Russian striker Dzyuba says he rejected call-up for family, not political reasons
March 18 – Russia’s national team captain Artem Dzyuba has denied he asked not to join the side’s training camp because of the conflict in Ukraine.
OFC 2022 qualifiers: Solomon Islands open with win, Vanuatu hit by Covid, NZ waiting
March 18 – The Solomon Islands defeated the Cook Islands 2-0 to kick off the eight-team Oceania World Cup qualifiers with a ticket for the intercontinental playoffs at stake, but on the first day of the tournament Tahiti – Vanuatu had to be postponed because of a Covid-19 outbreak.
IMG to sell next six editions of Gulf Cup
March 18 – IMG will market the commercial rights for the Gulf Cup for the next six editions of the tournament, running up until 2031.
FIFA relaxes transfer rules to allow Ukrainian players to move to foreign clubs
March 17 – FIFA has relaxed its rules to allow home-based Ukrainian players to move to foreign clubs without having to wait for the next transfer window.
Candy, Coe, Chicago Cubs… Big names put money where their mouths are for Chelsea bid
March 17 – Chicago Cubs owners and a Lord Coe consortium have confirmed their intention to bid for Chelsea, with potential buyers having until Friday to enter the race to own the club.
VAR referral results in win for Mediapro and €2.1m loss for RFEF
March 17 – The bad blood between the Spanish football federation (RFEF) and Mediapro, one of the world’s biggest sports media organisations that is headquartered in Spain, has continued with the latest victory going to the agency with a €2.1 million compensation win.
Juve slip three late goals to Villareal to exit UCL; Chelsea war machine keeps rolling
March 17 – Three late goals earned Villarreal a stunning 3-0 second-leg victory at Juventus on Wednesday to knock the Italian giants out of the Champions League on a 4-1 aggregate, the third season in a row they have been eliminated in the last 16.
Duka elected for sixth term as president in controversial Albanian FA vote
March 17 – Albanian FA president Armand Duka was overwhelmingly re-elected for a sixth four-year term on Tuesday following weeks of bitter disagreement about the validity of the process.
Hyderabad win over ATK sets up ISL final against Kerala
March 17 – Hyderabad will feature in their maiden Indian Super League (ISL) final against Kerala Blasters after overcoming ATK Mohun Began 3-2 on aggregate in the competition’s second semi-final.
FFH raises cash to develop deeper into fantasy football market
March 17 – The Fantasy Sports gaming market is spawning a whole new sector of related digital business with UK-based fantasy Football Hub announcing it has raised $550,000 to build its platform that digital content and analytics to the fantasy football community.
New cycle: Inter Milan links with Cinelli as it builds on Made in Milan theme
March 17 – Serie A’s Inter Milan have linked leading Milan-based cycling brand Cinelli to create a collection oflimited-edition products which will be released in two different drop phases.
Montagliani reserved on biennial World Cup but says more internationals are needed
By Paul Nicholson at Soccerex in Miami
March 16 – Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has voiced reservations over a biennial men’s World Cup, saying that it is problematic and questioning where confederation championships, including the fast-growing Concacaf Gold Cup, would fit in.
Barcelona sign Camp Nou naming rights and shirt sponsorship with Spotify
March 16 – The Camp Nou, one of the most iconic stadiums in world football, is being renamed as Spotify Camp Nou as part of a landmark multi-million Euro naming rights and sponsorship agreement between Barcelona and the global music streaming platform.
AFC promotes Australia and China to Women’s World Cup age group finals
March 16 – With North Korea having withdrawn completely from the international football scene during the pandemic, the AFC has moved to replace their national age-group teams that had qualified for the U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2022 and U-20 Women’s World Cup Costa Rica 2022.
LaLiga looks to build long term sustainability in North America
March 16 – LaLiga says it is building a real business in North America and to say that it is just about getting a regular top tier match played in the US to stimulate revenues “is not a fair assessment” of their activity.