ITV

Category: Sports

  • “Smart monetization can generate good revenue from badminton”: Prasana Krishnan

    “Smart monetization can generate good revenue from badminton”: Prasana Krishnan

    MUMBAI: Continuing the process of building a strong portfolio, Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) sports and entertainment channel Sony Six has acquired the rights of yet another event of international magnitude – the Yonex Sunrise Badminton Open.

     

    The second super series of 2015, the Indian open is one of the flagship badminton tournaments with a prize money of $250,000. Renowned shuttlers will fight their way in Siri Fort Sports Complex, New Delhi to win the title.

     

    India’s contingent is led by top seed and World number 2 Saina Nehwal. It is for the first time in the last four years that a non Chinese woman player sits in the pole position before the start of the tournament. The other X-factor in the tournament is Olympic Gold medalist and five time World Champion Chinese superstar Lin Dan, who will fight hard against Danish top seed Jan O Jorgensen and India’s second seed Kidambi Srikanth to win the tournament and earn a Rio Olympic berth.

     

    The tournament has potential of upsets and high expectations as both Srikanth and Jorgensen defeated Dan in the recent past. Moreover, World Champion Carolina Marin may face Saina Nehwal if both eves manage to qualify for the final. Such uncertainties are the main reason for Sony Six’s decision to showcase the tournament.

     

    Sony Six business head Prasana Krishnan says, “We’ve been having this tournament since a good time and the main reason behind it is the fact that it is played in India. Whenever a sport is played in India, the fan connect is more and a badminton tournament involving Saina Nehwal, Lin Dan and others is certainly a big thing.”

     

    Unlike cricket, badminton has a very limited space to fit in an advertisement during the course of the game. The fastest racquet sport of the world sees a mere one minute gap after 11 points when the players change court and hence making money from the sport is immensely difficult for the broadcasters.

     

    “It depends on how you manage. While it’s true that badminton does not have equal room for monetisation as cricket but we also have to understand that the acquisition value is also comparatively low and hence if you smartly manage and monetize, you can generate good revenue from badminton and other non cricket sports too,” Krishnan opines.

     

    Speaking on advertisers’ reaction to the tournament, Krishnan asserts, “We have got a good response so far. Our associate and co-presenting sponsors have been locked and we have sold out our inventory.”

     

    Total Lubricants has been roped in as co-presenter whereas Yonex Sunrise is the associate sponsor on-air.

     

    The acquisition is backed by marketing initiatives to generate awareness. “We have put ads on various channels of our network in order to back the asset and I am happy with the progress so far,” he adds.

     

    Multi-lingual feed in sports is fast becoming a trend. Not long back the Syed Modi Badminton tournament was aired in both Hindi and English on Sony Six and Pal respectively. However, Krishnan said that there are no such plans for the 2015 Indian Open. “With Syed Modi we tried something, which we may execute again in the near future but Sony Pal will not be involved this time and the Indian Open super series will only be aired in Sony Six and we will stick to the world feed.”

     

    IPL is knocking at the door and once the million dollar league starts, there are high possibilities of other sport properties of Sony Six getting suppressed by the glitz and glamour of IPL. When queried about the same, Krishnan says, “Yes there will be a lot of changes in the scheduling as the entire prime time is devoted to the IPL but that necessarily does not mean that other properties will get suppressed. We will use IPL, which is the biggest platform for promotion in India, to promote our established assets like Fight Sports, NBA and others. IPL actually benefits getting more viewers and complements the other sports that we have.”

     

    2014 was a good year for Sony Six as it touched new heights in terms of garnering viewership. The year started with India playing New Zealand followed by IPL and the FIFA World Cup. Continuing the growth process, Sony Six started 2015 by hosting the Australian Open Grand Slam, which was followed by the Africa Cup of Nation football. “We are trying to grow bigger and whenever there is an opportunity to acquire broadcasting rights of an event of international importance, we will aggressively go for it,” Krishnan informs.

