When it comes to serious doping allegations at the highest levels of the sport there has to transparency and the presentation of as much information as possible. Performances like that of the legendary Mehmet Scholl witnessed on German television this week are surely counterproductive.
By Paul Nicholson
March 5 – The bitter battle for control of Scottish giant Rangers took another twist today as shares in the company were suspended on the AIM stock exchange when Rangers’ nominated advisor WH Ireland resigned the account.
By Mark Baber
March 5 – The Football Federation of Kenya (FKF) initiated court case, attempting to put an end to the Kenyan Premier League and replace it with a League made up primarily of what were second tier clubs, looks certain to proceed on toady, despite a High Court Judge on Tuesday giving the two sides 48 hours to try and sort the matter amicably.
March 4 – Europe’s leading clubs are reported to have softened their anger over the decision in principle to switch the 2022 World Cup to winter following a meeting between the head of the European Club Association and FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
By Mark Baber
March 4 – Michael Boateng (pictured), the former Crystal Palace youth player who was sentenced to jail for match-fixing last year, has had his lifetime ban from football extended worldwide by FIFA.
March 4 – England’s demand for a combined British team at next year’s Olympic Games in Rio has prompted a furious reaction from the head of Welsh football who says his country has been taken completely for granted.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
March 4 – Red Star Belgrade is being threatened with automatic relegation to the Serbian second tier as a result to its continuing financial woes. Sources close to the club’s management say that such a decision could be taken by the country’s football federation which is monitoring the situation at the club.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 3 – Qatar’s hopes of securing a place at the top table of FIFA look set to be dashed for a second time as Asian football gears up for a powerful alliance between the region’s two most influential officials.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 4 – One of Russia’s leading football officials has admitted the country must eliminate the “virus” of racism before the 2018 World Cup. With so much focus on Qatar 2022, Russian organisers have managed to escape the same level of scrutiny but comments by FIFA president Sepp Blatter have forced them to concede that considerable effort needs to be made to tackle discrimination.
By Paul Nicholson
March 4 – Jeffrey Webb is set to be re-elected unopposed to the presidency of North and Central American and Caribbean confederation CONCACAF. The XXX Congress on April 16 will see one contested election with a battle for the FIFA Executive Committee post for the Central American region.
March 4 – Traffic Sports has signed a new sponsor for the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League. Maxxis joins the roster as Official Tire Sponsor for the competition which is now into its quarter final stages.
By Paul Nicholson
March 3 – City Football Group (CFG), owners of English Premier League club Manchester City, have taken their next steps in Japan with the opening of a Tokyo office for its City Football Japan subsidiary.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 3 – The BBC and Sky have officially invited all four candidates for the FIFA presidential election, including Sepp Blatter, to take part in a political-style live TV debate.
By Mark Baber
March 3 – Liverpool’s annual accounts for the year ended 31 May 2014 show the club made a pre-tax profit of £900,000 – the first time the club has been in the black for seven years and the reward for a positive style of play, coming second in the Premier League, and the fruits of the Premier League broadcasting deal.
March 3 – Russia’s moves to reduce construction costs as they prepare for the 2018 World Cup in the face of a collapse of the ruble against the dollar, have resulted in more proposals for stadium cost-cutting and a reduction in the number of training sites for teams that qualify.