By Mark Baber
September 23 – In an encouraging move for Indian football, telecoms giant Airtel signed up as title sponsor of the 2013-14 edition of the I-League, just hours before the 13-team league kicked off on Saturday.
By Mark Baber
September 20 – Japan’s J-League will be returning a two-stage season in 2015, according to an official statement, in a bid to increase interest from fans and sponsors which has been in decline since 2008. The move has met opposition from core supporters who have demonstrated outside the Japan Football Association’s Headquarters as well as at recent games.
By Andrew Warshaw
September 19 – Dan Tan, the elusive and notorious match-fixer who is on almost every football crime-busting wanted list, is understood to be among at least 12 people arrested following a breakthrough operation by Singapore authorities.
By Mark Baber
September 18 – Current UAE Champions, Al Ain Football Club has unveiled Abu Dhabi Airports as a premium partner of the club. The three-year agreement, which is reported to be the first major foray into sponsorship by the club, will see the logo of the Abu Dhabi Airports on the back of player jerseys, including star players Asamoah Gyan and Omar Abdul Rahman.
By Andrew Warshaw
September 17 – Six people have been charged in relation to Australia’s biggest match-fixing scandal, prompting FIFA’s former anti-corruption specialist to call for greater global co-operation.
By Andrew Warshaw and Paul Nicholson
September 17 – The head of Australia’s failed 2022 World Cup bid says FIFA should pay compensation to his federation – and to the other losing candidates – if the tournament in Qatar is switched to the northern hemisphere winter. Football Federation Australia (FFA) chairman Frank Lowy says FIFA risks making a bad situation worse if it decides too hastily to move the tournament.
By Andrew Warshaw
September 16 – Football’s most notorious match-fixer is believed to have played a prominent role in Australia’s biggest scandal of its kind where police arrested 10 people at the weekend.
September 12 – Jordan are the latest team to stake a surprise claim for a first ever place in next year’s World Cup in Brazil after winning a dramatic penalty shootout in their Asian play-off in Uzbekistan.
By Andrew Warshaw
September 12 – Afghan fans are celebrating their war-torn country making football history following a 2-0 win over India on Wednesday that clinched the South Asian Football Federation Championship.
By Paul Nicholson
September 11 – The ASPIRE4SPORT Congress and Exhibition is expected more than 3,000 attendees and is already close to beating last year’s exhibitor numbers. Taking place November 16-19 at the Aspire Dome in Doha, the organisers are reporting a diverse set of registrants spanning geographies and business disciplines looking to tap into expanding sports business sectors including construction, sports medicine and sports technology.
By Mark Baber
September 4 – Just days before the start of the new season, one of the I-League’s two new inductees, the Mumbai Tigers, has informed the Indian Football Federation (AIFF) that it is withdrawing from this season’s competition.
By Mark Baber
September 2 – The Oman Football Association (OFA) is to launch its first professional league, the Omantel Professional League (OPL), the with new league starting with the new season on September 13.
August 30 – The All India Football Federation (AIFF) President, Praful Patel, has said that the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will be the sponsor of the Indian national team for the next season.
By Mark Baber
August 30 – The All India Football Federation (AIFF) have disbanded the Pailan Arrows, a Kolkota-based I-League club set up in 2010 to nurture young Indian talent for the 2018 World Cup.
August 30 – Football Federation Australia (FFA) has granted in-principle approval for a new domestic cup competition, based on the model of the English FA Cup and including amateur, semi-professional and top flight teams.