Toulouse players bite the bullet over drive-by pellet gun attack
April 4 – French top-flight club Toulouse have sacked two players for their alleged role in a pellet gun attack.
Author: Paul Nicholson
Morocco 2026 World Cup bid looks doomed as FIFA regs rule out Euro partners
By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – Any attempt by Morocco to link up with Spain and Portugal in a bid to stage the 2026 World Cup seems destined to fall foul of FIFA’s strict hosting regulations.
Net closing on Radmann and Beckenbauer as more suspect payments discovered
By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – Yet another potentially significant twist has emerged in the 2006 World Cup scandal that continues to heap suspicion on those who organised the tournament in Germany.
Swiss league tops Euro ranking of goals per game, La Liga 3rd, Premier League 7th
April 3 – If it is goals you want to see then the Swiss Super League is the place to watch football with an average 3.33 goals per game. The Big 5 leagues don’t fare too badly with Spain’s La Liga ranking third (2.9), the Premier League sixth (2.84) and Serie A seventh (2.82).
PSG beat Monaco to win French League Cup, now chase is on for Ligue 1 title
By Samindra Kunti
April 3 – Paris Saint-Germain won the French League Cup for the fourth consecutive season with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Monaco to alleviate some of the pressure on their coach Unai Emery.
Premier League clubs seek Brexit exemption to hold on to European players
April 3 – Premier League clubs have urged the British government not to allow immigration regulations under Brexit to damage the free movement of players into the country.
Qatar beefs up 2022 security with plan to establish specialist national police unit
April 3 – Qatar is taking advice from British security services as it builds towards the 2022 World Cup according to Hassan Al Thawadi, head of the tournament’s organising committee.
Hertha Berlin push for new 55,000-seat arena next to Olympiastadion
April 3 – Bundesliga club Hertha Berlin are planning a move away from the Olympiastadion where they have played since 1963, to a new 55,000 seat arena that would ideally be situated right next door to its current stadium.
Celtic wrap up SPL title with eight games still to play
April 3 – The statistics are pretty impressive. Unbeaten in the league domestically, a sixth consecutive title and only four points dropped.
AFC Village CSR project launches in Philippines
April 3 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has launched one of its key social responsibility initiatives, the AFC Village, in Tacloban, the Philippines, which provides new homes to families who were left homeless by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.
Quinn Emanuel end internal FIFA probe with passing of evidence to US and Swiss law
By Andrew Warshaw
March 31 – FIFA’s hugely expensive 22-month internal investigation into the bribery and corruption that brought the organisation to its knees has been officially wound up, with mountains of potentially incriminating evidence passed to Swiss law enforcement authorities.
Euro leagues plan EGM as UEFA deal fails to materialise
By Andrew Warshaw
March 31 – In a last-ditch effort to force UEFA into a change of heart over its controversial changes to the Champions League, Europe’s top leagues have scheduled an extraordinary meeting for June but have stopped short of saying what action, if any, will be taken if their calls for a greater say in the decision-making process are not met.
Report maps steps clubs are taking in the ballooning e-sports market
March 31 – Europe’s professional clubs have moved into the e-sports market with many signing professional e-sport FIFA players to represent the clubs in domestic and international gaming competitions. An analysis by KPMG’s Football Benchmark team maps the clubs that have embraced the fast-growing and trending sector.
48-team World Cup: FIFA chiefs award regional slots, Europe gets 16
By Andrew Warshaw
March 31 – After much anticipation, FIFA has announced its proposed allocation of slots for the first expanded 48-team World Cup in 2026 – except for two places which are to be decided by a new six-team inter-zonal playoff round.
USL unveils plan to launch Division III league in the US for 2019
By Paul Nicholson
March 31 – The United Soccer League (USL) is expanding again, this time with the launch of a Third Division men’s professional national league that will start play in 2019.