By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent, in Dubai
April 8 – Against the backdrop of one of the world’s most famous racecourses, Asian Football Confederation presidential candidate Yousuf Al Serkal surged out of the blocks today and declared himself the best man to restore unity and transparency to the troubled region.
April 8 – PepsiCo, has entered into a one-year partnership with the Asian Football Development Project (AFDP) under the theme ‘Kick for Hope’ which will focus on India and 11 countries in the Middle East including the UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen.
April 8 – Manchester United shirt sponsor Aon, has swapped match day sponsorship for training kit and the naming rights to the Carrington training ground in an estimated £120m ($183.6m), 8 year deal.
CONCACAF is voting again. Chuck Blazer, a US citizen, is stepping down to be succeeded by Sunil Gulati, a US citizen, who will be promoted to FIFA’s Executive Committee. Meanwhile, the tiniest of Caribbean islands that make up the majority of the CFU, are following orders as usual. This time, not those of the much maligned Jack Warner, but those of a dubious and FIFA-reprimanded figure, Gordon Derrick, victorious in a somewhat weird election to the helm of the CFU in Budapest last year (held in parallel to the FIFA Congress),
By Mark Baber
April 5 – The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday finally lifted sanctions on Colombian professional team America de Cali, saying it has severed links to leaders of the Cali drug cartel.
By Mark Baber
April 5 – Whilst a football match last weekend between Bollywood AllStars and Cricket AllStars, won 4-3 by the cricketers raised money the Virat Kohli Charity Foundation, the involvement of the Bollywood superstars in popularising the game in India seems to be far more talk than action.
April 5 – The speaker line up for the FT/IFA is taking shape with FIFA president Sepp Blatter to give the keynote and British Airways chairman Sir Martin Broughton headlining.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 5 – Supporters of Bahrain’s Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa insist he is emerging as the favourite to win the race to become the next President of the Asian Football Confederation.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 5 – Three Lebanese officials who were suddenly pulled out of an Asian Football Confederation cup game in Singapore have been charged over allegations of receiving sexual bribes in exchange for match-fixing, according to the country’s anti-corruption unit which acted on a tip-off.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 5 – Leading Egyptian club Zamalek have been fined for allowing fans into their stadium to watch a league game, defying security orders that all matches be played in empty stadiums, a stipulation put in place in order for football to resume following last year’s Port Said disaster.
By Tom Parsons
April 5 – The English Premier League may lead the world in TV sales and as a commercially driven league, but its clubs have been slower to embrace the opportunities of new technologies to connect and communicate with fans, particularly with in-stadia experiences.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
April 4 – FIFA’s reform process has been “haunted by the past”, according to Sylvia Schenk, senior advisor for sports for the anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International, which produced an eight-page report in 2011 that was used as basis for FIFA’s subsequent and ongoing clean-up campaign.
By Tom Parsons
April 4 – Real Madrid will have to wait longer for the EU decision on whether they received illegal state aid surrounding property deals, a decision that could have wider consequences for other clubs in Europe.
By Mark Baber
April 4 – Congressman Romario has been stepping up his attacks on Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Jose Maria Marin (pictured) over his alleged links to the country’s former military dictatorship.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 4 – Controversial England midfielder Joey Barton, currently playing for Marseille, is in trouble again after arch-rivals Paris St Germain threatened action against him for likening PSG’s Brazilian defender Thiago Silva to a transsexual on his Twitter account.