March 5 – Just days after the head of Asian football, Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, called on FIFA to lift its ban on Iraq being allowed to host competitive international matches, two Asian Champions League games have been postponed until April in the hope that FIFA heeds the request.
March 5 – The whole of Italy and the footballing world beyond has registered its collective shock and disbelief after the sudden death overnight on Saturday of Fiorentina captain and Italian international defender Davide Astori at just 31 years of age.
March 5 – Mexico’s football federation (FMF) president Decio de Maria (pictured) has resigned and will leave his post after the 2018 World Cup. Yon de Luisa will take his place.
By Samindra Kunti in Zurich
March 5 – Former Tottenham, West Ham United and Sevilla striker Frederick Kanouté has called for a level playing field in football by developing local African leagues.
March 1 – German football may consider ditching Monday night league games following a string of protests by fans who have voted with their feet and stayed away, according to Borussia Dortmund’s chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke (pictured).
March 1 – A normalisation committee imposed in Cameroon by FIFA to try and bring an end to years of internal rifts has reportedly been extended for another six months.
March 1 – IMG and Perform have named their South American joint marketing agency venture FC Diez Media. The new company will advise CONMEBOL on their commercial rights for club competitions from 2019-22.
March 1 – Brazil’s Federal Police are claiming the price tag of Salvador’s Fonte Nova stadium, a 2014 World Cup venue, was inflated by as much as $130 million. Seven arrest warrants have been issued in connection to the investigation, including for the former governor of Bahia Jaques Wagner.
February 28 – The North American Soccer League (NASL) has cancelled its 2018 season with three of its six clubs shifting to the National Premier Soccer League which kicks off this April.
February 28 – The prospect of a winter break in top-flight English football, which has been discussed and debated for years with public opinion split, appears to be edging closer.
February 28 – CONCACAF, who on Monday announced an expansion of their blue riband Gold Cup national team tournament, have followed up with the unveiling of a multi-platform digital media rights deal with Verizon for all its competitions.
By Andrew Warshaw
The 24 qualifiers for the one-off pan-Continental European Championship in 2020 will share record total prize money of €371 million, €70 million up on last time, with each of the finalists receiving a minimum of €9.25 million.
February 27 – The next edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the confederation’s blue riband national team tournament held every two years, will be expanded from 12 to 16 teams in 2019.
February 27 – After 14 years at Manchester United, Phil Townsend is joining UEFA as its new managing director of communications in succession to Pedro Pinto.
By Andrew Warshaw
February 26 – Video assistant referees (VAR) will not be used in European competition next season even if they are approved for this summer’s World Cup, according to UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin.