Latest news with #BallerLeague
Scotsman
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
How Edinburgh kids can get free golf sessions this summer
As the number of youngsters playing golf dwindles, American Golf is offering local kids free golf sessions all summer, as part of its Game Changers campaign. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Golf is in danger of dying out - unless it engages a new generation of fans fast, a new report by American Golf warns. Over a fifth of kids (21%)** claim they're not interested in golf because the sport is 'boring', with a further one in 10 claiming that there is a lack of relatable role models in golf. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Despite a massive golf boom in recent years, with new players up 44%* since 2016, this growth hasn't been reflected in interest from under-18s. Kids can get into golf for FREE, courtesy of American Golf. As a consequence, 88% of parents don't even try to get their kids into golf at a young age. Instead pushing them towards team sports such as football, or newer trending activities like padel and mixed martial arts. The report, which surveyed 2,000 parents with kids under 18, also revealed that one in five parents (19%) claim affordability is the biggest factor in getting their kids into a sport. To show just how easy it is to get into golf and to combat rising cost concerns, American Golf is offering free junior putting lessons this summer, as part of its Game Changers campaign. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The free putting lessons will be available in all 82 stores across the UK, and open to kids aged under 16 of all abilities. Participants will also be eligible for 10% off junior clothing, footwear, equipment and package sets upon completing the session, as well as being entered into a prize draw to win a Junior Benross package set. Designed to champion players from all backgrounds and inspire the next generation, Game Changers celebrates players like Mandi Large, a leading blind golfer in the UK and winner of the Blind British Open and Ray Nyabola, the founder of Black British Golfers. As well as the summer of free putting lessons, American Golf has recently donated over 150 free Benross junior clubs to Need Golf Centre as part of the holiday coaching programme. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Scott Taylor, Marketing and CRM director at American Golf said: 'This is a wake-up call for the industry. Innovations like the Baller League and Padel are bringing new audiences to football and racket sports. 'Golf needs its Baller league moment, with engaging figures across social media to inspire kids to take up the sport. At the same time, brands need to offer easy and accessible ways into the industry. 'At American Golf, in addition to offering free junior sessions all summer, we're committing to expanding our roster of ambassadors, so kids feel inspired and have relatable role models in the sport. 'With new ambassadors like PGA golf coach and social media sensation Georgia Ball, - as well as a wide range of professional athletes such as Dan Brown and Annabell Fuller - we're sure we can inspire the next generation to become golfers for life, whatever their background.'
Daily Mail
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
John Terry claims modern football is 'really BORING' - as Chelsea icon reveals why he no longer enjoys watching it
John Terry has claimed he no longer enjoys watching football given the way the game has changed. Terry, 44, was one of the best defenders of his generation and won 16 trophies with Chelsea while captaining his boyhood club. Terry also earned 78 caps for England and after ending his career with a spell at Aston Villa, he has held coaching roles with the West Midlands club, Leicester City and Chelsea's academy. Last November, it was announced that he would be managing 26ers in the new Baller League, a popular six-a-side tournament that is supposed to encourage high-energy, fast-paced football and appeal to a younger demographic, although Terry's side finished ninth in the 12-team league. And the 44-year-old has revealed that he has become disillusioned with the modern game and the way it is played, before he highlighted the positive impact of the Baller League. 'I don't sit there and enjoy watching football anymore,' Terry told talkSPORT. 'The guys who started Baller League, the guy called Felix he's got backers from Germany and across the world, they were fed up of seeing tactical games. 'Like where teams play against Man City and you get 11 men behind the ball, it's boring. Man City try and break the other team down, it's really boring. 'You don't see many shots you don't see people like Eden Hazard or Joe Cole getting people off their seats.' Terry continued to emphasise his viewpoint and claimed his disenchantment with the modern game is shared elsewhere. 'They started Baller League (with rules) like when you cross the halfway line you have to go forward you can't go backwards,' he added. 'The generation of kids they love seeing it. I think that (the viewing figures) will grow again, but it's getting to the point where people are fed up with football.' Meanwhile, YouTuber, boxer and influencer KSI is president of the UK version of the tournament which is hosted at the Copperbox Arena on Monday nights during the season. Alongside Terry, several other celebrity players and managers are also involved in the competition, with the likes of Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Luis Figo among those in charge of sides. Players are paid £400 per match and the teams include retired professionals such as Troy Deeney, futsal players, free agents and former academy stars who have recently been released. Wildcard signings have also been drafted in for certain rounds, including former England international Joleon Lescott.
CNA
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
Baller League CEO sees his format as return to 'old football'
LONDON :The CEO of the fast-growing Baller League says its style of fast-paced, small-sided, digital-oriented football is a return to the sport's grassroots not a betrayal of them. "We are the old era of football," Baller League boss Felix Starck told Reuters, saying his organisation's format harks back to the exuberance of kids playing with cones on streets. Critics say the Baller League, along with the similar Kings League, are a gimmicky distortion of the traditional 90-minute game, adding new rules and mixing online personalities with ex-professional players in teams. But Starck, in an interview with Reuters this week, said that football had been transformed into a 'product' and was therefore in need of a return to the "most-played sport in the world, which is small-sided football". The entrepreneur, whose Baller League began in Germany in 2024, hopes a new governing body will emerge for the format to ensure quality as well as entertainment. The Baller League expanded to the UK this year and wrapped up its first season last month, with online influencer Sharky coaching his SDC team to victory in a competition streamed by more than 1 million viewers on YouTube. The Baller League will also set up goalposts in the U.S. this year where, Starck said, "Football never kicked off' compared to traditional American sports. Starck said Spain was another logical future market, even though it is also the home of the Kings League, founded by Spanish international Gerard Pique. 'NOT AN EXPANSION RACE' But, the Baller League boss cautioned, 'This is not an expansion race ... We go to a country if we think it's going to be profitable and not just to go for expanding reasons. "Hype is the easiest thing to create but you have no sustainability ... longevity." Starck said the Baller League was more authentically sport-focused whereas other formats had "goofy Mario Kart rules". Though the Baller League has marketed itself as a "new era of football", the CEO said actually it also embodied the "old era". "We're trying to build a governing body around the most played sport in the world and give it some respect that it deserves and not have a president that never kicked the ball in his life take a penalty for no reason," he said, referring to a Kings League rule that allows club presidents to take penalties.
