William Hill bets on Everton; commits to battle against match-fixers
August 1 – William Hill has agreed a two-year partnership with Premier League Everton to become its new official betting partner, offering exclusive odds to Everton fans.
Leicester fluff Hollywood lines vs PSG, but Chelsea and Real pack fans in Big House
By Paul Nicholson
August 1 – English champions Leicester City made their Hollywood debut in LA with an inconspicuous 4-0 spanking at the hands of French champions Paris St-Germain. One wonders if the follow-up movie to the Leicester story currently being scripted by two big name Osar-winning writers will have a different storyline.
Man City uses hackathon to push player data analysis boundaries
August 1 – Manchester City completed their first football data hackathon this weekend. The hackathon was designed to unveil new insights on player performance using data provided by the Premier League, OptaPro and ChyronHego.
Andrew Warshaw: FIFA Ethics’ corruption conundrums
Suddenly, strangely, it has all gone quiet. After days and weeks of eager anticipation about whether Gianni Infantino is being investigated for breaking ethics rules, Fifa continues to leave us all on tenterhooks.
Leeds United become latest Championship target for China’s big money players
By Paul Nicholson
July 29 – Chinese investors are reportedly circling around a third English Championship club. Leeds United, like Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers that are both under new Chinese ownership, are considered a ‘sleeping giant’ waiting to return to their glory years. Chinese money could provide the boost they need to achieve this.
Samoura says war zones have prepared her for FIFA’s slings and arrows
By Andrew Warshaw
July 29 – FIFA’s new Senegalese secretary-general Fatma Samoura, whose appointment raised a number of eyebrows as she had no prior experience in football, believes the time she spent working in war zones for the United Nations has more than prepared her for the challenges that lie ahead.
AFC rolls out live streaming platform as media and marketing workshops gather pace
July 29 – Bhutan has become the first of the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) member associations to embrace the new Live Streaming Platform with the AFC’s partner mycujoo.
Liverpool embrace Facebook video push with toxic and thunder kit reveal
By Paul Nicholson
July 29 – As if on cue, as Facebook’s millionaire founder Mark Zuckerburg (pictured) announced that the social media giant’s future would be ‘video’, so Liverpool launched their third kit via a Facebook Livestream directly from Facebook Headquarters in San Francisco.
Liverpool’s Sakho flies into more trouble as Klopp sends him home
July 28 – French defender Mamadou Sakho, who missed France’s Euro 2016 campaign after serving a 30-day suspension after a failed drugs test, is back in the news again for all the wrong reasons.
UK sports agency CSM expand in US grassroots with US Club Soccer hook-up
July 29 – UK based sports marketing agency CSM has announced a new partnership with US Club Soccer, a National Association member of the U.S. Soccer Federation to develop programmes for the organisation’s 500,000+ members.
UEFA publishes FSR report and promises more cash for projects
July 28 – UEFA, midway through its five-year Football and Social Responsibility (FSR) strategic and budgetary cycle, has published its third FSR report reviewing the activities of the 2014/15 season.
Infantino puts down African roots in Nigeria, Hayatou misses the meet
By Andrew Warshaw
July 28 – Fresh speculation has emerged as to why long-serving African football chief Issa Hayatou stayed away from FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s recent visit to Nigeria, his first to an African nation since succeeding Sepp Blatter.
Leicester City convert PL win into currency with FairFX deal
July 28 – Premier League champions Leicester City have made FairFX, a low cost multi currency payments service, their exclusive FX provider and an Official Partner of the club.
4th sub trial comes to Europe with England’s FA Cup
July 28 – The FA Cup, the world’s oldest and most prestigious domestic knockout competition, breaks new ground this coming season with the introduction of a fourth substitute in extra time for the quarterfinals, semi-finals and final.
Niersbach to appeal FIFA ban over 2006 vote-buying scandal
July 28 – As anticipated, German football supremo Wolfgang Niersbach has decided to appeal his one-year ban over the scandal surrounding possible vote-buying during Germany’s 2006 World Cup bid.