UEFA draws groups for 2023 Women’s World Cup qualifiers
April 30 – A record number of 51 nations were in the the European qualifying draw for the 2023 Women’s World Cup held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon today.
Myanmar state of emergency and covid spike forces changes to AFC club draws
April 30 – Political unrest in the country has forced the Myanmar Football Federation (MFF) to pull out its two clubs – Hantharwady United FC and Shan United FC – from the 2021 AFC Cup and AFC Champions League, respectively.
Players’ union boss says Champions League reform creates too many extra games
April 29 – Having managed to fight off threats of a European Super League, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin now faces having to convince the rest of football’s stakeholders that his Champions League reforms are the best way forward.
UEFA commits to €24m for Women’s Champions League teams
April 29 – Outlining a new financial model for the Women’s Champions League, UEFA will pour €24 million into the competition for redistribution to teams, the continental governing body announced on Wednesday.
Advantage Man City and Chelsea as Istanbul Champions League final comes into view
April 28 – Will Istanbul play host to an-all English Champions League final at the end of May? On Wednesday, Manchester City inched closer to elusive glory after exploiting Paris Saint-Germain’s defensive lapses in a high-octane semi-final of the competition. In the other last four game, Chelsea held Real Madrid to a 1-1 draw on Tuesday.
Hisense returns to World Cup action with Qatar 2022 deal
April 29 – Chinese consumer electronics company Hisense is returning as a World Cup sponsor for the Qatar 2022 edition, having debuted with FIFA in Russia in 2017 and 2018.
Liverpool bank borrowings increase in lossmaking 2019-20 financial year
By David Owen
April 28 – The value of long-term bank loans on Liverpool’s balance-sheet almost quadrupled in size in 2019-20 to stand at just under £197 million on May 31. But year-end cash was up by a similar proportion at £149.3 million.
DFB chief Keller under pressure after Nazi reference
April 29 – Just when you thought the administration of German football had cleaned up its act after a series of scandals in recent years, it is back in the news for all the wrong reasons with the president of the DFB Fritz Keller publicly apologising for making a Nazi reference.
Ek re-confirms Arsenal interest but Kroenkes still singing off different hymn sheet
April 29 – Swedish billionaire and Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek has reasserted his commitment to takeover Arsenal from the Kroenke family, declaring he has the funds in place for a bid and wants to bring the club “back to its glory”.
Schmeichel, Messi and de Gea top club loyalty ranking
April 29 – Two goalkeepers are in the top three of a ranking of Big 5 league players who have played the most domestic matches for their club in the past 10 years. Leicester City’s Kasper Schmeichel (372 games) and Manchester United’s David de Gea (337), sandwich Barcelona’s hardy perennial Lionel Messi (340).
Tongue-twister? Agnelli drives into new storm over Suarez language test
April 29 – Fresh from seeing his European Super League dreams crushed by fan power and political intervention, Andrea Agnelli, the under-pressure president of Juventus, is already back in the spotlight – this time apparently telling an Italian prosecutor that he was not responsible for rigging an Italian language exam taken by Luis Suárez last year.
Euro 2020 squad sizes to be increased from 23 to 26 players
April 28 – UEFA will allow national teams to expand their squads from 23 to 26 players at this summer’s Euro 2020 in a bid to lessen the load on players amid a congested calendar due to the global health crisis.
Premier League seeks to roll over £1.5bn domestic TV deals, asks for government approval
April 28 – The Premier League’s underpinning £1.5 billion domestic TV rights deals could be rolled over for at least another two years if government agrees to waive any competition law concerns.
Arab Cup draw groups Egypt and Algeria, Morocco and Saudi, Qatar and Iraq
April 28 – Algeria and Egypt’s pairing in Group D on Wednesday headlined the draw for the FIFA Arab Cup, a tournament that will serve as the official dress rehearsal in December for 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.
Norwegian FA adds to pressure on FIFA to review Qatar human rights complaints
April 28 – Following in the footsteps of the Danish and Swedish football federations, the Norwegian FA (NFF) has become the third national football governing body to demand answers from FIFA over working conditions of migrant workers in Qatar, the host for the 2022 World Cup.