By Paul Nicholson
February 20 – A FIFA delegation today starts an 11-day inspection visit of India in preparation for the 2017 FIFA Under-17 World Cup. The tournament will be the first major FIFA competition hosted by India, a member of the Asia Football Confederation (AFC).
February 20 – Zambia’s football association has been fined SFr50,000 ($56,000) by FIFA for breaching international transfer rules in the latest effort by football’s world governing body to crack down on the irregular movement of players.
February 20 – UEFA have been forced to switch Dynamo Kiev’s Europa League first-leg last-32 tie with Spain’s Valencia tonight to neutral ground in Cyprus because of the violence and political unrest in Ukraine’s capital city that has tragically caused at least 26 deaths.
By David Owen
February 20 – Manchester United’s teenage prodigy, Adnan Januzaj, has been made an honorary ambassador of the republic of Kosovo. Januzaj was the first of four footballers awarded the title this week by Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga for contributions to “affirmation of the interests of the Republic of Kosovo”.
Well over 50 international football matches will be played on Wednesday, March 5.
They include some 2015 Asian Nations Cup games, Spain versus Italy and Portugal v Cameroon. They provide one of the last opportunities for experimentation for many of the qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
And yet the most significant fixture to be played that night pits the world’s 79th -ranked team against a side that does not yet have any ranking.
“Inflation is unjust and deflation is inexpedient. Of the two perhaps deflation is, if we rule out exaggerated inflations such as that of Germany, the worse; because it is worse, in an impoverished world, to provoke unemployment than to disappoint the rentier,” John Maynard Keynes, Essays on Persuasion
Whether or not you have heard of John Maynard Keynes, and whatever you might think of the orthodoxies (libertarians mostly consider him a false prophet of the dismal science,
By Andrew Warshaw
February 19 – UEFA are continuing their crackdown on racism by ordering CSKA Moscow to play their next European home game behind closed doors. Apollon Limassol of Cyprus and the Serbian Under-21 team, the latter previously embroiled in racism accusations following a game against England in 2012, have also been handed partial stadium closures because of monkey chanting by supporters.
By Jamie Styles
February 19 – Barcelona’s three official Twitter profiles were hacked on Tuesday, just hours after their 2-0 win over Manchester City in the Champions League.
February 19 – Sandro Rosell, who dramatically quit as Barcelona president partly over an investigation into last year’s signing of star Brazilian forward Neymar, is reportedly no longer facing unconnected allegations that he benefitted illegally from a friendly match involving the Brazilian national team.
By Andrew Warshaw
February 19 – Brazil’s World Cup organisers are breathing a sigh of relief after FIFA gave the host venue of Curitiba a deadline-day reprieve by announcing that local authorities had done just about enough to warrant retaining its status.
February 19 – Fans of embattled Scottish Premier League club Heart of Midlothian are being asked to contribute financially for a further two years as the club transitions out of insolvency towards fan ownership and, hopefully, stability.
UEFA’s week will go from the sublime to the ridiculous
Tuesday and Wednesday are proud days for the organisation. The Champions league returned with slavering anticipation, an open tournament, some fascinating ties, and barely a negative word.
Thursdays and the ghastly Europa League usually raise questions over UEFA formats. But this week it will be shameful Sunday.
By Andrew Warshaw
February 18 – For the first time ever, FIFA are planning impromptu precautionary dope tests ahead of the World Cup despite the tournament having no history of persistent drug-related issues.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
February 18 – Petr Safarcik has become the majority shareholder of FC Banik Ostrava, the Czech football club said in a statement. With the acquisition of shares from local businessman Libor Adamek, Safarcik controls a combined 95% of the shares in Banik through his company PAM Market and as a private investor. The amount of the deal was not disclosed by the two businessmen.
By Andrew Warshaw
February 18 – Kosovan footballing authorities are hoping to persuade Manchester United’s rising teenage star Adnan Januzaj to play in their symbolic first ever meaningful international friendly.