UEFA stadia sanctions hit Olympiakos and Zenit for next round of CL
December 18 – Champions League knockout stage qualifiers Olympiakos and Zenit St Petersburg have both paid the penalty for racist behaviour by their respective fans.
Europe
New Global Player mag launches with promise of more to come
December 18 – The Global Player, a new magazine, was published this week by the International Football Arena (IFA) and is as eclectic and elegant in its look and feel as the IFA conferences are themselves. Originally planned as a one-off to celebrate 15 years of IFA in Zurich, the magazine will now be published regularly, though the commitment to the publishing schedule is to be announced.
Oldham sack ‘failed’ spotfixer Montano for gross misconduct
By Andrew Warshaw
December 18 – One of the players at the centre of the English spotfixing scandal has been sacked by his club on the grounds of gross misconduct.
Spanish clubs face meltdown if EU finds tax grants were illegal
By Andrew Warshaw
December 17 – Seven Spanish clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona, could be investigated for allegedly obtaining illegal state aid or loans in breach of European Union regulations.
Gattuso arrested as Italian match-fixing clean-up digs deeper into Serie A
December 17 – Former AC Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso, one of the most iconic figures in Italian football, is reportedly being investigated for match-fixing.
Fast-build Twitter account scams target World Cup and CL draws
By Tom Parsons
December 17 – Twitter accounts predicting the outcomes of several high-profile football draws, leading some to conclude that those in charge of the draws are corrupt, have turned out to be a scam to build twitter audiences for these newly created and so-called ‘ITK’ (in the know) accounts.
Portuguese, Polish investors eye Lechia Gdansk
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
December 17 – The majority shareholder of Lechia Gdansk, currently playing in the Ekstraklasa, is planning to sell its stake in the Polish football club.
Battle of the big guns: CL draw lines up high flyers and higher spenders
December 16 – Big-spending Manchester City’s reward for reaching the knockout stage of the Champions League for the first time is a mouth-watering clash with four-time winners Barcelona, while holders Bayern Munich face Arsenal for the second year in a row in the other big tie of the last 16 following today’s draw.
Valencia on the sales block as Sevilla seek new president
December 13 – Valencia, struggling with €300 million of debt, has run into further trouble with Bankia, who holds most of the debt, saying there will no refinancing available for the club.
Zenit condemns fans after another night of Champions League turmoil
December 13 – Zenit St Petersburg have admitted their Champions League fixture against Austria Vienna this week was almost called off because of their fans. The Macedonian referee had to stop play for several minutes in the first half of Zenit’s 4-1 defeat when a number of flares were thrown from the visiting Russian supporters.
Levski Sofia stadium build put on hold as money drys up
By Alexander Krassimirov
December 13 – Bulgarian club Levski Sofia has put the reconstruction of its Georgi Asparuhov stadium on hold which new money is sought to complete the build.
Welsh look to future and declare hosting ambitions
By Andrew Warshaw
December 13 – Wales could be a surprise bidder for the 2026 World Cup in partnership with England and/or other British federations. Cardiff has already been selected to host next year’s UEFA Super Cup, only the second time it has not been staged in Monaco, and Wales First Minister Carwyn Jones said his country was keen to use the opportunity to further its credentials.
UEFA sees yellow and calls on IFAB to ease the ‘triple’ troubles
By Andrew Warshaw
December 13 – UEFA wants football’s lawmakers to scrap the so-called “triple punishment” rule that many in the game feel is too draconian.
UEFA proposes 11-point plan for match-fixing sanctions
By Andrew Warshaw
December 13 – UEFA have responded to the latest wave of match-fixing by drawing up an 11-point plan which they hope will be applied by all 54 member federations. The draft plan, which calls on the membership to agree to the same sanctions on a consistent basis, will be put before the UEFA Congress in Kazakhstan next March for approval.
Barca rule out full naming rights deal as Intel signs on as tech sponsor
December 12 – With Barcelona considering their options on whether to revamp the Nou Camp or move to a new site and build on land owned by the University of Barcelona, the club has landed US IT company Intel as a new sponsor.