Barcelona's plans to renovate Camp Nou are shifting amid financial issuesgetty images

Barcelona's Espai Barça renovation project, which the club is hoping to begin next summer, is now expected to cost €1.2B-€1.25B ($1.4-$1.46B) instead of the €815M ($953M) that was established as the cost last year. Barcelona President Joan Laporta said of the new plan for renovations to Camp Nou, the basketball team's Palau Blaugrana and the surrounding area, "The project has become obsolete. We are redefining it, restructuring, redoing it. It is not exactly a new project but there are many changes." Barcelona is hoping to have financing for the new project approved later this fall. Japanese architecture firm Nikken Sekkei, which won the project, "will remain the club's choice." A group of Barcelona execs including Ramón Ramírez Llorente has recently visited Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu, LaLiga side Athletic Club's San Mamés, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Goldman Sachs, which previously was set to finance the project, "is also the favorite to finance the yet-to-be approved new project" (MUNDO DEPORTIVO, 8/19).

PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who has also succeeded Andrea Agnelli as president of the European Club Association, is "now the most powerful man" in the talks with UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin in "shaping the future of European competitions, its calendar, its rules, its financial restraints on big clubs -- or lack of them." Al-Khelaifi, "one of the game’s most influential people," will attend meetings from Sept. 10-11 with the ECA -- the "key negotiator" for clubs with UEFA -- the continent's top clubs and UEFA in Nyon to "discuss the future -- and everything is up for grabs," including the end of FFP, "as we know it," and the abolition of the two places in the Champions League that were to be awarded post-'24 on coefficient. All nine Super League rebel clubs that returned to the ECA last week "will have a say."

Al-Khelaifi finds himself as the "lead voice in negotiating the replacement for FFP," the luxury tax which proposes a levy on any spending above a certain level. For the man who has signed Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi in the last four years, this is "indeed a fortuitous turn of events." For 10 years, UEFA "argued over what was legitimate spending and legitimate revenue with a series of upwardly mobile clubs, most notably twice with PSG and City." That is "now over." Ceferin: "We are operating in a new financial reality" (London TELEGRAPH, 8/19).

Spain’s Movistar+ has renewed an agreement for Serie A broadcasting rights until the end of the '23-24 season. Movistar+ agreed to the renewal with Infront agency, which exclusively distributes Serie A rights around the world (excluding the U.S., Middle East and North Africa). The deal has been signed ahead of the start of the new Serie A season on Saturday. One live game per round of Serie A will be "shown on Vamos, Movistar+’s exclusive multisport channel, and the remaining games on Movistar Champions League, the main channels and multichannels" (BROADBAND TV, 8/19). The deal comes as fans in France also will get to continue watching Italian soccer, with beIN Sports France having "renewed its deal to air Serie A" through '23-24, according to sources. The Qatar-owned net also has the French rights to LaLiga and the Bundesliga (L'EQUIPE, 8/19).

Meanwhile, FuboTV has acquired Coppa Italia rights along with the exclusive English language rights for Serie A in Canada (ADVANCED TV, 8/19).

Ligue 1 currently is without a broadcast partner in Spain, a "frustrating situation" for fans of new PSG signings Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos, the "two ex-captains of the country's two most important teams," Barcelona and Real Madrid. The French Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) is "currently in negotiations with broadcasters" to get Messi and Ramos on the air in Spain. Ligue 1's three-year deal with Telefonica "expired this summer," Amazon, DAZN and Discovery "participated in the LFP's rights auction this summer," but "none of their offers were deemed sufficient." The situation is "quite exceptional," with Spain being "one of the only territories in the world without a Ligue 1 TV partner." The LFP is "hopeful it can rectify the situation in the coming weeks, before Messi makes his PSG debut" (LE PARISIEN, 8/19).

The Rugby Championship is reportedly considering an "unprecedented mid-tournament switch" to Europe as part of contingency planning to ensure its fixture list can be played in its entirety. Large parts of Australia, as well as the whole of New Zealand, are "currently under strict coronavirus lockdown restrictions," while the Western Australia state, where the Wallabies are scheduled to face the All Blacks on Aug. 28, has imposed a 14-day quarantine on all arrivals from New Zealand. There "are doubts, therefore, that the match will be able to take place as planned in the city of Perth next Saturday."

With the COVID situation "worsening in both countries," SANZAAR has taken the step of considering switching the remainder of the southern hemisphere's premier rugby tournament to the U.K., Ireland and France. The Rugby Championship has "only played a match outside of the four participating nations once," when Australia defeated Argentina at Twickenham in '16. Among possible venues are the Stade de France, Twickenham, the Aviva Stadium and the Principality Stadium, "all of which would expect to host fans under the respective countries' current coronavirus regulations" (London TELEGRAPH, 8/19).

USA Rugby is eyeing "more tests as part of a common-sense vision that would see them shift hemispheres into a Pacific Rim competition that would take place at the same time as the Rugby Championship." USA Rugby CEO Ross Young recently "echoed the frustrations of many so-called Tier 2 nations at the lack of a meaningful test programme." At present, USA Rugby is in the "awkward situation of being designated as a northern hemisphere test nation, when Young sees them as a more natural fit alongside the likes of Japan, Asian countries, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa." World Rugby’s current test calendar "doesn't actually work for the great untapped North American market." Even when they play the All Blacks in October, they will "likely do so without many of their best players in Europe, because the test falls outside the World Rugby window for player release" (STUFF, 8/20).