The Star
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Baller League CEO sees his format as return to 'old football'
LONDON (Reuters) -The CEO of the fast-growing Baller League says its style of fast-paced, small-sided, digital-oriented football is a return to the sport's grassroots not a betrayal of them. "We are the old era of football," Baller League boss Felix Starck told Reuters, saying his organisation's format harks back to the exuberance of kids playing with cones on streets. Critics say the Baller League, along with the similar Kings League, are a gimmicky distortion of the traditional 90-minute game, adding new rules and mixing online personalities with ex-professional players in teams. But Starck, in an interview with Reuters this week, said that football had been transformed into a 'product' and was therefore in need of a return to the "most-played sport in the world, which is small-sided football". The entrepreneur, whose Baller League began in Germany in 2024, hopes a new governing body will emerge for the format to ensure quality as well as entertainment. The Baller League expanded to the UK this year and wrapped up its first season last month, with online influencer Sharky coaching his SDC team to victory in a competition streamed by more than 1 million viewers on YouTube. The Baller League will also set up goalposts in the U.S. this year where, Starck said, "Football never kicked off' compared to traditional American sports. Starck said Spain was another logical future market, even though it is also the home of the Kings League, founded by Spanish international Gerard Pique. 'NOT AN EXPANSION RACE' But, the Baller League boss cautioned, 'This is not an expansion race ... We go to a country if we think it's going to be profitable and not just to go for expanding reasons. "Hype is the easiest thing to create but you have no sustainability ... longevity." Starck said the Baller League was more authentically sport-focused whereas other formats had "goofy Mario Kart rules". Though the Baller League has marketed itself as a "new era of football", the CEO said actually it also embodied the "old era". "We're trying to build a governing body around the most played sport in the world and give it some respect that it deserves and not have a president that never kicked the ball in his life take a penalty for no reason," he said, referring to a Kings League rule that allows club presidents to take penalties. "I don't believe we're building the same thing ... We should entertain on the pitch with the sport. And respect where the sport came from and how it evolved." (Reporting by Streisand Neto; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Straits Times
04-07-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Baller League CEO sees his format as return to 'old football'
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox LONDON - The CEO of the fast-growing Baller League says its style of fast-paced, small-sided, digital-oriented football is a return to the sport's grassroots not a betrayal of them. "We are the old era of football," Baller League boss Felix Starck told Reuters, saying his organisation's format harks back to the exuberance of kids playing with cones on streets. Critics say the Baller League, along with the similar Kings League, are a gimmicky distortion of the traditional 90-minute game, adding new rules and mixing online personalities with ex-professional players in teams. But Starck, in an interview with Reuters this week, said that football had been transformed into a 'product' and was therefore in need of a return to the "most-played sport in the world, which is small-sided football". The entrepreneur, whose Baller League began in Germany in 2024, hopes a new governing body will emerge for the format to ensure quality as well as entertainment. The Baller League expanded to the UK this year and wrapped up its first season last month, with online influencer Sharky coaching his SDC team to victory in a competition streamed by more than 1 million viewers on YouTube. The Baller League will also set up goalposts in the U.S. this year where, Starck said, "Football never kicked off' compared to traditional American sports. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore PAP has begun search for new candidates; PM Wong hopes to deploy them earlier ahead of next GE Singapore 20 retired MPs spoke up on many issues in Parliament, helped successors prepare for new role: PM Wong Singapore $3b money laundering case: 9 financial institutions handed $27.45m in MAS penalties over breaches Singapore Banks tighten vigilance and processes following $3b money laundering case Asia JB petrol station shooting: Dead man with bullet wounds dumped at hospital Singapore Trilateral work group formed to address allegations of foreigners illegally taking on platform work Singapore Power distribution system in renewal project may be linked to Bukit Panjang LRT disruption: SMRT Singapore Rise in number of scam e-mails claiming to be from Cardinal William Goh: Catholic Church Starck said Spain was another logical future market, even though it is also the home of the Kings League, founded by Spanish international Gerard Pique. 'NOT AN EXPANSION RACE' But, the Baller League boss cautioned, 'This is not an expansion race ... We go to a country if we think it's going to be profitable and not just to go for expanding reasons. "Hype is the easiest thing to create but you have no sustainability ... longevity." Starck said the Baller League was more authentically sport-focused whereas other formats had "goofy Mario Kart rules". Though the Baller League has marketed itself as a "new era of football", the CEO said actually it also embodied the "old era". "We're trying to build a governing body around the most played sport in the world and give it some respect that it deserves and not have a president that never kicked the ball in his life take a penalty for no reason," he said, referring to a Kings League rule that allows club presidents to take penalties. "I don't believe we're building the same thing ... We should entertain on the pitch with the sport. And respect where the sport came from and how it evolved." REUTERS
