Soccer means everything to football fans; they are glued to their TV sets and internet. Food, beverages and Football become the three basic necessities, if you’re a devotee. It is a 5th addition to the 4 seasons. This is Gala time for all FIFA fans!

However, it’s not just the fans who wait eagerly for the World Cup but also the BRANDS who swoop down on FIFA to leverage their products. From the smallest player to the big names, every brand wants a piece of the FIFA visibility pie. Participation in FIFA related events, quizzes and contests becomes an irresistible prospect for all FIFA fans, there’s so much on offer! They are great at leveraging everything about the event, everything that is happening in and around football.

Long before the FIFA 2010 edition made its debut on 11th of June, many big brands had already started to formulate their brand promotions based on it. It’s an event that comes only once in four years, an event which celebrates the joy of world’s favorite sport. Beginning with Coke, the longest standing partner of FIFA since 1974, Coke incorporated the FIFA theme into its global brand communication. ‘Coke Opens Happiness’ was blended with the finest and happiest celebration moments from the world cup.  Read more...

My sports survey shows that betting on the outcome of local and national sporting contests is the number one illegal form of gambling in the United States-illegal off-track race betting is second. This great upsurge in sports betting is due primarily to extensive television sports coverage on all sorts of sporting events and the great team expansion of professional football, baseball, basketball and hockey. Today about 60 million Americans are wagering approximately $30 billion yearly on all sorts of amateur and professional sporting contests. My New York City sports survey agrees with the one conducted by the Oliver Quayle organization for the city of New York. Both estimates state that New York City’’s sports fans bet over $1 billion yearly.

About half, or $15 billion, of the total national sports handle was wagered with friends and acquaintances in bets ranging from a dollar to several. thousand dollars. These private wagers on sports and other events rank in volume as follows: football, baseball, basketball, hockey, boxing, golf and political elections, and such skill contests as bowling, horseshoes, Checkers, Chess, billiards, pool and Teeko.  Read more...

Each year, colleges and universities from all over the nation send their men’s basketball teams to the “Last Frontier State” to the Great Alaska Shootout Basketball Tourney. The competition heats up the cold winter days and nights, as teams meet head on to battle for buckets. Colleges and universities get the opportunity to play against their top rivals and powerhouses of the game. These games draw in record crowds each year, as any basketball fan should not miss the chance to attend this fast paced pre season classic.

The main question on any sports fan’s mind was, why Alaska? The reason is simple, former University of Alaska Anchorage head coach, Bob Rachal found a loophole in the NCAA rules determining pre season plays. In an effort to draw more attention to the state, the University of Alaska Anchorage, and the Seawolves athletic program, Rachal became the mastermind of what began as the Sea Wolf Classic. The NCAA rules stated any games played outside the contagious 48 states did not count towards a program’s pre determined allotment. For this reason, participants of the Great Alaska Shootout Basketball Tourney can get an early gauge of their teams prowess against national talent.  Read more...

Contrary to popular belief, the rugby world cup, history of rugby world cup was no easy competition that came about. Paradoxically, it faced major resistance from some nations that compete in it today, 23 years after its inception!

Today, although this competition enjoys the position of being among the three top international sports events, following the Olympics and soccer world cup, the story of its struggle began much before that.

Many suggest that former player turned referee Harold Tolhurst had made such suggestions of a league of nations coming together to compete for a world cup. If he had suggested it, no one took any cognizance of that.

Interestingly, the Rugby League continued to have their League of Nations championships and continue to do so even as international world teams participate in the world cup every four years like the 2011 rugby world cup

After years of bickering and fighting and opposition from many nations, in the early 1980s the IRB sat down to discuss the possibility of actually having a world cup sort of event. It was in a meeting in 1983 that Australia aggressively campaigned to being the host nation of the first games, should there be one. New Zealand jumped on the bandwagon and made a call to arms.  Read more...

When a team has the season that the Cincinnati Reds had last year, it is easy to brush them of and think that they will once again be at the bottom of the division. However, those of us that follow the team closely see a team that may have started to turn the corner and could possibly by quite a surprise in their division this season.

One of the first things that lets us know that the Reds mean business this season is the signing of Cuban phenom Aroldis Champman. There were plenty of teams that were going after him, but somehow Cincinnati was able to lure him away and get him in uniform. This is one of the boldest moves in recent times for them and hopefully it will pay off huge.

