February 5 – Chinese football has smashed its transfer record for the third time in 10 days after yet another much sought-after Brazilian opted to go east instead of remaining in Europe.
By Paul Nicholson
February 5 – Glasgow Rangers, the fallen giants that had to start life again in the fourth tier of Scottish football, have taken a step closer to cleaning up their financial position with hostile shareholder and business partner Mike Ashley by confirming they have repaid a £5 million from Ashley while at the same time serving notice on the retail deal with Ashley’s Sports Direct.
By Mark Baber
February 4 – France’s highest administrative court – the Conseil d’Etat – has ruled against the French Football League’s legal bid to reduce the number of teams relegated from the top flight from three to two.
February 4 – Proposed reforms to clean up football’s scandal-plagued world governing body will not in any way benefit the players, according to their union FIFPro.
February 4 – Brazilian star Neymar, already embroiled in a legal case over his move to Barcelona, is now facing separate allegations of tax evasion.
By Mark Baber
February 3 – A German court has ruled former president of the German soccer federation Theo Zwanziger was exercising his right to free speech in referring to Qatar as a “cancerous growth of world football” just as Germany’s most successful club, Bayern Munich, signed a partnership with Qatar’s Hamad International Airport.
February 3 – Dynamo Kiev will no longer have to face Manchester City in the Champions League behind closed doors after UEFA’s appeals committee controversially reduced a sanction imposed for racist behaviour and crowd disturbances.
February 3 – The vice-president of CONMEBOL’s disciplinary committee has resigned in protest at the governing body’s top brass reducing Boca Juniors’ stadium ban for crowd violence from eight games to two.
By Paul Nicholson
February 3 – FIFA may have suspended their funding but CONCACAF are getting used to operating on reduced cashflow. The US Justice Department partially froze funds back in May 2015 when they arrested then president Jeffrey Webb and Costa Rican president Ricardo Li, and followed that up with a raid the confederation’s Miami headquarters.
By Samindra Kunti
February 2 – Brussels’s EURO2020 stadium may face delays in construction after an environmental report cast doubt over the viability of the venue. The projected public funding of €432 million is also raising eyebrows.
January 2 – Under-fire Inter Milan boss Roberto Mancini has been given a one-game ban for his antics during Sunday’s derby defeat.
February 2 – Qatar have failed to qualify for their first Olympic football tournament since 1992 after losing 2-1 to Iraq, a significant blow to their strategy of developing a credible squad ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
By David Owen
February 2 – Next season’s new surge of broadcast income for Premier League clubs appeared to exert a heavy influence on another lacklustre January transfer window, with clubs in the relegation or promotion scraps in the top two tiers of English football accounting for a high proportion of expenditure.
By Samindra Kunti
February 2 – Earlier this month the Olympic dream of the Olyroos, Australia’s U23 team, faded in Doha as they made a backdoor exit from the Asian Cup, collecting a meagre 2-0 victory against Vietnam in group D alongside the UAE and Jordan. Neither the elimination nor the absence of European-based players caused disgruntlement, only the manner of capitulation did.
February 2 – Latest CIES Football Observatory figures show that in the Premier League Manchester United, Newcastle and Bournemouth have each used 28 players so far this season, while Arsenal have used just 21. Across Europe’s other Big 5 leagues Nice in France’s Ligue 1 have used more players that any other club with 33.