The Sports Archives – England’s Finest Stadiums Set to Host 2015 Rugby World Cup

Posted on May 21, 2012 by thesportsarchives

When the finest rugby players set foot in England in 2015 for the Rugby World Cup, they will have the pleasure of playing in some of the finest venues England has to offer. Despite the Cup being still a few years away, the anticipation is palpable. This article details the twelve proposed sites to be used, some already confirmed, with announcements naming all of the exact sites to be made later in 2012.

This image is courtesy of steeljam, Flickr.

The Big Venues

Wembley Stadium in London is known worldwide as one of the most majestic establishments ever to house sport. The 90,000 seat stadium was built upon the grounds of the old Wembley in 2007. It is the second largest stadium in Europe, behind only Camp Nou in Barcelona. The iconic Wembley Arch branches over the stadium over 134 meters high. It will host the (American) football finals during the 2012 London Olympics.

The fourth-largest stadium in Europe with an 82,000 capacity, Twickenham Stadium will also take center stage in the World Cup. Also in London, it is known as the home of English Rugby, a fitting title for such a historic stadium that opened all the way back in 1909. The World Rugby Museum is also located there, a must-see for any fans coming to watch the matches.

Old Trafford, owned and operated by Manchester United, will also lend its services to the prestigious World Cup. Its history is just as long as that of Twickenham, opening only a year after in 1910. The 76,000-plus capacity stadium is fittingly known as the “Theater of Dreams.” Perhaps the dreams of England’s own rugby team will come true on this very pitch.

Millennium Stadium is the lone one from Wales to be utilized in the tournament. Located in the Welsh capital of Cardiff, the 74,500 capacity stadium was opened in 1999.  Millennium Stadium was built to host the 1999 World Cup, so it is a fitting site for the games to take place 16 years later. Weather will not play a factor at Millennium Stadium, as it is one of the few to feature a retractable roof.

Image courtesy of purplemattfish, Flickr

The Intermediate Stadiums

Emirates Stadium, formerly known as Ashburton Grove, opened in 2006 with a capacity of 60,355. It is the home of Arsenal in the English Premier League. The stadium has a bit of an identity crisis, being referred to as both “The Emirates” as well as “The Grove” due to its prior name.

Officially known as SportsDirect.com @ St. James’ Park Stadium, it is more commonly referred to as simply St. James Park. Located in Newcastle upon Tyne, it is the home of the Newcastle United Football Club. The 52,409 seat stadium was opened in 1892 and has undergone a lengthy expansion in recent years. It is the northernmost stadium to be used for the tournament.

Anfield Stadium in Liverpool, home of Liverpool F.C., is the oldest stadium hosting tournament play, founded in 1884. After the acquisition of Liverpool by the Fenway Sports Group, it is assumed the Anfield will be renovated from its 60,355 capacity in the near future and kept as the home of the club. The early years of the stadium’s existence featured Everton as its tenant until their departure in 1892.

Elland Road, the almost 53,000 seat stadium, has been home to Leeds United since its founding in 1919. The stadium has undergone numerous renovations and expansions since the 1897 opening. Their team faced possible relocation back in 2001 but that plan was scrapped after financial troubles.

Small Stadiums, Big Hearts

The smallest stadiums to host matches in the 2015 Rugby World Cup are all beneath 33,000 capacity. While that might be the case, the atmosphere in each of these venues should still be absolutely electric for the matches taking place. St. Mary’s Stadium is home to Southampton F.C. and opened in 2001. Ricoh Arena, known as “The Ricoh”, is Coventry City‘s home and opened in 2005. Welford Road Stadium in Leicester features the home games of the Leicester Tigers rugby team. It has hosted seven international rugby matches since 1902. Kingsholm Stadium in Gloucester is the final stadium to be featured. Built in 1891, it is known as Castle Grim.

Image courtesy of mjsonline, Flickr.

Game on!

