‘Minor’ fine for Man City for breaking under age transfer rules
August 14 – Don’t mess with FIFA and you might receive less of a punishment for breaking the rules.
Europe
Caged in Croatia: Aberdeen complain to UEFA over fan treatment
August 13 – Aberdeen have complained to UEFA over the treatment of their fans during last week’s Europa League qualifier against Rijeka in Croatia.
Racist fans land Partizan Belgrade with a two-match closed stadium sanction
August 13 – Partizan Belgrade have been slapped with a two-match stadium ban by UEFA who have clearly run out of patience with the racist element of the club’s fans. The Serbian club have been punished because of behaviour of supporters in the first leg of their third qualifying round Europa League win over Yeni Malatyaspor of Turkey.
Battle honours even between Rubiales and Tebas in LaLiga match date war
By Andrew Warshaw
August 12 – The bitter dispute between La Liga and the Spanish FA (RFEF) over which days are eligible for league matches has been resolved with a judge ruling that Fridays are fine but imposing a blanket ban on games being played on Monday nights.
Winds remove section of AZ Alkmaar roof
August 12 – Dutch top-flight side AZ Alkmaar suffered a partial roof collapse at their stadium on Saturday after strong winds hit the country.
Hamburg’s Gambian refugee midfielder accused of false age and identity
August 9 – A Gambian-born midfielder is reported to be playing in Germany with a falsified name and age.
Mane battles Messi and Ronaldo for top Champions League striker gong
August 9 – UEFA has unveiled its shortlist of players for its 2018/19 Champions League positional awards, with five Liverpool players dominating the 12 names that are in contention for the best Goalkeeper, Defender, Midfielder and Forward awards.
Tebas maintains theme of ‘state club’ threat to European football’s market balance
August 7 – His persistence is tiring but the message is enduring. Outspoken La Liga president Javier Tebas is back on the offensive against Manchester City and Paris St Germain once again accusing them of being “state clubs” and a danger to football.
UEFA sanction Craiova after smoke grenade hits ref and match descends into chaos
August 7 – Leading Romanian club Universitatea Craiova have been ordered to play their next two European games behind closed doors after the referee was struck by an exploding object during a Europa League qualifier against Honved of Budapest.
Chemnitzer sack striker Frahn for displaying neo-Nazi ‘sympathy’
August 6 – German third tier side Chemnitzer have sacked their captain Daniel Frahn (pictured) for “openly displaying sympathy” for a neo-Nazi hooligan group.
PSG open with Super Cup win in China; Bayern stumble as Dortmund put down marker
August 5 – Paris-Saint Germain retained the French Super Cup and Borussia Dortmund surprised Bayern Munich 2-0 in the German equivalent as both France and Germany gear up for next week’s big league kick offs.
UEFA appoint first female ref to major club cup final
August 5 – For the first time ever, a female referee will take charge of a senior men’s European showpiece fixture after France’s Stephanie Frappart was appointed by UEFA to handle the Super Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea in Istanbul on August 14.
With China’s walls up, Bale looks set for another season of benchwarming
By Andrew Warshaw
July 30 – Not so long ago he was the world’s most expensive footballer, now Gareth Bale could face the ludicrous situation of sitting on the Real Madrid bench for large chunks of the forthcoming season unless he is somehow snapped up before the summer transfer window closes at various times throughout Europe over the coming weeks.
England to roll-out 10-minute sinbins in grassroots football
July 30 – English football is introducing temporary dismissals, popularly known as sinbins, at grassroots level from the start of the forthcoming season.
Tebas says €2bn TV money jeopardised by RFEF schedule intervention
By Andrew Warshaw
July 29 – A fresh row has broken out between the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and La Liga, who have long had a fraught relationship, this time over playing top-flight games on Fridays and Mondays.