Reconstruction of Inter Milan continues with creation of women’s first team
October 24 – It has taken 110 years and a new Chinese owner, but Italian and European giants Inter Milan have finally have pledged to start a women’s first team.
Europe
Gravina takes Italian FA hot seat promising to relaunch the national game
October 23 – Italy has a new federation (FICG) president with Gabriele Gravina (pictured) elected on Monday almost a year after the departure of his predecessor.
Media attacker Rummenigge bites the hand that feeds him
October 22 – Bayern Munich chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has launched an unprecedented attack on the media for their criticism of the German giants, even citing the country’s constitution.
European Leagues call on UEFA to cut CL places for Big 4 leagues and redistribute wealth
By Andrew Warshaw
October 22 – Bemoaning the fact that Europe’s top 14 clubs pocket around half the revenue on offer from the Champions league, the umbrella organisation for Europe’s major leagues have renewed their call to UEFA to impose greater competitive balance between the haves and have-nots.
Blast from the past: Dyke lambasts FA over Wembley sale
October 22 – The proposed £600 million sale of Wembley stadium that would have helped fund the development of grass-roots football in England collapsed because of “old men” who are “living in the past” according to former Football Association chairman Greg Dyke.
Turan plays on but €370k lighter after night club brawl
October 19 – International Turkish midfielder Arda Turan, on loan from Barcelona, has been fined €370,000 by Istanbul Basaksehir following his part in an alleged nightclub altercation with well-known Turkish pop singer Berkay Sahin.
PSG hit with fines over Red Star game as crowd trouble and match-fixing probes continue
October 19 – Big-spending Paris Saint-Germain, desperate to finally land the Champions League after years of trying, could face sanctions from UEFA after European football’s governing body announced it was opening an investigation into crowd trouble at the group match against Red Star Belgrade earlier this month.
UEFA bans Rubin Kazan from European club comps for breaking FFP rules, again
October 19 – UEFA’s get-tough policy on financial fair play has snared one of Russia’s best-known clubs, with Rubin Kazan banned for a season after they were found to have broken spending rules.
Caught between the Hard Rock and Real Madrid anger. LaLiga’s US game has issues
October 18 – The dispute over plans to play a La Liga fixture in the USA in January has taken yet another twist with Real Madrid officially protesting the move by writing to Spain’s football federation.
Turkish prosecutors call for 12-year jail term for Barca’s on-loan bar brawler Turan
October 17 – Turkish prosecutors have charged Barcelona midfielder Arda Turan over a brawl with a well-known Turkish pop singer and have called for a jail sentence of 12 years.
Mutko muscled back in? RFU website declares him president
October 17 – Has he made a comeback after all? According to the website of the Russian Football Union, Vitaly Mutko has regained the RFU presidency despite reports that he had been overlooked because of his alleged role in the recent doping scandal.
Germany’s Niersbach and Zwanziger cleared of tax fraud in 2006 cash for votes scandal
By Andrew Warshaw
October 16 – Two ex-presidents of the German FA, Wolfgang Niersbach (pictured left) and Theo Zwanziger (pictured right), plus former general secretary Horst Schmidt have won a landmark legal case after a Frankfurt court rejected tax evasion charges against them saying there was insufficient evidence of wrongdoing.
European Parliament session to focus on child trafficking in football
October 16 – The European Parliament is to host a high-level session in Brussels tonight to tackle the growing problem of child trafficking in sport, primarily focusing on football.
Mutko out in the cold? Russians leaning towards Zenit’s Dyukov to lead RFU
October 16 – Any hopes that Vitaly Mutko (pictured), for years one of FIFA’s most influential administrators, might have had of returning to the forefront of Russian football appear to have been dashed, with Alexander Dyukov likely to be appointed as head of the national federation.
UEFA increases women’s grants by 50% and commits to #WhatIf campaign
October 15 – UEFA is boosting its women’s development funding for member associations by an extra €50,000 annually from 2020.