By Paul Nicholson
July 25 – The first leading British politician to call for Russia to be stripped of the hosting rights to the 2018 World Cup, following the downing of the Malaysian airliner in the Ukraine, was made by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg (pictured) yesterday and, perhaps not surprisingly, it was in an interview with Rupert Murdoch’s Sunday Times newspaper.
By Alexander Krassimirov
July 28 – Bulgarian Lev Ins AD Insurance Company is the new lead sponsor of top tier club Levski Sofia. The contract between the two parties was signed on Friday, but the curious thing is that it is for just six months – until the end of the calendar year.
July 25 – UEFA has asked the Russian Football Union to provide documents on the licensing procedure of Russian Premier League FC Rostov. The club has qualified for this season’s Europa League.
July 25 – An agreement to build the first Cruyff Court, a small football pitch with artificial turf, in Leoni-Via dei Mille has been signed in Como. Called ‘Cruyff Court Stefano Borgonovo’, it is planned to showcase the goals and objectives of the two foundations: the Johan Cruyff Foundation and the Stefano Borgonovo Foundation.
July 25 – The row over the alleged racist incident that caused Patrick Viera to withdraw his Manchester City under-21 side during a match against HNK Rijeka has now prompted the Croatian Football Federation to start an investigation.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 24 – Dutch football authorities (KNVB) say it is far too early to discuss whether the country will take part in the 2018 World Cup in the wake of the Malaysian Airlines flight that was almost certainly shot down by Russian separatists over eastern Ukraine, killing everyone on board including 193 Dutch nationals.
July 24 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has agreed to open the latest Soccerex football business conference in Manchester in September, an appearance that is bound to generate significant interest in the wake of English FA chairman Greg Dyke’s anti-Blatter comments earlier this week.
July 24 – Croatian club HNK Rijeka have hit back strongly at Manchester City’s decision to take their players off the field because of alleged racism in an under-21 fixture in Novigrad on Tuesday.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
July 24 – Polish football clubs Jagiellonia Bialystok and Lechia Gdansk have signed deals with new technical sponsors. In the 2014/2015 season, Lechia’s squad will appear in kits provided by Germany’s Saller, which will replace Adidas, and Jagiellonia will switch from US brand Under Armour to Italian brand Errea.
July 23 – Big-spending Paris Saint-German have been ordered by UEFA to close part of their stadium as punishment for their supporters’ abuse of disabled Chelsea fans during a Champions League quarterfinal match in April. UEFA said that it had ordered a one-match closure of two parts of the Parc des Princes, “for the discriminatory conduct” of some of the French club’s supporters.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
July 23 – Croatia’s HNK Rijeka has unveiled the design of its new stadium, with works on the 14,000-seat facility expected to begin by the end of 2014, with completion of the new Kantrida stadium in 2016.
July 23 – English Premier League champions Manchester City took their players off the pitch during an Elite Development Squad U21 fixture against Croatian side HNK Rijeka because of an alleged incident of racism against one of them.
July 22 – The Danish Football Association (DBU) has backed FC Copenhagen’s bid to move their Champions League qualifier at Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk later this month to a neutral venue following the Malaysia Airlines crash over territory controlled by pro-Russian separatists.
By Paul Nicholson
July 21 – The Ukrainian national championship is still scheduled to start this week (July 25), despite fears over national security following the downing of Malaysian Airlines MH17 and the loss of 295 lives. Several international players have refused to return to the Ukraine with their clubs.
By Mark Baber
July 19 – UEFA has taken the decision to keep teams from Russia and Ukraine apart in European competition but are allowing the Ukrainian teams to play home games despite fears over the security situation in the country.