     

    Badminton is the largest played racquet sport in the world and India is emerging as a strong contender in international events. However, the sports’ brand value was always under question. Commenting on the same, GroupM national director – entertainment, sports & live events Vinit Karnik says, “Badminton is a very popular sport in India. It is the only sport that is equally played by men and women. Having said that, the sport doesn’t deliver compelling ratings for advertisers to leverage its popularity. Popularity is restricted to follow the top three players, watching top three marquee matches only. Ratings only improve when Saina Nehwal plays her semis and finals. This needs to change for advertisers to look at badminton as a lucrative platform to promote their brands. Badminton as a sport needs aggressive marketing and more Indian players need to perform and win international marquee tournaments.”

     

    Adding to that, Maxus ESP client leader Jigar Rambhia asserts, “Unfortunately badminton is not an advertiser friendly sport and therefore it fails to attract sponsors. Also, there aren’t many opportunities to advertise with very few breaks for advertising. However, of late, there have been some opportunities like branding on the net, court and perimeter boards etc. This might be able to get some sponsors, which in turn can bring in revenue to broadcasters. Since there aren’t many opportunities to advertisers during telecast, brands don’t look at badminton as a promotion platform. Though this might change, as Saina Nehwal is likely to be World No. 1 if she reaches the finals of the Indian Open. In case that happens, advertisers will definitely start looking at the sport more seriously.”

     

    It remains to be seen if the Indian contingent in the super series successfully manages to overcome obstacles and win the prestigious title. The entire badminton fraternity will closely observe Nehwal as the World Number 1 spot is up for grabs. The crowd at Siri Fort will be biggest boost for Nehwal, even as Marin tries every possible option to block her progress.

     

  • Star India ropes in new brands; hikes ad rates for World Cup

    Star India ropes in new brands; hikes ad rates for World Cup

    MUMBAI: As Dhoni and team prepare to face Australia and book a berth in the final of the biggest cricketing event, Uday Shankar and his team at Star India have roped in more brands as partners to make the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 one of the biggest revenue generating sport event in India.

     

    Before the start of the semi final rounds, Star India roped in many new sponsors across categories like Amazon, Snapdeal, indiaproperty.com, OLX, Voltas, Dell, Panasonic and Toyota.   

     

    Sources in Star told Indiantelevision.com that the ad rates have also seen a substantial hike. “A 10 second slot during India VS Australia bout will cost around Rs 18 – 22 lakh and the later the brand comes in, the more it pays,” the source added.

     

    The cumulative reach of the tournament soared up to 576 million viewers and is expected to grow further if India qualifies for the finals. 

     

    In the other semi final, New Zealand face South Africa. While both teams played numerous semi finals, neither have managed to qualify to the final of the flagship tournament. A highly nail biting match is expected and hence the ad rates have been hiked to Rs 14 – 16 lakh for a 10 second slot.       

     

    Star had a slow start to the tournament as Indian performances prior to the tournament was below par and fans had low expectations from the team. However in a way, this did Star a big favor as circumspect brands endorsed till certain stage predicting limited progress of Indian team. “People thought India won’t qualify for the final stages and bought slots till certain rounds instead of the full tournament. Due to that, in the later stages there are slots available, which is enabling Star to rope in brands at such high pricing,” said a media buying and planning expert.

     

  • Neo Sports Broadcast set for mega revamp; sees Rs 400 crore equity infusion

    Neo Sports Broadcast set for mega revamp; sees Rs 400 crore equity infusion

    MUMBAI: “They say in golf if you are shooting 100 then your golf needs attention but if you are scoring 80 then your business may need attention. The sweet spot is somewhere in between, the ideal work life balance.” That’s how Harish Thawani, a man synonymous with the Indian sports industry and currently NEO Sports Broadcast chairman, begins the conversation after weeks of chasing to understand the company’s play in the current ecosystem.

     

    And be rest assured that this avid golfer has surely found that sweet spot in between, for his company Neo Sports Broadcast will soon see a complete makeover and fresh investments to the tune of Rs 400 crore in content, branding, marketing and technology in 2015-16.

     

    Neo Sports Broadcast, which operates two channels – Neo Prime and Neo Sports, will also see a slew of new initiatives being launched soon.

     

    “Our existing shareholders have decided to make an equity infusion of approximately Rs 400 crore into the company this year, subject to the necessary regulatory approvals,” Thawani tells Indiantelevision.com.

