Trabzonspor release Sturridge over four month ban for breaking betting rules
March 3 – Former England striker Daniel Sturridge has been banned from football for four months and fined £150,000 for breaching betting rules.
Cardiff owner Tan sells LAFC stake valuing MLS club at $700m
March 3 – Malaysian Vincent Tan, owner of Cardiff, has reportedly sold half his stake in Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Los Angeles FC (LAFC), valuing the club at a league high $700 million.
Calendar crisis: Inter boss Marotta fears Serie A season will be wiped out by Covid-19
March 2 – Italy’s Serie A season runs the risk of not being completed if more matches are postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak, according to Inter Milan’s chief executive Giuseppe Marotta.
Calendar issues mount as European leagues make contingencies for spread of Covid-19
By Andrew Warshaw
March 2 – Leagues across Europe are now under threat because of the coronavirus with scores of fixtures potentially being affected over the coming weeks and months according to the head of the leagues’ umbrella body.
IFAB tiptoes round VAR rules but handball laws and ‘concussion’ subs to get revisions
By Andrew Warshaw
March 2 – Football’s lawmakers have agreed to undertake a major review the offside law in order to “foster the spirit of attacking play” but no changes will happen for a year and little has otherwise been done to appease the growing clamour for tweaks to the VAR system.
Bayern fans’ anti-Hopp banner offends players who refuse to play on
March 2 – Bayern Munich, flying high both domestically and in Europe, have had to issue an apology after their fans shamed the club by displaying an insulting banner at Hoffenheim that led to a protest by players on both sides taking matters into their own hands by refusing to play on and simply swapped passes with each other for the last 13 minutes.
Ajax maintain revenue increases, but Europa League failure casts a shadow
March 2 – Dutch champions Ajax have reported a €110.4 million revenue figure for the six months to 31 December 2019, following on from 2018/19 revenues that had more than doubled to €199.5 million in 2018/19.
Everton re-treads Davanti deal with multi-year extension
March 2 – Tyre manufacturer Davanti has added a multi-year extension to its sponsorship of Premier League Everton.
On the run: Ahmad’s Madagascan successor Rabekoto missing as corruption probe bites
March 2 – Madagascar’s FA president is reported to have disappeared just as he is being investigated for corruption.
Ceferin and Montagliani to headline as SIGA unveils more speakers for New York Forum, March 24
March 2 – UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin, and Concacaf president Victor Montagliani will headline the 6th SIGA Sport Integrity Forum in New York on March 24.
Eredivisie feeds its sponsorship wheels with Deliveroo deal
March 2 – Holland’s Eredivisie launched a new partnership at the weekend with new ‘Official Food Deliver Partner’ Deliveroo giving fans €2.50 discount on every Deliveroo order.
FIFA turns to Double pass for player data tracking
March 2 – FIFA have enlisted Belgian company Double pass as a partner to roll out a new ‘Talent Development Progamme’.
FIFA transfer reforms target an end to player ‘hoarding’ and mega-pay days for agents
By Andrew Warshaw
February 28 – In a transfer reform that will be widely welcomed across many sectors of the game, FIFA is set to limit the number of international loan deals from next season and curb the amount agents can be paid.
Villa post near £70m loss after Lerner payment
By David Owen
February 28 – Relegation-threatened Aston Villa have disclosed a swingeing £68.9 million loss for the year to end-May 2019, the season culminating with a play-off victory over Derby County that took them back into the Premier League.
IFAB stuck with VAR decision and no ‘clear and obvious’ route to take
February 28 – It’s not VAR per se that’s at fault, it’s the law itself that’s an ass. That’s the argument often churned out by the experts whenever goals are wiped out by the video assistant referee because of marginal offside decisions such as the width of a toe.