Australian Cameron Smith lands golf’s biggest 72-hole payout with £2.8m Players win March 15, 2022 Australian Cameron Smith claimed record prize money for an 72-hole golf event of $3.6m (£2.8m) with victory at a weather-delayed Players Championship in Florida. The payout at the PGA Tour’s flagship tournament is bigger than that on offer at any of the four men’s majors or the DP World Tour’s lucrative finale in Dubai. Smith [...]
Saudi Media Group makes £2.7bn bid for Chelsea March 14, 2022 The biggest media group in the Middle East Saudi Media Group has made a £2.7bn offer to scoop up Chelsea as the football club races to find a new benefactor following Roman Abramovich’s sanction by the UK government. The sanctions block any new money going into the Premier League club, effectively forcing Abramovich to offload Chelsea [...]
Chelsea keep going but controversy follows club onto the pitch in ‘sportswashing derby’ March 13, 2022 After a week in which Chelsea’s future was plunged into grave doubt by the sanctioning of Roman Abramovich, today’s visit from Newcastle was about keeping going. Keeping going in the Premier League, where their hold on third place suddenly looked less secure; keeping going as a business, if technical advisor Petr Cech’s pre-match comments which [...]
Three Mobile suspends £40m Chelsea sponsorship amid Abramovich sanction March 10, 2022 Mobile giant Three has said it is reviewing its £40m sponsorship of Chelsea following the UK's sanction of owner Roman Abramovich.
Chelsea in race to find new backer or risk administration as Abramovich sanctions bite March 10, 2022 Chelsea face a race to find a new benefactor after Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government – or run the risk of administration. The sanctions prevent any new money going into the Premier League club, effectively forcing Abramovich to offload Chelsea or watch it run out of money. The club have consistently spent [...]
Branding and product partnerships push football clubs into the fintech arena, and vice versa March 10, 2022 The fintech industry has never been fiercer. Funding levels have reached astronomical levels, as new ideas percolate throughout the financial ecosystem, meaning more and more fintechs are becoming experts and pioneers in a very specific aspect of the financial landscape. By adopting a collaborative as opposed to a competitive mindset, firms are given a platform [...]
Chelsea match given go-ahead by Premier League despite Abramovich sanctions March 10, 2022 The Premier League has said Chelsea can face Norwich City as planned this evening despite the sanctioning of Roman Abramovich. Uncertainty surrounds the future of the club after Abramovich had his assets frozen by the UK government over his alleged links to Russia and its prime minister Vladimir Putin. “Following the UK Government’s announcement that [...]
Explained: What Roman Abramovich sanctions mean for Chelsea sale, matches and transfers March 10, 2022 The future of Chelsea FC has been plunged into uncertainty after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government today. Abramovich has had his assets frozen because of his links to Russia and its prime minister Vladimir Putin, and that has major ramifications for the Premier League club’s operations and his plan to sell [...]
Saudi Arabia’s PIF and Amanda Staveley should have waited to buy Chelsea instead March 10, 2022 I can’t help thinking that Amanda Staveley and her consortium have bought the wrong football club. Had they waited just five months they could have had Chelsea FC rather than Newcastle United. A mooted £3bn price tag may be 10 times the price paid for the Magpies, but still well within the means of Saudi [...]
Super League, Mbappe and at loggerheads over lunch: the feud between PSG and Real Madrid March 9, 2022 In the hours before Paris Saint-Germain beat Real Madrid in the Champions League last month, their respective presidents met for a traditional pre-match lunch that summed up the antipathy between the two clubs. Real Madrid president Florentino Perez arrived late to the Pavillon Ledoyen restaurant near the Champs Elysees. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the Qatari president of [...]