     

    Equity Infusion and Consumer Insights:

     

    The existing shareholders of Neo includes Oman Investment Fund, Nimbus and Thawani himself. Nimbus in turn is majority owned by Cisco, 3i and OIF; with Thawani and associates holding a significant stake. In 2012, after having lost the BCCI cricketing rights, Neo decided to re-engineer itself on its future growth story. Through consumer insights, TAM numbers and research undertaken by the company, it picked up two trends in the market.

     

    “One, sports other than cricket like football, tennis, badminton, golf and basketball were gaining significant traction and it helped us to find ourselves a relevant space in the ecosystem. Secondly, digitisation was providing an opportunity to broadcasters to cater to over 150 million viewers that now watch sports other than cricket,” Thawani explains.

     

    Based on these insights the company has decided to acquire quite a few properties for this year for its two channels.

     

    New Rights Acquisitions:

     

    As Neo Prime and Neo Sports look to boost their fan base based on its recent research on viewers’ preferences, the company has begun a fresh set of rights acquisitions. As many as five new rights deals have been recently concluded and at least five more are in the pipeline, providing over 40 new live events and over 800 hours of live programming a year. All rights acquisitions have been done on a multi-year basis.

     

    Neo has also boosted its football portfolio with a top five European league the Dutch Eredivisie and will shortly add another major European football property to its portfolio. Its Eredivisie acquisition followed the research insights that top tier clubs like Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord have a significant fan base in India.

     

    Another consumer insight showed that table tennis is an under-served sport in India, despite being a huge participation sport, commonly understood by viewers. This prompted Neo to acquire not just the World Cups and World Championships but also the ITTF World Tour. “The rise of Indians on the table tennis circuit augurs well for the growth of its viewership in India,” states Thawani.

     

    The telecast rights to the 2015 European Games (similar to the Asian Games) have been acquired by Neo and will be aired this summer. This second largest multi-nation, multi-sport event is expected to be a spectacular display of sport at the highest level.

     

    To boost its motor sport coverage and enthused by the fact that technology now enables live coverage, Neo has acquired the World Rally Championships (all 12 events a year).

     

    It has also boosted its coverage of live horse racing to engage the super affluent horse racing fans in India, with its deal to air English horse racing (including the major Derbies and Classics).

     

    Also in the pipeline is a programming band devoted to fight sport, which is expected to launch in the second half of 2015 apart from a major European football asset, a series of top tier badminton events and a tennis rights package.

     

    This complements Neo’s offering in tennis, consisting of the French Open, Davis Cup and Fed Cup; its top tier golf coverage with the PGA Tour of about 40 events a year, Bundesliga football, World Basketball Championships and others.

     

    When queried about plans for cricket, Thawani says, “It has been widely reported that Neo was recently a bidder for the ICC rights, which should convey that our interest in cricket will continue. There are several cricket rights that will come to market in the coming 18 months, and we will evaluate each opportunity.”

     

    Channel Upgrade to HD: 

     

    “We will convert both our channels; Neo Prime and Neo Sports from SD to HD. We aim to make this transition in October-December 2015 quarter,” says the man, who besides being an avid golfer, played as many as four other sports competitively at university and club level.

     

    Consumer Engagement:

     

    The company will also launch a multimedia campaign, including digital media to communicate its enhanced programming to fans in order to boost brand recall and increased engagement. The mega multimedia campaign will begin from as early as May 2015.

     

    It has been learnt that the company had seen an interest from companies such as Euro Sport, BeIn Sports and Super Sports among others to either buy a majority stake or outright purchase of Neo Sports Broadcast. However, Thawani refused to comment on any specific discussions citing confidentiality provisions, but states, “Neo is, to my knowledge, the only profitable sports broadcaster in India, having made profits in 2013-14 and we expect to sustain that trend. This has enthused our shareholders to back the company in its quest for further growth. Consequently, we have taken a decision to not evaluate any stake sale. When required, we may induct one more financial investor.”

     

    It is clear that Neo shareholders believe that smart management and digitisation would help it go a long way and therefore it would be a wrong time to disinvest. It may be recalled that just eight years back, Neo had one of the most successful pay TV launches in the world of sport, quickly becoming the number one sports channel in 2009 and number one sports network by 2010.

