England's FA has been "accused of 'money grabbing' after replacing" the men's soccer team national kit after eight games, the "fewest number of games a home England jersey has ever been worn for." A new kit will be "launched at this month's friendly match against the Netherlands that will subsequently be used during this summer's" UEFA European Championship. Umbro said that "changing the shirt after such limited usage was standard practice." The company said, "The new kit is launched at the end of an 18-month cycle which the last few kits have all fun for. The number of games for which the kit is worn is entirely down to the fixture list during the cycle" (EUROSPORT.YAHOO.com, 2/16).
VIDEO GAMES: In N.Y., Stuart Elliott reports on a session at the “2012 TV and Everything Video Forum” presented by the ANA, which looked at the “nascent state of the business of providing consumers video content.” Collective Senior VP/Emerging Media Justin Evans: “It’s a head-spinning time to be in video. I guess that’s what it feels like when you’re at the beginning of the future.” Samsung CMO Ralph Santana “advocated ‘story-sharing, fueled by social media,’ as a successor to brand story-telling, and gave as an example a campaign, the U.S. Olympic Genome Project, that will support the Samsung sponsorship of the 2012 Summer Olympics.” Santana noted that the campaign, created by Team Epic, will enable Facebook members to learn “how closely they are connected” to members of the U.S. Olympic team (N.Y. TIMES, 2/17).
NAMES & FACES: In Milwaukee, Don Walker noted Bucks F Jon Brockman has signed a one-year contract with Seattle-based Intrepid Sportswear in "various online and print materials." Brockman, who played for Univ. of Washington, is the company's "first athlete endorser." Intrepid Sportswear is an "independent custom team-sports apparel provider offering uniforms at half the price of other manufacturers" (JSONLINE.com, 2/15)....Tennis products manufacturer Babolat on Wednesday announced a deal for U.S. tennis player Sam Querrey to use its racquets for the next three years (THE DAILY).
NEW CLOTHES: MARKETING magazine's John Reynolds noted EPL club Manchester City D Joleon Lescott is "launching his own branded clothing line." Lescott is "believed to be in discussions with the club over the proposal, which is thought to be a line in casual clothing appealing to a young, 20s, demographic." Details of where Lescott's clothing line will be sold are "as yet unknown, but it is thought he is looking to launch the line by the summer" (MARKETINGMAGAZINE.co.uk, 2/15).
