Wales int'l and Real Madrid player Gareth Bale and SA Brain & Co. announced a partnership to open a new sports bar and restaurant in Cardiff City. Elevens Bar & Grill is expected to open in late spring or early summer following a redevelopment of the former Dempseys bar on Castle Street. Bale: "It has been a big goal and ambition of mine to open a sports bar for many years and I feel Cardiff provides the perfect location." Bale has been in discussions with SA Brain for more than 12 months about a possible partnership (SA Brain).
Sussex County Cricket Club made "a small operating profit" of £1,000 ($1,226) in '16, its "first year as an integrated body combining professional, recreational and community cricket." The figures for the year to the end of Oct. '16 "include the Sussex Cricket Foundation charitable subsidiary." An operating loss of £139,000 "was recorded for the same period" in '15. A combined turnover figure of £6.5M ($8M) "showed a decline in match income," but the club said that there had been a "strong performance in commercial income." Sussex CCC reported a total equity of £10.3M ($12.6M) "and no external debt" (BBC, 3/2).
Australian Football League side Adelaide Crows reported a cash operating profit of A$1,464,450 ($1.1M) for the '16 financial year. The result reflects improvements across membership, home match attendances and corporate sponsorship. The operating profit also takes into account the financial impact, equating to A$244,640 ($185,007), from former apparel sponsor BLK going into administration late last year (Adelaide).
Sports Direct Owner Mike Ashley "acquired an interest in luxury lingerie brand Agent Provocateur after the maker of cuffs and corsets slipped into insolvency." The chain, founded in '94 by Joseph Corré, "was acquired on Thursday by Four Marketing, a London-based branding agency one-quarter owned by Sports Direct." Corré said that another bidder had offered more than the £30M ($36.7M) "or so" that Ashley’s group "was believed to have paid" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 3/2).
