Asia
Features
Li Qing | Michael Jordan win signals improving IP protection in China
Li Qing, partner at law firm JunHe LLP, analyses the recent Chinese court ruling on the intellectual property case involving US basketball legend Michael Jordan and Chinese sportswear firm Qiaodan Sports and considers the implications of the ruling for other brand owners looking to develop their businesses in China.
India’s Asian Cup bid signals burgeoning ambition to be a sporting power
All India Football Federation president Praful Patel says hosting the 2027 Asian Cup will hasten India's big ambitions in football and sport more generally.
India, Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia set out their stalls for 2027 AFC Asian Cup
SportBusiness delves into the bid books of the contenders to host the 2027 Asian Cup to examine the thinking and the plans behind each entry. Tom King reports.
Press Release: The Vibes Brings Transfer Deadline Day, every day, to Malaysia with Kickstox
Malaysia's newest online news portal, TheVibes
Looking back, looking forward – Apac industry insiders’ reflections on the year past and hopes for 2021
Asia-Pacific sports industry insiders share their personal reflections on a tumultuous 2020, and their hopes and ambitions for the year ahead.
AFC club competition groups set for centralised hubs
The group stages of the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup will be played in centralised 'hubs' this year due to due to ongoing Covid-19 travel restrictions
Women’s World Team Squash Championship cancelled due to Covid upsurge in Malaysia
The 2020 Women’s World Team Squash Championship in Kuala Lumpur has been cancelled after the city was placed in lockdown to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
Malaysia seeks solution to World Cup qualification schedule
The Football Association of Malaysia is negotiating with the Vietnam Football Federation to reassign their 2022 Fifa World Cup Asian qualification game to June, due to Covid-19
Thai football leagues to resume next month
The 2020-21 Toyota Thai League 1 and 2 seasons, which are currently paused due to the pandemic, will resume on February 6 and end on March 28
Kevin McCullagh | The stories that defined a year
I arrived in Singapore in September 2019 to help establish SportBusiness’s new Asia-Pacific editorial operation.
Singapore VC aims to be missing link between investors and sport
SportBusiness looks at the recently-launched venture capital firm, The Wolfpack, and talks to one of its founders, Toh Jin Wei, about how it aims to impact the industry.
Chinese FA’s new leadership takes fresh aim at hosting Fifa World Cup
SportBusiness speaks to Louis Liu, secretary general of the Chinese Football Association, about China's ambitions to become a football superpower.
One Championship provides Singapore with international events testbed
SportBusiness speaks to Hua Fung Teh, group president of MMA promotion One Championship, about the journey back to post-lockdown events in front of fans.
Press Release: AISTS launches in India
AISTS is proud to launch 2 new programs in India beginning 1st March 2021. This program aims to increase sport awareness and develop Indian students to work in the local and international sport industry
ESG initiatives in practice in Asia-Pacific sport
Last week, we spoke to three industry experts about the growing influence of environmental, social and governance (ESG) benchmarking measures within Asia-Pacific sport. This week, we hear from executives putting such measures into practice at sports properties.
Kevin McCullagh | Asian industry set for a more local complexion as Western power wanes
There is evidence that the sun is setting on a Western-dominated era for the sports industry in Asia, and that the coming years will be much more locally-driven, SportBusiness Asia senior analyst Kevin McCullagh says.
Pandemic pushes sport to double down on data-driven business
SportBusiness speaks with Asia-Pacific industry insiders about the increased urgency of sport adopting data-driven business practices in the Covid and post-Covid worlds. Tom King reports.
ESG benchmarking rises in importance in Asia-Pacific
SportBusiness speaks to with industry insiders in the Asia-Pacific region for their views about the adoption of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) benchmarking measures in sports and the importance ESG will have in the future.
Indian fantasy sports industry can surmount recent legal hurdles, say experts
IPL driving growth in Indian fantasy sports sector
Users predicted to hit 100m this year
Sector continues to face legal challenges
Japan’s modernising domestic leagues brace for pandemic setback
The Covid-19 pandemic has stalled a modernisation of Japanese sport with a lot of domestic teams falling back on private backers and corporations to see them through the crisis. Kevin McCullagh and Tom King report.
Japanese industry cautiously optimistic about rescheduled Tokyo Olympics
Against a background of renewed optimism that the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympics will go ahead, Asian sports industry experts share their hopes that the event can bring a new maturity to the Japanese sports sector. Kevin McCullagh and Tom King report.
Five sports technology insights from All That Matters Online 2020
Highlights from the sports tech stream at the All That Matters Online 2020 conference, including the wearable that saved the PGA Tour and the trend for 'phygital' events. Reporting from Kevin McCullagh and Tom King.
Sepang International Circuit’s new CEO on his baptism of fire during the pandemic
SportBusiness speaks to Azhan Shafriman Hanif, Sepang International Circuit’s newly-appointed chief executive about his plans to overcome the current economic uncertainties created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
CBA players may be set for income bump under new image rights rules
Liu Jiadi, partner, and Jeffrey Wilson, counsel, at Chinese law firm JunHe, explain the significance of new player image rights rules in the Chinese Basketball Association League.
Kevin McCullagh | Could IPL 2020 be one of the great Covid comebacks?
Kevin McCullagh takes a look at the world’s biggest annual cricket competition, the Indian Premier League, ahead of its move this year to the United Arab Emirates
Frank Leenders | Fiba tie-up with TCL is ‘more than just another deal’
Frank Leenders, director general of Fiba Media and Marketing Services, is optimistic about the future of basketball, in spite of the 'invisible enemy' of Covid-19. He speaks to Kevin McCullagh about this and the other challenges the federation has faced in 2020, such as losing much-loved ambassadors of the sport Kobe Bryant, David Stern and Borislav Stankovic.
Borussia Dortmund woos Chinese fans with virtual summer tour
SportBusiness speaks to Benjamin Wahl, head of China at Borussia Dortmund, about the BVB Virtual Asia Tour, which emerged out of the ashes of disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.