User:HablasESport!121/sandbox

This is a suggested update to the Infront Sports & Media article. I have submitted a request for help with this revision on the articles Talk Page and would appreciate support to implement this.

I have provided links and references for all amendments / updates and have also provided some further (new) links to the previous information where I felt they might be of value. This 'suggested' version is now factually correct and up-to-date. A true reflection of the current status of the organisation and its activities.

Many thanks --HablasESport!121 (talk) 15:47, 13 February 2013 (UTC)

Infront Sports & Media is an international sports marketing company based in Zug, Switzerland. The company handles the media and marketing rights for many large, international sports events and federations and also provides sports services - such as advertising, sponsorship and hospitality. Through its subsidiary HBS it manages host broadcasting production and television coverage for a range of summer and winter sports worldwide. Infront has approximately 500 staff members in 24 offices around the world.

History
Infront was created from the purchase of the former KirchSport AG by the late Robert-Louis Dreyfus on 31 October 2002. It was officially incorporated in 2003. The company originated from a merger of two existing Swiss-based marketing companies, CWL and Prisma Sports & Media. Until 2011 it was owned by a consortium of shareholders, including significant majority shareholder Jacobs Holding AG. In September 2011 – European private equity firm Bridgepoint reached an agreement to acquire the company.

Management
Benoît Bassi is the chairman of the board of directors, Günter Netzer is a member of the board, and Philippe Blatter has led the operative business since 2006 as the president and CEO.

Portfolio
Infront's origins are in the football business but in 2005 the company lost a majority of its FIFA business and subsequently diversified. Today the company is divided into Summer and Winter sports properties in line with the Olympic differentiation, as well as dedicated business units for Media Production and Sports Services (e.g. for hospitality services, and stadium advertising solutions).

Infront works across a range of football activities, including the 2010/2014 FIFA World Cup where it distributes the Asian broadcast rights (in a joint venture with Dentsu) and manages the host broadcast production (done by HBS). The company works with the German Football Association and with many other European football associations and clubs. In Europe, clubs include: SV Werder Bremen, FC Schalke 04, A.C. Milan and S.S. Lazio. It is also exclusive media rights advisor to Italy's Lega Calcio for Serie A and B and the TIM Cup. Its summer sports portfolio also includes partnerships with the European Handball Federation - handling the marketing and media rights for the 2010 EHF EURO - and the Confédération Européenne de Volleyball. In 2011, the company made moves into mass participation sports events, through new partnerships with the World Triathlon Corporation marketing sponsorship packages for Ironman and 70.3 events as well as advising the association on the marketing of media rights and providing support through media production. Also in endurance sport, Infront holds an all-encompassing role as a media, marketing and production partner for the Berlin-Marathon and has been involved in boxing as organiser of the heavyweight championship fight between Wladimir Klitschko and Tony Thompson which took place in Switzerland in July 2012. In cycling, the company handles the distribution of media rights for the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) for the Road, Track, Mountain bike and BMX World Championships and works with the national umbrella organisation Swiss Cycling handling all commercial activities. Infront is also involved in motor sports through the FIA World Rally Championships where subsidiary HBS serve as TV production partner for the 2013 WRC season.

In China, Infront represents China's top sport, basketball, at both League (CBA League) and national team (Team China Basketball) level. In 2012 the company negotiated one of the biggest sponsorship marketing agreements in Chinese sports history with Li Ning becoming involved with the CBA League.

For winter sport the company represents six of the seven Olympic winter sport federations at international level and its portfolio includes a long term partnership with the IIHF in world ice hockey for the annual Ice Hockey World Championships. In international skiing Infront manages media and/or marketing rights to the majority of the FIS World Cup events - including the Four Hills Tournament. Also through various partnerships it markets the rights for the IBU in biathlon for the IBU World Cup and the IBU World Championship, the FIBT for bobsleigh and skeleton, the FIL for luge, and the WCF for curling.

Infront Sports and Media has recently been appointed by FIFA as exclusive sales representative for the distribution of Asian broadcast rights to the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups™ and all other FIFA Events 2015-2022 following an international tender process. This became controversial when it surfaced that the President and CEO of Infront Sports and Media Philippe Blatter is the nephew of FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

Host Broadcast Services
Host Broadcast Services, fully owned by Infront Sports & Media, is a specialist host broadcast organisation, originally established with the core mandate of producing the television and radio signals for the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups.

The company is based in Switzerland, but has its planning headquarters in Paris/Boulogne. The acclaim for the host broadcast of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan and the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany, the first ever to be delivered entirely in High Definition, led to FIFA appointing HBS as the Host Broadcaster for the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, where the company delivered the first ever FIFA World Cup matches broadcast in 3D. HBS continues its partnership with FIFA in the role of host broadcaster of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil and the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, as well as the FIFA Confederations Cup events in 2013 and 2017. HBS is responsible for producing the multilateral coverage and providing unilateral production, transmission, commentary facilities and associated services for world broadcasters at the FIFA World Cup. To achieve this, HBS designs, builds, installs and manages an International Broadcast Centre (IBC) and the multilateral and unilateral broadcast facilities at every venue in the host country. HBS also oversees all Other FIFA Events (including the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the FIFA U-17 and U-20 World Cups, the FIFA Futsal World Cup and the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup). In addition, HBS has worked on a number of other events and sports, either as host broadcaster, in a consultancy role or as a service/facilities provider. The 50/50 HBS joint venture with Trans World International (TWI) called Doha Asian Games Broadcast Services (DAGBS) delivered the full host broadcast operation of the 15th Asian Games Doha 2006 in Qatar. DAGBS was subsequently renamed IGBS and went on to manage the host broadcast of the 7th Asian Winter Games Astana-Almaty 2011 in Kazakhstan.

Awards

 * 2010 - Judges’ Award IBC (International Broadcaster Conference) in Amsterdam.
 * 2012 - Golden Podium Award - SPORTEL.