By Ben Nicholson
October 26 – As the date nears for companies to present their electronic performance and tracking systems to IFAB and FIFA, Insideworldfootball has spoken to wearable technology market pioneers Catapult about how far the technology can inform decision-making, including in-game, how it can be used generally, and what FIFA/IFAB are looking for.
By David Owen
October 26 – Spain’s La Liga is expected soon to start the process of selling domestic broadcasting rights for the next three seasons, in a move it hopes will drive up value by some 50% from the €600 million realised for 2015-16. El País, the much-respected newspaper, has suggested that an auction of these rights for the 2016-17 to 2018-19 period is likely before the end of the year. Spain moved recently to the same collective selling model as that utilised by other leading European football leagues.
October 23 – German captain Bastian Schweinsteiger is reported to be considering taking legal action against a Hong Kong company making Nazi dolls that bear a striking resemblance to him.
October 23 – UK football pay tv broadcast giants Sky Sports and BT Sport have missed out on upcoming European summer TV football festival in France as the BBC and ITV have jointly secured the media rights to EURO 2016.
By Ben Nicholson
October 19 – FIFA, alongside The International Football Association Board (IFAB), are looking to develop standardised wearable-technology. FIFA and IFAB have invited producers of electronic performance and tracking systems (EPTS) to present their systems.
By David Owen
October 19 – Letv Sports & Technology, the Chinese business that last month won exclusive live broadcasting rights for the Premier League in Hong Kong for three seasons from 2016-17, is to rebrand.
October 16 – Manchester City has added online gaming company Betsafe as an official betting partner for both the club’s men’s and women’s teams.
By Paul Nicholson
October 15 – Oulala.com, the daily fantasy football platform, has unveiled a new version of its site which is available to consumers in the UK for the very first time. The monetised site allows users to buy into games and play daily and in ‘real time’.
October 9 – Digital pitchside advertising specialists Supponor and ADI have combined their expertise to launch the world’s first broadcast quality LED virtual advertising solution.
October 13 – While neighbours Liverpool have hired a manager (Jurgen Klopp) who has a penchant for wearing a baseball hat, Manchester United have gone a more pragmatic step towards conquering the baseball hat world by concluding a sponsorship deal the king of the baseball hat suppliers, New Era.
By Paul Nicholson
October 12 – The week of the international break has resulted in some remarkable twitter follower gains for English Premier League clubs with Liverpool in particular putting on more than 50,000 followers and jumping to second place in the weekly ranking.
By Matt Scott
October 9 – Olympiacos, the Greek champions whose owner is under criminal investigation for alleged match-fixing, have signed a title-sponsorship deal with an online-betting company.
October 8 – Football fan website and digital platform 90min has completed a round of fund raising that has brought in $15 million to cashflow the group’s expansion into new international markets and increase content.
By Samindra Kunti
October 6 – The ICSS and the Aspire Academy have renewed their partnership, while the French Football Federation have made a pledge for a closer cooperation with their Qatari counterpart. The agreements were announced at the Aspire Academy Global Summit on Football Performance and Science in Berlin.
By Ben Nicholson
October 6 – The MLS has added another TV deal to its expanding roster by partnering with FOX Sports Latin America to televise matches in Mexico, South America (excepting Brazil where the MLS already partners with Globosat), Central America and the Caribbean. The deal now makes the MLS available for viewing in almost 120 countries and territories worldwide.