Concacaf to draw groups for restyled U17 Women’s Championship
May 9 – Concacaf have unveiled details of their restructured 2020 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship which will be played over three rounds by 32 nations.
Arsenal boost Visit Rwanda sleeve sponsorship with Nat Geo content deal
May 9 – Arsenal have added a content layer to their ‘Visit Rwanda’ sleeve sponsorship via a deal with National Geographic.
European Leagues body says club majority is against the ECA carve-up of the UCL
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – A “vast majority” of European clubs are against the idea of overhauling the Champions League and introducing a system of promotion and relegation.
Nigerian court charges NFA boss Pinnick with criminal conspiracy and financial corruption
May 8 – Nigerian FA chief Amaju Pinnick, a strong ally of FIFA president Gianni Infantino and a constant figure of controversy, has been charged along with four others by a federal court on allegations of corruption and suspended, according to local reports.
FIFA rejects bulk of Chelsea appeal and keeps transfer ban in place until Summer 2020
May 8 – Chelsea have had partial success with their appeal against the two-window transfer ban given to them by FIFA but not enough to allow them to buy new players in either of the next two transfer windows.
Liverpool humble Barca with stunning 4-goal win to qualify for Champions League final
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – Impossible, unthinkable, sensational, miraculous. The superlatives are still pouring out of every footballing corner of the world to describe arguably the greatest comeback in European football history as Liverpool beat mighty Barcelona 4-0 on Tuesday to overturn a three-goal first-leg deficit and advance to their second successive Champions League final.
Saudi’s Al Ittihad move to last 16 of ACL as Al Rayyan’s Rivas watches from stands
May 8 – The enmity of the economic blockade of Qatar by Saudi Arabia has spilled over on to the football pitch again with the AFC this time forced to intervene over the behaviour of Venezuelan striker Gelmin Rivas in an Asian Champions League group game for Qatar’s Al Rayyan SC against Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad.
Going Live: Bud Light to take Club América v Cruz Azul from Azteca to Vegas via VR
May 8 – The experience of being in the stadium and experiencing the match live will be replicated tomorrow night in Las Vegas using virtual reality for the Liga MX play-off game between Club América vs. Cruz Azul.
Zimbabwe say they will not be threatened by COSAFA into 2020 hosting
May 8 – Within days of being slapped with a $50,000 fine for their failure to honour an agreement to host this year’s edition of the COSAFA Cup, Zimbabwe have refused to say whether they will comply with an order to stage the next edition in 2020.
Bulgarian FA relegates Vereya from top flight over persistent match-fixing alerts
May 8 – Bulgarian top-flight club Vereya have been thrown out of their domestic league after repeated warnings from UEFA over suspected match-fixing.
European Leagues to take ‘Big club’ Champions League battle to UEFA this week
May 7 – Europe’s major leagues are set to meet with UEFA officials in Switzerland on Wednesday in the latest talks over radical plans to overhaul the format of the Champions League post-2024.
Down to the wire: Kompany strike returns advantage to Man City ahead of final matches
May 7 – For the only eighth time in Premier League history, the title will be decided on the final day of the season on Sunday with Manchester City in pole position to retain their crown following one of the iconic goals in recent memory.
Big money buy: Sancho tops U20 transfer value shopping list at €150m
May 7 – As the Summer transfer window creeps closer to opening and big clubs prepare for their close season shopping, a ranking of Big 5 league U20 players by value has been released with England and Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho (pictured) top of that list.
Barca’s Bartmomeu fans UCL flames with call for more games between the biggest clubs
By Andrew Warshaw
May 6 – As European leagues began a two-day session in Madrid to address controversial plans to overhaul the Champions League, Barcelona’s president stepped up the rhetoric by insisting the likely changes could only benefit Europe’s showpiece club competition.
FIFPro to track player health through new 10-year research study
May 7 – World player union FIFPro has announced the start of 10-year study into the health of professional football players.