By Paul Nicholson
January 19 – With FIFA election candidates lobbying for votes and a flamethrower as entertainment for the assembled, the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) focused on its own football activity at the weekend, for the first time holding a ‘public’ draw ceremony for the 2016 CFU Men’s Caribbean Cup in Antigua.
January 15 – The first official Futsal coaching badge in north America has been announced at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) conference in Baltimore this week. The NSCAA Diploma for futsal will be created with the co-operation of U.S. Futsal.
By Paul Nicholson
January 15 – The number of emergency gatherings of football federation chiefs is growing with CONCACAF confirming its own Extraordinary Congress for February 25 in Zurich, the day before its members attend FIFA’s own Extraordinary event to elect a new president.
By Ben Nicholson
January 15 – Louisville FC, which plays in the US third tier USL, is signalling MLS ambition by commissioning planning firm Conventions, Sports & Leisure International to perform a feasibility study for the construction of a football-specific stadium.
By Ben Nicholson
January 14 – MLS club FC Dallas has announced that it has agreed to a two-year affiliation with USL club Oklahoma City Energy FC.
By Andrew Warshaw
January 14 – Former FIFA vice-president Alfredo Hawit has pleaded not guilty in a Brooklyn court just hours after being the latest suspect extradited to the United States to face charges relating to FIFA’s multi-million dollar bribery scandal.
By Ben Nicholson
January 16 – New MLS franchise LAFC – rising from the ashes of the terminated Chivas USA franchise – has unveiled two new club owners, the club’s logo and colours which will be black and gold, with a splash of red.
By Paul Nicholson
January 11 – CONCACAF have issued a request for proposals to agencies to represent their worldwide sponsorship rights. The new agency will take over from disgraced Traffic Sports who held the contract exclusively but whose executives have been at the forefront of paying bribes and kickbacks in the region to secure commercial rights.
January 8 – The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) has announced a preliminary list of 145 players entered into the 2016 NWSL College Draft. Clubs will make their picks on January 15 at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention in Baltimore.
By Paul Nicholson
January 7 – Delegates heading to the world’s largest coaching event – the NSCAA Convention – in Baltimore next week, will be able to experience the US Club Soccer organisation’s latest hook-up with LaLiga as they demonstrate the technical resource that has been added as part of the Players First initiative.
By Andrew Warshaw
January 7 – One month after being arrested as part of the new wave of US justice department indictments in the FIFA corruption scandal, former FIFA vice-president Alfredo Hawit has agreed to his extradition from Switzerland.
By Ben Nicholson
January 6 – The United Soccer League (USL) has terminated the Adirondack Sport’s Club’s ownership of Rochester Rhinos FC for failing to meet league standards. Issues about external and internal operational issues over the past several months led to the decision.
By Paul Nicholson
January 6 – Guyanese Mark Rodrigues is the first candidate to declare he will run for the presidency of the North and Central American and the Caribbean confederation in elections expected to take place May 12 in Mexico City.
By Ben Nicholson
December 30 – Oklahoma City Energy FC is adding to its USL (United Soccer League) franchise with a PDL team (Premier Development League). The PDL is an amateur league tailored mostly for players under the age of 23 that attracts college players during their university’s off-season.
By Paul Nicholson
December 29 – The confederation that can’t seem to put a governance foot in the right direction is now being accused by its own federations of breaking its own statutes by not appointing an interim president.