European leagues scotch talk of clubs forming breakaway Super League
April 19 – The European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL) has spoken out against the idea of a European Super League and backed the current UEFA-based system.
Blatter says he would help US law. Ocampo accuses him of cover-up
By Andrew Warshaw
April 18 – Sepp Blatter may still be banned from football for alleged ethics breaches but that doesn’t prevent the former FIFA president from speaking his mind in an unofficial capacity when invited to do so.
Liverpool and Man City successes could rob Premier League of fourth CL spot
April 18 – Finishing fourth in the Premier League has traditionally been the goal for achieving Champions League football the following season.
Playing by FIFA’s rules? Did Becks, Figo and pals deliberately defy FIFA’s ban on Kuwait?
By Mark Baber
April 18 – FIFA are reportedly “reviewing” the circumstances in which David Beckham, Fabio Capello and others were involved in a football match held in Kuwait on December 18 in defiance of a FIFA ban on any sporting contact with the country. The game was played two months after FIFA imposed a ban on sporting contact with Kuwait under the slogan #wewillplay which was prominently displayed around the pitch and as a hashtag on Twitter.
Deadlines loom as CAS sets end April date for Platini appeal
By Andrew Warshaw
April 18 – Michel Platini is facing a race against time to be able to resume his role as UEFA president before the 54-nation confederation’s annual congress in Budapest at the start of next month.
Are long ball Leicester City taking us back to the future?
By Paul Nicholson
April 18 – Wonderful as the Premier League Leicester City story is, are we seeing an English return to long ball football? Could we soon be crying out for more of the same and a demand for the likes of the old Wimbledon to return to the top flight? Could Sam Allardyce be right after all?
Messi joins an exclusive club hitting 500-goal milestone
April 18 – Lionel Messi chalked up his 500th career goal on Sunday, his 319th in La Liga, in Barcelona’s 2-1 home defeat to Valencia.
Italy chosen to be test bed for video ref technology
April 18 – Italy has been selected by football’s law-makers as the first major league to test technology for video replays.
Grindel takes over at DFB and sets sights on clean-up and 2024 Euros
By Andrew Warshaw
April 18 – Reinhard Grindel, the only candidate for a job that has become something of a poisoned chalice, has officially taken over as head of the German football association (DFB), the sport’s biggest single federation.
Bengaluru celebrate I-League win as India debates merger with ISL
By Samindra Kunti
April 18 – Bengaluru FC have been crowned Indian champions for the second time in three years after defeating Salgaocar 2-0, but the future of the I-League remains in doubt.
Milan giants court Chinese money to turn around their fortunes
By Paul Nicholson
April 18 – Both Milan clubs could come under Chinese ownership if reports are correct that AC Milan could be sold within eight weeks and if Suning Commerce Group complete on a proposed acquisition of a stake in Internazionale.
Mihir Bose: West Ham deal exposes the moral vacuum at the heart of UK politics
The great gift the London Legacy Development Corporation, chaired by Boris Johnson, has given West Ham football club is the sort of gift that makes the money that David Cameron’s mother gave him to help avoid inheritance tax look like chicken feed. It also exposes the fact that when it comes to the national game not only are our political masters grossly unfair, favouring some clubs while penalising the vast majority, but there is also a huge question of whether football has lost its moral compass.
Clash of the giants: CL draw separates Spanish but will Pep have the last word
April 15 – Will Pep Guardiola’s final game in charge of Bayern Munich be against the team he is leaving them for at the end of the season?
Newcastle United profit from reduced wage bill
By David Owen
April 14 – A sharp cut in payroll costs was at the heart of Newcastle United’s impressive financial performance in 2014-15, with the wages and salaries bill tumbling below £57 million from £69.3 million the previous year.
Report urges FIFA to add biting human rights clauses to its hosting contracts
By Andrew Warshaw
April 15 – FIFA must in future make human rights a priority when awarding countries the World Cup according to an independent report produced by a senior United Nations official commissioned four months ago by football’s world governing body as part of its reform programme.