By Ben Nicholson
June 13 – Popular online game ‘World of Tanks’ is introducing a feature that pays homage to the FIFA World Cup. The game throws us some interesting geo-political possibilities and puts real world and national feuding on to an intriguing new level.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
June 12 – Otelul Galati has announced plans to find a new investor who can put the Romanian club’s finances into order. But with its owner Dan Adamescu, who is said to be the second-richest Romanian, recently arrested over charges of bribery, the club could have difficulties in finding a suitable partner.
By Andrew Warshaw
June 13 – UEFA have been forced to backtrack over their home-grown player demands following pressure from the international players’ union, FIFpro.
By Andrew Warshaw in Sao Paulo
June 13 – UEFA chief Michel Platini may not yet have made up his mind whether to take on Sepp Blatter for the FIFA presidency next year but even if he doesn’t, he will certainly not support the 78-year-old Swiss. Blatter made it clear at this week’s FIFA congress that he intends to stand for a fifth term but if he goes ahead, he won’t be able to count on Platini’s backing.
By Mark Baber
June 12 – The South African Football Association (SAFA) agreed Wednesday to provide six-monthly progress reports on its financial affairs to the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee after worries over worries over debts amounting to a reported R100 million ($9.4 million).
By Andrew Warshaw in St Paulo
June 12 – Michael Garcia, the American lawyer who has become the central figure in the entire debate into corruption allegations swirling around FIFA, says he has left no stone unturned in his two-year probe to weed out any wrongdoing in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bid process.
By Andrew Warshaw in Sao Paulo
June 12 – World Cup, what World Cup? Usually on the eve of the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet, colourful bunting is everywhere to be seen, flags fly proudly, there are welcoming smiles and horns blast away patriotically.
By Andrew Warshaw in Sao Paulo
June 12 – Twenty-four hours after being bluntly taken to task by UEFA for changing his mind over staying on as FIFA president and told he was largely responsible for the organisation’s tarnished image, Sepp Blatter, not for the first time, was the one to show his teeth.
By Ben Nicholson
June 12 – The prospect of a Miami Beckham United gracing the MLS stumbled again after their plan B soccer stadium proposal has been shot down.
By Andrew Warshaw in Sao Paulo
June 12 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s attempts to forge a lasting agreement between Palestine and Israel, one of his most pressing priorities, had to be put on the backburner today when there was insufficient goodwill to sign a Memorandum of Understanding that would have sent out a strong message that progress had been made.
By Andrew Warshaw in Sao Paulo
June 11 – Sepp Blatter opened the formal part of the FIFA Congress today by tellingly pledging the organisation would continue to “lead by example” despite persistent allegations of corruption that came to head 24 hours earlier when he was asked to step down by European members.
By Alexander Krassimirov
June 11 – Portugal’s Sporting Lisbon is poised to file a legal claim against Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia for the amount of €31 million. The dispute centres around the Portuguese claim that Levski have illegally signed Bulgarian striker Valeri Bojinov.
June 11 – Allegations have been made by supporters of Chivas USA that they were subjected to racist abuse by LA Galaxy fans during their MLS game last week.
By Mark Baber
June 11 – Thailand’s Supreme Administrative Court, this morning, ruled in favour of RS Plc, a pay tv broadcast rights holder for the tournament, in a legal dispute with the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
June 11 – The European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL) website has launched a live transfer-window countdown for all of its member leagues. Each league has its own countdown bar, detailing the days, hours, minutes and seconds until the window ceremoniously slams shut.