MSN World Cup News Centre Will Launch in April

Microsoft is gearing up for the upcoming 2010 football World Cup in South Africa, and revealed plans to provide online coverage via MSN. According to the Redmond company, by the end of April 2010, a new dedicated sports news center will go live on MSN, with content from Press Association Sport. The MSN World Cup News Centre will provide football/soccer fans across Europe with both news and analysis on the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, which is now just 72 days away.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Press Association Sport to create the pre-eminent online destination for World Cup fans on MSN across EMEA,” revealed Geoff Sutton, general manager, MSN Media International, “With topical news, commentary and multimedia experiences bespoke for 13 markets, as well as live match coverage, brands have a fantastic opportunity to connect with the MSN audience across a number of countries, as the tournament unfolds”.

The World Cup News Centre will be offered in no less than 13 territories in EMEA, such as the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands. Microsoft indicated that users in each region would be able to access tailor-made content, with Press Association Sport working to provide locally relevant perspectives on World Cup events. In this regard, the News Centre will also be localized in no less than nine languages. The promise from the software giant is that users will be able to enjoy a variety of content, including ‘Shoot Live’ photography of ongoing games being played. Through the “Live Match Experience” users will be able to tap live match data and statistics, but also live text commentary.

“This is a fantastic deal for Press Association Sport – the strength of our content combined with MSN’s reach represents a great strategic fit and allows us to deliver our comprehensive World Cup offering to a huge international audience of football fans. The ‘World Cup News Centre’ provides MSN users with a one-stop-shop for all the latest tournament news, commentary and fixtures specifically tailored for their home territory, and we look forward to charting all the action from 19th April,” added Ian Campbell, managing director, Press Association Sport.