Sports Ticker #131 - Ascot plays a Royal Flush, county cricket shakes it up and Spurs take on INEOS - a speed read of commercial updates from the sports world

In a fortnight which saw the eyes of the world tune into Wimbledon in clockwork fashion, Al-Hilal triumph over Manchester City with a last minute winner in the Club World Cup 2025, and the sad passing of Liverpool and Portuguese striker Diogo Jota, we bring you news on a radical shakeup in the world of county cricket, insights into Royal Ascot’s latest attendance successes, and a look at Tottenham Hotspurs’ legal spat with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS Group.

Lions Whoop at latest partnership with wearable tech brand

The British and Irish Lions have entered into a strategic partnership with Whoop, a wearable tech brand operating in the health and fitness space. As part of the partnership, Lions players and staff will sport the latest in Whoop’s range of wearable technology, the Whoop 5.0, which provides acute insights into: key health metrics; recovery optimisation; and even mitigating the impacts of jet lag. Whoop is an Official Supplier to the Lions for their British & Irish Tour to Australia 2025, the highly popular international rugby event. The latest arrangement presents the Lions and the Whoop team with an excellent opportunity to gather a substantial amount of data on the effects of long haul travel on athletic performance. Keep an eye on this space to see what they find out.

UK-backed consortium crosses the pond in search of the Lakers

Mark Walter, the CEO of UK-backed consortium TWG Global, has added NBA giants the Los Angeles Lakers to his business portfolio following a deal to take majority ownership of the team from previous owners the Buss family. The $10 billion deal sees the Lakers break the record for the highest valued sports team ever. Walter, who already holds a controlling interest in baseball team the LA Dodgers as well as part ownership of Chelsea FC, hopes to inspire the Lakers to continued glory under his stewardship (the team having won an astonishing 17 championships to date, although none since 2020). His predecessor Jeanie Buss, who has served as governor of the team since 2017, will retain her role with the side as well as a 15% ownership stake. 

Counties take a bat to fixture list with plans to scale back domestic cricket

Cricket looks set for a radical shake up as the eighteen first-class counties (who make up the top-level of domestic county cricket) finalise plans to cut the County Championship and Twenty20 Blast series to twelve matches apiece from next season. The proposals, which have long been the aim of the England and Wales Cricket Board, are reported to have met reluctant acceptance from the counties following an increase in the volume of global franchise cricket fixtures and the demand to accommodate them in players’ already busy schedules. Although a final decision is yet to be made, it is understood the counties are likely to agree to the plans, which would see two games removed from each competition. Whilst fans of the county game may lose out, the restructure is likely to be a welcome change by players who have expressed concerns over their heavy calendars, as reported in a survey published by the Professional Cricketers’ Association in May.

Royal Flush: Ascot plays a strong hand to underpin continued success

Royal Ascot can thank memorable races, flawless weather and an aggressive marketing campaign for securing a second year of rising attendances across all five days of this year’s event, which peaked at an impressive 71,073 attendees on the final Saturday race day. In contrast to concerns over turnouts at Cheltenham and Epsom, the royal seal of approval looks to have kept Ascot afloat (although it is not only the regal touch that has contributed to the event’s continued success). As commented on by the Guardian, Ascot is reaping the rewards of innovative marketing schemes as well as efforts to expand its global reach, such as by being the first course to exploit the Asian betting market via the Hong Kong-based World Pool betting operation, which has brought substantial value as well as an additional raft high-calibre attendees to Ascot in recent years. The success of this year’s races will come at great relief to stakeholders in the sport, which comes at a time of great uncertainty; on the eve of the event, a parliamentary report was published which proposed to levy increased duties on sports betting, a move described by some as “an existential threat” to horseracing.

Tottenham Hotspur takes a shot at INEOS Automotive in new legal action

Tottenham Hotspur has commenced legal action against INEOS Automotive, a division of the INEOS Group owned by Manchester United part owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Spurs seeks more than £11 million following the breakdown of a high-profile sponsorship deal between the parties, which saw INEOS become official vehicle partner of the London-based side. The arrangement came to an abrupt halt in December 2024 – three years earlier than planned – after INEOS allegedly failed to pay Tottenham its annual instalment fee. It’s not the first time that INEOS has been accused of reneging on a major sports sponsorship in recent times. As discussed in Sports Ticker #125, INEOS also parted ways with the All Blacks in some fiery circumstances, which eventually saw the parties enter into a private settlement. It’s unclear where things will head this time around, although INEOS insists it had the right to terminate the deal. Will Spurs secure a second triumph of the season over a Ratcliffe-backed business (following their victory over Manchester United in the UEFA Europa League final earlier this year), or will it be victory for the seasoned businessman this time round? Stay tuned. 

Extra time...

…and finally, over 50% of the population thinks Team GB athletes should receive more funding, pushing athletes like Keeley Hodgkinson to receive more than the national average of £22,500. At around £13,000 less than the average employee’s annual earnings, it’s no surprise that many athletes have to rely on additional sources of income to supplement their careers – one has recently gone so far as opening an OnlyFans account, leading to his suspension from Paddle UK. “The tension we’ve seen across public funding models for support... opens up a crucial conversation about how we diversify funding” notes Professor of Applied Sport Finance, Rob Wilson. Wilson and others argue that it is high time that sports funding evolved past reliance on standard funded models, be that through an updated National Lottery system, private investment or enhanced commercial partnerships.