October 9 – With the rules of football under more scrutiny than ever – offside, handball, VAR etc – FIFA’s recently appointed Head of Global Development, Arsene Wenger, has come up with some forward-looking ideas he believes will improve the game.
October 9 – A new organisation entitled Football’s Black Coalition (FBC), has been launched by black coaches in the UK to lobby governing bodies to combat racism in the game.
October 9 – An under-19 friendly between England and Scotland on Thursday was abandoned during the first half after the visitors’ head coach Billy Stark tested positive for Covid-19.
October 8 – German prosecutors have searched several offices of the German Football Association (DFB) in the latest investigation into corruption, this time over the conduct of six former and current DFB bosses suspected of serious tax evasion.
October 8 – A report by Women In Football has found that 66% of women have experienced gender discrimination in football.
October 8 – The biggest impact the Covid pandemic has had on football’s transfer market is to slow down the inflation of players’ prices that in the 2019 window, where like-for-like player transfer price inflation was running at 15%.
October 8 – Gianni Infantino praised Qatar’s preparations for the 2022 World Cup amid the difficulty of navigating the coronavirus pandemic after a visit to the Al Bayt stadium and a meeting with the Emir.
October 8 – January 9 is the date being reported in Spain that could spell the end of the reign of Barcelona supremo Josep Maria Bartomeu in a no confidence vote.
October 8 – On the day they played each other in an Iberian friendly, Spain and Portugal announced Wednesday they were pushing ahead with a joint bid to host the 2030 World Cup.
October 8 – More than 200 national association members of FIFA have signed up for the Arsene Wenger-led Talent Development Programme.
October 8 – The president of Madagascar’s football federation, Raoul Rabekoto, is reportedly still missing and under an international arrest warrant for allegedly embezzling €25 million.
October 7 – English football’s governing bodies have joined forces in an attempt to force the government to reverse its decision to put plans on hold to allow fans back into stadiums in a safe and socially distanced manner.
By Paul Nicholson
October 7 – The Trinidad and Tobago FA have been given a deadline of December 18 by FIFA to get their suspension lifted or face exclusion from the Qatar 2022 World Cup Qualifiers. The TTFA has been given the same deadline for the 2021 Gold Cup.
October 7 – Serie A has once again postponed a meeting to assess bids by private equity funds for a stake in the league’s broadcasting rights as the bidding war between the interested parties intensifies.
By Paul Nicholson
October 7 – OL Groupe, owner of French Ligue 1 club Olympique Lyonnais, has announced 2019/20 year end revenue of €271.6 million and an impressive pre-tax profit of €45.9 million considering the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.