By Richard van Poortvliet
March 20 – Despite their excellent 2-1 win at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, Zenit St Petersburg are likely to be in hot water with UEFA once again, following the behaviour of their fans in the second leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie in Germany.
By Richard van Poortvliet
March 20 – Legally or illegally, the biggest country in the world has just got a little bigger, with Crimea set to become part of the Russian Federation. While a lot has been made of the political ramifications, spare a thought for two football clubs from the peninsula, who ply their trade in the Ukrainian Premier League.
March 20 – FIFA is being urged by Amnesty International not to downplay the mistreatment of construction workers’ on Qatar’s 2022 World Cup sites when football’s world governing body hears an update on the issue at its executive committee meeting today and tomorrow.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 20 – The international players’ union FIFPro has again called on FIFA to reform the international transfer system which, it says, is failing the game and badly need to be addressed.
March 20 – Australian-born Croatian international Josip Simunic will definitely miss the World Cup after losing his appeal against a 10-match ban imposed by FIFA for discriminatory behaviour.
March 19 – The takeover of iconic English club Leeds United by controversial Italian entrepreneur Massimo Cellino has still not been approved with fans now braced for a period of uncertainty.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 19 – A key meeting of FIFA’s executive committee (exco) opens on Thursday with the latest on Brazil’s troubled World Cup preparations high on the agenda along with the thorny issues of Israeli-Palestine relations and workers’ rights in Qatar.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
March 19 – With Widzew Lodz eyeing a new stadium, the municipal authorities of Lodz have launched a tender to build a new sports facility which is designed to revamp the troubled Polish football club and boost match attendance.
March 19 – Two English players have had life bans extended worldwide by FIFA for fixing matches in Australia’s second-tier Victorian Premier League.
By Andrew Warshaw and Paul Nicholson
March 19 – Disgraced former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner has dismissed the latest corruption allegations against him as “foolishness” and says there is a “witch hunt” against 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.
March 18 – The ownership of English Premier League Hull City has been plunged into doubt after the Football Association announced it had been advised to reject plans to change the club’s name to Hull Tigers.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 18 – Qatar’s winning 2022 World Cup bid has been plunged into renewed controversy – just when FIFA are about to be given an update about the treatment of migrant workers employed on its stadium projects.
March 18 – The digital media revolution continues to reshape the sports advertising and sponsorship landscape with more targeted advertising opportunities at matches for the global broadcast audiences. La Liga is the latest of Europe’s big leagues to embrace the technology available with an extension of its deal with digital billboard replacement specialist Supponor via sports advertising agency Umedia.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
March 18 – The man who has been running Asian football for just under a year faces a revolt from within his own Confederation amid accusations of trying to increase his power base by unconstitutionally changing the statutes.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
March 18 – A group of investors from Qatar is considering to invest in Ruch Chorzow. The club could be the first in Poland with an owner from the Middle East.