By Andrew Warshaw
June 4 – While considerable focus is on the FIFA Congress in Sao Paulo next week, the executive committee agenda which precedes it this coming weekend could be just as appetising, containing a number of highly significant items that have dominated the political landscape in recent months.
June 4 – Spanish tax authorities have re-opened the Neymar tax case by claiming Barcelona have evaded a payment of €9.2 million in the signing of Brazilian World Cup superstar.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
June 4 – Czech football association FACR has signed a sponsorship deal with betting operator Synot which will replace the Gambrinus beer brand as the title sponsor of the country’s top tier league.
By Mark Baber
June 3 – Official World Cup sponsor Hyundai, who recently extended their deal with FIFA up to 2022 is rolling out advertising campaigns focused largely on brand-loyalty and the passion of fans for football and their cars. So far it has avoided of the major faux-pas of recent campaigns.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
June 3 – UEFA chief Michel Platini rejected a request by Mohamed bin Hammam to take on Sepp Blatter in 2011 for the presidency of FIFA, INSIDEworldfootball has learned. High-ranking UEFA sources have confirmed that Platini held “a number of informal discussions” with bin Hammam shortly before the December 2010, vote for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups but that these were solely about the presidency and nothing to do,
By David Owen
June 3 – Real Madrid appear to have taken a leaf out of French rugby club Stade Français’s marketing handbook, introducing a pink change strip for the 2014-15 season.
June 3- A investigative report by FIFA has found that at least five international friendlies in South Africa just before the 2010 World Cup were fixed, according to the New York Times.
By Tom Parsons
June 3 – It’s the end of the season and dreams have either come true or been broken, leaving football fans wanting for more from the football club’s they support. With ‘silly season’ approaching and transfer rumours spreading it’s not always easy for the football teams to generate relevant content on social media for their fans. Arsenal and Manchester City however have excited fans by recreating some of their biggest moments in history on their Twitter feeds.
By Andrew Warshaw
June 3 – Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness, whose fall from grace as one of European club football’s most influential administrators has been well chronicled, has begun serving his three years and six months jail sentence for tax evasion.
By Alexander Krassimirov
June 3 – After its failed attempt at becoming a publicly-owned company on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange, CSKA Sofia looks to have dragged itself away from the possibility of bankruptcy with the appointment of one of Bulgaria’s biggest businessmen, Petar Mandjukov (pictured), to the board.
By Andrew Warshaw
June 2 – The anti-corruption investigation into the entire bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups will be completed three days before the start of the World Cup – but it will take “approximately” another six weeks before the findings are submitted and probably even longer for any sanctions to be announced.
By Mark Baber
June 2 – Palestine’s national football team won their first ever international trophy on Friday – lifting the Asia Challenge Cup in the Maldives after defeating the Philippines 1-0. The win secures a place in next year’s AFC Asia Cup to be held in Australia and underlines the urgency of FIFA efforts to ensure an accommodation is reached between Israel and Palestine in order to allow Palestinian football to be played,
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A year after its re-launch and after a successful liaison with our Chinese partners at NetEase, our daily publication for the business and the politics of football – not to mention our dedication to fight racism not only in football – InsideWorldFootball.com (IWF) has taken another step towards strengthening its position in the international marketplace.
June 2 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter has re-iterated that he will only stand for re-election if he gets a strong enough feeling that this is the wish of the majority of the 209-strong membership at the organisation’s forthcoming congress.
June 2 – One of Brazilian football legend Pele’s seven children has been sentenced to 33 years in prison for laundering money for drug traffickers. Edson Cholbi Nascimento, known as Edinho, denies the charges, which date from 2005, and will reportedly be allowed to remain free pending appeal.