Prosecutors seek 4-year doping ban for Pogba
December 8 – Anti-doping prosecutors in Italy have requested a maximum four-year ban for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba after the French 2018 World Cup winner tested positive for testosterone.
Europe
ECA rival UEC gets membership boost with 34 English clubs joining via Fair Game partnership
December 12 – The Union of European Clubs (UEC) has received a membership boost after 34 clubs from England and Wales joined following a partnership with Fair Game, the union announced on Friday.
Matic tells youth to steer clear of Red Star and Partizan, the ‘viruses’ of Serbian football
December 8 – Former Serbian Manchester United star Nemanja Matic (pictured) has launched another attack on Serbian football, its president Dragan Džajić, and the country’s biggest clubs – Red Star Belgrade and Partizan Belgrade – who he calls the “viruses” of Serbian football.
Bulgaria’s FC Hebar appeals to fans for cash to pay player wages after municipality ends its support
December 7 – Bulgarian side FC Hebar Pazardzhik is asking his fans and local companies for financial support to keep the club going after the Municipality of Pazardzhik pulled its funding.
Marseilles vs Lyon re-match played without incident, and travelling fans
December 7 – Just four days after the death of a Nantes fan that marked a new low in a French season marred by violence, a rescheduled game between Marseille and Lyon took place on Wednesday with no trouble.
UEFA launches women’s health expert panel with surge in ACL injuries their first focus
December 7 – UEFA has introduced a women’s health expert panel with the goal of gaining a deeper understanding of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and their alarming occurrence in the women’s game.
UEFA breaks new ground with multi-brand Euro 2024 sponsorship with Unilever
December 6 – UEFA has secured a first-time partnership with FMCG giant Unilever with sponsorship activation during Euro 2024 for its personal care and nutrition brands.
Tebas secures fourth term as president of LaLiga
December 6 – Controversial Spanish league boss Javier Tebas is back in power after being re-elected for a fourth term.
Dutch double in added time kills off England and Team GB dreams of Olympic qualifying
December 6 – The Netherlands clinched the top spot in Group 1 of the UEFA Women’s Nations League with a 4-0 victory against Belgium on a night of added time goals and passion that saw England’s 6-0 thrashing of Scotland not being enough to take the European Champions and World Cup finalists through to the final four.
Sevilla shareholders agree €300m stadium expansion
December 6 – La Liga’s Sevilla have unveiled plans for a large-scale development of their Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium.
Adidas chip in with high tech Euro 2024 ball to speed up ref decision-making
December 6 – The ball being used at Euro 2024 will help produce faster offside and handball decisions, a welcome development after so many controversial calls in recent months.
French sports minister says football violence must end as part of a global response
December 5 – France’s sports minister has called for “a global and extraordinarily determined response” to violence in football after the death of a Nantes supporter over the weekend.
UEFA releases detail of expanded women’s club competition eco-system
December 5 – UEFA has released more detail of its reformatted Women’s Champions League and its new knock-out women’s club competition, both of which will come into effect with the 2025/26 season.
PAOK threatens Greece’s ERT after broadcaster goes dark on them in favour of Olympiakos and Panathinaikos
December 5 – Greece’s PAOK Thessaloniki have sent an angry letter to Greece’s public broadcaster complaining of ERT’s decision not to broadcast live PAOK’s Conference League match against Eintracht Frankfurt on 30 November 2023.
Euro 2024: Battle lines revealed at a fruity championship draw
By Andrew Warshaw
December 4 – Perhaps no group of death as such but plenty to get one’s teeth into. The draw for next summer’s Euro 2024 finals has thrown up some intriguing ties with a couple of heavyweight clashes that are bound to get the pulse racing.