Ryan Reynolds joins Wrexham co-owner and RedBird in buying stake in F1 team Alpine June 26, 2023 Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds and RedBird Capital Partners, which has a stake in Liverpool’s owners, have invested in Formula 1 team Alpine. Otro Capital, Reynolds’ Wrexham AFC co-owner Rob McElhenney and their fellow actor Michael B Jordan, who owns a stake in AFC Bournemouth have also invested. The €200m (£171m) cash injection is for 24 [...]
Inside the PTO Tour: Triathletes plotting their own path, backed by a billionaire June 26, 2023 Ibiza usually moves to the beat of its clubbing crowd but for one weekend last month it was a different Lycra-clad set working up a sweat: top triathletes, including Alistair Brownlee, Lucy Charles-Barclay and Kristian Blummenfelt. In the shadow of world-famous nightclubs like Pacha, some of the sport’s biggest names took on a 100km swim-bike-run [...]
Boost for the Hundred as England cricket chiefs close in on new headline sponsor June 25, 2023 The Hundred is set for a major boost, with the England and Wales Cricket Board understood to be close to announcing a new headline sponsor for the competition. A multi-year deal with a brand that has not previously been involved in cricket is being finalised and there is optimism that it will be signed this [...]
Chelsea owners caught in backlash over investment in French club Strasbourg June 22, 2023 Chelsea and co-owner Todd Boehly are facing a backlash from Strasbourg supporters as they close in on a deal to buy a large minority stake in the French football club. Confirmation is said to be imminent that the Blues have acquired a shareholding of around 40 per cent in the team from Alsace. Strasbourg would [...]
Ed Warner: Rugby, boxing, netball, Para sport – what should Saudi Arabia buy next? June 22, 2023 Challenge accepted! A reader last week asked what the most investable sports worldwide are from the perspective of a sovereign wealth fund such as Saudi Arabia’s PIF. He had rugby union in mind, but wanted a long train journey to dredge up others. A return trip on Avanti West Coast to the first Ashes Test [...]
Chelsea begin clear-out and raise almost £100m by selling Havertz and Kovacic June 21, 2023 Chelsea have begun a major squad clear-out and raised almost £100m by agreeing deals to sell Kai Havertz to Arsenal and Mateo Kovacic to Manchester City. Germany forward Havertz, who scored 32 goals in 139 goals during three seasons at Chelsea, is set to move across London to Arsenal for an initial fee of £60m, [...]
Q&A: Why Premier League gave Chelsea’s Paramount Plus sponsorship the red card June 20, 2023 Chelsea’s hunt for a new main shirt sponsor hit the news this week when it emerged that the Premier League had refused to sanction a potential deal with Paramount Plus. Here’s why the agreement was not allowed, why this situation isn’t unique to Chelsea or the top division of English football, and what it means [...]
Roger Varian interview: ‘Will I enjoy Royal Ascot? Ask me at the end of the week’ June 19, 2023 Leading trainer Roger Varian on the importance of success at Royal Ascot this week, his ambitions to run Britain’s No1 stable and the future of the horse racing industry. Six days a week at 4:30am, just as the first sunlight is starting to bathe the Cambridgeshire-Suffolk border, horse racing trainer Roger Varian gets up and [...]
European football chief Ceferin plays down fears of talent drain to Saudi Pro League June 19, 2023 Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin insists he is not worried about the Saudi Pro League’s ambitious transfer policy stripping European football of its top stars. Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante and Ruben Neves have already followed Cristian Ronaldo in moving to Saudi, where a major investment programme from the Public Investment Fund is also reported to be [...]
How the Home Office made it easier for English football to sign foreign youngsters June 16, 2023 A little over two years after English football shut the door on a host of foreign talent by implementing strict post-Brexit rules, it prised it open again this week when the Home Office approved a relaxation of the regulations. The biggest change affords clubs more scope to appeal for an exception to be made if [...]