Ribery rant over steak stunt leaves him with a juicy Bayern fine
January 8 – Bayern Munich are to impose a “heavy fine” on former French international Franck Ribery over an obscenity-laced outburst on social media.
Europe
Little club, big friends. Is Basaksehir takeover of the Turkish club hierarchy a political play?
January 3 – It is little surprise that eyebrows are being raised across Europe at the progress of the Istanbul club that are currently six points clear at the top of the Turkish league.
Violent and racist Inter fans hit with stadium ban after Boxing Day mayhem vs Napoli
December 28 – The pre-match violence and racist chanting at the Inter Milan vs Napoli match at the San Siro in Milan on Boxing Day have immediately resulted in a ban on Inter fans attending the club’s next two home games.
Greek Super League games off as officials strike after attack leaves referee in hospital
December 21 – Greek football, which lurches from one crisis to another, is back in the doldrums with all Super League games scheduled for this weekend suspended after referees went on strike following a “cowardly attack” on one of their colleagues outside his house.
PSG bench ‘disrespectful’ Rabiot and say Barca are breaking the transfer rules
December 21 – A fresh player power dispute is making headlines in France where Paris St Germain are refusing to select midfielder Adrien Rabiot for “disrespecting” the club by refusing to sign a new contract.
End of the road? Mutko confirms he will not contest Russian FA presidency
December 20 – After weeks of conjecture about whether he is back in favour, Vitaly Mutko, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister, has finally thrown in the towel at the head of the Russian Football Union (RFU).
Chelsea in more trouble with UEFA after fans keep up their racist tirades
Chelsea are back in the headlines for the conduct of their fans with UEFA confirming it is to investigate the “alleged racist incidents” during the club’s Europa League game at MOL Vidi in Hungary.
UEFA hammer AC Milan with €12m fine and European ban threat for breaking FFP rules
December 14 – As if their misfortunes on the field weren’t enough after being eliminated from the Europa League, AC Milan have been slapped with a massive €12 million fine by UEFA and threatened with a one-season ban from European competition for breaking financial fair play rules.
Glenn quits role as CEO of English FA
December 14 – English football is looking for a new boss after the Football Association announced that Martin Glenn has resigned as CEO after four years at the helm and will leave his role in May next year.
National identity: Basque region votes to apply for UEFA and FIFA recognition
December 13 – Using cases like Gibraltar and Kosovo as precedents, Spain’s Basque region is to request formal recognition from both FIFA and UEFA following a vote by its local assembly.
11 for 8: UEFA names executive committee candidates for Feb election
December 12 – UEFA have announced that 11 candidates, including the female member, are to stand for eight available places on its executive committee when elections take place at UEFA’s annual congress in February.
Barca reject Miami fixture but Tebas says LaLiga is still set on staging a league match in US
By Andrew Warshaw
December 11 – La Liga’s much-publicised – and also much criticised – plans to play a groundbreaking overseas game in Miami in January have been abandoned after Barcelona pulled out of the Catalan derby against Girona due to a “lack of consensus”.
French ‘yellow vest’ protests force postponement of three more Ligue 1 matches
December 7 – Three more top-flight French games this weekend have been postponed amid fears of further violent ‘yellow vest’ protests in France over social inequality and living standards.
Leicester helicopter crash was caused by mechanical failure
December 7 – The helicopter which crashed last month tragically killing Leicester City’s Thai chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha spun out of control because of the failure of the tail rotor mechanism, according to air accident investigators.
Ceferin stands Europe’s stakeholders solidly against FIFA $25bn sell off plan
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has stuck another barb into FIFA’s $25 billion proposal to change the landscape of world football with its plans for an expanded Club World Cup and a revamped Nations League, saying the whole of European football is against the idea.