Sports Ticker (13 December 2021) - Crouch's review, World Rugby eligibility rules change and Discovery targets BT Sport

In a fortnight which has seen Dame Louise Casey's 128-page report published on the events that occurred at this summer's UEFA EURO 2020 final and Tottenham Hotspur fixtures postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the team, we feature the mutual termination of the Mercedes x Kingspan F1 partnership, World Rugby's eligibility rules change and Manchester United's share scheme plan for fans. We also discuss Tracey Crouch MP's report following the Fan Led Review of Football Governance, Discovery's swoop on the DAZN and BT Sport deal and Porsche's Gran Turismo 7 virtual car design.

In a fortnight which has seen Dame Louise Casey's 128-page report published on the events that occurred at this summer's UEFA EURO 2020 final and Tottenham Hotspur fixtures postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the team, we feature the mutual termination of the Mercedes x Kingspan F1 partnership, World Rugby's eligibility rules change and Manchester United's share scheme plan for fans. We also discuss Tracey Crouch MP's report following the Fan Led Review of Football Governance, Discovery's swoop on the DAZN and BT Sport deal and Porsche's Gran Turismo 7 virtual car design.

As always, if there are any issues on which you'd like more information (or if you have any questions or feedback), please do let us know or get in touch with your usual contact at RPC.

Crouch's Fan Led Review of Football Governance

Chaired by Tracey Crouch MP, the Fan Led Review of Football Governance (the Review) resulted in the eagerly-awaited publication of an extensive report into suggested changes to English football.  The Review came off the back of various significant issues involving football in England, including the proposed involvement by English clubs in a European Super League, the impact of COVID-19 and the financial collapse of longstanding EFL club Bury FC.  The Review makes 47 recommendations on how to implement change throughout the English game. The overriding conclusion of the Review hinges on a stark choice facing football in England – "build on its strengths, modernise its governance, make it fairer and stronger still at every level" or "do nothing and suffer the inevitable consequences of inaction in towns and cities across the country". The Review's key recommendations include: a new independent regulator, created by an Act of Parliament with investigatory and enforcement powers, a new player transfer levy to be imposed on Premier League teams acquiring players from overseas or from other Premier League clubs and new methods to improve equality, diversity and inclusion within the game. We will produce a fuller article on the Review in the next fortnight - keep your eyes peeled!

Discovery's swoop on BT Sport

US media group Discovery could reportedly derail DAZN's £600 million plan to acquire BT Sport (see Edition 48). Discovery, which owns Eurosport and certain rights to screen the Olympic Games across Europe, is understood to be discussing a joint venture with BT that would combine their sports broadcasting assets, with BT eventually selling out of the joint venture. Discovery's approach could prove to be a blow to DAZN, who has been in advanced talks with BT over the outright sale of the BT Sport service. The BT Sport service is part of many BT customers' broadband subscription and according to reports, the deal with DAZN has become bogged down over DAZN's request for long-term assurances that BT would cover the loss of revenues if its sports customers cancelled their subscriptions. In return, BT has reportedly sought guarantees that its subscribers will have continued access to DAZN’s services, and that they will not encounter streaming blackouts. Discovery is also seeking a multibillion-dollar deal to take over WarnerMedia, in a move that would create the world’s second-biggest media company behind Disney.

World Rugby Eligibility Rules Changes 

World Rugby has relaxed its eligibility rules in order to allow some international players to represent different countries (unions) from 2022. At present, once a player is capped at senior level by one union, they are then committed to that union for the remainder of their playing career – even if they were to only win the one cap. Under the new rule change, international players that meet certain criteria will be able to transfer allegiance from one union to another.  Players will only be able to “switch” once, and there would need to be a gap of three years between representing two different unions. The regulation change aims to align current representative rules in the context of Olympic Sevens as well as assist in the development of emerging nations. A prime example here are Pacific Island nations, including Samoa and Tonga in particular. These countries have a rich rugby heritage. However, many players eligible to represent them are often snapped up by leading international teams like New Zealand, Australia, and several northern hemisphere teams.  It remains to see how prospective “switches” will impact on club rugby – specifically around player contracts and releasing players for international duty.

Mercedes, Kingspan F1 partnership short-lived

Within about a week of announcing the deal, the partnership between Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team and Kingspan, a firm which is involved in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, has been terminated mutually.  The partnership was publicly condemned by Grenfell United, an organisation that represents survivors and bereaved families of the fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017.  A statement from Mercedes explained that the focus of the partnership was intended to be around environmental sustainability and carbon reduction, but the narrative has instead been around the involvement of Kingspan products at Grenfell.  It is a timely reminder on the importance of due diligence in respect of prospective partners and reputational considerations.  Kingspan’s involvement in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry was known before the partnership, but it also serves as a reminder of the importance of behavioural, morality and embarrassment provisions in partnership arrangements in relation to matters which come to light during the term of the agreement.   
 
Manchester United set to give power to the fans through a Fans Share Scheme

Manchester United are reportedly set to give some control back to their fans through a new Fans' Share Scheme in collaboration with the Manchester Supporters Trust, which will allow fans to purchase shares in the club. The share scheme will comprise of a new class of shares, reportedly giving fans the same voting rights as the club's owners, the Glazer family. The scheme is intended to allow fans to make their voices heard in the operations of the club, but the scheme is still pending finalisation. A new Fans Advisory Board will also be created to enable board-level dialogue between the fans and the club. The club is rarely far away from the headlines, with the exit of club-legends Ole Gunnar Solskjær and Michael Carrick and arrival of interim appointed manager Ralf Rangnick. 

Extra time...

...and finally, video games can offer a new space where car brands can stretch their wings and trial out new looks for future cars. One such car has been specifically designed for Sony's latest iteration of its Gran Turismo racing game series, which is set to be released in March 2022. Porsche designed a car for the game, called the "Porsche Vision Gran Turismo", which will be one of the first officially designed cars in a video game that does not exist in the real world. The design has been used as a quasi-trial to see where the brand could go in the future, without the constraints of the real world, taking three years to design. This is important to the company in that it gives them an opportunity to engage with a different audience, and to try and cultivate new car enthusiasts and Porsche fans. The venture will undoubtedly show other car manufacturers the opportunities that the virtual world can offer in terms of marketing, and might set the scene for similar collaborations in the future.