This article has been produced on behalf of Keith Prowse, a provider of official hospitality at some of the UK’s most sought after sporting events. Visit the website for Twickenham hospitality and tickets to many other sporting occasions.

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The Sports Archives – UEFA Champions League Final!

Posted on May 18, 2012 by thesportsarchives

UEFA Champions League Final

This weekend, May 19th 2012, Germany’s premier soccer club Bayern Munich will take on English Premier League’s Chelsea FC for the finals of European champions league. Both teams reached the finals by overcoming the Spanish opposition with Bayern Munich beating Spanish giant Real Madrid, and Chelsea winning against the tournament favorites FC Barcelona.

Some of the key players from both sides will be ineligible to play in the finals due to suspension. Bayern will be missing their key defenders David Alaba, , Holger Badstuber, and Luiz Gustavo while Chelsea FC will have to go to the field without their main defenders John Terry and Branislav Ivanovich. Chelsea is also missing midfielders Ramires and Raul Meireles. International players union also known as FIFPro has appealed to UEFA, the European soccer body, to allow the players who are suspended due to yellow cards accumulation play in the finals. It has been reported that UEFA have expressed that they have no intention of changing the rules, so the players mentioned above will remain suspended.

This game will be an exciting one, with Bayern going all out to win the trophy in front of their fans while Chelsea looking to triumph in what could be the last chance at Champions League glory for many of their aging players.

For a more detailed breakdown by the numbers, check out the infographic below provided by soccerloco.

UEFA Champions League Final

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The Sports Archives – Reasons to Look forward to the London Olympics

Posted on May 18, 2012 by thesportsarchives

2012 London OlympicsIt is now officially less than 100 days to go until the London 2012 Olympics and it seems safe to say that people are starting to get somewhat excited. The anticipation is building as the day of the opening ceremony draws closer, and the final preparations are being made ready for the arrival of thousands of athletes, media representatives and tourists all coming to the UK for the Olympic fortnight.

But if you’re someone who’s not yet particularly enthusiastic about the London Olympics, why exactly should you get excited? Here are a few reasons to look forward to the Games.

The athletes are amazing

Probably one of the main reasons to be excited about the Olympics is the fact that the athletes are so good at what they do. Most of us can only dream of being fit enough to run for the bus without getting out of breath, let alone run fast enough to break world records or swim well enough to beat absolutely everybody else in the world.

No matter what your opinion on sport in general, it’s pretty hard to deny that the Olympics show off the best of sport and all of the athletes are inspirational.

The UK is amazing

So, one of the main British pastimes might be moaning, and in particular moaning about our country, but when you think about it, it’s actually a pretty great place to live. There’s bags of history and culture and London is one of the great cities of the world. There will be absolutely loads to do in London and around the rest of the country during the Olympics, so even if you’re not that into the sport itself, there will still be plenty to entice. Besides, it isn’t often that we get a chance to show off how cool our country can be, so this is the UK’s time to shine (fingers crossed that the rain holds off!).

The spirit is infectious

As we get closer to the London Olympics, it’s possible to sense a bit of a change in the atmosphere. Even people who were previously skeptical about the Games are starting to get excited. People are coming from all over the world to watch them, and hundreds of millions more will be watching on television. It’s a genuinely Big Deal. All we can do now is keep our fingers crossed and hope that Team GB is inspired by competing in their home nation and bring home lots of medals! It’s sure to be a great couple of weeks.

Guest post by Liz from one of the hotels near the games. We will be cheering Team GB on from Richmond Hill Hotel near London 2012 Olympics!

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The Sports Archives – Top Supercars of 2012!

Posted on May 17, 2012 by thesportsarchives

What makes a supercar?

For a start it probably costs more than your house and ten-year-old kids will have posters of it all over their walls. Night after night they will dream about one day driving it through the school gates to choruses of rapturous applause.  It will reach 200 mph without breaking a sweat and brake so hard that your knees will pop imperceptibly out of their sockets. And, safe to say, you probably won’t see one round your local supermarket car park too often.