The bullpen of the Cincinnati Reds has been steady for years and this year will be no different. Cordero is a solid closer and with Burton finally signed, they have a very potent late inning staff. If the ball can get to these guys with a lead, they can more than likely close it down and get the win.  Read more...

A second place finish in the Central Division lately is about as useful as winning 60 games. The Chicago Cubs are looking to not only put last year’s season behind them, but are looking forward to some dramatic improvements in 2010. St. Louis will once again prove to be their main roadblock and this could be the season that they finally get past them.

How can any team not be excited to have Greg Maddux join their franchise? Here is a pitcher that flat out shut teams down in his prime and was still better than average at the tail end of his career. A disappointing season for him was the same season that half the pitchers in the league would have been happy to have.

While everyone is surely excited to have him there, imagine the young pitchers knowing that they now have Maddux to go to for advice. Even the coach has said that he wants to sit him down and talk to him! Looking back at the success that Piniella has had over the years, that is a pretty hefty compliment.  Read more...

2009 was not a good year to be a Cleveland Indians fan. They played horrible and were out of the race pretty early in the season. However, it is not going to take as much as people think to turn it around and the team has made some big changes. Those changes just may be enough to make 2010 a very interesting season.

When your veterans are not doing their job, it is time for young talent to be given a chance to prove themselves. The good news for Indians fans is that the team is now stocked up with talent and the odds are very good that we are going to seem more than one future superstar come out of this. Nothing is more dangerous than a young team that gets on a roll.

A casual glance at the roster would have people thinking that this team is more like the movie “Major League” than they would care to believe. However, if you really look at some of these players, there are some up and coming stars in this lineup that are going to be a pure joy to watch. A lot of these kids can flat out play the game.  Read more...

After years and years of suffering, the Boston Red Sox fans have been living the high life. While they did not get to the World Series last year, their team once again had a huge season and saw action in the post season. However, we all know that once you get a taste for success, the only thing that satisfies is winning that ring.

Ninety-five wins would have most teams dancing in the streets, but the American League East is another story. Without 100 win season, the division crown is up for grabs. While it will be enough to get a wild card just about every season, you are put at a huge disadvantage of having to win on the road. With no major changes, needed, the Red Sox are looking to make amends this season.

The one thing that the Boston Red Sox wanted to do was shore up the middle of the infield. They did this quite nicely with the pickup of Marco Scutaro. If he could score 100 runs in Toronto, we can only imagine what he will do in Bean Town. This will give Boston even more production and see them score even more runs than last year.  Read more...

All you have to do is say Yankees and you will get a snarl from any Baltimore fan. It is about time that someone knocked the white off their teeth and Baltimore may be poised to do just that. The Baltimore Orioles know it will take a big season to get the East, but they look poised and ready to do just that.

One of the secrets to success over the past few seasons has been a stud bullpen. Pitchers are going less innings because of the new ballparks and without a solid bullpen, teams have no chance. The good news for Baltimore Orioles fans is that this is probably the best part of their team.

To say that Baltimore has the best bullpen in baseball is not stretching the truth. They are going to have players that get cut from the major league club that will fill in holes for just about every other team in the league. This is a great problem to have and one that will ensure that they keep only the best. It may just be the secret to their early success.  Read more...

While last season was totally horrible, the Chicago White Sox expect a lot more than what they finished with in 2009. Their division is not exactly the best in baseball and a team with this much talent should walk away with a playoff spot. Having another losing season is the last thing that should be on the fans of the Chicago White Sox.

If anyone wants to know what the driving force of the big turnaround is going to be, look no further than the late season acquisition of Jake Peavy. Spending the early part of his career in San Diego Hell, he is now on a team with a legitimate shot at going all the way. While fans only saw him for three games last season, they get the full deal this year.

Peavy had played his entire career with the Padres up until the tail end of last season. He posted 92 wins over 8 seasons for a horrific franchise. 2007 was his best season, putting up 19 wins and a 2.54 ERA. White Sox Nation got a taste of that at the end of the season last year as he went 3-0 with a 1.35 ERA after he came over. It appears that Peavy likes the color of his new uniform.  Read more...