Inside World Football - Page 1735 of 2159 - For the Business of Football

Exclusive: ‘Freed’ Belounis returns home but Qataris refuse to settle his wages

zahir belounis 2

By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
November 28 – Zahir Belounis, the French-Algerian footballer finally granted his exit visa from Qatar, would not have been allowed to leave without huge international pressure on the Qatari authorities, according to his brother. But, claims Mahdi Belounis, hundreds of thousands of Euros owed to Zahir – who had claimed 18 months of unpaid wages – remained unpaid right up until his departure from the Gulf state today.

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Corinthians mourn workers after Sao Paulo crane collapses on World Cup stadium

Sao Paulo crane collapses

By Andrew Warshaw
November 28 – Brazil’s World Cup preparations, dogged by the probability that many of its 12 stadia will not be completed before FIFA’s end-of-year deadline, have been further rocked by the deaths of two workers at the Sao Paulo venue due to host the symbolic opening game next year.

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FIFA turns down Ukraine and Peru appeals with tough warnings

Ukraine fans

By Paul Nicholson
November 28 – FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee has turned down appeals from both Ukraine and Peru who were sanctioned for racial abuse and crowd disturbances. They will now have to serve the original penalties imposed and both will start their next World Cup qualifying games for the 2018 tournament behind closed doors.

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Aussie security guru tells English it is time to heed the wake-up call

Chris Eaton 2

By Andrew Warshaw
November 28 – One of the world’s leading match-fixing investigators says it was “only a matter of time” before English football was targeted and says the latest case should serve as a wake-up call in the battle to bring down the criminal gangs and their ringleaders.

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Match-fixing scandal rocks lower tier English leagues, 6 arrested so far

matchfixing

By Andrew Warshaw
November 28 – The endemic scourge of matchfixing, which has tarnished the reputation of leagues across the globe, has struck at the heart of English football, until now considered by many to be immune from what FIFA and crime-busters have long believed is the most serious danger to the sport.

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Voting opens as CONCACAF honours its best with its first regional awards

CONCACAF-Awards-2013-Facebook FINAL

November 28 – CONCACAF has opened voting for its inaugural confederation awards that will be presented in December 2013. The new awards will honour the top performers from across the confederation in another initiative designed to open up the regional governing body to its membership and football fans across the region.

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Research finds gambling ads make up 4.1% of total ads on British TV

betting ads on tv

By David Owen
November 28 – The UK has witnessed an explosion of TV gambling adverts since a new law entered into force six years ago, new research has shown. In statistics that will come as little surprise to regular viewers of sport on British commercial television, the research found that the total number of gambling TV advertising spots rose from 152,000 in 2006, prior to the new law, to 537,000 in 2008 and 1.39 million in 2012.

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AFC sets out format and qualification slots for 2014 Champions League

ACL

November 27 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Executive Committee has approved the format for the AFC Champions League for the next three seasons, with the continuation of the Final being played on a home and away basis.

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Joy as Belounis granted Qatari exit visa and set to return to France

Zahir Belounis2

By Paul Nicholson and Andrew Warshaw
November 27 – Trapped French-Algerian footballer Zahir Belounis’ was finally granted his exit visa today and will leave Qatar on Thursday, bringing to an end a tortuous saga that made worldwide headlines and heaped embarrassment on the Qatari authorities.

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Blatter criticises media for ‘unfair’ Qatar treatment

Sepp Blatter and Qatar

By Andrew Warshaw
November 27 – In an address to the Asian Football Confederation at its awards ceremony dinner in Malaysia, FIFA President Sepp Blatter rounded on the international media, “and especially European media”, for constantly undermining 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.

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Norwegian FA provides football support for Syrian refugees in Jordan

Norway Football Field for Girls at the Zaatari Syrian refugee camp

November 27- Norway’s government has stepped up its involvement in helping football ease the plight of Syrian refugees who have fled to Jordan. Foreign Minister Børge Brende this week inaugurated the Norway Football Field for Girls at the Za’atari Syrian refugee camp in Northern Jordan and checked on progress of the second Norway Football Field in Za’atari that is set to be complete next month.

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Polish football association limits non-EU players to three per squad

Esktraklasa

By Jaroslaw Adamowski
November 27 – The Polish Football Association (PZPN) has decided that clubs playing in the Esktraklasa, the top tier of Poland’s football league, will be allowed to include a maximum of three players from outside of the European Union per squad at any time of the match. The regulation will come into force in the 2015-2016 season.

Osasu Obayiuwana

Osasu Obayiuwana: Africa is a continent – and a country

Other than for the slightly mischievous purpose of beginning a discussion, triggered by fellow Insideworldfootball columnist Lee Wellings last week, as he looked at the chances of the African quintet going to next year’s World Cup finals in Brazil, the headline for this week’s piece would, obviously, be silly.

Lee asked me whether “it’s frustrating that people outside Africa talk about [African] nations as ‘representing the continent’, as he wondered whether “the biggest hurdle towards an African side finally winning the World Cup is that we (as in the rest of the world,

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Shirt off adidas’ World Cup back…Nike unveils Brazil’s 2014 kit

Brazil kit

November 27 – On the field, Brazil’s famous yellow jersey is one of the most iconic pieces of apparel in world football. Off it, the recent unveiling of the kit Brazil will wear when it hosts the World Cup next summer has sparked the latest battle in the war for shirt supremacy between fierce rivals Nike and Adidas.

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Blatter ‘sickened’ by Betis monkey chants, that ref failed to report

Paulao

By Andrew Warshaw
November 27 – The latest publicised outbreak of racism in a major European league has prompted FIFA President Sepp Blatter to intervene by saying he was “sickened” by the reports.