By Andrew Warshaw in Nyon
September 28 – By the time UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin proclaimed that Thursday’s vote for Euro 2024 was a “transparent, democratic decision” by his executive committee, Turkey’s vanquished bid team were already packing their bags en route to Geneva airport, stunned by the margin of defeat.
If an unindicted co-conspirator in a US federal criminal case tells you “I want to thank Gianni Infantino for being here – he’s the president of FIFA and a highly respected man,” it is a dubious honour at best. If the same unindicted co-conspirator continues to say “Let’s see, in 2026 I won’t be here [as president]. Maybe they’ll extend the term? If they don’t extend it the media is going to be very boring,
August 15 – FIFA has moved swiftly to counter criticism of its Ethic processes following global outcry over the removal of the word ‘corruption’ from its updated Ethics Code, and the worrying (if not frightening) introduction of a new ‘defamation’ offence, being widely talked about as a new law for cover-up.
With his announcement to resign, Richard Scudamore has demonstrated once again a certain class and intelligence: he leaves at a time when the Premier League is in the best of health, successful and solid to the core.
The moment Morocco entered the bidding for the 2026 World Cup, you kind of knew it wouldn’t be a straightforward affair. But few surely imagined it would become quite as bitter and bizarre as this.
Before Morocco threw its hat in the ring, there was only America. MAGA appears to be the name of the game anywhere you look these days. Make America Great Again everywhere and anywhere. As long as the US profit and their competitors eat sand (or salt water or rocks – you choose), all is good in Trump’s special democracy.
Carrying a gun into a football stadium is forbidden by Greek Law. Reaching for the gun in a threatening fashion takes this to the next level. Demanding the ref to change a decision at gun-point is an altogether novel approach to winning a title. But when PAOK of Thessaloniki scored an offside goal in the 90th minute to win the match, that’s exactly what happened. The goal was not given and the proverbial hit the fan.
The good news for Premier League club owners: top-tier English football has never been more profitable. The bad news: this is probably as good as it is going to get for at least the next five years – an age in terms of media technology.
The Bundesliga is the top football league in Western Europe’s most populous country. Based purely on these two facts, you might expect it to generate more revenue than any other rival league worldwide.
How many 19th century industries can say they have more than tripled revenues over the first 16 years of this millennium? My hunch would be only one: European club football which, according to the latest UEFA Club Licensing Benchmarking Report, generated revenues of €18.5 billion in 2016, up from €6 billion in 2000.
If there ever was a snub, then it is this one: Transparencist-in-Chief and FIFA-Almighty Gianni, The Infantino, made a trip recently to see how his flock are faring in the timid December heat of the Middle East. It was a fine trip, with lovely meals, lovely people everywhere and lovely sights to see (sic!).
When England won the recent under-17 World Cup to add to their under-20 triumph in June, one of my journalist colleagues (I wish I could take the credit) came up with a novel and intriguing idea.
Saudi Arabia may be breaking through a long criticised barrier to allow women to watch sports in stadiums, but the real questions should perhaps be around what sports they will be able to watch.
US striker Megan Rapinoe’s claim that FIFA is “old, male and stale” may have been a comment triggered by disbelief over FIFA’s final nominations for its top female player award, but the wider context does bear closer examination. A look at the top of the FIFA hierarchy shows that half its confederation presidents do not have competing national women’s senior teams.
The US were beaten by lowly Trinidad & Tobago (no, it is one country, they weren’t playing two countries at the same time), lost fair and square and to add to their grief, Panama equalised against Costa Rica with a Thierry Henry type goal (“…the referee’s decision is final”, so don’t expect a Samoura-Senegal type replay decision to bail the US out).