December 7 – England’s Football Association have condemned fans of Championship side Millwall for booing as players from their team and opponents Derby County took a knee before their league fixture at the weekend – on the day supporters were allowed back in limited numbers for the first time since March.
December 7 – Concacaf has been given the go-ahead by FIFA to have triple match international windows for its final group of World Cup qualifiers that need 14 match days to complete.
December 7 – Qatar defeated Bangladesh 5-0 in the only Asian World Cup qualifier of 2020 to end the year on a high. Asian Player of the Year Akram Afif and Almoez Ali (pictured) starred, both scoring a brace.
December 4 – After months of negotiations, the Premier League and English Football League, which covers the three division immediately below the top flight, have agreed a £250 million rescue package to help ease the financial burden on lower-league clubs caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
By Paul Nicholson
December 4 – Real Madrid have been the latest of Europe’s big clubs to outline the financial impact of the global pandemic on their finances – in Real’s case a €16 million hit on 2019/20 expected revenue and a drop in profit from €38 million last year to €330,000 this.
December 4 – Italy have been chosen to host the climax of the Nations League in October next year and will face Spain while Belgium take on France in two mouth-watering ties
December 4 – Barcelona’s financial crisis has taken a massive hit with Carlos Tusquets, the club’s interim president, announcing that player salaries in January will be postponed.
December 4 – Fans returning to English Premier League games this weekend will have to wear face masks at all times and have been banned from over-excessive singing or chanting to avoid Covid-19 transmission.
December 4 – Chinese Super League clubs have been ordered to drop the corporate part of their names for the start of next season by the Chinese FA.
December 4 – UEFA has gone green and it isn’t just about the greenbacks its top clubs and players so voraciously gobble up. Their ‘greenness’ this time is for the greater good.
December 4 – The Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) has launched its first SIGA Youth Forum that will take take place on January 27-28 next month.
December 4 – Chinese Super League side Guangzhou R&F have parted company after just one season with head coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
December 4 – Manchester United boss Ed Woodward (pictured) has said that his club wouldn’t participate in a European Super League. He argued that changes to the European football structure should be “complementary to thriving domestic leagues”.
December 3 – City Football Group and soft drinks brand Red Bull have blazed a trail in the area of multi-club football ownership, and in the pandemic era of no fans and an uncertain broadcast and sponsorship market, opportunities to buy professional teams have never been greater.
December 3 – Arsenal vs Rapid Vienna on a cold Thursday evening in the Europa League’s group stage with nothing at stake may not be the most glamorous occasion, but this dead rubber will take on significance for the club’s faithful and the wider English sporting community as Arsenal will host 2,000 fans at the match, the first Premier League club to welcome back fans since the coronavirus shutdown.