Arsenal pay record £72m fee for Lille’s Pepe
August 2 – Arsenal have completed a club-record £72 million deal to sign Nicolas Pepe from French club Lille OSC in a bid to bolster their squad ahead of the new Premier League season.
Man City and Yokohama combine for Melco partnership
August 2 – Manchester City have returned from their Japan pre-season jaunt with a new sponsor. Melco Resorts & Entertainment is to become the club’s Official Partner in Japan in a deal that also covers City’s sister club in Japan, Yokohama F. Marinos.
Turkish Airlines land on River Plate with $15m shirt deal
August 2 – Argentina giants River Plate will carry Turkish Airlines as their new shirt sponsor in a three-year deal reportedly worth $15 million.
Southampton renew eToro trading platform for a second season
August 2 – Premier League Southampton have extended their one-season deal with trading platform eToro for the 2019/20 season.
Jack is back…in court. But this time he is suing the Trinidad FA for $2.3m
August 1 – He has become the most notorious ‘villain’ still at large in world football – if the US indictments of 2015 are to be taken a face value – Jack Warner has returned to the Trinidad and Tobago courts. This time he is not fighting his extradition to the US – still on-going – but battling the local FA for $2.3 million of loans he claims he provided but hasn’t been repaid.
FIFA to boost Women’s World Cup to 32 teams and reopens bidding for 2023 edition
August 1 – The women’s World Cup finals will expand to 32 teams in 2023, putting it on a par with the men, though prize money will still doubtless remain an issue.
Juve’s Agnelli counters Korean claims that club broke contract over Ronaldo no-show
August 1 – Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli has rejected allegations that the Italian champions broke contract terms when Cristiano Ronaldo failed to feature in a pre-season friendly against the K League All Stars in Seoul last week.
Aussies confirm they are still up for 2023 Women’s World Cup hosting
August 1 – Australia have been the first of the declared bidders for the hosting of the 2023 Women’s World Cup to reaffirm their interest in the expanded competition which is being put out to retender.
LaLiga’s failure to secure UK TV deal reflects wider broadcast and schedule uncertainty
August 1 – La Liga has not found a home for its broadcasting rights in the UK and Ireland for the 2019/20 season, leaving the big kick off in August in doubt for fans across the UK.
Match-fixing: Bundesliga renews betting monitoring deal with Sportradar
August 1 – The Bundesliga and Sportradar have renewed their match-fixing monitoring and integrity services partnership for a further two years.
After 125 years, Bury’s English league status hangs on a bank balance
August 1 – Bury’s 125-year membership of the English Football League could come to an end if club owner Steve Dale fails to provide the EFL with sufficient evidence he can sustain the club.
CAS sends African Champions League replay decision back to CAF’s ‘competent’ bodies
By Osasu Obayiuwana
July 31 – In a further twist to the controversy that has bedevilled last May’s abandoned African Champions League final in Tunis, between Esperance of Tunisia and Wydad Athletic Club of Morocco, the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) has nullified the decision of CAF’s executive committee on June 5 in Paris, ordering a replay of the game.
Bility lays bare FIFA’s ‘weaponized’ and politicised Ethics process in open letter to Council
By Paul Nicholson
July 31 – Musa Hassan Bility, the CAF executive committee member banned by FIFA less than 24 hours after filing a complaint to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), has written an Open Letter to the FIFA Council calling into question the governing body’s “weaponised” Ethics committee.
Football’s united condemnation of beoutQ demands Saudis stop supporting TV theft
By Paul Nicholson
July 31 – Football’s most powerful governing bodies and rights holders have issued the largest combined statement to date condemning the theft of their broadcast rights by pirate broadcaster beoutQ and “requesting” the Saudi Arabian (KSA) government to immediately take “swift and decisive” action.
Korean fans demand money back after Ronaldo refuses to play against K-League All Stars
July 31 – Angry South Korean fans are seeking compensation after Cristiano Ronaldo stayed on the bench during a Juventus pre-season friendly in Seoul despite being contracted to appear.