U.S. brand management firm WHP Global "has purchased the intellectual property rights globally" for Lotto Sport Italia. The Italy-based sports brand "has a long history in tennis and soccer and its double diamond logo is ubiquitous on apparel, footwear and accessories" worn by tennis players including Martina Navratilova and Boris Becker. Lotto Sport Italia dresses "more than 40 soccer teams and 500 athletes around the world, including tennis player Matteo Berrettini," who sported the gear in the Wimbledon men's final last month. WHP is focusing on Lotto's "opportunity for growth, particularly in the U.S." (WWD.com, 8/18).

WHP Global purchased the intellectual property rights to Lotto Sport Italia for an "undisclosed sum," adding to its stable of fashion brands, which "already includes Joseph Abboud and Anne Klein." Following the deal, Lotto Sport Italia’s leadership team will "remain in place and continue to operate the brand in core markets in Italy, Europe, the Middle East and Africa." The companies plan to "invest in expanding into new markets and products" (BUSINESS OF FASHION, 8/18).

Brazilian esports organization Black Dragons has hired the U.S.-based group Alvarez & Marsal to manage its first external funding project. The company will support Black Dragons with its business plan, valuation, and launch of a Series A-level investment round. Black Dragons exec Nicolle Merhy told SBJ that the current valuation of the organization is expected to rest around $2.84.66M. Through the investment, Merhy expects to launch Black Dragons on an international level, and, in her words, to “dominate Europe and the United States.” Projects planned for next year are budgeted at $2.5M, which should come from the investment raised. Black Dragons will also announce in the coming days that a 27-room facility will be launched in São Paulo, where all team operations will be held, including housing for players. The project will also features an esports arena to host tournaments and events to be built (Victor Frascarelli, SBJ).

The Taliban have said they will "not interfere with the Afghan men's national cricket team," the country's biggest sporting success of recent years, or "stop the expansion" of the flagship Twenty20 cricket league, an Afghan cricket official said (REUTERS, 8/19).

Argentine side Boca Juniors named former MF Sebastian Battaglia as its new coach, replacing Miguel Angel Russo after a "string of bad results" left the club one point off the bottom of the table (REUTERS, 8/18).

The '21 MotoGP calendar has gone through "further revisions" due to the COVID-19 pandemic as the Malaysian GP has been officially "cancelled" and will be replaced with a second race in Misano, Italy (MOTORSPORT, 8/19).

DAZN acquired the broadcasting rights of all Asian Football Confederation competitions until '28 (DAZN).

A first coronavirus case has been detected in the Paralympic Village, "five days before the start of the Games" as Japan battles a record wave of infections (LONDON TIMES, 8/19).

An independent inquiry has been established by Cycling New Zealand and High Performance Sport New Zealand "following the sudden death" of cyclist Olivia Podmore, 24, who "died of suspected suicide last Monday." Her death followed a social media post in which she "outlined the demands of high performance sport" (STUFF, 8/19).

WWE and Isthmian League side Enfield Town FC announced a one-year sponsorship agreement, which will see the logo of WWE’s NXT UK brand on the front of Enfield Town’s home kits for the '21-22 season (WWE).

"Frankly, [Barcelona President Joan Laporta] lied in his campaign. When he was campaigning for president earlier this year, he said, 'Oh, if I'm president, Messi likes me, we'll have an asado (an Argentinian barbecue) together and he'll sign on.' Laporta must have understood this is just not possible, there is no more money, the treasury is empty" -- Simon Kuper, author of "The Barcelona Complex: Lionel Messi and the Making -- and Unmaking -- of the World's Greatest Soccer Club," on Barcelona losing Lionel Messi ("Futbol with Grant Wahl," 8/19).

"They have humiliated young African women in public and told them to alter their bodies because of science that is not robust. The rules should be suspended immediately and it is time for Sebastian Coe to resign" -- Athlete advocate Dr. Payoshni Mitra, calling for the World Athletics president to resign over a controversial rule that barred Caster Semenya and other runners with high testosterone levels from competing in the Tokyo Games (LONDON TIMES, 8/19).

"I think it would be great. I feel like even if worst-case scenario they made it two scores counting towards the day, for instance, Minjee [Lee] and myself. ... It would have been great if both [players from each country] were thinking about each other’s scores and yet there was some sort of team event" -- Australian golfer Hannah Green, on potentially introducing a team format to golf at the Olympics (THE AUSTRALIAN, 8/19).

The N.Y. Times' Rory Smith examines the impact of Brexit on Scotland's top soccer teams under the headline, "Scottish Soccer’s Brexit Problem: No Way In, and No Way Out."

With New Zealand Rugby seeking funding from an outside investor, the London Telegraph's Charles Richardson writes that the All Blacks' legacy currently "faces its toughest challenge."

Jürgen Klopp met with @LFC_LGBT this week to discuss the incident of homophobic chanting at Norwich City.

The pair discuss the impact of such chants on LGBT+ supporters, why they should not occur again, and the importance of inclusivity. #RedTogether pic.twitter.com/J5Axce1PqR

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 19, 2021

In the name of future: we are very glad to welcome @cryptocom as first Innovation & Technology Partner of Italian football ➡️ https://t.co/d4rGNpgpYL#WeAreCalcio pic.twitter.com/NxeTx9Nqup

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) August 19, 2021

Always forward, never stand still.

Introducing our new third kit for 21/22 by @adidasfootball!#createdwithadidas #LiveAhead

— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) August 19, 2021

The bar/club thing at Xolos' stadium is hosting an event at which 33 (their lucky number) fans will be able to get "Hecho en Tijuana" tattoos free while watching Sunday's América-Tijuana match on the big screen. https://t.co/98WMitC4m8

— Jon Arnold (@ArnoldcommaJon) August 19, 2021

Manchester United and Scotland legend Denis Law has been diagnosed with both Alzheimer's and Vascular dementia.

— Sky Sports (@SkySports) August 19, 2021