Rangers case rumbles on as taxman loses appeal over player ‘loans’
July 10 – British tax authorities have lost their argument that payments made to players and other employees under the old Rangers football club should be taxable.
Europe
Hungary and Eurosport ready for UEFA U19 finals kick off
July 10 – While the world’s senior men have been spent the last month in the Brazilian spotlight fighting for World Cup supremacy, in Europe the U19s have been battling for a place in the UEFA U19 finals to be held in Hungary starting July 19.
Tributes pour in for football legend Alfredo Di Stefano, died aged 88
July 8 – Tributes are pouring in for Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano, who died on Monday after suffering a heart attack at the weekend 24 hours after his 88th birthday.
Ukraine drops Crimean teams From Premier League
By Mark Baber
July 7 – The Ukraine Football Federation (UFF) has bowed to the inevitable and cut Crimea-based PFC Sevastopol and FC Tavriya from the 2014-15 season of the Ukrainian Premier League. The move follows the reunification of the Crimea with Russia following a disputed referendum in March.
Russians to increase club tax levy on foreign coaches
July 4 – The Football Union of Russia (FUR) is to increase the tax on clubs that employ foreign coaches. The FUR already levies a tax on foreign coaches but a commission of coaching excellence that met yesterday is examining how much should actually be paid.
Serbian League revamps rules to boost marketing push and launches Super Cup
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
July 4 – The Serbian Football Association (FSS) is looking to boost its Jelen SuperLiga and increase the marketing opportunities for the Serbian championship, according to Zoran Lakovic, the secretary general of the FSS. New measures include a restructured top tier and a relaxation of foreign player rules.
Barca publicly pave the way for Suarez to exit Liverpool for Spain
By Andrew Warshaw
July 2 – Barcelona have seemingly upped the stakes in their bid to sign shamed Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez with Barca’s sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta (pictuded) praising Suarez for his public apology for his bite on Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup,
Fans trust to buy into Bulgaria’s Levski and ease financial crisis
By Alexander Krassimirov
July 2 – Financially challenged Bulgarian club Levski Sofia has moved again to fill the gaps in its finances by looking to get help from its fans, Owner Todor Batkov is to transfer 15% of ownership of the club to the supporters’ trust Blue Bulgaria.
Czech league moves to increase stadium safety and fan dialogue
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
July 1 – The Czech football association (FACR) is to launch a series of measures to increase safety at stadiums, curb violence and improve communication with fans, said Dusan Svoboda, head of the country’s Football League Association (LFA).
Greek squad puts common good before personal gain
July 2 – Greece’s 2014 World Cup team have written to their Prime Minister asking for their tournament bonus money to go towards securing their national team a training facility.
CIES crunches its data to launch new player value calculator
By Ben Nicholson
July 1 – The CIES Football Observatory has developed what it believes is a “groundbreaking player transfer value calculator” for those based in the big-5 league clubs. They say that their algorithm improves economic transparency – enabling clubs, players and fans alike to compare how much is paid for a player to how much ought to have been.
Barcelona plugs into new global partnership with Koç Holding’s Arcelik
By Mark Baber
July 1 – FC Barcelona has secured a four-year sponsorship with global home appliance group Arcelik, who will become the club’s worldwide sponsorship partner for the next four years. The deal will see the new logo of the group’s Beko brand featured on the sleeve of the new team jersey and training kit.
Evonik feels the chemistry and buys into Dortmund
Mark Baber
July 1 – Evonik and Borussia Dortmund (BVB) have made a joint-announcement that their partnership will be broadened and extended to 2025, with chemicals manufacturer making a cash injection of €26.7 million for a 9.06% stake in the club and extending its sponsorship agreement from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2025.
American businessman Bragiel lines up stake in Poland’s Slask Wroclaw
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
June 27 – American businessman Paul Bragiel is looking at acquiring a stake in Poland’s Slask Wroclaw. The troubled football club is looking for new partners to fill the financial gap left by its previous majority shareholder, the city of Wroclaw.
Botev stadium on hold as state freezes CCB bank accounts
By Alexander Krassimirov
June 27 – The construction of top Bulgarian club Botev Plovdiv’s new stadium has been halted after financial issues surrounding problems with Corporate Commercial Bank AD (CCB Plc). The club announced that the construction has only been stopped temporarily.