     

    In the world of today’s broadcast television, where content, technology and innovation rapidly changes the share of audience, Neo looks poised to take competition head-on with fresh capital infusion and many a new properties firmly tucked under its belt.

  • NBA India to unveil slew of initiatives to popularise basketball

    NBA India to unveil slew of initiatives to popularise basketball

    MUMBAI: The arena for non-cricketing sports, which saw an expansion last year, is seeing a similar thrust this year too. One of the properties – National Basketball Association (NBA) recently launched a new look to the NBAStore.in along with Jabong. It is the league’s official online store in India that will include new team and player shops, a new spring collection of NBA merchandise, and a large selection of NBA player jerseys to fans in India.

     

    Another of the sports properties – the NBA JAM visited 16 Indian cities last year, which according to NBA India managing director Yannick Colaco drew a good response from over 3,000 teams that participated. At one point, entries had to be cut off as the additional teams could not be accommodated. The winning boys and girls teams from each of these cities went to the final play offs that was held in Pune. Industry sources peg that close to Rs 12 – 13 crore was spent on this initiative at the grassroots level.

     

    “The focus and primary objectives remain the same for us this year. It is to grow the game of basketball and continue to grow our fan base. We achieve these goals of ours through multiple platforms – from our grassroots programs like NBA Jam and the Reliance Foundation (RF) Jr NBA program to providing live and packaged content across media, to making available a wide range of merchandise through our online store; NBAstore.in,” says Colaco.

     

    The Junior NBA programme this year was held in eight cities and reached out to a million kids in the country. 

     

    Colaco goes on to add that NBA India will continue to work closely with its partners in India including Sony, Reliance Foundation, Jabong, Coca Cola, Adidas and Spalding.

     

    Spelling out plans for NBA this year, Colaco says that it will continue to grow the footprint of its grassroots programs to bring NBA experiences to even more fans. “We are also focused on more localised and customised content for our fans in India – on television and digital. We are planning a lot of innovative stuff around content and recently brought on board Mairu Gupta – who specialises in the digital and social media field – to give us added impetus in the space,” informs Colaco.

     

    When quizzed on why he is bullish on the social media domain, Colaco explains, “Social media is important to us as our target audience is primarily under the age of 25. This is the medium for the present and the future for our TA and is consequently a crucial component of our growth plans. In the next three to four months, we plan to launch quite a few exciting initiatives in this space.”

     

    The newly renewed site showcases new collections with more than 350 on and off court products and features a collection of player jerseys offered to fans in India. Jerseys recently added include those of Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, San Antonio Spurs forward/center Tim Duncan and Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard. 

     

    Meanwhile, NBA and MSM had first announced a partnership during the 2010-11 NBA season. This was followed by a multiplayer three year deal thereafter. The contract ends during the latter half of the year and will be up for renewal.

     

  • Star Sports-Sony spar over World Cup, IPL performances

    Star Sports-Sony spar over World Cup, IPL performances

    MUMBAI: Even as the national sides are battling it out on the pitches in Australia-New Zealand to decide who will take home the World Cup in the quarter final stage, a behind the scenes slugfest is taking place between two rival broadcasters, which have both laid big bets on the sport. We are referring to Star India and Multi Screen Media (which runs the Sony Entertainment Television network in India).

    The former is telecasting the World Cup and has the rights to India cricket internationally, while the latter is gearing up to telecast the cricket league – the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the next two months, apart from Euro 2016 qualifiers, FIFA International friendlies and various Fight sports. At stake is close to Rs 4,500 crore that is likely to be spent by advertisers on sports television this year. Of this ginormous pie, approximately Rs 2000-2,200 crore is estimated to be spent on the World Cup and IPL. It’s no wonder then that the two are resorting to sledging within the confines of advertisers’ and media agencies’ cabins and to journos.

    Star India began its World Cup innings just about three weeks ago – rather shakily. A Sony spokesperson reveals that the Star ad sales team had just about managed to raise Rs 100 -150 crore or so in ad and sponsorship deals before the once-in-four-years tourney began. “They were really desperate,” he says. “India were performing abysmally on their tour overseas.”

    The Star spokesperson is quick to respond, “In the first two weeks only, the advertiser as well as sponsor count for the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was 50 per cent higher than 2011 edition as well as the IPL.”

