HU PLAYS FOR NEWLY REBRANDED TNT SPORTS IN CHARITY FOOTBALL MATCH

04 August 2023

Hospitality Ulster Operations Director Joel Neill had the unenviable task of swapping the comfort of the grandstand for a rare appearance on the pitch last weekend- turning out for the newly rebranded TNT Sports in a charity football match, as part of their annual Pub Cup Finals at St Georges Park, the home of England football.

The high scoring game raised £2750 for the Licensed Trade Charity, but despite the best efforts of special guest coaches David James, Siobhan Chamberlain and Phil Jagielka, the standard of play remained somewhat unpredictable. Despite that, Joel says he has returned home with both of his knees in "full working order- just".

Hundreds of teams entered the TNT Sports Pub Cup, with 16 finalists playing on the day in the men’s and women’s competition after winning a place at regional heats in London, Cardiff, Manchester and Newcastle. The Pub Cup has previously hosted heats at The National Football Stadium at Windsor Park in Belfast, attracting great interest from NI hospitality businesses, and HU looks forward to its return in the near future.

BT SPORT BECOMES TNT SPORTS

Launched in July, TNT Sports will present the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Heineken Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE.

So, what does this mean for business owners? Alasdair Collis, director of commercial customers at TNT Sports said:

"There will be no change to the great content BT Sport commercial customers enjoyed - all the premium exclusively live sport included in our commercial subscription will continue. As well as the Premier League, TNT Sports remains the home of top-flight European football, with over 500 live games across the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and Europa Conference League. As always, we will remain dedicated to helping our customers make the most of their commercial subscription and finding new ways of ensuring they can maximise the value they see from live sport in their venue."

"Research shows that almost three quarters of those visiting the pub to watch live sport are visiting the same or more as they were a year ago, meaning that in a challenging trading climate, sport continues to drive true incremental footfall for licensed premises. In addition, we also see that live European football represents a fantastic opportunity to boost trade during the traditionally quieter midweek, with sport being the single biggest driver of additional pub visits Monday – Thursday for the pub-going sports audience."

"Customers can call our dedicated contact centre on 0800 678 1137 and speak to an agent who will talk them through the benefits a TNT Sports commercial subscription can bring to their business."

Existing TNT Sports customers can log in to the brand new customer hub at www.tntsportsbusiness.co.uk to avail of free promotional assets, and new customers are also invited to visit the website for further information.