The raising of FA Cup final ticket prices by up to 35% by the FA was branded "extortionate" by the Manchester United Supporters' Trust. The increase in ticket costs, "apart from in the lowest category four band," for ManU's meeting with Chelsea "has been met with dismay" by M.U.S.T. Category four had the lowest allocation of 10,057 and 10,144 seats for the '16 and '17 finals, respectively, so the same can be expected for the game at Wembley on May 19. Those tickets cost £45 ($62.88) (London GUARDIAN, 4/24).
The FA Cup final between Chelsea and ManU will kick off at 5:15pm local time on May 19. The match will be broadcast live on BBC One and BBC Radio 5 live (BBC).
Pro14 side Ulster Rugby confirmed it will host the Uruguay national team in a friendly at Kingspan Stadium on Nov. 9. The two sides will meet in "a clash that will be beneficial for both sides as Los Teros continue their preparations for the 2019 Rugby World Cup," while Ulster will be able to keep its side "fresh during a down period" (BELFAST TELEGRAPH, 4/24).
Rugby Australia "will be hoping for a serious improvement" on last year's worst-ever Bledisloe Cup crowd at ANZ Stadium after announcing on Tuesday the first-ever Wallaroos and Wallabies doubleheader on Australian soil. Australia's women's XVs side will play the Black Ferns on Aug. 18 "as a curtain-raiser to the men," who face the All Blacks in their opening Bledisloe Cup fixture. Both sides will play another doubleheader the following weekend in Auckland at Eden Park (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 4/24).
India will host the 2019 Asian Weightlifting Championships, which will double as a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The championship was awarded to India for the first time at the exec board meeting and congress of the Asian Weightlifting Federation held on Sunday in Urgench, Uzbekistan. The date and host city of the championship "will be announced later" (PTI, 4/24).
The British Horseracing Authority "will look into the circumstances after three horses died at Hexham's meeting on Monday." The BHA said that it was "saddened" by the fatalities and "early indications are they were unrelated incidents." Campaigner Animal Aid accused the BHA of "failing its horses abysmally" (BBC, 4/24).
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds "officially joined the ranks of developer-supported esports." The PUBG Corp. announced its first official tournament: The PUBG Global Invitational 2018. It will take place in Berlin beginning on July 25 with 20 teams facing off for a total prize pool of $2M. Although "invitational" is in the tournament's name, the teams will reportedly "be able to qualify for the event through regional qualifiers" to be hosted in Europe, Asia and North America (THE ESPORTS OBSERVER, 4/23).
For more coverage of the business of esports, visit our partners, esportsobserver.com.