    The Sony spokesperson’s rejoinder to this is that India’s stupendous display against Pakistan in their opening encounter helped bail out Star Sports. Advertisers flocked to its doors, cash in hand ready to pay premium to air their TVCs. Estimates are that Star India will raise anywhere from Rs 800 – 900 crore from this year’s contest, which ends late in March.

    And even as Star has been screaming that this year’s edition has generated the highest ratings ever, and in its trail ad revenues, Sony’s spokesperson has been rubbishing the numbers. Says he: “The ratings in this edition have seen a substantial decline when compared to the 2011 edition. Moreover fans had to wait for a week to witness an India match; the decline is constant in the non-India matches too. Whereas in IPL, each and every match is entertaining and is showcased on prime time.”

    He adds, “After 31 matches, the bouts involving India are generating 6.1 TVRs, which was 10.3 during the 2011 edition and the decline is constant in non-India matches too wherein it has dropped from 3.6 TVRs to 1.3 TVR.”

    Terming those figures as absolute no-balls, the Star India spokesperson asserts, “The cumulative reach of the ongoing World Cup touched 534 million viewers after the first 29 matches (TAM data CS4+ extrapolated to the universe using a standard conversion factor). In terms of TVRs, the India vs Pakistan match garnered 14.9 TVR, India vs South Africa got 12.7 TVR, and India vs West Indies managed 13.1 TVR and the non-India match ratings are fluctuating from 2 to 2.5.”

    Media observers also point out to the fact that the reporting of the ratings has also changed since 2011. “In those days, LC1 towns were not factored into the ratings. Hence, a pure comparision is also not possible,” says a media expert. “It’s like comparing apples and oranges.”

    The Star India spokesperson in turn takes a dig at MSM’s telecast record of the IPL, saying the trend is clear. “The IPL reach has declined continuously since season one and sharply in the last three years. Post World Cup in 2011, the tournament suffered as both foot fall and engagement dropped.”

    Terming these allegations as “baseless,” the MSM official shared the cumulative reach of IPL since its inception.

     

     

    The official also added, “Not only in terms of cumulative reach every year but also in terms of ad revenue we witnessed an eight – 10 per cent increase.  IPL is an established entity and considering the fact that the tourney has survived through many ifs and buts in past years, the asset is now beyond question.”

    The Star spokesperson says that MSM has a major challenge on its hands over the next few weeks. It is going to telecast the IPL very soon after the World Cup ends; at a time when the sports ad spends appetites of some advertisers may have been satiated courtesy the World Cup. However, to MSM’s advantage is the fact that most big spenders are beginning new financial years (the year end for most large corporates in India is 31 March) and hence will have fat wallets. Nonetheless, Sony has to raise anywhere from Rs 900 to 1,200 crore to make this year’s IPL outing pay off.

    The Sony spokesperson quickly reverts that this is a given. “While we don’t comment on internal financial figures, we will meet and maybe even beat the revenue target we have set for this year’s IPL,” he says. “Advertiser interest is rising thanks to the excitement that is building around cricket.”

    Even as they are taking digs at each other’s performances, the fact remains that both broadcasters are well aware of the importance and valuation of the two flagship tournaments. Moreover the fact that Star’s Hotstar platform is the digital partner of IPL and Max was the destination of the World Cup not long back, proves that the two desire both the tournaments equally. Star India probably is hungry for growth in sports. Its CEO Uday Shankar has outlined the broadcast network’s intentions very clearly: it wants to pitch in a big way to grow the sports ecosystem in India. And in the process, also bring in mountains of revenues for his network.

    When the next bidding process for the IPL begins by next year or so, you can be sure Shankar and his team will be on the frontlines making a definitive attempt to acquire its rights. Of course MSM’s NP Singh will be up front too. The rivalry will continue.

  • Sony Six acquires rights of Yonex Sunrise India Open 2015

    Sony Six acquires rights of Yonex Sunrise India Open 2015

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) sports and entertainment channel Sony Six has acquired the rights to the Yonex Sunrise India Open 2015.

