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By MIKE KEEGAN, CHIEF SPORTS REPORTER Published: 02: 55 AEDT, 1 December 2025 | Updated: 03: 09 AEDT, 1 December 2025 View comments Hats off to Manchester United, who have taken the decision to send injured and suspended players into lounges before matches at Old Trafford to speak to corporate punters. Cynics may wonder if the move is the latest cost-cutting move by co-owners Ineos, but the reality is that officials believe that it increases the connection between Ruben Amorim’s squad and sections of the club’s support and enhances the experience of those who pay through the nose for the privilege. Sir James Anderson is to become Lancashire’s red-ball captain, Inside Sport understands. Our Ashes columnist took the reins on a temporary basis at the end of last season and is the choice of new coach Steven Croft to take on the role full-time. Anderson’s impact at Old Trafford has already been felt ahead of the new season, with new signing and fast bowler Ajeet Singh Dale saying the opportunity to learn from England’s leading wicket taker was too good to resist. Should Lancashire head into choppy seas, Anderson will be prepared – last week he spent time on the water with Sir Ben Ainslie ahead of the Abu Dhabi Sail Grand Prix. James Anderson is set to become Lancashire’s red-ball captain for the 2026 county season Man United have started sending injured and suspended players to entertain corporate punters The Women’s Super League has been subject to an investment bid, according to a report from Bloomberg last week. While such interest is to be welcomed, the competition remains a work in progress with some depressing tales suggesting some basic flaws from those who cover the sport. Earlier this month Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor did not attend the post-match press conference after her side’s underwhelming draw with Liverpool, leaving no comment or dissection for the club’s fans. It is understood Chelsea acted after being incorrectly informed that there would only be local media present and that questions were unlikely. And reporters covering Manchester United’s women’s side when they play at Leigh Sports Village have taken to bringing their own toilet roll to games thanks to a lack of the product at the council-operated facility. United say they will raise the tissue issue with Wigan Council. The WSL has been subject to an investment bid, according to a recent report from Bloomberg West Ham United legend Alan Devonshire oversaw his final Maidenhead United match at the weekend, following two lengthy stints at York Road which featured no fewer than 913 games, seven trophies and two promotions. ‘Dev’, 69, may be looking to some well-earned time off, and the same may well be said of his wife, Christina. For every home match, Mrs Devonshire prepared a meal for those in the boardroom, ferrying it from the couple’s home in London to the ground. She operated a four-meal rotation, and Inside Sport can testify that her curry was not to be missed. ‘I can’t imagine Posh does the grub at Inter Miami, ’ joked one Magpies insider. Alan Devonshire oversaw his 913th and final Maidenhead United match at the weekend A body set up last week to get Mixed Martial Arts onto the Olympic Games programme must have thought Christmas had arrived early when on the same day, Cristiano Ronaldo announced that he had become a major shareholder in WOW FC, a MMA promotion in Spain with global ambitions. Despite being set up by an Asian billionaire, it remains to be seen whether the newly-formed Federation of International Mixed Martial Arts (FIMMA) could afford the Portuguese to front their campaign. Cristiano Ronaldo has become a major shareholder in an MMA promotion with big ambitions It is not often that the behind-the-scenes secretive world of sports marketing airs it’s dirty laundry. But an unseemly spat on social media has broken out between two British doyens of the sports industry. Former IOC marketing director and advisor to Bernie Ecclestone Michael Payne has launched a book looking back at the last 50 years of his career with a lot scandalous anecdotes. However, the 67-year-old appears to have upset his old boss Patrick Nally, who is widely touted as the ‘Founding Father’ of the sponsorship industry. Nally, 78, clearly feels he has not been given enough credit in Payne’s book and has vented in thinly disguised social media posts in a move which has left industry insiders scrambling for the popcorn.
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