Supercars are all of these things: rare, expensive, exotic, powerful and exclusive. But for lovers of these complex machines it is something you can’t put your finger on that makes them so special. Supercars just have the X factor. Here are five of the latest high-end production cars that you could just walk out and buy tomorrow. Ahem … provided those lottery numbers are correct.

Koenigsegg Agera R: Top speed 260 mph

The Agera R is hot on the heels of the Bugatti to become the world’s fastest supercar. It bashes out 0-60 in just 2.9 seconds. The exterior of this beast is jaw dropping, straight out of the pages of a schoolboy’s intricate imagination. The interior is nice too – all plush leather and slinky gadgets. It could be yours for a mere $1,600,000.

Bugatti Veyron Super Sport: Top speed 267 mph

This is simply the fastest production car on the planet right now. It does 0-60 mph in a frightening 2.4 seconds.  It has a lightweight aluminum body and a 16 cylinder engine producing 1200 hp. It will set you back, oh, only a cool $2,400,000. Miraculously, the Veyron uses ten radiators, all of which are needed to help to keep the car cool after generating all that heat and speed.  At 267 mph, it’s a wonder the windshield doesn’t cave in!

SSC Ultimate Aero: Top Speed 257  mph

Shelby Supercars are the big American player in the hunt for the fastest supercar award – and they had it for quite a while. The Ultimate Aero had been the fastest car in the world from March 2007 to July 2010, and is still seen by many as one of the greatest supercars ever made. The two previous cars in this list, however, nicked that title back respectively. The Ultimate Aero has the most powerful engine out of any other road car producing 1,287 horsepower. Anything with the word ‘Ultimate’ in the title is always cool.

Koenigsegg CCX: Top Speed 245 mph

If you fancy a Koenigsegg but don’t feel like shelling out for the Agera R, the CCX is for you. It’s a bargain at only $545,568. Spare change really. This monster still does 0-60 in 3.2 seconds. But if you’re late for work by 0.3 seconds one day you only have yourself to blame.

Aston Martin One-77: Top Speed 220 mph

It might not be the fastest supercar of them all but it could well be the most beautiful. A favourite of one Mr James Bond, Aston Martin have always delivered on the aesthetic front. And this model is no different: every inch is luxury. There are only 77 being put into production. $1,850,000 each.  Second mortgage anyone? Better have a third one for good measure.

Catherine Halsey writes for a digital marketing company on a range of topics. This article links back to http://www.speedyglass.ca/.

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The Sports Archives – Have You Tried Caving?

Posted on May 16, 2012 by thesportsarchives

It’s hard to believe, but some people’s idea of an exciting and interesting day out is to crawl through tiny underground caverns and passages which are often half filled with water. Caving, which is also known as potholing, spelunking in the USA or speleology is growing in popularity with adventure seekers of all ages.

Caving

Getting Started

There are obvious risks in exploring caves which are deep underground, and the best way to get started in the sport is to join one of the numerous caving clubs and societies. Clubs have regular expeditions to local caves as well as trips further afield and even abroad. Caving can be a fantastic way of getting fit and seeing a totally different aspect to the British countryside. The main areas for cave systems in the UK are in North Yorkshire, the Mendip hills, Derbyshire and South Wales, so geographical proximity to these areas offers greater possibilities for caving. Bristol is the center of caving in the UK, and is home to the UK’s oldest organized caving club.

Equipment

It is foolhardy and inadvisable to go off exploring caves without the proper equipment. There is a big crossover between caving and climbing equipment, and many of the same items are used. Cavers require hard hats to protect them from low roof areas or falling debris, and many have helmets with lights mounted on them to help with navigating through the cave system. Thermal and waterproof clothing is often worn, as are waterproof hiking boots. Climbing equipment such as ropes, harnesses and knives are used for ascending and descending almost vertical rock faces. All responsible cavers will also carry whistles and emergency supplies such as first aid kits.

