FIFA step in to stop Sierra Leone match-fixing cover-up
By Andrew Warshaw
March 19 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter has personally intervened to stop Sierra Leone authorities trying to sweep allegations of match-fixing under the carpet.
Author: Paul Nicholson
Lahore bombing forces Pakistan 2018 qualifier to be switched to Bahrain
March 19 – Pakistan’s home World Cup qualifier against Yemen has been switched to neutral ground in Bahrain after it was postponed following Sunday’s deadly bombings in Lahore.
Nimes sanctioned with relegation after bosses found guilty of match-fixing
March 19 – French Ligue 2 side Nimes will be relegated at the end of the season after the club’s former president Jean-Marc Conrad was found guilty of attempted match fixing, the French League (LFP) announced.
TV debate canned as Blatter says no and rivals refuse to play without him
March 19 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter has rejected a joint offer from UK broadcasters the BBC and Sky to take part in a political-style live television debate alongside his three rivals ahead of the presidential election at the end of May.
CSKA Sofia spread net to Western Europe in search for sponsor
By Alexander Krassimirov
March 19 – The beleaguered president of Bulgaria’s CSKA Sofia, Alexander Tomov, has said he is now in negotiation with companies from Western Europe as Bulgarian firms can’t afford the price of a major club sponsorship.
Red Star Belgrade banks on €20m Gazprom deal to keep it in top tier
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
March 19 – Red Star Belgrade is close to finalising the negotiation of an extension to its Gazprom sponsorship, valued at more than €20 million over a five-year term.
Russia cuts budgets but not stadium build, Luzhniki ahead of schedule
March 19 – Russia’s cabinet passed a 10% cut in the federal budget but was quick to emphasise that the cuts would not effect the build programme of the 2018 World Cup Stadia.
Spurs head deeper into China with AIA and charity programme
March 19 – Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur, who launched their Chinese language site on the Netease platform last month, have increased their Chinese commitment with further support for the AIA China Youth Football Development programme.
Egypt: Prosecutor indicts 16 fans as terrorists over Zamalek massacre
By Mark Baber
March 18 – Egypt’s Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat has indicted 16 defendants for the Zamalek massacre in which 20 fans died after a crowd outside the stadium was fired upon by police before the game between Zamalek and Enppi on February 8.
Panathinaikos president warns of Greek Super League break-up
By Matt Scott
March 18 – Greek football is at risk of being broken up unless widespread hooliganism and corruption is tackled by the state authorities, the Panathanaikos president has warned.
Qatar promises human rights progress, but questions rise over how fast
By Andrew Warshaw
March 18 – In a week when the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will take centre stage as FIFA announces the exact November-December dates, the country has again pledged to push ahead with reforming its controversial ‘kafala’ labour system – but has stopped short of presenting a timetable for when this will happen.
China turns its sports focus on building a football revolution
By Andrew Warshaw
March 18 – China is setting out a blueprint for staging the World Cup a generation down the road by raising the standard of the national team as part of a sweeping development project.
Bhutan glory: world’s worst team qualifies for World Cup group stages
March 18 – Bhutan, officially the world’s worst national team, have pulled off a second straight fairytale victory by defying all the odds – and this time progressed to the second round of Asian World Cup qualifying.
Police chief admits his failings caused death of Hillsborough 96
March 18 – The police chief in charge at the 1989 English FA cup semifinal at which 96 Liverpool supporters were crushed to death has admitted that his failure to close a tunnel was the “direct cause” of the disaster.
€278m a season buys a top 3 finish in Europe’s Big-5 leagues
By Paul Nicholson
March 18 – New data from the CIES Football Observatory shows that the average cost of a squad has risen by 24.5% between 2009/10 and the current season. The CIES research looks at transfer spend in the Big-5 leagues of England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain.