MUMBAI: IMG Worldwide and Dogus, Group, one of Turkey?s largest private sector conglomerates, are forming an equal joint venture company in Turkey.

The purpose of the JV between Dogus, and IMG will be to create and develop a broad range of sports, fashion and entertainment projects to be implemented in Turkey and the Turkic Republics including Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

In India, Reliance Industries Ltd. has a 50:50 JV with IMG, a global sports, fashion and entertainment company. The JV has 30-year rights for basketball and 15-year rights for football.

The joint venture in Turkey is part of the continuing transformation of IMG as a global presence in high-growth geographic areas with high profile, successful partners in each of the countries where they have established relationships. The company now has joint ventures in Brazil with EBX Group and in China with CCTV.

Initial plans for the JV in Turkey include the creation of sports academies, camps and clinics; the building, construction, ownership and operation of stadiums, sports and entertainment venues; staging, representing, managing, owning and selling fashion related events; representation for sale of sports media and sponsorship rights; and staging, representation, management, ownership and sale of sports and events including football, tennis, sailing regattas, golf, motor racing, action sports, beach games, mass participation events, cycling, triathlons among others.

The JV has been agreed to and signed by Dogus chairman Ferit Sahenk, one of the country?s most successful businessmen, and IMG chairman and CEO Mike Dolan.

Says Dolan, "Turkey is now playing a significantly greater role in the world of sports and entertainment. We believe that we have a number of outstanding opportunities ahead of us here in Turkey. We have a vision ? to bring together IMG?s global reach and proven expertise in high profile sporting events, stadia management, fashion events and media rights, with the impressive reach of one of Turkey?s most successful conglomerates, Dogus, Group."

Adds Dogus Holding chairman S,ahenk, "As part of this joint venture agreement we signed with IMG, we aim to establish a fully equipped sports school with a professional team, in order to raise world class athletes. Thanks to our venture with IMG, we are setting our sights on forming a brand-new structure, where young athletes coming from all over Turkey will be trained and raised as world-class athletes. The athletes will be able to compete and successfully represent Turkey in the global arena. The athletic training will be accompanied with foreign language and academic education."