The Sports Info Business

It was a big day in sports today.

I know what you are probably thinking.  Tim Tebow and the Florida Gators came up short against the Alabama Crimson Tide in a battle of #1 vs. #2 in the SEC championship at the Georgia Dome.

If you are a West Coast football fan, you might be depressed that USC finished sixth in the Pac-10 after dropping a 21-17 decision to the University of Arizona today.

While those games were exciting and interesting, it pales in comparison to the impact of the World Cup soccer news that came out of South Africa.  The sports world turned its attention to the draw ahead of next summer’s matches as the seedings were announced today.

This blog is for you, the sports fan thsat has an eye towards internal sporting events.

As I mentioned the big news is the seats and I am about to give you which group every nation is seated for the World’s 2010 soccer tournament.  For those of you who are hard core soccer fans, I hope you will forgive me for a second.  My peers are the first generation to play soccer en mass in the United States, yet many do not know the rules and path of the World Cup.  I admit I watch a few matches but still have a lot to learn.

The World Cup is comprised of 32 teams that have reached this final stage after advancing as a result of qualifying matches.

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In Group A

South Africa

Uruguay

France

Mexico

Group B

Argentina

Korea Republic

Greece

Nigeria

Group C

England

United States

Algeria

Slovenia

Group D

Germany

Serbia

Ghana

Australia

Group E

Netherlands

Japan

Cameroon

Denmark

Group F

Italy

New Zealand

Slovakia

Paraguay

Group G

Cote D’Ivoire

Brazil

Portugal

Korea DPR

Group H

Honduras

Spain

Chile

Switzerland

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For those of you who will follow the Ameircans in the first round, here is how their schedule breaks down.

June 12 vs. England

June 18 vs. Slovenia

June 23 vs. Algeria

If you want even more coverage, you can click here and go to the Fifa World Cup Home page

December is here and the holiday rush to buy presents is on.  In a related move, I recently posted a one question poll and asked, would you consider purchasing a comprehensive 2010 event schedule with a focus on sports?  The overwhelming majority, 66% said, yes, there is an interest in this solution.

Since then, I have been hard at work creating something that would fit everyone’s need.  You can visit it here at SportsCalendarPro.com

First, I created a master sports calendar.  It has every major sports event in the United States.  What did I include?  In no particular order, here is a listing of just SOME of the events.  The Super Bowl, The 2010 Winter Olympics, the 2010 World Cup, College Bowl Games, The Kentucky Derby, the Indy 500, the men’s and women’s college basketball NCAA tournament and Final Four, sports conferences for sports related events like the IEG Sponsorship Summit and the 2010 World Sports Congress.  There are about 100 sports events in all.

As a sports executive and dedicated sports fan, I want and need to know what is happening and when it is happening.  It would be nice to find everything in one place for the enter year.  I am tired of searching for the Next event.  It is also great for planning events.  Not a sports fan, but you may be involved in major life events like getting married or you are just planning major events like fundraising dinners?  Then this is ideal for you as well.  I cannot remember how many times a major golf event or fundraising dinner collided with a major sports event and either a TV was wheeled in an event or continuous updates were given to keep people informed.

Belowis a snap shot of the calendar for two weeks in April.  If you click on the image you can see it in a full screen view.

If you want additional details of the event itself, you can click on say The NCAA Frozen Four dates and you will see this

At SportsCalendarPro.com, I created the site where you can view it online via a gmail account and from there, you can easily download this or sync it with Outlook and iphone.  I did it and it now runs as event dates on my master calendar.

The second option is to purchase the 2010 Master Calendar.  This includes not only al of the sporting events, but also includes the 2010 Entertainment Calendar, the 2010 Technology Calendar and major U.S. holidays.  For example, want to know when the 2010 Academy Awards take place or the ESPYs?  Maybe you want to visit the Sundance Film Festival, CES in Las Vegas or Macworld?  Then, this option is for you.

Last, which you won’t find on the home page but you will find on the ordering page, is the 2010 Custom Calendar.  It includes all of the above and allows you to add four (total) sports team schedules to the mix. For example, say you live in New York or the Boston area.  You can add the 2010 schedule for the Yankees, Mets, Nicks and Islanders in one place.  Hate NY teams but love Boston sports?  Then you can choose the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics schedules.

You write a sports related blog?  This allows you to preview the event since you know what is coming up.

Okay, it is the first time I have blatently plugged a product in the year I have been writing this sports business blog, but it is my product and I really believe in it.

Please, visit the site, Re-Tweet and Post this onto facebook or Digg for others to see.

Consider purchasing this unique holiday gift for the sports fan or event planner in your life.

