UEFA set to ignore goalline technology approval
By Andrew Warshaw at Soccerex in Manchester
March 29 – UEFA have given the biggest hint yet that it may ignore goalline technology, even if it is brought into law on a global level.
Europe
English Championship clubs are a scene of carnage, admits Portsmouth administrator
By Andrew Warshaw at Soccerex in Manchester
March 29 – The man charged with saving crisis-stricken English Championship club Portsmouth painted a bleak picture of all second tier teams by describing them as “a scene of carnage” in terms of their finances.
England plays delay game over centralised media rights, insists UEFA
By Andrew Warshaw at Soccerex in Manchester
March 28 – England is the only country among UEFA’s 53 members to be dragging its feet over thrashing out final details covering centralised media rights for national matches, according to the organisation’s general secretary, Gianni Infantino.
Stuart Pearce backs Olympic football to “galvanise Great Britain”
By Andrew Warshaw at Soccerex in Manchester
March 28 – Stuart Pearce, who is doubling up as Great Britain’s Olympic football coach as well as running the England senior team on an interim basis, says the tournament at this summer’s London Games will “galvanise the country” and showcase the sport at under-23 level.
Exclusive: Wales to take UEFA to CAS over Europe entry ruling
By Andrew Warshaw
March 28 – The Football Association of Wales (FAW) are considering taking UEFA to Europe’s highest sporting court, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), for barring their clubs, including Premier League Swansea City, from playing in the Welsh Cup in order to try and gain a berth in the Europa League.
Russia responds to latest “banana incident” with anti-racism football taskforce launch
By David Gold
March 23 – The Russian Football Union (RFU) has launched a taskforce to tackle racism in football, just days after Christopher Samba (pictured far right) had a banana thrown at him during a league game.
British FIFA vice-presidency is anachronistic, admits FA general secretary
By Andrew Warshaw in Istanbul
March 22 – British domestic associations concede the time has come to consider giving up their unique privilege of an automatic vice-presidency at FIFA that has stood for 66 years.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter condemns Turkish football’s match fixing debacle
By Andrew Warshaw in Istanbul
March 22 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has stepped into the match fixing scandal that has plagued Turkish football in recent months here today at the UEFA Congress.
Welsh clubs cannot qualify for Europe via Welsh Cup, rules UEFA
By Andrew Warshaw in Istanbul
March 21 – Welsh clubs playing in the English league will not be allowed to qualify for Europe by competing in their own domestic cup, UEFA ruled today.
UEFA Financial Fair Play rules gain crucial European Commission backing
By Andrew Warshaw in Istanbul
March 21 – Over-ambitious clubs who try to flout Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules by taking UEFA to court were warned to think again today after the European Commission confirmed the regulations were legally compliant.
Benfica’s ground to host 2014 Champions League final
By Andrew Warshaw in Istanbul
March 21 – The 2014 Champions League final will be staged at the home of Benfica, one of the great evocative names of European football.
Turf cut for first time at new Welsh National Football Centre
By David Gold
March 20 – The turf for the new Welsh National Football Centre has been cut for the first time at the Newport International Sports Village.
UEFA President and Turkish Prime Minister meet for match fixing talks
By Andrew Warshaw
March 18 – UEFA President Michel Platini is set to meet Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (pictured)tomorrow for an update on the match fixing scandal that has rocked Turkish football.
Man behind Roberto Carlos “banana incident” identified
By David Gold
March 16 – A man has admitted throwing a banana at Anzhi Makhachkala’s Brazilian star Roberto Carlos (pictured) during a league match in Samara, but will not be punished.
Russian Football Union boss threatens to close unkempt stadiums
By David Gold
March 16 – Sergei Fursenko, the head of the Russian Football Union (RFU), has threatened to close the stadia of clubs who do not look after their pitches.