By Andrew Warshaw
April 20 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter says points deductions are a far better deterrant for tackling racism than stadium closures – which UEFA have been particularly keen on – since the latter are ‘unduly excessive’ punishments that hurt the game itself rather than penalise the guilty parties.
April 20 – With the clock ticking towards kickoff, FIFA secretary-general Jérôme Valcke returns to Brazil next week to visit four World Cup host cities – São Paulo, Curitiba, Cuiabá and Fortaleza.
April 20 – Asian football’s flagship tournament, the Asian Cup, is being expanded in 2019 from 16 to 24 teams, abandoning the lower-level Challenge Cup in the process.
By Mark Baber
April 17 – This week has seen the launch of the Panini Online Sticker Album for the 2014 FIFA World Cup hosted on FIFA.com in association with presenting partner Coca-Cola, and the roll-out of the official video game for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, published by EA Sports for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
April 17 – The MLS has added a 22nd franchise in Atlanta. The team will play its first season in 2017 in a 29,000 capacity stadium it will share with NFL team the Atlanta Falcons, Both franchises are owned by Arthur Blank.
April 17 – In a week when financial fair play (FFP) came under renewed scrutiny, Manchester City have emerged as the best paid squad in global sport, according to a new study.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
April 17 – The festering divisions that have characterised Asian football in recent months have exploded into open warfare between the Continent’s two most prominent officials.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
April 17 – Pogon Szczecin is planning to either modernise its stadium or build a new facility, according to Jaroslaw Mroczek, the chief executive of the Polish club.
April 17 – Brazilian football has elected a new president – but not until after the World Cup. Jose Maria Marin will be replaced in 2015 by current vice president and sole candidate for the job, Marco Polo Del Nero (pictured).
April 17 – David Beckham’s dreams of starting a new football franchise in the United States have suffered their first wobble.
April 18 – The dispute over the ownership of the Trinidad centre of excellence currently held by former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner has become a point of political contention in Trinidad government politics with Warner saying the issue is being driven on to the political agenda by Trinidad’s Attorney General.
By Alexander Krassimirov
April 17 – Bulgaria’s CSKA Sofia has repaid debts in excess of 1 million leva (€500,000) in order to meet club license requirements. The debts were accumulated under the former ownership of Titan AS.
“The song of the future must transcend creed.” E.M. Forster, A Passage to India
In India, some call it Sachinism. The legacy of Sachin Tendulkar, cricket’s greatest batsman ever to emerge from the South Asian sub-continent, is so great that he has achieved the status of a demigod in what is already a pantheistic culture. The doleful impact on popular consciousness there of the day he was run out for 99,
By Mark Baber
April 16- The fourth edition of the “ReportCalcio” has been unveiled by the FIGC in Rome revealing a continuing downward trend in stadium income whilst television revenues increase.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 16- As the Uefa panel responsible for policing financial fair play entered the second of a key two-day meeting today to examine which clubs were still in breach, a London-based specialist has warned that unless Europe’s governing body shows sufficient teeth, its strict cost-control rules may still be flouted.