Concacaf’s 2025 Champions Cup draws MLS contenders together in first round
December 13 – Concacaf has drawn the ties for its 27-team 2015 Champions Cup that sees 10 nations having qualified teams.
English FA runs world’s first para football training course for medics
December 13 – The English Football Association (FA) has announced a first-of- its-kind, medical training course known as the para-Advanced Trauma Medical Management in Football Reaccreditation (ParaATMMiF-R) course.
Belgium’s Cercle Brugge keep faith with Austrian recruitment policy
December 13 – Belgian club Cercle Brugge have named Ferdinand Feldhofer (pictured) as the successor to Miron Muslic. It’s the third time in a row that the club have put their fate in the hands of an Austrian manager.
Stats Perform adds AI and Opta to expanded Football DataCo deal
December 13 – Stats Perform has expanded its media data partnership with Football DataCo (FDC), with its Opta sports data brand becoming the official insights provider for FDC competitions.
FIFA’s 2034 award makes a mockery of its own rules and marks a dangerous moment, says joint statement
December 12 – In a joint statement, 22 organisations from human rights bodies to trade unions and fan groups, have condemned FIFA’s award of 2034 World Cup hosting to Saudi Arabia saying that it “marks a moment of great danger”.
Fuelling the fire: Environmentalists say FIFA’s Saudi 2034 decision puts greed before the planet
December 12 – Environmental groups and activist player David Wheeler have condemned FIFA for awarding the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s leading polluters.
Botafogo’s bubble bursts as Mexico’s Pachuca knock them out of Intercontinental Cup
December 12 – Following the highs of a league and Libertadores double, Botafogo were stunned by Concacaf champions Pachuca 3-0 to exit the FIFA Continental Cup at the first hurdle.
AFC’s Shaikh Salman says Saudi 2034 will leave a lasting legacy for world football
December 12 – AFC president Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa congratulated Saudi Arabia on being confirmed as the host of the 2034 World Cup saying he was confident that the country would leave a lasting legacy, not just in Asia but within the wider football world.
Belgium’s Deinze folds after court declares club bankrupt
December 12 – Following the failed takeover of ADA Group, Belgian second-division club KMSK Deinze has been declared bankrupt by a local court in Ghent.
Sports Illustrated takes naming rights to New York Red Bull’s stadium in 13-year deal
December 12 – New York Red Bulls (NYRB) have entered into a ground-breaking 13-year naming rights agreement that will see their home rebranded from Red Bull Arena to Sports Illustrated Stadium, effective immediately.
Player trading: Lille and Ajax deal smart, PSG and Man Utd are world’s traders
December 12 – French Ligue1 side LOSC Lille have the highest positive player trading balance in the world, at +€384m, according to a ranking of the monetary balance of transfer transactions covering non-academy players signed since 2015. PSG have the worst trading record.
Flamengo release designs for planned new 80,000 capacity stadium
December 12 – Last month, Brazilian Serie A club Flamengo took a major step towards realising a dream decades in the making. Club officials met with representatives from the city of Rio de Janeiro at Flamengo’s Gávea headquarters to sign an agreement that will pave the way for the construction of a state-of-the-art, almost 80,000-seat stadium in the Gasômetro area, with visuals of the project made available this week for the first time.
Women’s football attendances leap 38% overtaking 130-year old Rugby League
December 12 – Women’s football in the UK is booming, having shown year-on-year growth of nearly 38%, leading to larger, and more consistent, crowds than ever before, according to a report by ad agency Two Circles.
UEFA hits Serbia with fines and stadium restrictions after fans refuse to obey rules
December 12 – UEFA has fined the Football Association of Serbia (FSS) €173,000, partially closed the stands for the next two home matches, and banned the sale of tickets to fans for the next two away matches after a number of offenses during games against Switzerland and Denmark in the Nations League last month.
AFC lands Sport 24 deal for further 5 years
December 12 – Sport 24, the live sports channel distributed to airline and cruise markets, has renewed its deal with the AFC through to 2028.