Dear Elizabeth:

Before last weekend, I had not heard about you nor the women’s soccer program at the University of New Mexico.  Women’s soccer has always struggled for attention and I know this first-hand.  As a young Sports Information Director (SID) at UC Irvine, I helped to promote the sport for the school.  I wrote the media guide, press releases and hometown stories about the players.  They all wanted to win, but played the sport in the right manner and never did anything to embarrass themselves or the school.

My guess is that you probably want to take back some of what you did in the match vs. BYU.  The days of playing a match on an open soccer field with no attention are gone, Elizabeth.  Everyone has a iphone or Blackberry these days and your low-lights unfortunately made it on to ESPN and other local news coverage.

By now, I am sure you are in hiding.  The attention you probably received after your dirty play caused people to gasp when viewing the highlights (see below).  Your name and actions are being mentioned in households across America.  I’d bet you wish it were for a different accomplishment.

I am sure, due to the unwanted publicity, the school had to suspend you, indefinitely.

Anything captured on a  video like this will follow you around for the rest of your athletic career and beyond.  This one most certainly will.

It is not a something to be proud of, but as a junior, you may have a way out.  People are given second chances.  Do the right thing.  Go beyond a rubber-stamped statement that your SID office released to the press.

Here are some things to consider:

1) Hand write a personal apology letter to the BYU team

2) Consider seeking help for your overly aggressive manner on the field.  Nothing wrong with being competitive, but there is no room for dirty play.  Words are one thing.  Actions are another.

3)  Make your hometown of Lancaster, CA proud by changing how you conduct yourself from today forward.  It may have been one game but you need to change perceptions for the long road ahead.

4) Show people responsible within the athletic department that you have heard them and are making the necessary changes so that it will never happen again.

Thanks for listening and good luck.

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If you want a different take on the story, Here is the ESPN coverage about the the BYU vs New Mexico Soccer game

I had an unexpected afternoon phone conversation with Casey Leppanen, the Marketing Manager for the LA Galaxy. Leppanen and the LA Galaxy are holding auditions  for a non-traditional employee contest scheduled with the Los Angeles based soccer team on September 5th.

This initial event will then be narrowed down to a more limited group.  The numbers will dwindle down to 10 and eventually four will be chosen.

The contest winner will receive:

- 1 year promotional contract with the LA Galaxy

- $1,000 cash prize courtesy of COVERGIRL

- 3 or 4 day cruise for 2 courtesy of Cruise Planners/Long Beach

- 1 year’s worth of makeup courtesy of COVERGIRL

- And much more

For more information you can visit LAGALAXY.COM or e-mail mlag@lagalaxy.com.

Leppanen also confirmed that some of the folks hired in this position have gone to to other positions within the company.

If you are not a soccer fan, you better be a quick study.  The Galaxy is currently in second place in the Western Division, sporting an 8-4-11 record (11 ties) and trail division leading Houston by five points.

American football in Paris?  Let me explain.  First of all, if you ever happen to be in Europe and mention the word football? The locals think you are speaking about soccer.  Football means soccer in Paris and football in America means football.  Get it?  Yesterday? I happened to walk by a gym, a Club Med gym in the heart of Paris.

Trying to have a little fun with the locals, I walked to the reception desk and first tried to discover if anyone spoke English, sometimes an adventure in this language protected country.

When I figured we could have a bit of a conversation with their broken English and my mangled French, I pulled out an American football and asked them if they knew what the pigskin was.  Not a chance.  The conversation did not go further when I prodded the receptionist to see if there was anyone else who might know about the game.  They did not.  I was stuck but they did ask if I wanted to workout.

Knowing that my goal was to throw around the leather I had hauled 12 hours on a plane from from California, I left the gym and headed towards a park not far from the champs deLysee.  Once I entered the park, benches lined a gravel path as the locals sat and enjoyed the sun while eating their lunches.  I thought I was in trouble as aech patch of lawn was surrounded by a two foot green fence as if to say, keep off.  The sign posted at the park entrance also had a soccer ball with a red line through it as if to tell everyone that the grass was for watching, not using.  I was just about to give up when I rounded a corner and saw a few dozen Parisians ¨using¨ the grass — okay most of the folks were either sun bathing, but it was an opportunity to stretch and get a little exercise.

A few tosses into getting my arm loose, I noticed the grass was littered with a few items I would never expect in Southern California.First there were cigarette butts strewn about the grass.  I also found a few wine corks hidden in the tall grass, par for the course in Paris and finally most of the people were sitting on the lawn reading.  I would expect this in french coffee shops but it appears that not many of the folks here believe in exercise.

A few folks peered over their books to see me throwing the strange object but interest did not last.  Based on this small reaction from different people in Paris I do not think American football ever has a chance here.  It is no real surprise then the NFL chose England to lqunch its international football experiment.

It is much easier for me to write about the Yankees current win streak, the Red Sox on a losing streak or Michael Crabtree threatening to hold out from signing with the San Francisco 49ers.

