Shorts: Toto Wolff, Reading, Rugby League
Toto Wolff, the Team Principal and Chief Executive of Mercedes Formula 1, has signed a three-year contract extension, which will see his tenure stretch to at least 2026.
Wolff, who owns one third of Mercedes Formula 1, has been with the team since January 2013.
The UK-based motor racing team won eight consecutive constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021.
“I’m not going to try to hang on to a position that I think somebody is going to do better than me.”
“I make sure that I have people around who can tell me otherwise. In the end the three of us decided: ‘Let’s do it again’.”
The rest of the ownership group consists of Mercedes-Benz, and a subsidiary of Ineos, controlled by Sir Jim Ratcliffe who recently invested in Manchester United.
The owner of EFL League One football club Reading FC, Dai Yongge, has been told by the EFL that he must either fund the club adequately or make immediate arrangements to sell the Royals.
Yongge, who has owned the club since 2017 has been fined a further £50,000 for failing to meet financial deadlines over wages.
Reading fans ran onto the pitch and forced the game against Port Vale to be abandoned in protest of Yongge’s ownership.
In November 2023, the EFL called for the disqualification of Mr Dai following the failure to fund the deposit account to cover player and staff salaries following repeated breaches of EFL Regulations. This was ultimately rejected by an Independent Disciplinary Commission and a financial sanction was imposed instead.
As a result of Yongge not meeting any financial deadline’s a further £50,000 fine has now been imposed, taking his total fine to £80,000.
An EFL statement read, “It has in recent months become increasingly clear that Mr Dai Yongge is no longer in a position – or does not have the motivation – to support the club financially as he did following the change of control in 2017.”
“The league will now consider all available options it has under the regulations and will have no hesitation in bringing further charges against Mr Dai.
“In the meantime, and for the sake of the future of Reading FC, its staff, supporters, and local community we urge Mr Dai either to fund the club adequately or to make immediate arrangements to sell his majority shareholding to appropriate new owners so everyone can move forward with renewed optimism.”
Rugby League Commercial and IMG have partnered with fantasy game developers Voono to launch a Super League game.
Similar to EA Sports’ Ultimate Team, the new Voono game allows fans to become a Super League coach and see live statistical fantasy gameplay and officially licensed player cards linked to real-world Super League performances. Every club and player within the Super League will be featured.
The game is set to go live early February ahead of the season’s kick off on 15th February.
Rhodri Jones, Managing Director of Rugby League Commercial, said, “Two of the key priorities of our long-term strategic partnership with IMG are to transform Rugby League’s digital presence, and to increase our appeal to young fans. We believe this exclusive partnership with Voono is a major step forward in both those areas. It’s a unique blend of fantasy gaming and sports card collecting, tailored specifically for the Rugby League community.”
Daniel Chirwa, Account Director at IMG, added, “Delighting our fans and delivering a better rugby league experience are two promises we set out to deliver through our digital transformation project. With gaming a focus pillar for digital innovation within the game, Voono’s excellent product and forward-thinking team have matched our ambitions. They have proven to be an ideal strategic partner to enhance our gaming proposition across the sport.”
Powerleague, an operated of small-sided football pitches, has agreed a multi-year partnership with Nike.
As per the deal, Nike will become the official apparel partner for Powerleague, with over 400 members of Powerleague staff given a Nike uniform.
Nike products will also be available in Powerleague stores.
As well as providing the match balls to all Powerleague venues, the two brands will join forces with Kitlocker.com, the e-commerce experts and Nike’s preferred fulfilment partner, to purchase all merchandise, footballs and uniform.
Christian Rose, Chief Executive Officer at Powerleague, said, “We are delighted to announce our game-changing partnership with Nike. This new collaboration is the latest example of our commitment to grow the sport of football by launching purposeful initiatives and campaigns, with local communities at the forefront. We are always looking to improve the already fantastic experience that we provide our customers across the country.”
Mike Kent, Co-Founder at Kitlocker.com, added, “We are thrilled to be working with Powerleague alongside our partners at Nike. They, like us, are deeply committed to grassroots football and it’s brilliant to see their plans to grow this even further. We’ve really enjoyed applying our expertise to this exciting partnership and it’ll be great to see how it continues to develop. Both Kitlocker.com and Nike are proud to be bringing the Swoosh to Powerleague sites across the UK.”
British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) has announced University of East London (UEL) Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Amanda Broderick as its new Chair of the Board.
Broderick has over 15 years of experience at board- level executive and non-executive roles.
Alongside being Vice-Chancellor and President of UEL, she is also Chair of London Higher, HEA Principal Fellow and a Council Member for the Association of Commonwealth Universities.
Amanda, the new Chair of the Board at BUCS, said, “It is an honour and privilege to assume the role of Chair of BUCS at a time when the organisation is taking a bold new strategic direction, which chimes closely with my long-held beliefs in and commitment to the transformative power of sport. Working with the Board and the Executive, this strategic vision, including taking higher education sport to the next level of national and global pre-eminence; advancing the role of inclusive campuses within the Active Wellbeing community. The opportunity to unlock health gain as a prerequisite of learning gain before, at and after university, will drive the increasing reach and significance of this important national governing body and in its value to membership.”
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