By David Owen
August 6 – 2022 FIFA World Cup host Qatar has acquired another of the trappings of a top sporting nation, with news that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has this week approved the accreditation of the Doha laboratory for anti-doping analysis.
“Money, it’s a gas/ Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash/ New car, caviar, four star daydream/ Think I’ll buy me a football team…” Pink Floyd, Money
When in 1975 Roger Waters wrote the lyrics to Money, Manchester United belonged to a local meat wholesaler, Louis Edwards. It was still about 15 years before his son Martin accepted a £20 million (€28.7m, $31.2m) bid for the club from a consortium led by Michael Knighton,
August 6 – The TV bidding war between Sky Sports and BT Sport has been ratcheted up a notch with the former announcing it has renewed live coverage of Spain’s La Liga for the next three seasons.
By Paul Nicholson
August 6 – Barcelona published their 2014/15 financial statement showing revenue of €608 million, the largest ever by any sporting club. But this is peanuts as by 2021 the club says it will grow revenue to more than €1 billion annually. Football Benchmark, the data and analysis arm of KPMG’s sports practice, says this isn’t just idle talk.
By Paul Nicholson
August 6 – Yet another betting company club sponsorship deal has been announced in the English Premier League. This time it is the turn of Manchester United who have unveiled a multi-year deal with Marathonbet who will become the Club’s Official Global Betting Partner, excluding China and the US.
August 5 – A Brazilian council official is proposing creating a ‘Goal to Germany’ day every July to make the national team remember their humiliating 7-1 World Cup defeat last year.
By Mark Baber
August 5 – The Gulf Cup of Nations (also known controversially as the ‘Arabian Gulf Cup’) has been postponed for a year, officially due to the host Kuwait needing time to complete their infrastructural preparations, but perhaps also due to the fact that five of the usual participants have been bombing one of the others since March of this year.
By Samindra Kunti
August 5 – Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff (pictured) may veto medida provisoria 671 that will allow for the refinancing of Brazilians clubs’s debts, but implements new rules for better management and more transparency.
There can’t be many parts of the planet where people are not excited by the return of the English Premier League. They are watching from Times Square to Timbuktu. Global interest has made the league a licence to print money for two decades.
August 5 – UEFA have awarded Legia Warsaw a 3-0 victory in their Europa League match away to FK Kukesi that was abandoned after one of their players was hit by a stone thrown from the crowd.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 5 – A symbolic breakthrough in Middle East football relations will take place on Thursday when a Palestinian team from the Gaza Strip will host West Bank opposition for the first time in 15 years after Israel gave permission for the latter to cross its territory.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 5 – Asian investors’ increasing involvement in snapping up Europe’s most glamorous clubs has taken another significant leap after AC Milan president Silvio Berlusconi agreed to sell a 48% stake to Thai property tycoon Bee Taechaubol (pictured).
August 5 – Bayern Munich meet Real Madrid tonight in the Audi Cup final after both teams won through their semi-finals against AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur last night. You can watch both games live on Insideworldfootball.