Cave Exploration

Caving as a sport has been popular in the UK for over a century, and as a consequence of its popularity, all of the major cave systems in the UK have been thoroughly explored and mapped. This makes caving easier for novices, as comprehensive maps are available for guidance. For experienced cavers who prefer to strike out on their own and discover an underground world where nobody has gone before, the best caving opportunities are overseas. One of the most popular destinations for caving is Mexico, where there are large numbers of underwater caves just waiting to be explored fully.

Safety

Caving is thought of as a dangerous sport, but it does not necessarily have to be risky if a few sensible precautions are taken. Never go down into a cave system alone, and always let someone know where you are going and what time you expect to be back. Carry some emergency first aid supplies and extra clothing as the main causes of hospitalization due to caving injuries are hypothermia and injuries sustained in falls. Check the weather forecast carefully, as heavy rainfall nearby can result in dry caves flooding with water very rapidly. Getting lost is a problem sometimes experienced by novice cavers, so caving with experienced cavers is the best way to stop this happening.

Citations:

Trekitt offer a large range of climbing equipment, some of which is suitable for cave diving as well as mountain climbing.

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The Sports Archives – Dwayne Johnson’s New Rock Solid Body Stirs Speculation!

Posted on May 15, 2012 by thesportsarchives

There has been recent discussion over Dwayne Johnson‘s freakish post-Wrestlemania build, while filming his upcoming movie “Pain and Gain”, co-starring Mark Wahlberg.

Dwayne Johnson

Johnson, who competed in a high-profile main event match against WWE flagship star John Cena at the April 2nd Wrestlemania event, sported a lean and agile frame that allowed him to work his match as if he were still a regular on the WWE roster. He made a brief appearance the following night on Monday Night War to declare that his new vision was to challenge for and regain the WWE world title. But The Rock’s announcement was quickly forgotten as former UFC champion Brock Lesnar returned to the organization after an eight year hiatus on the same program. The Rock has not been seen on WWE programming since.

Although it was expected for The Rock to fall off the WWE radar again in order to resume his A-list Hollywood career, it was a recent photo that began to stir the pot of controversy, as it appears that in less than a month’s time, Johnson has physically blown up in size.
Sure, it’s Hollywood – but some have questioned whether or not The Rock has resorted to using some sort of steroid enhancement to achieve such mass in a short period of time. Many bodybuilders have declared that it is in fact possible to gain such body and muscle mass with the proper diet, workout routine and strict training. Yet others feel it is too much, too soon.

Pain and Gain is directed by Michael Bay, director of such Hollywood blockbusters as Bad Boys 1 & 2, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor and the wildly popular and profitable Transformers franchise. In the currently filming movie Pain and Gain, Johnson and Mark Wahlberg star as a pair of Florida bodybuilders who get mixed up in an extortion and kidnapping plot that goes wrong. The film is scheduled for release in the spring of 2013.

While there is no legal repercussion for what an actor must go through in order to prepare for a role, one must wonder if Johnson was removed from WWE programming so that a reason wouldn’t be needed to explain his rapid physical growth. The real concern is whether or not Johnson has been dabbling in performance enhancers solely for the purpose of the film. If so, it would be regarded as a violation to the WWE’s wellness policy.

Take a look at the photo yourself and come to your own conclusion. If you were to ask me, it looks like The Rock is living up to his name when they say “you are what you eat”, and with as body like that, it looks like he’s been eating nothing but rocks!

DieHard Derek has been actively involved in the pro wrestling industry since 1992. Wrestling fans have the ability to interact with him and discuss the industry through his various  DieHard Wrestling social media accounts and his popular pro wrestling blog.

