Barclays Premier League

Barclays Bank sponsors the most popular of the English Football Leagues – The Premier League. Thus, it is officially known as the “Barclays Premier League”. The League is a conglomerate that has 20 professional football clubs as members. The Premier League operates by a system of promoting and demoting with the Football League.

The competition came into being in 1992. It comprised of the 22 clubs in the First division of the Football League that broke away to form an elite league. In 1995, this number was reduced to 20 on insistence by FIFA.

Earlier, with different sponsors, the League was named differently. Barclays Bank sponsors the League since 2004; and will continue to do till 2010.

Roles and objectives in Barclays Premier League

• Supervise, develop and improve constantly, to maintain a lead in the world football competition.
• Improve the viewer’s interest and accessibility to football in general, and to live games of the League in particular.
• Improve the commercial value of the League, and use the additional income to develop the competition, and safeguard the future of the League.
• Enhance the quality of Football world-over by collaborating with other Football bodies.
• Use the competition to enhance the quality of play of the member clubs.
• Bring forth and develop new talent to fuel the country team with the best possible players.

The season of the Barclays Premier League starts in August each year, and ends in May. Each one of the 20 member clubs plays 38 games - two with each of the other clubs. Of the two games between any pair of clubs, one is played on the home field of each club. Winning teams are awarded three points, teams that draw are awarded one point, and losing teams get zero points. All clubs in the league are ranked based on the number of points, goals scored, and goal difference.

The club that ends the season with the maximum number of points is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, the goal difference and number of goals scored are criteria used to determine the winner. In case there is still a tie, a play-off match held on a neutral location may be used to determine the winner. A Play-off is also used to resolve any tie for demotion / qualification.

At the end of each season, the three lowest ranked teams are referred into the Football League Championship. Simultaneously, the top ranked two teams from the football league as well as the winner from the play-off games between the third to sixth ranked clubs are moved into the premier league.

• Football was always a lucrative game. In 1986, the Football League signed an agreement that got them £6.3million for two years of television rights.
• The Barclays Premier League is cited as the world’s most rewarding football league. In 2005-06, the combined revenues of the member clubs totaled around £1.4 billion (Deloitte). In the same year, eight Premier League clubs made it to the” Top-20” money making clubs of the year. Presently, the League is ranked fourth among all sports leagues worldwide.
• Sky bought the first television rights of the Premier League. These sold at £191 million for five seasons. The next four-season contract was for £670 million.
• Money also comes in from sale of stadium tickets. The highest average attendance for a game was recorded in 2002-03 at 35,464 people per game.
• Andriy Shevchenko holds the record for the highest transfer fee, which is rumored to be close to £30 million ....More

Cricket Tours in 2008

Major League Baseball(MLB) 2008

2008 US Open Tennis Championship

• US Open tennis is an annual tournament held over two weeks in August and September.
• In 2008, the event will take place from August 25th to September 7th.
• The US Open tennis 2008 tournament will be covered and broadcast live by CBS and USA Network along with many other international channels.
• 2007 winner Roger Feeder will play to defend his title.
• Winner of the Women’s singles in 2007, Justine Henin retired and will not participate this year.
• The day and evening sessions will begin at 11 A.M and 7 P.M respectively.
• Ticket sales for US Open tennis 2008 tournament start on June 9, 2008.
• Gina Incandela, the six-year old singing wonder would be performing at the US Open tennis championships 2008.

Venues for the US Open Tennis 2008 Championships:

The US Open Tennis 2008 tournament will take place at Billie Jean King Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, New York in the following stadiums:

• Arthur Ashe Stadium: five matches per day. Arthur Ashe Stadium hosts the most high-profile matches.
• Louis Armstrong Stadium has reserved as well as open seating for ground ticket holders.
• The Grandstand
• Field courts throughout the grounds and offer a close-up view of the field action.

More Online information on US Open Tennis 2008

• US Open 2008 Tournaments Events
• US Open 2008 Championships Sponsors
• US Open 2008 Tournament - Detailed Schedule
• US Open Tennis Championships History
• US Open Tennis Championships Courts
• 2008 US Open Tennis Championships Draws
• 2008 US Open Tennis Championships Schedules
• 2008 US Open Tennis Championships Tickets
• US Open Tennis Championships Prize Money...More

Beijing Olympics 2008 ( Summer Olympics 2008)

Introduction to Beijing Olympics 2008

About 2008 Beijing Olympics

Development and preparation for Beijing Olympics 2008:

More Information on Beijing Olympics 2008 on:

• History of Olympics
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Sports
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Venues
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Tickets Info
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Participating Countries List
• Beijing Olympics 2008 International Broadcasters
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Medals Table
• Beijing Olympics 2008 Schedules...More