Sports Then and Now

The ancient spectacle of horse racing hasn’t essentially changed in the past 3000 years—but the settings sure have. If you don’t count chariots, the sport of flat racing has reached its zenith in the modern era. There are full seasons and championships across the globe, with billions of gambling dollars following the thunder of hoofs.

A few truly epic spectator events highlight each season. Each of these race meetings are international happenings that feature the best horses and jockeys, and each shines with its own unique flavor. The excitement and drama of these events not only help keep the love of horses alive in our technological age, these top competitions are poised to continue exciting the public imagination for many years to come.

The following 5 top horse racing meetings are listed according to their annual calendar date:

The Dubai World Cup

The Dubai World Cup is the youngest race meeting on our list, and is run annually on the last Saturday in March. It began in 1996 as the world’s richest horse race and will hit $12 million in 2019. There are eight Thoroughbred races and–unusually–a contest for purebred Arabians.

The race is already a favorite of many fans, and has become the biggest sporting and social event in Dubai. As with many top races, there is a heavy fashion component to the celebration. The Dubai World Cup is held on the new Meydan Racecourse which has the world’s first track-side hotel, offering luxury spectating from your own room.

It was one of the most entertaining games in the history of college basketball. The six overtime marathon of a battle between Syracuse and Connecticut in the quarterfinals of the 2009 Big East Tournament was for starters, thrilling. Adjectives are never ending in describing it. Phenomenal. Amazing. Exhausting. Climactic.

Filled with the suspense and drama on when, not to mention if, the game would ever end, it was equally as attractive for  being a marquee matchup of two longtime Big East rivals lead by prestigious head coaches in Jim Boeheim of the Orange and Jim Calhoun of the Huskies. The glamour and glitz of New York City added to this game as the school’s dueled on the national stage of Madison Square Garden, known as the world’s most famous arena. Both teams were ranked in the AP Poll with Connecticut at No. 3 and Syracuse at No. 18. The sixth-seeded Orange and the third-seeded Huskies were also meeting for the fourth time in the last five seasons in the Big East Tournament with Syracuse having won the prior three matchups from 2005 through ’07.

In playing the longest ever game in the shot clock era, Syracuse and Connecticut tied for the second longest game in the history of NCAA Division I college basketball. Only two other games have ever gone six overtimes. Both those happened in the 1950’s when Minnesota beat Purdue 59-56 in 1955 and Niagara beat Siena 88-81 in 1953. The game was eclipsed in number of overtimes only by a game on Dec. 21, 1981 when Cincinnati beat Bradley 75-73 in seven overtimes. That game in 1981 tied for the most overtimes in the history of college basketball regardless of NCAA classification.

However overtime almost never happened for the Orange and Huskies.

Connecticut freshman guard Kemba Walker’s offensive rebound and layup with 1.1 seconds left in regulation tied the game at 71. Following a Syracuse timeout, Orange junior guard Eric Devendorf gathered a long inbounds pass off a deflection and quickly got off a 3-point shot that went in giving the Orange an apparent victory. However replays showed that the ball was still contacting Devendorf’s fingertips as the buzzer sounded and the basket was waived off by officials and the game went into overtime.

It seems like a day doesn’t go by this time of year without another reminder that college athletics is really a major business that likes to pretend it is something more noble and altruistic.

Full disclosure that today’s example is a bit personal and especially frustrating for me because it involves a former colleague who has spent his entire career representing all the positive attributes that college sports supposedly are about.

After 16 years of success that is unparalleled in the history of William & Mary men’s basketball, the college has decided to part ways with 65-year-old head coach Tony Shaver.

In a statement, Athletic Director Samantha Huge said that “We have high expectations for our men’s basketball program, including participating in the NCAA tournament, and we will not shy away from setting the bar high. Now is the time to begin a new chapter in William & Mary basketball.”

That sounds all well and good, but what Huge seems to not understand is that prior to the arrival of Shaver, “high expectations” for the men’s basketball program basically meant double-digit victories every few years.

As the football kits get tighter and the pay packages get heavier a perpetually bamboozling question arises in one’s mind; will the Football fever ever die down? Will the apparent craze and demand for the product ever be fulfilled? Will the media giants ever be satiated from making money out of selling live action? Will the ever increasing viewership ever die down? Ever since its launch in 1992, the Premier League has turned into an ever inflating balloon which makes you think; will the balloon ever burst?

Make an appointment or watch matches on demand?

There has always been a non-ending competition between TV channels and service providers, all trying desperately for the customers i.e. you and others like yourself as a bait to win the largest customer viewership. Likewise TheVang TV and BT have been trying to venture into other methods for customers to view their content, other than merely through a television service. You must know that now the smart phone/ tablets have become very much part and parcel of our life, and this is what the media giants and service provider are after, they are targeting growing number of audience shifting to smart devices. And at most of the times these devices are not included in the headline rating figures. Even more you will agree over the past years, the way people watch entertainment has changed altogether. Viewers no longer feel they should wait for a show or episode to come on. People are streaming matches, seasons, and binge watching TV shows after TV shows. Customers are no longer afraid of missing matches, because they know they can easily catch it on demand. Cable subscriptions rates are sky rocketing, with the availability of cheap internet unlimited packages; it is certainly starting to feel like a luxury you can no longer afford.

Cheltenham hasn’t always been the location for the festival, with both Market Harborough and Warwick racecourses hosting the event in the 19^th century. Since 1911, the permanent home of the festival has been Cheltenham’s Prestbury Park, although it had been held at Cheltenham on a few occasions prior to this.

The Cheltenham Festival always sees plenty of closely fought races, and the Cheltenham odds certainly suggest that this year will be no different. There are plenty of races to focus on at this year’s event, but what about races which no longer exist? We’ve taken a look at five of the races that are no longer run at Cheltenham.

Roman Abramovich brought Chelsea for £140 million in 2003, but by no means was that the end to his spending. Over the last 16 years, the Russian has spent over £1.5 billion on new players, with not all of those being of the caliber needed to compete for honors.

The Abramovich era has seen a trophy haul of 13 major trophies; including five Premier League titles, five FA Cups and one Champions League success. The 2009/10 campaign also saw the Blues complete their first FA Cup and Premier League double.

One place where you won’t be guilty of wasting time is NetBet. Here you will find all the perfect markets for your sports betting needs. There is an array of markets for soccer, basketball and American football.

1.            Adrian Mutu (£16 Million from Parma)

Things started very well for Mutu following his big-money move from Italy. He scored four goals in his opening three matches and was shaping up to be a top quality signing. However, things quickly turned sour for the Romanian international.

Chelsea signed the former Series A star in 2003, and he was quick to fall out with new manager José Mourinho who arrived the following season due to questions about the Romanian’s attitude. Read the rest of this entry →