By David Owen in Monaco
October 9 – Battle-lines over the issue of third-party ownership (TPO) are being drawn, with Spain’s La Liga coming out strongly against FIFA’s decision to ban the practice.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
October 9 – Swiss club FC Schaffhausen has unveiled the design of its planned CHF 52 million (€43 million) new stadium. Under the plan, the stadium will be built on a recently-acquired 33,000 square metre site. The construction project will be jointly implemented by Aniello Fontana, the club’s chief executive, and local real estate developer Gallus Immobilien AG.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – As debate continues to split opinion over the best time to stage the 2022 Qatar World Cup, a leading representative of Europe’s clubs says if the tournament is switched to January and February, the winter Olympics should move, partly because it means far less to most fans.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – FIFA vice-president Jeffrey Webb, world football’s most influential powerbroker in the global bid to stamp out racism, has issued another hard-hitting indictment of progress – or lack of it – and says a major challenge lies ahead to make sure the 2018 World Cup in Russia is void of discrimination.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – The head of Asian football and one of FIFA’s most powerful administrators, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa, was conspicuous by his absence as the Leaders Sport Business Summit, attended by a raft of the game’s movers and shakers, opened today.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – One of North America’s leading sports industry executives has questioned the wisdom of European clubs playing lucrative fixtures in the United States, whether pre-season or, as is now being suggested once again, competitive Premier League games.
By Mark Baber
October 8 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced seven bidders in the competition to host the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations; Algeria, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Sudan and Zimbabwe.
By Mark Baber
October 8 – FIFA is this week working together with the Djibouti Football Federation (FDF) to deliver a 5-day training course to 31 local journalists which, it is hoped, will raise the standard of professionalism in football coverage in the country and, it is hoped, bring the Djibouti Premier League to an international audience.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – The battle to replace FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce at the top table of world football administration has been stepped up with the announcement that England’s David Gill is putting his name forward even though he has only been a member of UEFA’s executive committee for less than 18 months.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 8 – The administration of Italian football has been plunged into disrepute after federation president Carlo Tavecchio was banned from all European roles by UEFA for six months over his infamous ‘banana eaters’ comment whilst running for election.
By Mark Baber
October 7 – UEFA have fined Partizan Belgrade €40,000 and imposed a partial stadium closure for their next Europa League home game in response to the display of a banner reading “Only Jews and Pussies” by fans at their 18 September game against Tottenham Hotspur, a north London club with a strong Jewish tradition.
By Andrew Warshaw in London
October 7 – German icon Franz Beckenbauer, whose distinguished career as a player and coach was followed by a prominent role at Fifa, admitted today he was “surprised” Qatar was awarded the 2022 World Cup and that the tournament should also be staged in winter.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 7 – Football may be continually hit by reports of match-fixing but it is one of many sports being infiltrated by criminal gangs. David Howman, director-general of the World Anti-Doping Agency, says the problem extends across a variety of sports right across the globe.
By Andrew Warshaw in London
September 7 – The head of the increasingly influential International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) has warned that the need for action to combat global corruption is greater than ever.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 7 – A leading anti-corruption expert who was part of the team commissioned by FIFA to recommend specific reform proposals has savagely rebuked the organisation and says it will never restore credibility as long as Sepp Blatter remains president.