SportsBase launches its nationwide service

Taking up a sport in the UK has just become a lot easier thanks to a major new website launched by two young business graduates.

Would-be players of any sport, from tennis and 5-a-side football to aikido and kite-surfing will now be able to log on to www.sportsbase.co.uk to find their nearest club.

SportsBase.co.uk is an ever growing guide to sports clubs, sporting venues and health and fitness centres in the UK and Ireland. It aims to help people find a local sports organisation or club and motivate them to get involved in their favourite sport.

The site already features 35,000 clubs covering over 70 different sports and fitness activities ranging from high profile sports such as tennis, cricket and rugby, to extreme sports and even obscure sporting activities – like dragon boat racing and tug of war. And the list will just keep growing!

SportsBase.co.uk is the most comprehensive sports guide available online, making sport and fitness activities accessible to everyone, regardless of age, sex or location.

Visitors to the website will find SportsBase amazingly simple to use. Just pick a sport, enter your postcode, and SportsBase will give you a list of clubs, starting with the one closest to your location.

Don’t know what sport you want to take up or which club to join? Just look up one of the 3,000 sports and fitness venues on SportsBase and you will find a list of the sport and fitness activities they offer. The website will also include reviews of sports clubs and fitness venues posted by other visitors to the site.

Those interested in fitness and well-being will find exactly what they need on SportsBase. Health and fitness professionals can list their services on SportsBase so visitors can use the site to find their nearest personal trainer, tennis coach, or find the perfect yoga or pilates class.

Most importantly, using the service is free and provides a whole host of additional features such as location maps and weather advice – perfect if you’re taking up any of the outdoor sports!

This momentous sporting website is the brainchild of Nick Kenton and Robert Taub, two 23-year-old sports-mad business graduates from north London. The idea behind SportsBase came as a result of their own frustration in trying to find places where they could play table tennis and 5-a-side football in their local area.

Co-founder Robert Taub says: “Some people can live in an area for their whole life without knowing the extent of the organisations and facilities they have around them. The launch of SportsBase.co.uk means that anyone who wants to take up a sport will be able to find a club, venue or organisation that is right for them.”

Sports clubs are listed free on SportsBase, which features the training grounds and contact details for each club. Clubs and venues will also have the opportunity to set up their own mini-website on SportsBase and create and send newsletters through the site to keep in contact with their members.

Co-founder Nick Kenton says: “SportsBase is a powerful resource for anyone who is already involved in or wants to become involved in sports. We will continue expanding the information and services available on the site to create the most comprehensive sports reference facility in the UK.”

The website also offers an opportunity for sports clubs not listed on SportsBase to add their own details. By logging on to the website, sporting organisations can submit their details and these will be included in the SportsBase.co.uk service once they have been approved by the SportsBase team.

SportsBase.co.uk will grow to feature over 100,000 sports clubs on the website by the end of 2006, as well as over 5,000 fitness professionals.

For further information:
David Micallef / Jim Sutton
Infoplan PR
27 Albemarle Street
London W1S 4BG
Tel No. 020 7355 3666
Fax No. 020 7629 9546