VAR idiocy over Bamford goal points to a rule that is officially out of control
November 9 – VAR intervention on offside reached a new level of absurdity at the weekend when Leeds United striker Patrick Bamford had a goal ruled out.
Man Utd get more social in China with Douyin launch
November 9 – Having debuted on social media platform TikTok last week, Manchester United have rapidly followed up with a launch on Douyin, China’s leading destination for short-form mobile video content.
Rashford strikes again as Boris Johnson pressured to pick up the ball on child hunger
November 9 – Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford has forced the UK government into a second u-turn with his calls to extend free school meals to children from low-income families during school holidays in England.
Zidane penalised for Real’s rotation policy in Valencia
November 9 – Zinedine Zidane’s rotation policy backfired once more after his Real Madrid slid to a dispiriting 4-1 defeat at Valencia, missing a chance to go top of the table in La Liga.
FIFPro moan over Qatar venue but AFC counters all nations and clubs were consulted
November 6 – The international players’ union FIFPro, battling to build a significant presence from a low base in Asia, has accused the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) of a “lack of consultation” over the decision to complete the eastern zone of its elite club competition in Qatar due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
FIFA takes a first step in crackdown on ‘abusive’ agents commissions
November 6 – Fans will be able to see exactly how much agents earn from transfer deals when a raft of new FIFA regulations come into force next year.
Swiss government steps in with two-year $194m loan fund for clubs fighting for their lives
November 6 – The Swiss government has earmarked loans totalling CHF175 million ($194 million) per year 0 for 2020 and 2021 – for sports clubs in the country to enable them to survive the financial impact of the coronavirus.
Premier League set to suspend PPV experiment as lockdown and fan pressure rejigs TV game
November 6 – The English Premier League’s controversial pay-per-view model that has caused outrage amongst fans’ groups has moved a step closer to being scrapped after this weekend.
UEFA positive on its Covid testing protocols as it delivers more than 500 matches
November 6 – UEFA says it has overseen 61,859 Covid-19 tests since August, allowing more than 500 European matches to be played and making football one of the safest environments in the world.
Hands-on Ceferin calls for change to hand-ball law and a return to the ‘spirit’ of the game
November 6 – Aleksander Ceferin has written to FIFA, asking for a change to the handball rule, which the UEFA boss says has caused “growing frustration and discomfort”.
Coronavirus: Belgium’s Mouscron are postponed again as battle to control virus continues
November 6 – Covid-19 continues to play havoc with the Belgian Pro League schedule with Mouscron vs OH Leuven being postponed because of infections at the Walloon club. It’s the third Mouscron game that will require rescheduling.
Chicago gets go-ahead for NISA franchise and 2021 start
November 6 – The third tier National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) in the US has announced the owners and management team behind their 11th franchise team which will be based in Chicago.
MLS turns up the volume on JLab deal with multi-year renewal
November 6 – MLS and JLab Audio have signed a multi-year partnership extension, making JLab both the official audio and microphone partner of the league, as well as the eMLS, the leagues competitive EA Sports FIFA competition.
British government calls in PL, EFL and FA to break rescue funding deadlock
November 5 – British parliamentarians have asked to quiz the orchestrators of Project Big Picture, the controversial plan that would have handed power to the big six Premier League clubs in return for a £250 million Covid-19 bailout for lower-league clubs, but which never got off the ground.
Japan’s Levain Cup Final pushed back after covid outbreak hits Kashiwa Reysol
November 5 – The Levain Cup Final in Japan has been postponed following a Covid-19 outbreak among Kashiwa Reysol’s players and team staff.