When I used to come to Paris, when the internet was new, it was so hard to receive real time information about sports leagues, teams andplayers back home.  I had to settle for a two day old USA Today or spotty reporting on U.S. sports in an International Herald Tribune.  Now? I can keep up easily and still explore other cultures and their local view of sports.

Finding a job in sports is not an easy path these days but there are jobs out there.  Anyone expecting that a job will be handed to them upon graduating college or even after internships might need to rethink how much they want to work in the business.  For those committed to opportunity, growth, and following their passion, I try and list openings I find to help speed up any search.  These jobs are just a sampling of what is in the marketplace.

Many job opening in sports & entertainment are never advertised.  They are quietly shopped around since advertising them will mean they need to sift through hundreds of applications.  That being said, these have been made public on the Internet and hopefully they help you.  The jobs range from ESPN in New York to opportunities with NHL teams, a football (soccer) club in England to Ticketmaster. A direct link has been enabled on each logo for a full job description and application process.  If interested, click on the logo!

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

Title: Director of Game Entertainment & TV Production

Reports To: SVP/CMO

Process: Apply @ www.turnkeyse.com

FLORIDA PANTHERS

Sunrise Sports & Entertainment / Florida Panthers—Director, Corporate Marketing
Job Summary: The Corporate Marketing Director reports directly to the Sr Vice President, Corporate Mktg & New Business Development and is responsible for increasing revenue for BankAtlantic Center and the Florida Panthers through the sale of partnership packages, promotional packages, BankAtlantic Center events and various media packages for the corporate partners, including the Panthers, the BankAtlantic Center, Media Sales and other properties that may be pursued by Sunrise Sports & Entertainment. Primary responsibilities include developing strategic alliances for corporate partners within the Sunrise Sports & Entertainment family of brands, which are fully integrated, long-term and focused on the unique objectives and priorities of each individual partner

TICKETMASTER

Sales and Marketing Director

TICKETWEB

Job Description

TicketWeb, a product of Ticketmaster, is the world’s leading self-service online ticketing and marketing company. Our proprietary system allows venues and event promoters of any size to manage the full range of box office operations on the Web.

We are seeking a seasoned, aggressive and analytical manager to oversee expansion of all sales and marketing activities, with particular focus on music club and promoter clients. Reporting to the TicketWeb General Manager, the successful candidate will have established relationships and contacts in the live entertainment industry, enabling him or her to quickly build a strong sales pipeline that contributes to TicketWeb’s revenue goals in the US.

ESPN

THE following job was not found on ESPN’s web site.  SR DIRECTOR/ESPN/NYC: ESPN seeks Sr Director – Direct Response Ad Sales leader for NYC office. Must have strong mgt and DR skills. Contact henry.x.markosian@espn.com

If you’d like a listing of every job currently being advertised by ESPN, click on the logo

EVERTON FOOTBALL CLUB

Sales & Marketing Director – Everton Football Club (Liverpool, UK)

Having finished 5th and 6th respectively in the last 2 seasons, Everton Football Club are also building their off pitch commercial success. The club is currently in consultation with the local authorities regarding a new stadium development plan with a final decision on planning due towards the end of the summer. Whilst the club remains confident that this project will be given the authority to proceed, there is also an existing opportunity for the commercial team to develop the business with the current facility and in the international market.

Following a recent re-structure of the commercial team, an opportunity has arisen for an experienced Sales and Marketing Director to join the club and become a key member of the Executive Team. The role will have responsibility for devising and implementing the commercial strategy (reporting to the CEO) across sponsorship, hospitality, ticketing, retail, media and marketing as well as the foundation and will be pivotal to the club’s commercial growth.

This is a rare opportunity to work within an elite sports team and business and will be both a challenging and rewarding post at a significant time in the clubs history. Everton FC is one of the founding members of the Premier League and has enjoyed more years of top-flight football than any other club.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

With Shaq coming to Cleveland to play with Lebron James, this will continue to be the hottest ticket in town.  The following sports jobs I found listed this morning.

Business Development Specialist – Cleveland Cavaliers

Account Executive – Cleveland Cavaliers

Graphic Designer – Cleveland Cavaliers

Building Maintenance Employee – Cleveland Cavaliers

Seasonal Assistant, Basketball Communications

Associate, Quicken Loans Arena Team Shop

DALLAS COWBOYS

All of these listings are for the Dallas Cowboys

Part Time Seasonal: Concessions – Legends Hospitality Management

Banquet Chef – Legends Hospitality Management

Suite Housekeeping Coordinator – Legends Hospitality Management

Concessions Warehouse Manager – Legends Hospitality Management-

Executive Kitchen Steward – Legends Hospitality Management

If you would like to see other job openings in sports, you can easily perform a search for a team or organization on this site to see fi they have been recently listed.