By Andrew Warshaw
December 27 – Controversial Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan (pictured) has extended his European operation by agreeing to take over FK Sarajevo in Bosnia’s top division.
December 23 – UEFA has enforced its Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules with sanctions of fines and exclusion from European competitions for five clubs and a reprimand for a sixth. The sanctions all relate to overdue payments and were handed down by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body’s adjudicatory chamber.
By Alexander Krassimirov
December 23 – Bulgarian airline company Balkanian Airways has become one of the main sponsors of second tier French side Tours FC. The club and the company have signed a cooperation agreement. The Balkanian Airways logo has already put on the team’s shirts and stadium as well.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
December 23 – Schalke 04 has extended its sponsorship deal with betting operator Bet-at-home until 30 June 2016.
December 23 – Malaysian authorities have imposed lifetime bans on five players and three officials for match-fixing in their domestic league.
December 20 – The 11th Match Against Poverty will take place on 4 March 2014 at the Stade de Suisse in Berne, announced United Nations Development Project (UNDP) ambassadors Ronaldo and Zinédine Zidane yesterday.
December 20 – London’s only top level Rugby League side, London Broncos, have agreed a two-year ground share with Barnet Football Club, relegated last year to the Football Conference, England’s fifth tier of football.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 20 – Italian World Cup winner Gennaro Gattuso has fiercely denied allegations of match-fixing saying he is “angry and offended” at any suggestion that might be involved in any operation.
December 20 – Ethiopian police have swooped to arrest five more people suspected of plotting suicide bombings during the country’s World Cup qualifier against Nigeria in October that could have killed scores of fans.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
December 19 – Poland’s Ekstraklasa, the operator of the top tier of Polish professional football league, is aiming to educate young footballers on the risks related to gambling. The initiative, carried out by the Ekstraklasa Foundation, is launched in cooperation with Transparency International which also collaborates with six other European football leagues on similar programmes.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 18 – Many of Europe’s less heralded countries will be given a greater chance than ever to qualify for the European Championship finals following a revolutionary new format unveiled by UEFA for 2016. Teams will be placed into nine groups of five and six teams, with both group winners and runners up qualifying automatically as well as the best third-placed side.
December 19 – Greek club Olympiakos Piraeus have appealed against the partial closure of their ground for their glamour Champions League last-16 tie with Manchester United, denying claims by UEFA that a section of their fans acted in a racist way in last week’s final group game.
By Paul Nicholson
December 19 – Brazilian, coach and former World Cup winner Leonardo has accused UEFA president Michel Platini of not knowing what he is talking about when it comes to the importance of third-party player ownership in South America, and that the 14 month ban he received in France at PSG for allegedly pushing a referee on the touchline “had a political logic to it”.
December 18 – Champions League knockout stage qualifiers Olympiakos and Zenit St Petersburg have both paid the penalty for racist behaviour by their respective fans.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 18 – Football’s international players’ union, FIFPro, is demanding a complete overhaul of the transfer system in a move that could ultimately have the same impact on the game as the landmark Bosman ruling of 18 years ago. The union is to launch a legal challenge against the current system which, it claims, shackles players and still prevents proper freedom of movement.