The ever thought-provoking Birkbeck Sports Business Centre Seminar Series continues this evening with a session given by James McDougall on "Sport in the UK and Europe: A Golden Future or Just Meddling?". The talk centres on the work of the Central Council of Physical Recreation, a national alliance of 280 governing and representative bodies of sport and recreation in the UK from fencing to folkdance, which aims to present a unified voice for the... [continue]

New Orleans Saints 37 San Diego Chargers 32 NFL International Series Wembley Stadium - 26th October 2008 Now, that's a bit more like it! Last year's grey skies were back to haunt the NFL at Wembley on Sunday night, but by the time Joss Stone wasn't singing the National Anthem fast enough for the crowd's liking, clouds were drifting peacefully over a festival of attacking football that the game's organisers must have spent twelve... [continue]

Tonight it's the New Orleans Saints versus the San Diego Chargers, but there'll still be some local boys in the photographs. Well, comparatively local, in that it's the Stereophonics who will lead off the proceedings with a short set at 4:30pm, half an hour before kick off, that will feature some old favourites as well new material, all taken from their forthcoming Santa-friendly compilation "Decade in the Sun". After the teams have made their... [continue]

Be Careful What You Wish For, part 163. Spurs fans will have been fine over the morning papers, munching some toast while reassuring themselves that today, against Bolton, their season would finally get up off its knees. And then they'll switch on any of the broadcast or online media and the effect will probably be similar to that famous shot zooming into the face of the shocked and uncomprehending Police Chief in Jaws. Juande... [continue]

The New Orleans Saints are already down to business at their base in Watford, licking some of the wounds from their heavy defeat in Carolina at the weekend and plotting how to short circuit the similarly scorched San Diego Chargers at Wembley on Sunday, but they couldn't resist a quick foray into tourist central yesterday, taking questions and flights in and around the London Eye. Paul Bence, a member of the Londonist Flickr group, was... [continue]

The NFL put its marker down for another London festival yesterday as gridiron posts once again adorned Wembley's turf. The man who persuaded America's premier sport to make London its European bridgehead, NFL UK's managing director Alistair Kirkwood, was there to greet both local media and those newly arrived from New Orleans and, despite the success of last year's debut event, he knows there is much still to be done : I think last... [continue]

In case you need reminding of our nation's recently revived sporting prowess several hundred of our sterling Olympians and Paralympians will be journeying from the Mansion House to Trafalgar Square at lunchtime on Thursday. Arranged carnival-style on a dozen floats carried on flatbed trucks they will be following our world champion rugby players and Ashes winning cricketers in what is gradually becoming a traditional rite of national recognition. The parade is set to begin... [continue]

The NFL's second visit to Wembley is only three weeks away now and, if you're wishing that you'd managed to get tickets when they first emerged in the spring, then you'll be very pleased to know that tickets at all price levels are available to the general public right now. The organisers are working with an increased capacity of around 85,000 and this year's teams, the New Orleans Saints and the San Diego Chargers,... [continue]

Fans of the Mighty Boosh could be forgiven for thinking that they were being overrun by the Bollo appreciation society, but if you find a group of pantomime apes ambling past you on Saturday morning then you've simply stumbled across this year's Great Gorilla Run. And it's not too late to join in. Participants will don simian suits and set off at 10:30am for a 7km jog across the city and down the South... [continue]

If you've never had a look inside the new Wembley Stadium then tonight presents an ideal opportunity. You can buy tickets for a mere £10 (£5 conceessions) on the gate to see a strong England Under 21 football squad take on their Portuguese counterparts in a qualifier for next year's European Championships. Spurs fans are sure to be particularly interested since the match offers their new striker, Fraizer Campbell, his first competitive outing since... [continue]

The epic saga of Dimitar Berbatov's transfer from Tottenham Hotspur to Manchester United finally drew to a close in the early hours of Tuesday morning, but its repercussions could last into the New Year and well beyond. For some time Spurs have been vying with Everton for the mantle of English football's fifth best club, something that would have seemed a dubious honour ten years ago, but would now be seen by many as... [continue]

Well, who would have thought we'd reach our fourteenth and final London Olympic Timetable worried that a fluffed handover in the women's 4x100m relay might let the Russians chase Britain down in the overall medal table? The good news is Team GB could yet strike more gold in the final 48 hours of the game and one man in prime position to achieve just that is West London middleweight boxer James DeGale who defied... [continue]

Gold! Gold, I tell 'ee. Gold, in them thar doldrums, damn yer eyes! Ahh, hahahahahaha! We 'opes you'll forgive us old sea dogs splicin' the mainbrace in honour of our crew what's brought treasure back to these shores. Aye, aye! It's first mate Andrew Simpson o' Chertsey and his cap'n Iain Percy takin' our golden haul to five in the Star class sailing. Ahh, hahahaha... [That's enough piracy - Scurvy Landlubbing Ed] The excellent... [continue]

More medals for Britain, and "Team London", yesterday, but the seemingly relentless success in some sports is causing a nervous shuffling of feet in others. After Twickenham's Mo Farah slipped out of the 5,000m heats Brendan Foster, BBC commentator and former Olympic medallist at 10,000m, could contain himself no longer: I just feel Mo Farah ran a very poor race. He needs to be taught how to run tactically. He's got a good finish... [continue]

And it came to pass that Team GB didst look upon their works and, behold, they were good. And on the twelfth day they rested. Well, comparatively speaking anyway. Today there are only eleven gold medals available across the whole games, the fewest on any official competition day except the opening Saturday where events were barely getting started. Even on the final day of competition twelve golds are up for grabs. Just like the... [continue]

Even though we're ten days into the Games of the 29th Olympiad there are still some competitors yet to get their campaigns underway. Two such athletes are pre-Beijing Londonist interviewees Jessica Walker (above left) and Anna Hemmings who, at 11am precisely (all times BST) will have about 1 minute and 40 seconds to paddle their kayak over the 1000m course at Shunyi, recently vacated by the rowers, and qualify for Thursday morning's semi-finals. They've... [continue]

Please sit down before reading this. Great Britain is third in the Olympic medal table. There's only China and the US ahead of us at the moment. Such lofty attainment is almost certainly unique in the years since we last held the Games ourselves in 1948. It's getting to the point where hard won silver and bronze medals in particular are having to fight to be noticed amongst headlines dripping with gold. Team London,... [continue]

If you, like the people above in Trafalgar Square, kicked back in front Olympic TV yesterday you will have enjoyed Saturday's festival of British medal winning which included "Team London" adding significantly to Emma Pooley's silver. Top of the bill was the men's four who stayed true to the tradition of Redgrave and Pinsent in delivering gold. The image of Chiswick's Andy Triggs-Hodge trying to celebrate through utter exhaustion will endure to London 2012... [continue]

As we pen this latest despatch from the land of Olympia we are hunched over our table, bracing ourselves for the avalanche of must-see denouments and prospective medals set to sweep us away on this middle Saturday of the Games. So far London can lay claim only to a share in Emma Pooley's road cycling silver, but over the next few hours the medal chances come thick and fast, not least in the rowing... [continue]

But hark! Is that the sound of the William Tell Overture in the distance? It is! And with it comes a marauding horde of London track and field competitors poised to take over the Olympic show as, for a lot of casual observers, the Olympics get properly underway. We at Londonist, as you know, look to wider horizons, but it was a bit difficult yesterday as both the sailors and the oarsfolk were forced... [continue]