A free Premium Blogger theme.
After much anticipation, the Cleveland Browns have unveiled their brand new logo for 2015. At first I was surprised. Then I was amazed. By the end, my entire life had changed.
A taskforce for the soccer’s global governing body made the announcement following a meeting in Doha, amid fears that the heat in the country during a traditional summer World Cup would endanger fans and players.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter in Marrakech, Morocco, in Dec. 2014.
Christophe Ena / AP
The announcement follows many months of speculation that the tournament would be moved from its traditional summer slot to the northern hemisphere's winter over fears that the searing Qatari summer temperatures would pose a risk to both players and fans.
The tiny Gulf state can soar above 40 degrees celsius (104 fahrenheit) in summer, while November and December temperatures drop to the mid-20s celsius (around 75 fahrenheit), the BBC reported.
It is expected that the recommendation will be ratified at a meeting of FIFA's executive committee in Zurich on March 18-19, the BBC said.
FIFA faced a number of issues when deciding on what date to hold the contest. Not only would a move to winter mean a mid-season break for dozens of domestic league seasons around the world, but they had to avoid clashing with a number of other global sporting and religious events.
Given that the two bidding cities for the 2022 Winter Olympics - Almaty (Kazakhstan) and Beijing (China PR) - pledged recently to host the winter games from 4 to 20 February 2022; that the month of Ramadan begins on 2 April in 2022; and that consistently hot conditions prevail from May to September in Qatar, the only remaining effective option is the November/December window. For legal reasons, the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup must be played within the calendar year 2022.
A worker cleans the road outside Khalifa sport complex in Doha, Qatar, Jan. 2011.
Arnd Wiegmann / Reuters
Ugh, love. Gross.
It's been a long, cold winter for you, hasn't it?
I'll show myself out.
They’re also tweaking their newly-implemented instant replay rules.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred
Kevin Richardson/Baltimore Sun / MCT
● Batters must keep at least one foot inside the batter's box during at-bats.
● There will be clocks installed to enforce a return to game play sooner after commercial breaks. "Immediately following the third out of each half-inning, the timer will count down from 2:25 for locally televised games and from 2:45 for nationally televised games." Pitchers will be allowed to throw warm-up pitches up until there are 30 seconds left on the clock, and batters should be in the batter's box with at least 20 second left.
Players found in violation of these rules will be subject to warnings and fines, but MLB does not intend to use added strikes & balls to the pitch count as a form of punishment.
● Managers will now remain in the dugout for replay challenges. Last season, during MLB's first season with instant replay, fans grew used to watching managers slowly pace out to the mound to discuss whether or not to challenge a call. Now, MLB says, "managers may hold play from the top step of the dugout by signaling to players and the home plate umpire that he is considering a challenge."
Other tweaks to the instant replay system are included in the MLB/MLBPA statement:
● A manager will retain his challenge after every call that is overturned. Last year, a manager retained his challenge only after the first overturned call.
● During Postseason games, regular season tiebreaker games and the All-Star Game, managers will now have two challenges per game.
These changes represent a step forward in our efforts to streamline the pace of play. The most fundamental starting point for improving the pace of the average game involves getting into and out of breaks seamlessly. In addition, the batter's box rule will help speed up a basic action of the game.
Via m.mlb.com
The Players believe that enforcing the rules that currently exist regarding between inning breaks and plate appearances is the best way to address the issue of pace of play. We're confident that today's announcements will have a positive impact on the pace of the game without jeopardizing the integrity of the competition.
Via m.mlb.com
Anyone who has a roommate will understand.
Ezra Shaw / Getty Images
We are pursuing this stadium option in Carson for one straightforward reason: If we cannot find a permanent solution in our home markets, we have no alternative but to preserve other options to guarantee the future economic viability of our franchises.
Via chargers.com
Donald Miralle / Getty Images
That is, if all of these deals go through. Teams have long used the prospect of a move to Los Angeles as leverage against their current host cities when seeking a new stadium.
“I’m ready to put this chapter behind me and play some ball.”
A-Rod was suspended for the entire 2014 season, and is signed to the Yankees through the 2017 season. After a season off, and a 40th birthday in July, it has yet to be determined the capacity and extent in which the Yankees will use him this season.
