Sterling’s former agent Aidy Ward accused of tapping up under-age players
September 20 – One of Britain’s leading football agents allegedly broke the rules by signing underage players, according to a BBC television programme.
Europe
Grieving Greavsie: Spurs and England mourn death of a football legend
By Andrew Warshaw
September 20 – The football world is paying tribute to former England striker Jimmy Greaves, one of the game’s greatest goal scorers and personalities who has died aged 81.
Barca debt tops €1.35bn driven by out-of-control player wages. Laporta puts focus on youth
September 17 – Barcelona’s president has painted a grim picture of the full extent of the club’s financial crisis, saying its debt had risen to an eye-watering €1.35 billion.
Napoli boss De Laurentiis wants a €10bn Super League built on merit
By Samindra Kunti
September 16 – Controversial Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis tends to dream big. His latest big idea a shake-up of the European game via an alternative ‘Super League’ with entry based on merit and which he believes could generate a €10 billion investment.
Chelsea open Champions League defence. Can Europe’s clubs compete with the English?
By Samindra Kunti
September 14 – Chelsea open their defence of the Champions League tonight at home to Zenit St Petersburg, kicking off the European club season in earnest. The question in Europe is whether Chelsea and their English counterparts will also be kickstarting an age of Premier League dominance in the European Cup?
WCL group draw: Barca meet Arsenal, Lyon get Bayern, Chelsea face Juve, PSG draw Real Madrid
September 14 – European champions Barcelona were grouped with Arsenal, Hoffenheim and HB Køge from Denmark in the draw for the remodelled 16-team Women’s Champions League.
Footballers behaving badly: Boateng fined, Mendy court dates set
September 13 – German 2014 World Cup winner Jerome Boateng has been fined for assaulting a former girlfriend, while Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy will go on trial on for rape and sexual assault on January 24 next year.
PSG and LFP return fire on Tebas after branding club as a ’danger’ to European football
By Samindra Kunti
September 9 – Javier Tebas once more is at the centre of the storm. This time Paris Saint-Germain and French Professional League (LFP) have attacked the boss of Spanish football after he branded the state-funded club “as dangerous as the European Super League”.
Van der Sar warns players will walk-off if governing bodies don’t get tougher on racism
By Andrew Warshaw
September 8 – Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar has warned that players will “take matters into their own hands” in the fight against racism if governing bodies don’t do enough to stamp it out.
LaLiga cleared to postpone matches due to South American call-ups, despite FA opposition
September 8 – In a landmark move that could serve as a significant precedent elsewhere in Europe, two of this weekend’s top Spanish league games have been postponed because of players on prolonged international duty with their South American teams.
Sweden cancel winter break training trip to Qatar after club opposition
September 8 – Sweden have cancelled their annual training trip to Qatar next year after “unanimous” opposition from the Swedish top tier clubs.
Super League rehab: Levy, Antonello and Gil join ECA board
September 8 – Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy (pictured) has been voted on to the executive board of the European Club Association, just five months after his club were one of 12 founder members of the aborted breakaway European Super League.
Ceferin says World Cup every two years would ‘dilute’ its value
By Andrew Warshaw
September 7 – The war of words between FIFA and UEFA over the idea of staging the World Cup every two years shows no sign of slowing down with UEFA boss Aleksander Ceferin once again denouncing the concept, this time saying it would “dilute” what makes the tournament so unique.
ECA boss Al-Khelaifi dismisses ESL’s failed trio and sketches plans for club support
September 7 – The head of the European Clubs Association (ECA), Nasser Al-Khelaifi, has called out the three rebel clubs still hopeful of setting up a breakaway Super League and has described those who originally backed the project as “fabulists and failures”.
UEFA re-opens gates to travelling fans for club competitions
September 7 – UEFA has lifted its ban on away fans attending European club matches when the group stage of the Champions League, Europa League and inaugural Conference League get under way next week.