Shorts: Brentford, Tnt, Gloucestershire Cc
The owner of Brentford FC, Matthew Benham, is considering selling a minority stake in the Premier League club.
According to Bloomberg, Benham has yet to specify the stake he is looking to put on the market, but the valuation of the club is around £400 million.
The news comes days after the Premier League announced its new £6.7bn domestic TV deal that starts with the 2025/26 season which will likely have a positive impact of the West London’s club’s value.
Former city financier Benham, who made his fortune in the gambling industry, has owned his boyhood club since saving them from bankruptcy in 2012 and has helped take them from the third tier to the division.
TNT Sports has secured the rights to broadcast England Women’s cricket tour of India in the UK and Ireland.
The tour will feature three T20Is – the first taking place on 6th December, before a four-day Test from 14th to 17th December.
Reshmin Chowdhury will present for TNT Sports, which recently rebranded from BT Sport, alongside former England internationals Alex Hartley and Lydia Greenway.
The latest deal strengthens Warner Bros. Discovery’s’ women’s sport offering which also includes coverage of Premiership Women’s Rugby and UEFA Women’s Champions League as well as every point from every women’s match at the Australian Open and Roland-Garros Grand Slam tennis tournaments in addition to the Tour de France Femmes.
Gloucestershire Cricket Club has announced that it is looking at opportunities for ‘a new development in the south of the county.’
The projected move to a new site comes after prolonged discussions within the club to ensure ‘the competitiveness and long-term sustainability of the club.’
Gloucestershire Cricket Club currently play at Nevil Road but there are growing concerns that the infrastructure at the ground may not be able to meet the pace of the club’s growth.
The favoured site for the ground, which would have ‘greatly improved seating capacity and club-leading standards of environmental sustainability’ is situated in South Gloucestershire close to the M4 near Bristol.
David Jones, Chair of Gloucestershire Cricket, said, “This is a significant turning point for cricket in Gloucestershire and Bristol as we look to secure the club’s long-term future in an ever-changing sporting world. As well as delivering for our members the modern and low carbon facilities they deserve in order to showcase an ever-wider range of world class events here in the South West, we are keen to continue our active role in the community to widen participation and inspire the next generation of sports women and men.”
Richard Gould, Chief Executive Officer at the ECB, added, “It’s always exciting to see County clubs come up with ambitious plans for growth.
‘’We are clear on the importance of Bristol, Gloucestershire and the South West to the game and recognise that continued investment at all levels is vital for the ongoing growth of cricket across the region. It’s fantastic to see Gloucestershire displaying the ambition to provide cricket fans in the West Country with a state-of-the-art sports and leisure arena.”
The Birmingham City Foundation has announced its first flagship partner – Balaam Wood Academy.
The school, located in Frankley, already has links with the EFL Championship football club Birmingham City with coaches currently delivering four hours of football and mentoring per week.
Now, the new partnership will see two coaches deliver 40 hours per week.
Damien McGarvey, Headmaster of Balaam Wood Academy, said, “Birmingham City Football Club is a pillar of this city, and we believe that working with the club we can achieve something bigger by doing it together.
“We have seen the impact the coaches have in our school with them being here for just four hours a week, and we have witnessed the success in our internal metrics and data. We are excited to see where this could take us as not just a school, but as an anchor for the whole community.”
EFL League One football club Portsmouth FC has announced a two-year partnership extension with PMC Construction.
As per the deal, the local company will remain sponsors of the North Stand and is working with the club on the ongoing redevelopment of Fratton Park.
Steve Cripps, Managing Director of PMC, said, “PMC Construction are delighted to continue our ongoing partnership with Portsmouth Football Club. This club remains the hub of our city and to be a part of it for another two years is extremely rewarding.
“Pompey also plays a major contribution in preserving our strong community by bringing people together. This club remains the hub of our city and to be a part of it for another two years is extremely rewarding.”
Mark Judges, Director of Sales at Portsmouth FC, said, “To continue our partnership with PMC Construction is superb.
“PMC and their dedicated team are ingrained in the DNA of Portsmouth Football Club. Their support and expertise have been pivotal in the redevelopment and improvement of Fratton Park.”
London-based global marketing and management agency Blueprintx has signed Chelcee Grimes to its management roster.
Grimes, a footballer, creator, musician, songwriter and TV presenter, will work with Blueprintx to further grow and expand her commercial portfolio.
Rob Hughes, Co-Founder of Blueprintx, said, “Chelcee is a unique talent, bridging the worlds of both sport and entertainment. We’re hugely excited to be working with Chelcee to maximise what is set to be a huge year of sport in 2024.”
Hampshire Cricket and The Ageas Bowl has retained the services of New Reach PR for another year.
New Reach had entered an initial year-long agreement at the end of 2022 to support The Ageas Bowl’s media coverage, the development of the venue and club’s social media strategy.
Greig Stewart, Head of Customer Experience at The Ageas Bowl, said, “New Reach are fantastic storytellers and have brought a new energy and focus to our comms plan and content creation. A great group of people to work with, they have created positive relationships across the Club and their positive attitude to relationship building is evident in the highly engaged network of writers and broadcasters they have given us access to.
“Over the 12-months we have been working with Nick and the team our local and national reach has significantly increased across broadcast and written press.”
Sports marketing agency Sport Unlimited has been appointed by Clipper Ventures to create the new website for the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.
Andy Walton, Group Account Director at Sport Unlimited, said, “This is a brilliant win for our team – not only does it give us the opportunity to showcase stories from a once in a lifetime experience, it also allows us to draw on our rich seam of audience insights. We’re excited about bringing this powerful experience to life for people across the globe. The mix of sports and discipline expertise is a real sweet spot for Sport Unlimited, and this a good example of how our unique proposition is resonating within the market.”
Katharine Schäfli, Head of Marketing at Clipper Ventures, added, “The growth of the adventure sports sector is an exciting time for us; Adventure is at the heart of all our brands and the Clipper Race is the most heroic because it offers an epic challenge normally only faced by the sport’s professionals. We are looking forward to working with Sport Unlimited who demonstrated how its expertise can address our goals. We believe that the agency will bring to life the thrill of ocean racing and the courage our crew have to take on such a life-changing experience.”
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