February 12 – The fallout from Lionel Messi’s failure to play for Inter Miami in an exhibition match in Hong Kong has spread with both of Argentina’s upcoming friendly matches as part of a tour of mainland China cancelled by local authorities.
January 16 – Saudi Arabia has unveiled ambitious designs for a cutting-edge stadium perched atop a 200-meter-high cliff near Riyadh, strategically positioned to serve as a venue for matches during the 2034 World Cup.
January 11 – Adidas has agreed a deal to become the official match ball supplier for the Saudi Pro League (SPL) from February until the end 2024/25 season.
December 15 – Female fans in Iran have claimed a moral victory after being allowed to venture inside the Azadi Stadium in Tehran to attend Thursday’s eagerly anticipated clash between Persepolis FC and Esteghlal FC.
December 12 – Former Barcelona and Ukraine manager Lluis Cortes has been appointed as Saudi Arabia women’s national team head coach.
December 8 – Saudi Arabia, the only bid for the hosting of the 2034 World Cup, will have not only a new stadium but a whole new entertainment-focussed city to host matches at the finals.
December 8 –Saudi Arabian focus may be on the hosting of their first major FIFA event starting next week – the 2023 Club World Cup – but the Kingdom has still found time to announce the launch of a Women’s U20 national team.
December 4 – Indonesia wants to jointly stage the 2025 Under-20 World Cup with Singapore, despite being stripped of hosting rights to this year’s tournament.
November 20 – Football Australia and Nike have agreed a ten-year contract extension that will keep the sportswear company as the official apparel partner for all Australian national teams, including the Subway Socceroos, CommBank Matildas, Junior, and Youth men’s and women’s squads, as well as the CommBank Pararoos, and CommBank ParaMatildas.
November 16 – There has been plenty of comment around the short timelines given by FIFA to participate in the bidding for 2034 World Cup hosting and the process that led to them. But those who might have had an interest in getting involved appear to have quickly moved on.
November 8 – Al Ittihad have sacked former Spurs boss Nuno Espírito Santo after an underwhelming start to the season despite an influx of superstar summer signings.
November 6 – Al-Ettifaq manager Steven Gerrard says his Saudi Pro League side are ready to “scour Europe” when the transfer window re-opens in January.
October 27 – Ex-Liverpool and England star Robbie Fowler has been sacked from his position as head coach at Saudi second-tier side Al-Qadsiah, despite being unbeaten and having won manager of the month inside of his first eight games in charge.
October 20 – Having already all but been assured of the 2034 men’s World Cup, Saudi Arabia has now expressed an interest in staging the women’s version a year later.
October 19 – FIFA have opened the second phase of ticket sales for the Club World Cup 2023, to be held in Saudi Arabia.
