Shorts: Man Utd, Man City, Sportradar

Premier League football club Manchester United has announced the extension of its sports medicine and imaging partnership with Japanese medical equipment company Canon Medical Systems.

The new agreement will see Canon Medical Systems continue to provide the Red Devils with specialist diagnostic imaging equipment to support the health of the club’s players.

The deal, which initially kicked off in 2013 and covers both the men’s and women’s first teams, will see Canon Medical Systems provide upgrades to the existing range of Healthcare IT (HIT), CT, MRI and Ultrasound diagnostic imaging systems to advance the level of care that can be provided to players and enhance ongoing research projects.

Victoria Timpson, CEO of Alliances and Partnerships at Manchester United, commented, “Player care and performance is incredibly important at Manchester United, across all of our teams and age groups, so having a partnership with a leading medical systems innovator who understands this and can deliver the most advanced range of diagnostic imaging systems is a huge advantage.

“By continuing our relationship with Canon Medical Systems, we can ensure our men’s, women’s and academy players have access to the very best standard of care from the most advanced medical systems on the market at our on-site dedicated Medical Imaging Centre, the Carrington Training Complex.”

Premier League football club Manchester City is considering an expansion to the Etihad Stadium which would see its capacity increased to over 60,000.

The news comes seven years after the stadium’s last expansion which increased capacity to the current 53,400.

The club is exploring options to expand the North Stand and also creating a covered fan zone, stating that its ambition is to develop the site into a ‘world-leading’ sport and entertainment venue.

The club also added that a main objective would be to create growth and employment opportunities for the local community.

Fans have being invited to share their feedback on the proposals in early 2023.

Sportradar Integrity Services, a division of sports data and technology company Sportradar, has announced a multi-year agreement with the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), the governing body of international skiing and snowboarding.

Sportradar Integrity Services, a global supplier of sport integrity solutions, will provide risk analysis for FIS’ competitions, offering insights into the global betting landscape for both skiing and snowboarding events.

Additionally, through the Universal Fraud Detection System (UFDS), a bet monitoring system, Sportradar Integrity Services will monitor betting relevant events across all of FIS’ disciplines. A global team of qualified integrity experts analyses betting patterns and reports any abnormalities, allowing critical visibility into potential match-fixing threats.

FIS Director of Sports Integrity, Sarah Fussek, said, “The insight provided to us by Sportradar Integrity Services regarding the global betting landscape within our sports and the associated risk factors will put us in the best possible position to counteract any integrity related threats. It is essential to us that robust provisions are in place in order to safeguard our competitions, and this agreement enables us to do this in the strongest way possible going forward, as we gain a detailed understanding of the integrity risks facing our sports.”

Global skincare expert Clinique has signed England international rugby union player Holly Aitchison and launched #GameFace, a campaign created by London-based sports marketing agency MATTA.

The campaign will ‘celebrate the transformative power of an effective skincare routine to improve confidence in teenage girls’, helping to support sports clubs create enhanced experiences for girls.

The campaign begins within the world of rugby and has been inspired by England Rugby Red Roses star Aitchison’s personal experience. It is designed to open up a conversation around self-confidence in teenage girls, specifically regarding skin health with Holly’s own experiences helping shape and inspire this groundbreaking campaign.

Holly said, “Over the years I’ve really struggled with my skin. I had blemishes everywhere – it had a massive hit on my confidence. I wouldn’t take media interviews after games, I would never be seen without makeup. Now my skin is clear, I feel much more confident, so I really try to look after it and maintain it with simple products that work for me.”