    The championship will be aired from 24 – 29 March. The tournament will be held at the Siri Fort Indoor Sports Complex in New Delhi and will witness some of India’s finest players including Srikanth Kadambi – the reigning Swiss Open champion, the world number two Saina Nehwal, Padma Shri winner P V Sindhu and the Commonwealth Games gold medallist Parupalli Kashyap take part in the proceedings.

    Apart from the top crop of Indian talent, the tournament will also feature the best of international badminton talent including Jan O Jorgensen, Lin Dan and the All England Open Championships winner Carolina Marin. The Open is set to see a series of nail-biting matches between players, who will battle it out to win the illustrious title and a total prize money of $275,000. 

    With badminton increasingly gaining a strong foothold in India, the current season of the Super Series tournament should add to the ever-growing fan base in the country.

    Sony Six EVP and business head Prasana Krishnan said, “The India Open is undoubtedly the biggest major played in India every year and we are thrilled to come on board as the broadcasting partner for this marque tournament which attracts the best of Indian and international talent year on year. The viewer base for badminton in India has got stronger with every tournament in which our players feature. We expect the viewership to only grow manifold for this tournament considering its iconic status and the conducive telecast hours.”

    The tournament currently boasts of the BWF Super Series status, which was given to it in 2011. Super Series is a series of 12 prestigious tournaments played around the world, which also includes the highly coveted All England Open.

    Sony Six, as a part of its agreement with the Badminton Association of India (BAI), holds the rights to telecast the tournaments, which are played in the country. Earlier this year, the channel also broadcast one of the premier Indian badminton tournaments in the Syed Modi International Grand Prix along with its sister channel, Sony Pal.

    The schedule for the Yonex Sunrise India Open is as follows:

  • ICC World Cup: Star likely to hike ad rates by 15-20% in knockout stage

    ICC World Cup: Star likely to hike ad rates by 15-20% in knockout stage

    MUMBAI: As the ICC Cricket World Cup moves into the knockout stage, interest levels in the tourney, which is being played Down Under, are rising. And cashing in on this opportunity, Star Sports is looking at escalating its ad rates to rake in more moolah.   

     

    Sources in media planning and buying fraternity told Indiantelevision.com that the broadcaster was looking at a hike of at least seven – ten per cent in the ad rates for the knockout stages. Star, however, is claiming a hike of 15 to 20 per cent compared to the rate of the league stages.

     

    A source in Star Sports further revealed, “From the semi final stages, we will have a number of fresh sponsors and advertisers coming in as numerous deals at the earlier stages were signed only till the quarter final stage. Interest of the matches will decide the ad rates and if India qualifies for the semi finals, the rates will certainly see a substantial hike.”

     

    Speaking on the commercial growth of the tournament so far, Helios Media managing director Divya Radhakrishnan says, “India has played well so far and will face Bangladesh in the Quarters, which adds the possibilities of a semi-final berth and hence the demand of the tournament is way higher when compared to the league stages. The advertisers, who gambled to participate in the early stages, got the best price because now the ad rate is sky high.”

     

    GroupM national director entertainment, sports & live events Vineet Karnik asserts, “India’s performance in the triangular series Down Under was below par, which resulted in a slow beginning to the World Cup in terms of advertiser participation. However, as India started playing well, the tournament gained momentum. Now in the knockout stages, the demand is high and naturally Star will increase the ad rate substantially.”

     

    As the ICC World Cup entered the business end of the tournament, 14 teams tried with only eight succeeding to reach the knockout stages. Despite having a below par start, Pakistan securing a berth in the quarters, was a key highlight in the tourney. Lower run rate led to Ireland’s disqualification in the knockout stage as it tied with West Indies, which also managed six points from the league stages. However, the eyebrow raiser of the tournament was Bangladesh, who stunned England to book a berth in the quarters.

     

    Earlier today (18 March), South Africa stormed through to the semis after brutally thrashing Sri Lanka by nine wickets. Bangladesh will play India tomorrow (19 March), who is undisputed so far in the tourney and has decimated each and every batting attack. If India wins the quarter final match, it will face the winner of the Australia vs Pakistan match. This in turn can lead to a probable Indo-Pak bout. India Vs Pakistan match is always an intense battle on and off the field. 

