Salernitana make their point but remain bottom of Serie A
February 15 – Italian football’s appeals court has overturned a Serie A decision to penalise Salernitana for failing to travel to Udinese for a league fixture on December 21.
Europe
Pochettino backs Messi to star in PSG vs Real Madrid Champions league clash
February 15 – Paris St Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino has backed Lionel Messi to come good against Real Madrid in tonight’s mouth-watering Champions League last-16 first leg despite an underwhelming domestic campaign.
Eriksen edges closer to full return with key Newcastle match the target
February 15 – Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen marked his 30th birthday with a first appearance since his cardiac arrest at last summer’s Euros, playing 60 minutes for his new club Brentford in behind-closed-doors friendly against fifth-tier club Southend United.
UEFA in 30,000 free ticket give-away for fans whose clubs make 2022 major finals
February 14 – With the Super Bowl’s cheapest tickets priced at an eye-watering $7,500 for last night’s NFL showpiece, UEFA has moved in the opposite ticket price direction, announcing it will be making available a chunk of free tickets to club fans in its finals this season.
UEFA backs refs to clamp down on faking, and tells players to show more respect
February 14 – UEFA has issued a strong message to its referees to clamp down on simulation ahead of the Champions League knockout stages which start this week.
Irish launch new strategy to shake off €60m debt and old toxic image
February 14 – The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) have vowed to rebrand and lift the image of the debt-ridden organisation with a new logo and identity as part of a new strategic plan.
Poyet tasked with rebuilding Greek national team after Qatar 2022 qualification failure
February 14 – Gus Poyet has become the new manager of Greece’s national team after the country’s failure to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar.
Al-Khelaifi heralds new dawn of ECA/UEFA relations and the ‘tectonic shift’ of the TEAM deal
By Paul Nicholson
February 10 – European Club Association (ECA) chair Nasser Al-Khelaifi (pictured) has written to the 240+ members saying that the new three-year commercial deal agreed with TEAM Marketing and Relevent Sports Group is a watershed moment for the association.
Belgian clubs report combined €139m loss
February 10 – Belgium’s 26 professional clubs registered total record losses of €139 million last year (2020-21 season), the bulk of it a result of the coronavirus crisis.
Italy targets Euro 2032 hosting as embarks on stadium modernisation
February 9 – European champions Italy have indicated their interest in staging Euro 2032 and have informed UEFA accordingly.
UEFA to keep watching brief over Albanian FA elections
February 9 – In an unusual move, UEFA are sending a delegation to Albania to monitor the electoral process of the Albanian FA before clubs vote on a new president next month.
Barca CEO Reverter to quit mid-rebuild
February 9 – FC Barcelona CEO Ferran Reverter has resigned after less than a year in the role “for personal and family reasons”, with the club in the crucial stages of agreeing a major sponsorship deal with streaming service Spotify.
Greeks to crack down on violence after Aris fan murdered
February 9 – Greece is to clamp down on fan violence following the killing of a 19-year-old fan in what was believed to be an attack by rival supporters.
Spotify’s €280m deal would be music to Barca’s ears
February 8 – Financially challenged Barcelona are reportedly on the verge of agreeing a €280 million shirt and training kit deal with streaming service Spotify.
TEAM retains global rights to UEFA’s Champions League but US media goes to Relevent
February 8 – TEAM Marketing has retained the rights to the UEFA men’s Champions League for the rights cycle 2024-27, but has ceded media sales rights to Relevent Sports Group in the US.