Brendon McCollum’s moves since taking over as England manager are hard to question. However, the Kiwis, who have overseen a dramatic upturn in the fortunes of the Test side, may want to think twice about their actions on social media.
McCollum has been promoting an Indian bookmaker ahead of the IPL via a number of tweets and videos promising the best odds with 22Bet India, which has a whopping 208 followers. It comes after the appearance of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who joined recently
Gareth Southgate’s attacking staff have stopped providing promotional content to betting companies after he was scheduled to give an interview to a gambling firm banned from operating in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ryanair passengers from Naples were surprised to see Chelsea legend Hasselbaink, dressed in full England kit, among them. An administrative issue meant that he was unable to join the Three Lions charter service after returning from Italy
Brendon McCullum has recently been promoting an Indian bookmaker on his social media
It is unlikely that gambling companies will disappear from view
While gambling companies may soon be banned from advertising on Premier League shirts, it is unlikely that they will disappear completely. It can be revealed that at last week’s meeting, top-flight clubs wanted assurances that other assets, including shirt sleeves and LED panels, would be spared.
Informed sources revealed that a large number of clubs suggested obtaining guarantees from all parties in the event that the Labor Party wins the next general elections. Another planned meeting.
Despite the ban on gambling T-shirt sponsors – it is unlikely that they will completely disappear from view.
Clubs are upset that the social media giants are not attending
EFL clubs were less than impressed with two social media giants after they refused to attend a meeting at Stockley Park last week. Instead, officials from Twitter and Meta (the company behind Facebook) decided to connect remotely to the summit with representatives from the various leagues, even though the issue of online abuse and protection was high on the agenda.
To make matters worse, one of them got interrupted in the middle of a show while the other had trouble using the Teams platform. “They don’t have the courtesy to come to the meeting and so they can’t use the software,” said an official from one of the clubs. ‘unbelievable.’
The city charged the cost of fewer outdoor fans but increased security
They may have crushed rivals Liverpool 4-1, but they let Manchester City count the cost. And Sportsmail revealed that City reduced the match’s away allotment by 20 percent (600 tickets), after problems in recent matches between the two.
On the advice of safety officials, City had to recruit greater numbers of referees and police officers. This additional cost, together with the lack of sales, is believed to have been around £40,000. Relations between the clubs in the match were described as fairly friendly
Manchester City had to factor in the costs after accepting fewer Liverpool fans than Usway
It never rains, it pours
It never rains but it does pour down on Nottingham Forest. On Saturday, Steve Cooper’s side, locked in a relegation battle, edged out a 1-0 lead against Wolves and saw three points converted into one.
The players were then stunned when they returned to the dressing rooms to find water gushing from a leak in the corridor ceiling outside. A red bucket was placed on the floor, along with a blue towel, to make sure no player slipped and made it the worst of the afternoon.
It never rained for Nottingham Forest after players found a leak in the dressing room
Improvements are underway after The Cliffe exposé
Less than 24 hours after Sportsmail revealed that The Cliff, Manchester United’s famous former training ground, was falling into disrepair, the first improvement has occurred.
Our gallery found that the facility, now used for academy and youth training following the departure of the first team in 2000, was a crumbling remnant. Besides the rotting windows and discarded chairs and scaffolding, there is a sign on the main building warning against entry. It was in 2014.
The agenda was told it was now deleted. Meanwhile, after United was contacted by this paper, an operations team not seen at The Cliff for some time arrived, according to informed sources, to carry out an inspection. United say their visit was planned ahead of proposed improvement work this summer.
Giggs’ son is on trial at Sheffield United
Sheffield United have put on trial Zach Giggs, son of Manchester United winger and former Wales manager Ryan. Zack, 16, is a left-back who has come through United, representing the Wales Under-15s. Agenda understands that Giggs will not be offered a new contract at Old Trafford, and that other clubs are monitoring the situation.
Concerns have mounted at West Bromwich Albion over ownership
The leaders of the West Bromwich Albion Supporters’ Group united this week to ask majority shareholder Guochuan Lai to make his intentions clear about the club as concerns mount.
With Albion’s annual accounts published late last week, concerns are growing for the Championship club, who have had to reiterate Lay’s clear intention to repay the multimillion-pound loans taken from the club.
On Friday, Albion’s fan group Action for Albion joined the club’s small shareholder group, Albion Corporation, to deliver a letter to Lai and ask to meet with him and his sole representative on the board, former CEO Xu Kei.
Ke is scheduled to travel to China to meet with Lai in the coming weeks, and will take the letter with him. The letter was also signed by the Albion Supporters Club and the Former Players Association.
Guochuan Lai was asked to state his intentions about the club by the leaders of the West Brom Supporters’ Group
United-Wrexham promotion does the trick
An entertaining video ad featuring Wrexham’s Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhinney as well as Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson appears to have done the trick – as tickets for the summer friendly between the two clubs in San Diego near to sell out.
The game is at a 35,000-capacity Snapdragon Stadium, and tickets go for more than $1,000 on resale sites – although United say their squad will be made up mostly of academic players. United held 300 official US fan club tickets to ensure locals did not get their prices. More matches against high-level European opponents are expected to be announced across the United States.
Howe wishes Latchem well
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe was among those to wish live BBC Radio 5 sports presenter Chris Lachem well, as he left after five years on the breakfast show. Agenda understands Bournemouth supporter Latchem is swapping radio for television, with a new role to be announced soon.
The idea of a legacy driving Russia’s re-inclusion
There is confusion in the Olympic world over whether and how Russians will be allowed to compete as neutrals in the Paris 2024 qualifiers. And IOC president Thomas Bach seems obsessed with at least some Russians participating under a neutral flag if they meet certain conditions.
However, insiders say it is less about his close relationship with Vladimir Putin and more about having a legacy that reflects Olympic ideals. Either way, many international federations believe that the IOC has cleverly ensured that Bach’s mission has been carried out during the qualification process for the Games (starting now), giving the IOC cover for the massive Western media reaction.
IOC president Thomas Bach seems obsessed with at least some Russians participating under a neutral flag
