CAF cancels Sierra Leone’s Ghana fixtures throwing AFCON qualification into doubt
October 10 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has cancelled the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations Group ‘F’ double-header between Sierra Leone and Ghana.
News
Fanfoot picks up $150m Brasileiro OTT rights for platform launch in 2019
October 10 – Brazil’s top league, the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, has agreed a $150 million international streaming deal with sports tech startup Fanfoot which will launch its OTT platform in 2019.
Bundesliga launches Player of Month award with fan voting on EA Sports platform
October 10 – Germany’s Bundesliga has joined forces with official licensee EA Sports to launch a new ‘Player of the Month’ award. Fans will vote for their player of the month on the EA Sports FIFA 19 website (bundesligapotm.easports.com).
Stadium issues force Penn FC out of USL, but club granted 2020 slot for third tier
October 10 – The USL, operator of the second tier of US professional soccer and soon to launch a professional third tier, has granted USL side Penn FC a spot in League 1 for the 2020 season. The club will go dark for the 2019 season and not compete in the USL.
Brazilian football split by politics as big name players lean right as clubs and fans go left
By Samindra Kunti
October 9 – Far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro will face Fernando Haddad in a run-off vote for the Brazilian presidency on October 28 in an election that has been marked by the campaign involvement of a large number of Brazilian footballers.
Dutch and Swiss women have edge in race for Europe’s final France 2019 slot
By Samindra Kunti
October 9 – The Netherlands and Switzerland have taken pole positions to reach next month’s play-off final for the last European qualifying spot for the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France. In the first legs of the play-offs the European champions defeated Denmark 2-0 on home soil while the Swiss came back twice to draw 2-2 in Belgium.
Arsenal earn their big money stripes with new £300m kit deal with Adidas
October 9 – Arsenal have confirmed they are switching from Puma to Adidas for their kit deal from the 2019/20 season in a five-year ageement.
High stakes: UK Betting firms fearing backlash over football ads plot pre-emptive strike
By Paul Nicholson
October 8 – Growing fears within the UK betting business of a hardline approach to regulating how bookmakers market themselves has prompted one leading bookmaker to put in a pre-emptive strike and call for an industry-imposed ban on TV ads before the 9pm watershed.
Blatter talks of sell-outs, sell-offs, back stabbing and a need for government regulation
By Samindra Kunti
October 8 – Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has launched another stinging attack on his successor Gianni Infantino, accusing the latter of “selling out the people’s game,” alluding to Infantino’s expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams and his mysterious $25 billion investment plan.
Real Madrid and Barca head PL and Man Utd in sponsorship ranking; NBA tops table
October 8 – Premier League clubs make up six of the top 20 most commercially valuable sports rights-holders worldwide, but are behind Real Madrid and Barcelona globally, according to the newly launched POWA Index, a real-time sponsorship evaluation engine.
Turki Al-Sheikh’s Pyramids-building in Egypt crumbles as the Saudi pulls his cash
October 8 – Saudi Arabia has aggressively been building a portfolio and presence in football, but in Egypt the kingdom’s efforts to exert influence have backfired as the meddling of Saudi sports minister Turki Al-Sheikh hasn’t been received well by local administrators and fans.
Facebook builds footprint in South America with 4-year Copa Libertadores buy
October 8 – Facebook has expanded its live football output picking up rights to South America’s Copa Libertadores matches in a four-year package from 2019-2022 for its Watch platform.
FIFA suspends Sierra Leone until government reinstates corruption-haunted Johansen to SLFA
By Paul Nicholson
October 8 – FIFA has carried out its threat and suspended the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) with immediate effect. FIFA, which has long been battling for the preservation of the incumbent administration in Sierra Leone led by president Isha Johansen, took its action despite on-going criminal investigations into the leadership.
Premier League presses button on 20-team esports tournament for January start
By Paul Nicholson
October 5 – The English Premier League are entering the esports business with the launch of ePremier League with league partner Electronic Arts. The ePL will be played on the FIFA19 game and operated by esports tournament organisers Gfinity.
Cherries stadium plans on hold, but owner shows no plans to retreat ‘Back in the USSR’
By David Owen
October 5 – AFC Bournemouth, the Russian-controlled south coast minnows who have become an established and increasingly accomplished Premier League force under Eddie Howe, their bright young manager, have put plans for a new stadium on hold.