June 17 – The US and Guyana have never played each other before. Guyana have never even made it to a Gold Cup final tournament until now. The US are playing in their 15th finals and looking to retain their title won in 2015. On the face it you wouldn’t hold out much hope for the Guyanans.
May 30 – Just days before he takes his place among the great and the good (and not so good) of African football – if he turns up, that is – Nigerian FA chief Amaju Pinnick, a strong ally of FIFA president Gianni Infantino and a constant figure of controversy, has been ordered to appear in court on July 1 along with four colleagues to answer charges of alleged misappropriation of funds.
May 30 – Switzerland’s 20 first and second division clubs have unanimously turned their backs on much-publicised plans to overhaul the Champions League as fears over a split between leagues and clubs intensifies.
May 30 – Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Ahmad says a special committee has been set up to deal with security issues at the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt next month.
By Paul Nicholson
May 30 – The European football business has never had it so good. Latest data from Deloittes puts the overall market value at a record €28.4 billion, driven primarily by a 6% rise in revenues across the increasingly dominant Big 5 European leagues and their ‘super’ clubs to €15.6 billion.
May 30 – The line-up for the Edinburgh Sports Conference, September 5-6 – titled ‘The Future of Football Transfers and Players’ Agents’ – will have Neymar Snr as one of its keynote attractions.
May 30 – Manchester City have announced a global partnership with Chinese liquor brand JNC which becomes the Club’s Official Baijiu Partner.
By Samindra Kunit in Baku, Azerbaijan
May 29 – At last the long journey and wait have come to an end. Tonight a London derby in Baku will decide the winner of the 2019 Europa League in a final that will be remembered by all involved for all the right or wrong reasons.
May 29 – Madrid authorities are launching a massive security operation ahead of Saturday’s all-English Champions League final as thousands of Liverpool and Tottenham fans converge on the Spanish capital.
May 29 – Chelsea’s preparations for the first of this week’s two all-English European finals have been overshadowed by reports that manager Maurizio Sarri appeared to storm out of a pre-match training session in Baku.
May 29 – Spanish reports claim Real Madrid’s former international defender Raul Bravo is the suspected ringleader of a damaging match-fixing operation that hit the headlines this week and has rocked Spanish football.
May 29 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has taken the rare step of banning a World Cup referee for six months for poor officiating in the Continent’s showpiece Champions League final.
May 30 – Brazilian authorities and police are investigating Cruzeiro and its president Wagner Pires de Sa for financial mismanagement and other illegal activities.
May 29 – The former President of the South Sudan Football Association (SSFA), Chabur Goc Alei (pictured), has wasted no time in deciding to appeal being banned for 10 years by FIFA.
By Paul Nicholson
May 29 – A new ranking of the value of European clubs on first glance shows few immediate surprise but a deeper look at the numbers shows the stunning growth in value of these football businesses over the past three years in comparison to other industries and Europe’s economy in general.
May 29 – Spanish football has rocked by a damaging new match-fixing scandal with a number of arrests of current and former players and club executives.