By Andrew Warshaw
May 16 – Morocco’s request for four countries to be pulled from next month’s 2026 World Cup vote has received a non-committal response from FIFA with the simmering controversy quite possibly coming to a head at the ballot itself in Moscow.
May 16 – South Africa’s football leadership are being urged not to break ranks with the Continent and to back Morocco’s bid to host the 2026 World Cup.
May 16 – UEFA’s top brass were meeting today in an attempt to forge a united stance against Gianni Infantino’s plans to change the landscape of world football.
May 16 – Korea’s Hankook Tire has renewed its sponsorship of the UEFA Europa League for a new three-year cycle, taking its association with UEFA’s club tournament through to 2021.
May 16 – Never ones to be caught napping when it comes to commercial partnerships, Manchester United have renewed Chinese firm MLILY as the Club’s official mattress and pillow provider.
May 16 – A World Cup-bound Saudi referee chosen by FIFA has been banned for life at home for a matchfixing attempt just days before he was due to fly to Russia.
May 16 – Premier League Tottenham Hotspur have extended their partnership with bookmakers William Hill in what the club says is a multi-year deal.
May 16 – ESPN has signed a content deal with German Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich to bring club content to the broadcaster’s digital and linear networks in the US, Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 15 – The similarities are striking. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. Up against a heavyweight rival. Eager to reward a football-mad nation with the ultimate prize. Just as underdogs and four-time losers Morocco are desperate to upset the odds and land the 2026 World Cup, so Turkey are equally determined to make up for lost time and hold the 2024 European Championship finals after three demoralising failures.
May 15 – British-based German internationals Mesut Ozil and Ilkay Gundogan, both of Turkish origin, have been lambasted by their national federation and German politicians for posing for photos with Turkey’s controversial President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
By Paul Nicholson
May 15 – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled yesterday (Monday) that the federal law banning sports betting was unconstitutional, paving the way for the legalisation of sports betting across the US.
By Paul Nicholson
May 15 – It has been a quiet week so far in terms of news regarding FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s frantic lobbying to get backers for his $25 billion sell off plan for new FIFA endorsed Club World Cup and Nations League competitions. But he has received support from one area.
May 15 – Premier League Chelsea have scored a record £50 million, five-year sleeve sponsorship deal with Hyundai, who are reportedly doubling that paid by current sleeve sponsor Alliance Tyres.
May 15 – On-loan Deportivo Alaves forward Munir El Haddadi has lost his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in a bid to switch national allegiance from Spain to Morocco ahead of the World Cup.
May 15 – Home appliances brand Beko has used its Barcelona sponsorship partnership to raise €1 million for UNICEF to help tackle childhood obesity.