SYDNEY: ACP magazines is expanding its sports publishing division with the launch of a one-shot magazine to coincide with the FIFA World Cup.
The glossy, which ACP's publisher for men's lifestyle Michael Koslowski describes as "football meets Men's Style" will be on newsstands ahead of the World Cup in June this year.
Koslowski said the one-off mag could possibly evolve into a regular publication.
"It started life as a preview one-shot but we have been looking to get into football for a while."
"We quietly think there is more to it than just a one-shot," he said, adding that ACP would draw on its extensive sports publishing resources to put the magazine together.
"We won the rights last year for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, we do the Wallabies and Waratahs match programs and it's been traditional to do the two [rugby] footballs and cricket. This is our opportunity to get into the round ball game."
The magazine will be edited by former Inside Cricket and Fairfax sports editor Tony Harper, and has already had an "enthusiastic" response from advertisers, with Koslowski confirming that two of three available ad packages had already been snapped up.
Koslowski would not be drawn on exact print run figures, however "by sports magazine standards, it’s going to be a big book and a big print run. To get the big thud factor, we have to be bold," he says.
On sale for $9.95, the yet- to-be-named magazine will compete in the relatively uncrowded local market serviced primarily by Haymarket Media's FourFourTwo. News Magazines’ in-season Australian Football Weekly is sold only at A-League matches.
A comprehensive report on how marketers are hitching themselves to the 2010 Football World Cup and what opportunities remain will feature in the 12 February issue of AdNews, out this Friday.
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