By Mark Baber
May 27 – The alleged flare thrower, who injured APOEL player Kaka (pictured) during the Cypriot league decider between AEL Limassol and Apoel Nicosia, has been released on bail. Meanwhile APOEL supporters will be holding a march this evening to protest the Cyprus Football Federation (CFA) decision to repeat the game on neutral ground without fans.
May 27 – Despite football’s lawmakers insisting scientific aids for referees will never go beyond goal-line technology, FIFA presidential candidate Jerome Champagne has indicated he would seek a change in the rules if he succeeds in his unlikely bid to oust Sepp Blatter next year.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
May 27 – Lech Poznan has extended its sponsorship deal with Polish betting operator STS by a further two years. STS is using its sponsorship to launch the first TV advertising campaign by a betting operator on Polish television.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 27 – Corruption in Asian football has spread to the Maldives islands, with the Asian Football Confederation warning the local federation risked being suspended for unilaterally launching an investigation into alleged misconduct in selling AFC Challenge Cup tickets.
May 27 – Jamaica will join Mexico in CONMEBOL’s Copa America tournament in Chile in 2015, the 44th time the competition has been held. The 45th edition in its hundredth year – Copa America Centenario – will be held by CONCACAF in the US in 2016.
By Alexander Krassimirov
May 26 – The owner of Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia Todor Batkov has hit out at UEFA’s sanctions accusing gas giant Gazprom for failing to deliver on its promised sponsorship. Batkov claims that if the sponsorship had been activated the fine would not have been imposed on the club.
By David Owen
May 26 – Manchester United’s annus horribilis has pushed them down to third place in a listing of the 50 most valuable football club brands drawn up by Brand Finance, the brand valuation and strategy consultancy. United have swapped places with Real Madrid, the newly-crowned European champions, having seen almost $100 million wiped off their brand value since 2013, according to Brand Finance’s assessment.
May 23 – In her first major press conference since being appointed as the first female coach in the top two divisions of any of Europe’s major leagues, Helena Costa said she just wants to be treated like her male colleagues.
By Mark Baber
May 23 – Notwithstanding a recent Greenpeace report which found toxic chemicals in 33 sportswear products produced by Adidas, Nike and Puma, Adidas has briefed journalists in Munich that the World Cup will play a “an important role” in adding “€1-1.2 billion (£829 -948 million) to operational revenue.”
By Andrew Warshaw
May 23 – In a move that seems bound to be strongly opposed by the game’s authorities, the Dutch football federation (KNVB) wants to introduce video technology from next season. For the past year the Dutch have been experimenting with an unofficial pilot scheme but will need the permission of the game’s lawmakers, the International FA Board, to make it permanent.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
May 23 – Seven consortia of construction companies have submitted bids to build a new stadium for Poland’s Widzew Lodz. The facility will have a capacity of between 15,000 and 18,000.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 23 – The head of US Soccer says has reiterated his country will only target the 2026 World Cup if FIFA’s bidding rules are significantly tightened up – including votes being made public. Sunil Gulati and other senior executives within his CONCACAF confederation have long been uncomfortable with the way the joint ballots for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments were conducted.
By Ben Nicholson
May 23 – David Beckham, in his bid to build a Major League Soccer stadium in downtown Miami, is envisioning a new location for his home turf. Having met with opposition for a waterfront park, largely from disgruntled businessmen from the port area, he has switched his attention to filling a water basin with a 20,000-seat stadium.
May 22- The International Centre for Sports Security, which earlier this month published the most comprehensive report to date into the scale of illegal betting, is expanding its global operations by opening a European head office and appointing former European Professional Football Leagues chief Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros as the new Chief Executive of ICSS Europe from early June.
May 22- Paris St Germain have been called before Uefa’s disciplinary commission over allegations of racism by their fans at last month’s Champions League clash against Chelsea in Paris.