Paul Nicholson, Author at Inside World Football - Page 1732 of 1913

Matt Scott: Premier League transfer volcano looks primed to erupt

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“Anyone who lives within their means suffers a lack of imagination.” Oscar Wilde

A lack of imagination is not football’s affliction. This game gives flame to our childish dreams. The nine-year-old Aberdeen fan Boyd Gibson, who submitted a transfer wish list to his club requesting they purchase such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovich, Gareth Bale and Lionel Messi, was only echoing the boyish fantasies that consume every one of us at times.

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Qataris refute allegations, Salman offers support, Garcia arrives to ask questions

Qatar win bid

By Andrew Warshaw and Paul Nicholson
June 1 – Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organisers have been quick to respond to the explosive allegations of corruption published by English newspaper the Sunday Times, saying that the bid committee broke no rules and that Mohamed bin Hammam was not part of the bid team. FIFA’s chief investigator Michael Garcia is meeting Qatar 2022 bid officials today as part of his on-going investigation of the conduct of all the bidding member associations.

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Chileans mine rich seam of World Cup support

Chilean miners

By David Owen
June 1 – Chile is better known for its copper than its football. So it is fitting that the industry should be providing a rich seam of support for Alexis Sánchez and the rest of the country’s World Cup squad as they make final preparations for Brazil.

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Bin Hammam ‘paper’ trail points to more woe for Qatar and its World Cup

Qatar 2022 image

By Andrew Warshaw
June 1 – FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce says the most explosive allegations to date linked to Qatar being awarded the 2022 World Cup must be added to the investigation into the entire bidding process being conducted by FIFA’s corruption buster, Michael Garcia.

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Bin Hammam ‘paper’ trail points to more woe for Qatar and its World Cup

Qatar 2022 image

By Andrew Warshaw
June 1 – FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce says the most explosive allegations to date linked to Qatar being awarded the 2022 World Cup must be added to the investigation into the entire bidding process being conducted by FIFA’s corruption buster, Michael Garcia.

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Inaugural CFU Women’s Cup lays groundwork despite unforeseen setbacks

Sonia Bien-Aime 1

By Paul Nicholson
May 30 – Group 4 of the Women’s CFU Cup, the inaugural Caribbean Football Union event for senior women, kicks off today in Haiti. To date the tournament is being hailed a success despite the unforeseen withdrawals of Dominica, Guadeloupe and now Anguilla.

2014 News

Belo Horizonte unveils its World Cup Fan Fest site

Belo Horizonte Fn Fest site

May 30 – Brazil’s third largest city, Belo Horizonte – the venue where England were famously beaten by the United States in 1950 – have unveiled plans for its free 21,000-capacity fan fest throughout the World Cup.

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Age is just a number, but Lazio’s Minala is 17, judge rules

Joseph Minala

May 30 – Disagreements concerning over-age players is nothing new but to suggest a player is 25 years older than he actually is is surely unprecedented.

2014 News

Havelange tells Brazil protestors to look forward and forget the ‘lost’ money

Joana Havelange

By Andrew Warshaw
May 30 – The grand-daughter of former FIFA president Joao Havelange has stepped into the war of words over Brazil’s World Cup preparations with the most extraordinary intervention to date, telling protestors angry at the tournament’s massive budget to get over it because some money had already been “spent” or “stolen” or “robbed.”

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Ukrainians play politics with assault on Russia’s 2018 football rights

Ukrainian football fans

By Andrew Warshaw
May 30 – The growing military crisis in Ukraine has led to further attempts to politicise the 2018 World Cup in Russia with Ukrainian political figures and a Canada-based pressure group calling on FIFA to strip the country of hosting rights. The demands will fall on deaf ears at FIFA as the governing body has repeatedly held the line that politics and football must remain separate.

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ESPN examines web model for MLS broadcast distribution

MLS and ESPN

May 30 – ESPN may start offering coverage of Major League Soccer (MLS) games online, without a required subscription to ESPN.

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FIFA gets social and unveils its World Cup Global Stadium

World Cup and ball

By Tom Parsons
May 29 – FIFA has today revealed details of the launch of its Global Stadium – an “online and mobile hub for the FIFA World Cup, which will help billions of football fans share their excitement and stay in touch with all the action”.

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Swiss propose tighter laws against money laundering for sports officials

money

By Mark Baber
May 29 – The Legal Affairs Commission of the lower house of the Swiss parliament has proposed a draft law which, if passed by the legislature, will impose stricter rules against money laundering.

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Blatter backs Israel but finding Middle East accord is finely balanced

Sepp Blatter 20

By Andrew Warshaw
May 29 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has given the clearest indication yet that he will not support Palestinian calls for sanctions against Israel at next month’s FIFA Congress in Brazil. Blatter has made finding a compromise between two political foes one of his main priorities and has just completed his latest mediation visit to the region.

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Italians revamp player co-ownership and scrap 50% rule

Giancarlo Abete

By Andrew Warshaw
May 29 – In what is being flagged up as the end of an era, Italy is set to outlaw co-ownership of players from next season, falling into line with the rest of Europe. Italy is the last main footballing nation in Europe under which two teams can effectively share half a particular player’s contract and economic rights.