By David Owen
October 26 – Manchester United, the top English football brand still struggling to re-establish its former dominance of the Premier League under Louis van Gaal, its Dutch coach, has named a new chief financial officer with much experience in the betting industry.
October 27 – South Korea’s Chung Mong-Joon has officially pulled out of the race for FIFA presidency as he conceded defeat in the wake of his six-year ban from football as a result of his conduct during the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
By Paul Nicholson
October 27 – CONCACAF and CONMEBOL have moved swiftly to source new marketing partners for the Copa América Centenario 2016 following the announcement that agreement had been reached last week with the US federation to host in the US.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 26 – Europe have got the back-up FIFA presidential candidate they were desperate for, with UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino opting to do Michel Platini’s bidding despite assuring anyone who would listen only 10 days ago that there was no plan B in the race to succeed Sepp Blatter.
October 26 – Pressure is growing on ethics investigators to take action against German organisers of the 2006 World Cup after allegations that a €6.7 million euro slush fund was set up to buy votes ahead of the ballot.
By Mark Baber
October 26 – The University College of Football Business (UCFB) has announced that it is setting up a new campus at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, adding to its existing facilities at Wembley Stadium and Turf Moor.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 26 – Seizing his chance now that his own previous preference, Michel Platini, could be ruled out of the running, Asian football supremo Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa has formally entered the race to become FIFA president.
October 26 – US Club Soccer has named Fit for 90 as its Official Player Monitoring System, integrating it into its Players First platform that is designed to give players an improved club experience.
By Paul Nicholson
October 26 – After a week of clearing out existing sports agencies, the 2016 Copa America Centenario will take place in the US with the US federation effectively taking central control of the tournament from marketing rights to ground selection.
By Ben Nicholson
October 26 – As the date nears for companies to present their electronic performance and tracking systems to IFAB and FIFA, Insideworldfootball has spoken to wearable technology market pioneers Catapult about how far the technology can inform decision-making, including in-game, how it can be used generally, and what FIFA/IFAB are looking for.
By David Owen
October 26 – Spain’s La Liga is expected soon to start the process of selling domestic broadcasting rights for the next three seasons, in a move it hopes will drive up value by some 50% from the €600 million realised for 2015-16. El País, the much-respected newspaper, has suggested that an auction of these rights for the 2016-17 to 2018-19 period is likely before the end of the year. Spain moved recently to the same collective selling model as that utilised by other leading European football leagues.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 26 – Tokyo Sexwale, the South African former political prisoner turned successful businessman, has finally confirmed he is standing for FIFA president and will prove a popular choice among those who have been campaigning for an independent candidate untarnished by footballing corruption.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 26 – European football chiefs hold last-ditch talks on Monday aimed at averting the risk being left in the political wilderness for years.
October 23 – International players’ union FIFPro has published a checklist which it says all contenders for the job of FIFA president should meet, notably “social wellbeing, fairness, democratic values and human rights.”
By Mark Baber
October 23 – Dark hints that forces behind the scenes will ensure Real Madrid win this season’s La Liga were given a considerable boost on Thursday as a referee’s assistant, who wishes to remain anonymous, claimed he had been pressurised to favour Los Blancos if he was picked to officiate in the forthcoming El Clasico.