April 9 – In the latest public relations gaffe to hit English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur during the Covid-19 outbreak, manager Jose Mourinho has been forced to semi-apologise after being pictured flouting government restrictions by leading a training session in park woodland not far from the club’s training ground.
April 9 – Real Madid have become the latest Spanish club whose players and coaches have agreed to take pay cuts to alleviate the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 8 – Qatar’s World Cup organisers, who thought they had finally moved on from years of suspicion and finger-pointing over the process by which they were awarded the 2022 tournament, have been forced to deny fresh allegations of corruption and bribery.
April 8 – The Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) and Inside World Football launch today the first edition of ‘4 Questions for 4 Leaders’, focusing on how the Olympic movement are dealing with the Coronavirus global pandemic, the impact on sport in different regions across the world and the postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
April 8 – Dutch football is drawing up a roadmap to resume the season that was suspended in March following the outbreak of the coronavirus with a return to action behind closed doors tentatively set for June 19.
April 8 – Former Brazil and Barcelona star Ronaldinho, detained in Paraguay after an investigation into the use of fake passports to enter the country, has been released but will remain under house arrest in the country.
April 8 – La Liga has earmarked three possible dates for the resumption of domestic matches once the green light is given by health authorities.
April 8 – FIFA has now confirmed reports that the summer transfer window is being pushed back into whatever gap ends up being between the seasons, and that player contracts due to end June 30 will be extended.
April 8 – English FA chairman Greg Clarke has painted a catastrophic picture of the financial effects of Covid-19 on football, not only at elite level but throughout the complete pyramid.
April 8 – The new handball law that was due to come into effect on June 1 – which would originally have been after the season ends – can be used by leagues whenever the current campaign resumes post-Covid-19.
April 8 – With esports providing pretty much the only opportunity for competitive action as the coronavirus lockdown grips the world, clubs and increasingly broadcasters are picking up the opportunity to engage fans.
April 8 – A football merchandise price comparison website based in the north-east of England has secured a £1.625 million round of investment to fund its global expansion plans.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 7 – Football may be postponed indefinitely on the field but off it, the FIFAgate scandal has burst into new life with a fresh catalogue of explosive indictments and allegations relating to widespread bribery, notably over the awards of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.
April 7 – Franco Frattini (pictured left) is the,Justice and Chamber President to the Italian Supreme Administrative Court and the leading judge tackling mafia and organised crime in Italy. Frattini is also the chair the Sports Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA). In a joint statement with SIGA CEO Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros (pictured right), they say the battle against financial crime in sport must be harder and faster fought.
April 7 – The summer transfer window will be amended, the 2019-20 season extended indefinitely and player contracts ending on June 30 put back for a short period under radical proposals about to be announced by FIFA, according to unconfirmed reports.