Shorts: Worcestershire, Dazn, Arsenal

Worcestershire County Cricket Club (CCC) is considering relocating away from New Road amid flooding concerns, the club has confirmed.

New Road has been the home of Worcestershire Cricket since 1899 but has flooded eight times over the last year due to heavy rainfall, and was even submerged underwater in January.

Worcestershire’s opening two fixtures of the 2024 County Championship season against Durham and Somerset were both over to a different ground at Chester Road in Kidderminster.

The club’s board said in an official statement, ‘Given the recent unprecedented record volume of flooding at New Road, and the increasing regularity of flooding, the Board of Worcestershire County Cricket Club understands the very real issues regarding the sustainability of the Club.

‘As a Board, we will make it our key priority to explore every option, including a move from New Road, over the next few months so we can provide the membership and key stakeholders with a plan. 

‘This is to ensure the long-term future of Worcestershire County Cricket Club.’

Sports streaming platform DAZN has signed a five-year extension of its LaLiga broadcast rights deal covering Italy and Portugal.

Under the renewal, DAZN retains exclusive rights to Spain’s elite domestic football competition until 2029.

The deal includes 380 live and on-demand LaLiga matches per season, and select fixtures from LaLiga 2, which will all be available on DAZN’s streaming platform.

LaLiga President Javier Tebas said, “At LaLiga we always look for best-in-class partners to deliver Spanish football to fans everywhere. And we are delighted to continue working with DAZN in countries with the historic football tradition that Italy and Portugal have.”

Arsenal and adidas have launched a new ‘No More Red’ t-shirt, as part of the North London club’s knife crime awareness campaign.

In the 2021/22 season, the Premier League outfit debuted its all-white kits as part of the purpose-driven campaign, however the club says these will not ever be sold.

The new t-shirt is available for purchase on Arsenal’s online store, with all proceeds to be distributed evenly among partners of the no more red campaign. These include The Arsenal Foundation, Abianda, Octopus Community Network Limited, Box Up Crime, Stephen Lawrence Day Foundation, Ben Kinsella Trust, Steel Warriors, Copenhagen Youth Project, and St Giles Trust.

The t-shirt was designed by Nellie-Rose, a participant in a four-day fashion workshop series led by Arsenal in the Community.

The series comprised sessions led by the club, as well as its kit supplier Adidas, and Fashion-Enter, a local non-profit social enterprise.

Tenka, owners of Gemba and Turnstile, has appointed Claire Kelly as Managing Director Gemba Europe & Middle East. 

Previously, Kelly was a shareholder of the Gemba Europe business, and held the position of Gemba Europe Business Manager since December 2022.  

This appointment will see Kelly elevated to the Group board, as Managing Director of Gemba Europe & Middle East. 

Rob Mills, CEO of Tenka said,“Under Claire’s leadership, Gemba has made tremendous progress in the European market, and we are excited about getting her input into the broader Tenka business at the Board level. Claire has an infectious passion for doing world-class work and she is building a dynamic team in our London office. We see this as another important step in building an extended service offer for our clients that is grounded in a deep understanding of the fan and a commitment to delivering results’’. 

Kelly’s new role aligns with the recent Tenka Board decision to ‘significantly increase investment into Gemba’s international expansion.’ The investment will see Gemba introduce its services in the Middle East. 

Asics UK has opened its search for its first ‘Move Your Mind’ ambassador, who will receive sponsorship from the athletic apparel and footwear brand.

The company will stage its own ‘Asics Move Your Mind’ 5km run on Saturday 20th April, during which it will recruit runners who ‘demonstrate the most enjoyment and positivity’ from the event.

Asics will select a winner, who will subsequently become a brand ambassador and will receive Asics products, while also offering prize money to three additional participants from a purse of £2,300.

Lucy Greenhalgh, Marketing Manager at Asics UK, said, “At ASICS, we know that running is about far more than just performances and times.“At the core of our focus is to get runners moving their mind and enjoying exercise. We cannot wait to offer our participants an uplifting running experience at the Move Your Mind run and discover our new ambassador.”