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The Sports Archives – The Business of College Sports

Posted on May 14, 2012 by thesportsarchives

Despite its stated purpose as an amateur endeavor, the world of college sports is run incredibly similarly to a big business. The score of college sports is littered with multimillion dollar television contracts, monumental coach salaries, and even billions of dollars wagered on events like March Madness. In 2010, the combined revenue for every sport in Division I-A was over $6.2 billion, making college sports larger than the economies of several countries. Despite this, the collegiate athletes, those who are bringing in all this money, are not allowed to see a dime of it.

The three biggest cash cow sports in the collegiate world are football, men’s basketball, and hockey. On average, college football alone brings in $22.8 million worth of revenue every year for each participating school, more than all the other sports combined. However, powerhouse schools like Texas and Auburn bring in over $75 million and sometimes close to $100 million. Men’s basketball places a distant second, bringing in 6.8 million dollars a year.

From: Top Business Degrees

College Sports Infographic

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The Sports Archives – When Is Prince Albert Going to Hit Again?

Posted on May 11, 2012 by thesportsarchives

Albert Puljols April 2012 StatsWhat’s wrong with Albert Pujols? That’s what Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim fans have been wondering after the first month of his first season with the team.  Here are his fantasy baseball 2012 numbers after April – a .217/.265/.304 slash line, with just four runs batted in. The most shocking thing about Albert Pujols’ numbers? He had no home runs going into May. None. Zilch. That’s stunning, given his reputation and his career history. You have to go back to when Pujols was a rookie in order to find him having as bad a month. Could changing teams – and leagues – make that much of a difference?

When it comes to fantasy baseball, Albert Pujols did finally lose his spot this winter as being the top pick – he was picked third in most leagues. Now he is giving fantasy owners who have him as their fantasy baseball first baseman agita, because his numbers have been so putrid.

Come to think of it, imagine what angst the Angels must be having about Albert Pujols’ start, given how much they agreed to pay him over the next 10 years — $240 million! The Angels finished April in last place, in no small part due to Pujols’ poor start. That’s quite the price to pay for lackluster results.

Probably the only people happy about Pujols’ scary-bad April numbers might be St. Louis Cardinals fans – he spurned the team in order to take more money from the Angels. Nothing feels better for a fan than seeing their traitor fall into shambles when deserting them. Cardinals fans seeing Pujols batting average plummet is akin to Cavaliers fans watching LeBron James buckle under the pressure of the fourth quarter.

So, if you have Albert Pujols as your fantasy baseball first baseman, what should you do? Nothing, for now – dropping him from your fantasy league could be a huge mistake. There is plenty of time in fantasy baseball 2012 for him to turn it around. Tossing him too early could very well be a much regrettable move.

Whether or not Albert Pujols will still be great 10 years from now or even five years from now is an open question – the Angels may very well rue paying him that sort of money. But for now, Pujols is still one of the top first baseman in baseball – and top players – in the game, slow start and all. So don’t even think about dumping him just yet.

Lisa Swan is a weekly sports writer for DraftStreet, a leading source for free and for pay fantasy sports leagues.

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The Sports Archives – Fitness for Hockey

Posted on May 10, 2012 by thesportsarchives

Hockey is a very physical and visceral sport and  it’s one that requires a lot of dedication and skill if you want to excel. To this end training is highly important and it’s crucial that you should train and develop your fitness and strength if you want to be a success. Here we will look at how to train your fitness for hockey.

 

CV

First of all you are going to need to develop your cardiovascular fitness. This means fitness that requires your heart rate to increase over an extended period of time – any kind of continuous exertion. Of course hockey itself requires you to be constantly on the move and running or skating up and down the pitch for an extended period and it’s crucial that you ensure your fitness is up to the task.

In order to train this kind of fitness the best strategy is simply to ensure that you practice exerting yourself for these continued periods of time – by running on a treadmill for a certain amount of time for instance, or by cycling on a bicycle. If you do this several times per week for 40-60 minutes then you can quickly improve your stamina and ensure that your performance doesn’t start to drop off.

