined nations of South Asia are hoping that if they split the cost between them, they have a better chance of winning the chance to host the 2030 World Cup. Although the decision isn’t due to be made by FIFA for another 10 years, the Asian Football Federation is already the second party to express interest. Uruguay and Argentina are proposing a joint bid.

The nations that make up the AFF want to form a committee with the sole aim of promoting their bid. Details to emerge so far include special lanes being created at local airports to accommodate the fans travelling to the different matches. The Foreign Minister of Malaysia, Datul Seri Anifah Aman said it would unify the South Asian community if they hosted the World Cup.

As the proposal is expected to include all 11 members of the AFF, which raises both financial and logistical questions. The Foreign Minister of Singapore, George Yeo, has said that they are making a joint bid so it will be a bearable cost for each country and the facilities could be shared. The area as a whole could be compared to a large nation such as the US or Brazil.

Arsenal goes to the yanks

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Arsenal goes to the yanks Stan Kroenke of Kroenke Sports Enterprises is soon to become sole owner of the premier football league club Arsenal.  The American Kroenke, nicknamed ‘Silent Stan’ because of his reluctance to talk to the media, has a good bit of experience in the world of professional sports.

His company KSE controls several American teams:  Denver Nuggets in basketball, Colorado Avalanche in ice hockey, St. Louis Rams in football and Colorado Rapids in soccer.  Kroenke has also been on the board of Arsenal for the past three years.  Chairman of the Arsenal board Peter Hill-Wood said they are confident Kroenke has the right values and will make a good ‘custodian’ for the club.

This purchase will make the Denver-based sports tycoon the fifth U.S. owner of a premier league team.  Kroenke’s acquisition of shares from Danny Fiszman and Nina Bracewell-Smith gave him a 62.89% stake in the club, and he has offered to buy the remaining shares from Russian investor Alisher Usmanov for 11,750 pounds each.

The majority opinion seems to be that Kroenke will keep the club’s best interests at heart; the club’s manager Arsene Wenger said that having worked with Kroenke over the last couple of years, he feels the American understands the club’s traditions and will not undermine its independence.

Kroenke stated that he plans to bring new success to the Gunners and help put them back at the top of the league.  Arsenal has not been in that position for several years, since they won the Premier League in 2004 and the FA cup in 2005.  Currently Arsenal is second behind Manchester United, with seven matches still to go in the season.

Leeds United football club ownership secrecy rumbles on

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Leeds United football club ownership secrecy rumbles on It was all over the front pages four years ago, when the chairman put it into administration but not much has been heard since. The thing is, even the fans aren’t sure who owns Leeds United football club. The club was in debt to the tune of £35m when Ken Bates and his fellow directors put the club into the hands of the administrators.

The question of its ownership has even made it’s way to the House of Commons, where the Select Committee on Culture Media and Sport has repeatedly asked who is the owner. The committee clearly think it’s a cause for concern that the clubs supporters. Who shell out their hard-earned cash; don’t know who their money is going to.

The C.E of the Premier League, Richard Scudamore, yesterday told the enquiry that if the team managed by Simon Grayson were to be promoted to the top flight, their rules need better disclosure as to the actual ownership than there is at present.

The Football League asked Leeds only last year to reveal who actually owned it. Bates, who is now living in Monaco, says that he hasn’t any connection with the owners, they have merely entrusted the day to day running of the club to him. The League rules at the time didn’t require its clubs to openly announce who owned them, so left it at that.

The League however, has since taken on the same rules as the Premiership. Leeds has since announced on their website that the club is owned via 3 trusts, which are administrated via Zurich, and no individual owns over 10%. As this is the case, they say they don’t have to name any of the individuals involved.

TV income falls and clubs feel the strain

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TV income falls and clubs feel the strain A new TV contract signed by the league for £23m less a season than the previous one, has put pressure on many of the teams that are already under severe economic pressure causing them to suffer yet another reduction of income.

There will be 75 live Football League matches and the return of the Carling Cup to exclusively pay TV are parts of the £65m deal that is for the three years from 2012-13. BBC is believed to have declined the bid for live matches this time while having the current £88m a year deal that has 10 Championship games a year and the Carling Cup final.

All insiders are saying that when ITV digital went bust is in no way comparable to the now drop in TV income because back then TV income dropped overnight by £84m when many players were in lucrative multi-year contracts.

Before the new deal will go into place over 80% of the players current contracts will have expired thereby giving owners time to reduce their cost base. A parliamentary committee was recently told that the Football League was heading toward the precipice and arriving quicker than thought, by Chairman Greg Clarke, and the recent reduced funds will worry many teams that face uncertainty over sponsorship and season ticket renewals.

The negotiation of television rights had been held in a very difficult climate because of the state of the economy and the lack of tension in the sports broadcasting market. Setanta’s collapse and the unwillingness for some broadcasters to bid left Sky as the only one to turn to and the only positive is that teams have the time to plan for the future, confidant that the clubs will see there is genuine interest because of the ongoing investment in their competitions.