March 22 – Football’s use of the state-of-the-art London 2012 Olympic stadium has at last been resolved after the government agreed to put in an extra £25m towards the costs of converting the venue, allowing Premier League West Ham United to take over.
By Mark Baber
March 22 – AEK Athens president Andreas Dimitrelos (pictured) has been arrested over €170 million in taxes owed by the Greek top flight club.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
March 22 – It was the briefest of interventions but it provided a telling insight into the tensions of the previous two days and the current state of play.
By Mark Baber
March 22 – The legal action brought by 15 year old Louis Cooper over restrictions placed on fans has been dropped after agreement with West Yorkshire police on a new set of conditions which improve fans’ access to the Huddersfield Town v Hull City football match on 30 March 2013.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 22 – Kevin-Prince Boateng, the Italian-based footballer who made headlines by famously taking his AC Milan teammates off the pitch in protest at racism, has described it a “dangerous disease” with no easy cure.
The Rio Ferdinand saga has once again raised the hoary old question of club versus country, always a potent question in international football, particularly the English game. Over the years this has generated much heat, except in the case of Ferdinand this old story has taken a very modern, and it must be said, fascinating twist.
In the classic battles between club and country the story often went as follows. A player would be called up to play for England.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 21 – Greg Dyke, a former BBC director general known for his direct and passionate views, will be the new chairman of the English Football Association in succession to David Bernstein who steps down in July. His appointment is still subject to approval from the full FA council.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
March 21 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter today gave his most unequivocal statement to date that the 2022 Qatar World Cup will be staged in summer – as per the terms of the original bid process.
By Mark Baber
21 March – CONCACAF has agreed a new deal with soft drinks manufacturer Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS) for 7UP to be the Official Soft Drink of the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The sponsorship will almost certainly add fuel to the debate over soccer’s role in public health.
By Mark Baber
March 21 – Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This year the theme, chosen by the UN Human Rights Office, is racism in sports.
Exclusive: By Osasu Obayiuwana
March 21 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter has told InsideWorldFootball that confronting the growing scourge of racism in the sport is one of the last major challenges confronting his presidency. “I am going to tackle this with all my tenacity, my fighting character,” Blatter said, on the eve of the CAF Congress in Morocco earlier this month.
March 21 – A CIES Football Observatory report, released today, highlights the issues of player hoarding and how this creates and sustains a competitive imbalance in European football.
March 21 – Barry Hearn, chairman of lower-league English club Leyton Orient, says he will give up his fight to move his club to the stadium used for the London 2012 Olympics if he loses a legal challenge into the bidding process.
21 March – UEFA president Michel Platini has hit back at Sepp Blatter’s criticism of his revolutionary plan for a pan-Continental 2020 European Championship, implying his FIFA counterpart has been disrespectful to UEFA’s national federations.
Come next season, will Roberto Mancini still be the manager of the world’s biggest spending football club of recent years?
If Manchester City’s owners in Abu Dhabi decide the time has come to move on from Mancini nobody could accuse them of lacking patience or support.
But is Sheikh Mansour among those now taking the view that while Mancini is undoubtedly a good manager, he’s not proving to be a great one?