You can also improve CV by using something called ‘interval training’ which is a form of training that pushes your body harder, faster. The way this works is that you take it in turns to swap between slow jogging and fairly fast running. This then causes you to exert yourself more in a shorter amount of time, while your heart is forced to adapt to the changing paces which means it gets worked harder and which means your body produces more growth hormone.

Strength

You also need to develop your strength for multiple reasons in hockey. For one, barging into the opponent is part and parcel of this sport, and you’ll be at a distinct advantage if you have wider shoulders and more muscle weight behind you when you collide with your opponent. To improve this try working out regularly by lifting heavy weights. The idea here is to cause micro-tears in your muscle fibers, and when these heal the body will use amino acids from your protein to build them back thicker and stronger.

The exercises in particular you should focus on are the legs for your running and for your stability, and you should train these using squats, lunges and clean and presses. You should also train the shoulders – both deltoids and lats which you can achieve with exercises called dumbbell raises, with shoulder presses, and with shrugs. This will help to give you more pushing power and at the same time it will improve your strike. Finally abs and obliques are also very important for further stability so practice sit ups and crunches and particularly twisting sit ups which can help you to improve balance and torque.

Practice

Most important of all though is to simply practice playing hockey in every form possible. Do this as regularly as you can, because this will use the exact muscles and fitness you require for the real matches. The more you practice the more your body will be honed to perform on the day.

Chad Moreau is well versed with the best hockey training techniques. He likes to share his knowledge on his blog to make others aware of some of the best online training programs.

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The Sports Archives – 5 Ways to Enjoy the UEFA Champions League Final

Posted on May 9, 2012 by thesportsarchives

Do Your Homework

Sure, it’s tempting to treat the big game as pure spectacle, but learning a little about narrative about the teams going into the game can make all the difference. For example, after a great start to the season Bayern were unable to keep pace with bitter rivals Borrusia Dortmund: some have suggested an over-reliance on Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben’s inability to regularly play a full ninety minutes contributed to their mid-season dip in form. However the two will meet up in the DFB Cup Final on May 12, and much of Bayern’s attitude and confidence will be affected by their performance in this end-of-season showdown.

Similarly, Chelsea will face Liverpool in the FA Cup final on Saturday, with both teams looking to put some gloss on a disappointing league season. After defeat against Newcastle, Chelsea now look unlikely to qualify for next season’s Champions League, and defeating Bayern may be their only route back into the competition. The team’s aging spine of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba have shown decided creakiness this season, and the final (played at Munich’s home stadium) could be the last chance of European glory for many in the squad. Terry himself will have to watch from the sidelines after a straight red card earned him a suspension; he is joined by six other first team regulars facing disciplinary suspensions.

Clear Your Schedule

It’s a Saturday evening kick off for those of us on Greenwich Mean Time, but if you’re a busy kind of fellow it might be wise to mark it off on your diary. There will doubtless be pub showings aplenty wherever you are, but whether you’re a Blues fan or a follower of Die Roten there’s something special about getting your pals in one place for a big occasion. Remember that if Chelsea do manage to pull off the victory, two out of Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle will miss out on Champions League football next year, with all the accompanying implications for ambitious players like Gareth Bale, Papiss Cisse and Robin Van Persie. Oddly enough for a game that doesn’t involve the champions of either league, there are several other clubs with a vested interest: you can exploit this to get your Spurs, Gunners and Magpies fans to come along and get invested.

Stay Connected

Failing that, there are a bunch of ways to keep tabs on your football-loving pals. You can live-tweet the action, fill your Facebook feed with every mundane happenstance until literally no-one is subscribed to your feed anymore, or just keep a simple, old-fashioned sms messaging group on the go. If you’re really crafty you could set up a projector with live-updating entries to your personal hashtag – maybe #CatsEuroParty – with which your friends from the interwebs can do as they please!

No matter how you enjoy this year’s final, never give up! Munich fans will doubtless recall how this final finished:

Catherine Halsey is based in Edinburgh and writes for a digital marketing company. This article links back to https://groupme.com/.

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