articles, pmpgenesis

It’s been one year since Partnerships for Schools announced that local authorities in Building Schools for the Future (BSF) Wave 7 and beyond must have a complete and up-to-date playing fields strategy. For many, this was seen as yet another obstacle on the rocky BSF highway. But, argues Marcus Kingwell, a playing fields strategy can be one of the most powerful and lucrative sports planning documents that a local authority can have.

New year, new fixtures…but where are the new English players in the Premier League?

“The FA and the Premier League really need to get together immediately on how they’re going to address this situation. For the national team in the future it is looking very, very bleak”. Sam Allardyce (Manager, Blackburn Rovers) [(source: Interview with Sky Sports News – 31/12/09)]

It's a kind of magic...

Attendance figures for the Third Round fixtures of the Football Association Challenge Cup (FA Cup) have been surprisingly low and the media has been quick to use this to raise the question – Does the magic of the FA Cup still exist?

Golden decade of sport provides opportunity for new global industry in UK

Britain’s ‘golden decade of sport’ has begun. The roster starts with the Ryder Cup 2010 in Wales then builds to London 2012, and on to Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games 2014, the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, the Rugby World Cup in 2015, a possible FIFA World Cup in 2018 and the Cricket World Cup in 2019.

An eight point plan to get Scottish football back on track

“Of all the small nations of this earth, perhaps only the ancient Greeks surpass the Scots in their contribution to mankind” - Sir Winston Churchill. Churchill may have been talking about society in general, but it is not too late for a similar enlightenment to occur in Scottish football. The spirit of the beautiful game in Scotland has to be rekindled at all levels. The sport and its key stakeholders are pursuing the wrong goals.

The X Factor – and what it can teach business executives …

The scene is all too familiar. The trembling 18 year old walks into the room and stands in front of the judges with her hopes high. Sandra launches into an unaccompanied version of “Hero” by Mariah Carey. After a cringing verse and thirty seconds of ridicule she is sent on her way in floods of tears. Simon Cowell has told her she can’t sing and her dream is over.

The Lisbon Treaty: EU Interference or a Real Opportunity for Sport?

Without much fanfare, the final hurdles to fully ratify the Lisbon Treaty were overcome on 3 November 2009 when the Czech Republic completed the process. Sport is part of the Treaty for the first time meaning that the European Union (EU) will be able to provide funding, share best practice and define the specific nature of sport with respect to current legislation.

Branded stadia – A pot of gold or the selling of a sporting soul?

Chief Operating Officer Lonn Trost of The New York Yankees was recently asked if he would be selling off the naming rights for the new Yankees Stadium. His response? "You wouldn't rename the White House, you wouldn't rename Grant's Tomb and you wouldn't rename the Grand Canyon. This is Yankee Stadium, and this will always be Yankee Stadium." Source: BBC News

Can the beautiful game live up to its responsibility as the world's most loved sport?

A cancerous culture exists within football that must be addressed if the beautiful game is to live-up to its responsibility as the world’s most loved sport. It is time for the games top brass to take decisive action before the cancer spreads further.

Scenario Thinking – the Answer to Uncertain Times

It’s January 2010. Twelve months ago the world was in turmoil with a collective overdraft of €2,300,000,000,000 and many banks effectively part of the civil service. The size and scale of the turmoil in the world’s financial markets, has been unprecedented and beyond all forecasts. Is there an analyst or forecaster who will ever trust their models and frameworks again? And now, one year on, every newsreader is seeking to be the first to identify the green shoots of recovery. Will the media fuel the recovery as it did the recession?