By Andrew Warshaw, Chief Correspondent
January 18 – Although match fixing has become arguably the greatest scourge in the game, FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke is confident that elite matches in competitions like the Champions League and World Cup matches are immune from any illegal activity. But he says there needs to be a co-ordinated approach.
When Greek and Turkish Cypriot football officials staged their landmark re-unification talks this week, among the keen observers waiting in the winter sunshine for the eagerly anticipated arrival of the respective federation leaders was 81-year-old Sevim Ebeoglu.
Sevim, perhaps more than anyone else, epitomises what it would mean for the Turkish side of the divided island to be re-integrated with its once friendly neighbour.
By Mark Baber
January 18 – Host nation South Africa kick off their African Cup of Nations campaign on Saturday against Cape Verde with the players refusing to accept any bonuses for their Group A matches unless they qualify.
January 18 – China’s most successful football club, Dalian Shide FC, is in danger of going out of business after a proposed merger with local rivals Dalian Aerbin FC was blocked by the Chinese Football Association (CFA).
By Mark Baber
January 17 – The fall-out from December’s violence at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kalkutta when a player was badly injured by a rock thrown from the crowd, is continuing to cause controversy.
By Andrew Warshaw, Chief Correpondent, in Nicosia
Janaury 17 – Football re-unification on the bitterly divided island of Cyprus took a pivotal step forward today when the leaders of the respective Greek and Turkish Cypriot federations announced they were closer than ever to burying their differences after decades of separation and mistrust.
By Mark Baber
January 17 – Wei Di, the head of the Chinese Football Association (CFA) has been sacked three years after being appointed to the role.
By Mark Baber
January 17 – Pierluigi Collina, UEFA’s chief refereeing officer, visited Brussels to offer support and encouragement as the Belgium introduces additional assistant referees (AARs).
By Andrew Warshaw
January 17 – FIFA’s new director of security says he trying his best to step up the fight against match-fixing which, he believes, is rife throughout the game with as many as 50 leagues targeted by match fixers.
By Andrew Warshaw
January 17 – After months of speculation and innumerable column inches, England’s Premier League clubs have lost out on the services of Pep Guardiola, with the much-touted Spanish coach opting for Bayern Munich next season at the end of his year-long self-imposed sabbatical.
By Mark Baber
January 16 – The English Football Association, The FA, launched its 150th year anniversary with a heart-warming display of appreciation to the Football Association and English football by football leaders and legends from around the world, as well as a demonstration by the FA of the great emphasis it places on grassroots football, inclusion and the endeavours of volunteers.
By Andrew Warshaw, Chief Correspondent, in Nicosia, Cyprus
January 16 – After more than half a century of isolation during which they have become international outcasts, football officials of Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus will sit side-by-side with their Greek counterparts on Thursday for landmark talks aimed at unifying the sport on the deeply divided Mediterranean island.
16 January – The League Managers Association (LMA) in the UK and medical provider Perform struck a deal to provide a fitness and wellbeing programme for managers at the new FA training facility at St George’s Park.
The 150th anniversary of the Football Association certainly deserves to be celebrated. Any organisation that has reached such a venerable age has the right to celebrate its birthday and no doubt get a telegram from the Queen, or however Her Majesty marks such occasions these days.
But the tipple for the occasion should not be Krug champagne but a glass of Prosecco. For all the warm words that are now being showered on the FA from far and wide the best thing that can be said about the FA is that it still exists.
January 16 – The (English) Football Association, The FA, launched its 150th year anniversary at the Grand Connaught Rooms in London today.