Premier League shuffles the pack as Coward moves on
By Matt Scott
June 19 – Nic Coward (pictured), the general secretary of the Premier League, is to step down in August following a senior-management reorganisation.
Marinakis stripped of Olympiacos presidency as club awaits CL fate
By Matt Scott
June 19 – Olympiacos’s owner Evangelos ‘Vangelis’ Marinakis must step down as president of the club after a seven-hour plea hearing at an Athens court on Thursday in which he was accused of running a racketeering and match-fixing ring in Greek football.
Inside Editorial: All lawyered up with no place to go
News that FIFA president Sepp ‘despot’ Blatter and Jerome ‘not me’ Valcke have lawyered up in the US with a couple of the most aggressive rottweilers available comes as no real surprise. Or does it? And does the fact that this is actually news tell us a bit more than perhaps the news leaker had intended.
Racist Chinese poster increases tensions with Hong Kong
By Mark Baber
June 18 – A poorly conceived marketing campaign for China’s World Cup qualifiers, which included a poster saying “don’t underestimate black skin, yellow skin, white skin Hong Kong” has led to accusations of racism, an apparent apology from the Chinese FA (CFA) and a sharpening of tensions between the mainland and Hong Kong fans.
Scottish football fans to get ‘right to buy’ their clubs
By Mark Baber
June 18 – Amendments to the community empowerment bill, proposed by the Scottish Green party, were supported by members of the Scottish Parliament yesterday evening, opening the way for fan groups to buy their clubs if they fall into financial difficulties, and perhaps even to be granted a general “right to buy”.
Russians go ice-cold on Capello after Euro 2106 qualification disaster
By Paul Nicholson
June 18 – The Russians may be on target with their infrastructure build for the World Cup in 2018, but they look to be way off target with their preparation of a team for the home championship. Defeat against Austria in the Euro 2016 group qualifiers again raised doubts over whether Italian Fabio Capello is the right manager for the Russian team.
Man City gather Cityzens Giving youth leaders for a week of training
June 18 – Manchester City has gathered 30 young leaders from its global outreach programme for a week-long summit at the City Football Academy in Manchester.
MLS’s Minnesota expansion plan snags on shaky foundations
By Ben Nicholson
June 18 – Minnesota’s MLS expansion franchise is in peril as their plans to build a soccer-specific stadium are struggling to receive attention in the State Capitol.
Soosay calls it a day and quits AFC role
By Andrew Warshaw
June 18 – Within weeks of being temporarily suspended as general-secretary of the Asian Football Confederation over claims he was involved in a cover-up during an investigation into corruption allegations dating back to the era of Mohammed bin Hammam, Dato Alex Soosay has quit with immediate effect rather than stay and fight to clear his name.
Brazilians top table of doping rules breakers
By David Owen
June 18 – Brazilians and Portuguese have emerged as the worst football offenders in a new report on anti-doping rule violations compiled by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Greek court turns focus on ‘Mr Big’, Olympiacos’ Marinakis
By Matt Scott
June 18 – Olympiacos’s president Evangelos ‘Vangelis’ Marinakis is due in court today to enter his plea in the match-fixing scandal gripping Greek football.
Exclusive: UEFA ethics chief clears Greeks in match-fixing scandal for Europa League
By Matt Scott
June 17 – UEFA’s Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector has recommended the inclusion of a club under criminal investigation for match fixing into next season’s Europa League competition, Insideworldfootball can reveal.
Swiss prosecutor identifies money laundering targets but says no to US link-up
By Mark Baber
June 17 – Switzerland’s top federal prosecutor Michael Lauber (pictured) has revealed that more than 104 banking relationships are being looked into as part of its investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids. Each of these relationships involves several accounts, with 53 banking relationships (some overlapping) having been separately been flagged up by the Swiss Money Laundering Reporting Office.
Pakistan congress suspends its FA president as civil war returns
By Mark Baber
June 17 – The chaos in the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) continues with an Extraordinary Congress on Tuesday reportedly suspending its president and secretary ahead of the elections planned for June 30.
Zawisza Bydgoszcz up for sale after relegation from Ekstraklasa
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
June 17 – Radoslaw Osuch, the owner of Zawisza Bydgoszcz, has announced plans to sell the club following its relegation from Poland’s top tier, the Ekstraklasa, and the decision by the municipal authorities of Bydgoszcz to reduce their support to the troubled side.