Organizers of the Laver Cup "reversed a decision to allow for a sabbatical during Olympic seasons" following "strong ticket sales" for this year’s event in Chicago. The decision to go ahead with the competition in '20 "ensures an already crowded calendar will become more hectic." The Laver Cup, which is backed by the Roger Federer-aligned Team8, Tennis Australia, the United States Tennis Association and Brazilian magnate Jorge Paulo Lemann, "is another challenge to the status quo" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 7/12).
Singapore telecom Singtel entered the esports industry with the announcement of the PVP eSports Championship. The regional tournament will feature a $300,000 combined prize pool for Hearthstone, Dota 2 and Arena of Valor competitions. In addition to regional qualifiers, Singtel will invite professional teams from Europe, China and North America to participate (THE ESPORTS OBSERVER, 7/10).
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"Budget" hotels in Dundee, Scotland, hiked their prices to more than £400 ($528)-a-night to "cash in on golf fans flocking to the Open." Dundee city center Hampton by Hilton is increasing the cost by 360%, from £89 to £409 ($118 to $540), while the Queen’s Hotel jumps from £53 to £306 ($70 to $404). More than 170,000 people are expected to come to the area as the world’s top golfers compete at Carnoustie from July 19-22 (SCOTSMAN, 7/11).
New Zealand Rugby's Farah Palmer Cup will expand to 12 teams this season "with the inclusion of Taranaki in the draw." The teams will play 42 matches over eight weeks when the competition kicks off in September. The expansion makes the cup "the biggest women's provincial competition" in more than 10 years (STUFF, 7/11).
Scottish Premiership side Livingston was forced to move its Scottish League Cup matches with Annan Athletic and Berwick Rangers away from the Tony Macaroni Arena "due to a delay in installing" its new pitch. The West Lothian club "had expected to start work on the pitch on Tuesday." Both fixtures will now take place at Prestonfield, the home of East of Scotland League side Linlithgow Rose (BBC, 7/11).
Air Race 1 announced the launch of two new cup competitions. The U.S. and European Cups will be contested by the world’s fastest pilots, "all racing at the same time" at speeds of up to 450km per hour just 10m off the ground. This announcement follows a long-term extension to the partnership between Air Race 1 and IF1, the sport's official governing body in the U.S. (Air Race 1).
Vietnam will host the 31st Southeast Asian Games and the 11th ASEAN Para Games in '21, the country's government announced (NST, 7/11).