     

    While the two teams sweat out to win the match, advertisers exert themselves to create an exquisite presentation in order to grab more eyeballs. Alongside, Star India will prepare its business strategy to generate as much revenue as possible. The ad rates will see a substantial hike and last moment contributors will definitely need to have deep pockets indeed.

  • ESS to air Kartikeyan’s tryst with the Malaysia track

    ESS to air Kartikeyan’s tryst with the Malaysia track

    Over the weekend ESPN Star Spotrs (ESS) will air the second race of the F1 season 2005. The race takes place in Sepang, Malaysia . Karthikeyan finished the race in Australia as the fastest debutant and is confident that the state-of-the-art Sepang circuit will suit his driving style.

    Star Sports will have live action on 20 March at 11:30 am. Michael Schumacher and the Ferrari team will be looking to salvage their pride after a poor performance in the opening Australian GP. While Barrichello managed eight points with the second position, Schumacher and the Ferrari team would not be too happy with the unfortunate spin out of the titleholder.

    The Renault team will look to maintain their winning streak with both the first and the third position going to their drivers Fisichella and Alonso respectively. World Championship leader after the first race, Giancarlo Fisichella believes that he can increase his advantage in the points table, while team mate Fernando Alonso is determined to increase his challenge.

    Besides the main race, Star Sports' comprehensive coverage of F1 also includes the action of the Qualifying Race. And 45 minutes before the main race Star Sports will have the preview show Race Day. There will be interviews, race preview together with track and weather update. In the post-race show Chequered Flag there will be post-race interviews and highlights, plus a preview of the next race.

  • Guwahati FC ties-up with Anglian and Atlético Paranaenseto

    Guwahati FC ties-up with Anglian and Atlético Paranaenseto

    MUMBAI: Newly formed Guwahati FC is taking first steps towards establishing itself as a powerhouse of Indian football. The club has tied up with Delhi-based Anglian Management Group (AMG) and Brazil’s Clube Atlético Paranaense (CAP) to set up the first international football Academy in North-East India, based out of Guwahati. 

     

    The Academy plans to train a hundred elite youth footballers from various age groups each for the next three years as well as run numerous programmes throughout the year aimed at attracting more youth to the sport. The training will be done under the supervision of CAP’s Brazilian coaches who, in addition to making regular visits to Guwahati, will also train Guwahati FC coaches at the CAP-owned facilities in Curitiba, Brazil.

     

    The Academy aims to offer the best footballing facilities and experiences to young and aspiring footballers. While the Academy is expected to open later this year, most of the ground-work including the identification of facilities has already been finalised including full-sized pitches, practice areas, lecture theatres and classrooms, changing rooms, gym, canteen, entertainment and requisite medical facilities.

     

    Guwahati FC, which was formed at the end of 2014, aims to establish itself by developing local talent in partnership with AMG-CAP. The club intends to leverage AMG’s international connections and experiences in managing football clubs in India and in Europe as well as CAP’s globally-renowned youth football programmes which have earned them successes at the highest level both in South America as well as in Europe.

     

    AMG-CAP had earlier formed a joint venture in India to help develop domestic football at multiple levels, including the management of young and exciting players, advising Indian Super League (ISL) and domestic I-League clubs as well as working with players, coaches, organisational staff and other business entities that happen to be involved in the sport. CAP is also currently working with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to help train Indian footballers and coaches in preparation of the U17 World Cup scheduled to be held in India in 2017. Five of the club’s most promising talents showed their mettle in the inaugural edition of the ISL.

     

    Speaking on the occasion Guwahati FC co-pwner Sanjive Narain said, “We are looking forward to a great working relationship with AMG-CAP as they are ideal partners to help get our Academy started. We are known for our love for football in India, and particularly in Assam and the North East. I am sure this Academy will help our young footballers develop their game not only to the best standards in the country but to global levels as well.”

     

    Anglian Management Group CEO Dhruv Ratra added, “Although Guwahati FC has only just formed, they are showing their commitment to the sport and their fans by establishing a very professional organization. Our Brazilian partners Clube Atlético Paranaense, having recently inked a deal with the All India Football Federation to help train young Indian players for the 2017 U17 World Cup, will be able to impart the same education to Guwahati FC. This will help in the development of footballing and coaching talent that will in turn help raise the standard of the sport in the region and the country.”