Today’s Sport for Business News Digest includes an Olympic ticket scandal uncovered in the British Sunday newspapers; The Irish Women’s soccer international in Cork attracting only 653 spectators; the big business of sporting energy; Paralympics teams training in Limerick and Dublin; and Italian Euro concerns over how Spain and Croatia might conspire to eliminate them regardless of the result against Ireland in Poznan…
Olympic Ticket scandal uncovered
27 officials responsible for the sale of Olympic tickets in 54 countries have been revealed by a special investigation in the Sunday Times as offering Olympic tickets for sale on the black market.
Those accused include the head of The Greek Olympic Committee Spyros Capralos who was in charge of Athens’ hosting of the games in 2004.
The London Organising Committee has been plagued with problems over tickets from the difficulty in getting them in the first place through computer failures to accusations that more tickets were sold at the higher rates, excluding many from the process.
With a full and transparent accounting of sales promised for after the games, and a local media on the trail of scandal, sponsor companies will need to be very careful about how their allocations are distributed and to whom.
Women’s soccer coverage
In the midst of the Euro 2012 group stages, the BBC still found time in its schedule on Saturday to show live coverage of the England Women’s team’s Euro 2013 qualifier against the Netherlands.  The TV coverage prompted match reports in all the major newspapers.
This stands in stark contrast to the Republic of Ireland team whose qualifier against Wales at Turners Cross on Saturday was watched by a mere 653 paying spectators.
The 1-0 loss against a team beaten 2-0 away in September leaves Ireland requiring a win in Thursday’s game at the same venue against Scotland.  It must be hoped the game will attract a larger audience.
Zambia and Vietnam Olympic training camps for Ireland
Paralympics teams from Zambia and Vietnam will hold training camps in Dublin and Limerick in the build-up to the London 2012 Paralympic Games.  This brings to 15 the number of countries that have chosen Ireland as a training base in the run-up to the Games.
The two teams will have a combined number of 22 athletes and support staff and are being facilitated as part of the Irish Aid programme – which is managed by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – in partnership with the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport and the Irish Sports Council.
Sporting energy is big business
Electric Ireland has signed a €100,000 per annum deal with the new Dublin Ice Arena in Santry, providing energy for the new facility being developed with the support of the  Irish Ice Hockey Association, the Irish Curling Federation and the Irish Skating Association of Ireland.
Sporting energy is big business this year with the National Aquatic Centre signing a similar deal with Electric Ireland earlier this year and the Irish Greyhound Board signing up to what will be around a €600,000 per annum deal with Energia for its 12 Greyhound Stadia.
Italian concern at Euro 2012 result
Italian soccer is mired in another match fixing scandal and rumours are swirling around Euro 2012 that its national team could be the victim of a quirk in results that means a 2-2 draw between Spain and Croatia tonight will mean elimination for Italy, regardless of their result against the Republic of Ireland.
In the event of a three way tie on points it is the goal difference and the goals scored in the games involving just those three teams that determines who goes through and that score line would be enough for Spain and Croatia.
In 2004 Italy, then managed by Giovanni Trapattoni were eliminated in the same circumstances when Sweden and Denmark drew 2-2.
Italian media are crying foul that the same thing will happen again and the betting odds against that score, at around 7/1 are less than half what they would normally be for a 2-2 draw.
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