Sportl: the pay-as-you-go gym app sprinting into the capital March 10, 2026 When they worked at the Bank of England, Matthew Austin and Ryan Lovelock understood the frustration of finding time for the gym. Sneaking out for a lunchtime sesh or scrambling to leave work on time for an evening class is a familiar challenge for fitness-focused city workers. Austin said: “We were kind of here, there [...]
Treasury ignored DCMS gambling tax hike concerns before Budget raid March 6, 2026 Whitehall raised questions about the amount of money a gambling levy could raise before Chancellor Rachel Reeves pushed ahead with tax hikes in the Autumn Budget. A Freedom of Information request seen by Morning Wire shows analysis by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport in response to proposals by the Social Market Foundation and [...]
Exclusive: ‘Punchy’ £2.5m crowdfund to value Kane-backed Reflo at £25m March 5, 2026 A “punchy” £2.5m crowdfunding round launched by Reflo, the apparel brand backed by footballers Harry Kane and Phil Jones, will value the sustainable sportswear firm at £25m, co-founder Rory MacFadyen has told Morning Wire. The brand, which boasts the likes of England striker Kane and Formula 1 team Williams within its client roster, has announced [...]
Why agents are asking athletes to get a pre-nup this Valentine’s Day February 14, 2026 The rise of the pre-nuptial agreement continues unabated. And never more so than for young successful athletes who tick all the ‘you need an agreement’ boxes – rapid accumulation of wealth, short career spans and public interest in their private lives. For many, a pre-nuptial agreement now sits firmly on the wedding to-do list alongside [...]
Why influencers could blow traditional broadcasters out of the water February 13, 2026 The tidal wave of influencers continues to come in-land, and they could be the key to unlocking fan bases that broadcasters cannot. Staying awake past midnight and into Monday morning for a four-hour American football game, knowing the alarm will ring in a few hours, used to be a niche obsession in Britain. Now it [...]
Sport’s overreachers like Sussex and Leicester are guilty of hope not greed February 12, 2026 As long as sport’s governing bodies and regulators reward risk over restraint, the cycle of boom, bust, sanction, repeat will continue, writes Ed Warner. First the disclaimer: I live in Sussex and although its county side isn’t my first cricketing love – that “honour” belongs to Middlesex CCC – I’ve enjoyed days at Hove’s County [...]
CVC’s Global Sport Group to announce deal with Gordon Brown-linked Pimco February 11, 2026 CVC Capital Partners’ new sporting arm Global Sport Group is set to announce a deal with Gordon Brown-associated asset management group Pimco. The deal will see the firm which manages around $2 trillion in assets heavily involved in debt financing, according to Sky News’ Mark Kleinman. The senior debt financing is set to be worth [...]
Former JPMorgan investment banker launches European sports fund January 22, 2026 A former JPMorgan investment banker has teamed up with the former managing director of Eurosport to launch a new European sports fund. Athvance Capital has launched as a “European investment platform fully dedicated to unlocking long-term value across the global sports industry”. Capital, according to the firm, has already been deployed across Padel Copa as [...]
Grok AI key to Sport England suspending X account January 13, 2026 Sport England has suspended its activity on Elon Musk’s social media platform X, citing an environment that is “hostile to women and girls”. X, formerly known as Twitter, has been at the centre of a storm relating to its associated Grok AI and claims that it allows users to generate sexually explicit images, including of [...]
Exclusive: Brits don’t trust football and rugby team owners to run clubs properly January 13, 2026 Less than a third of British adults trust football and rugby team owners to “run their clubs in a financially sustainable manner” amid intensifying scrutiny on those who buy sporting institutions. Exclusive Ipsos polling for Morning Wire shows that just 32 per cent of adults trust the owner of their football or rugby club. It [...]