October 18 – For the first time in his illustrious yet often controversial career, Real Madrid’s French international forward Karim Benzema won the Ballon d’Or award for the best men’s player in the world on Monday, while Barcelona’s Spain midfielder Alexia Putellas retained her women’s crown.
October 18 – FC Bayern Munich have reported a profit for the 2021/22 financial year was once again able to report a profit in the 2021/22 financial year despite the fact that the German champions had to play the majority of their home matches with restricted spectator capacity.
By Samindra Kunti in Mumbai
October 18 – In a repeat of the U-17 World Cup in 2017, India will finish with the worst statistics of all participating teams at a home World Cup, following a 5-0 defeat in their final group game to Brazil, another harsh reality check and indictment of domestic football structures.
October 18 – UAE flag carrier Emirates has renewed as Real Madrid’s main shirt sponsor in a four-season deal that will run through to 2026to remain Spanish soccer giants’ main shirt sponsor until 2026.
By Paul Nicholson and Samindra Kunti
October 17 – Qatar will stage the 2023 Asian Cup, beating South Korea and Indonesia to the hosting that was originally scheduled for China.
October 17 – The stampede that killed more than 130 people in the recent Indonesian stadium disaster was directly caused by tear gas, the country’s security minister has confirmed.
October 17 – Portugal will have to defeat Cameroon or Thailand to ensure their presence at the 2023 Women’s World Cup following the draw for the playoffs, which will decide the final three spots for the global finals.
October 17 – FIFA has agreed a multi-year agreement with digital consultant and software provider Globant who will become the Global Platform Supporter of FIFA+, FIFA’s newly launched streaming platform.
October 17 – Liverpool have condemned a section of the travelling Manchester City support for “vile chants relating to football stadium tragedies” during Sunday’s high-profile clash between the two Premier League heavyweights.
October 17 – French superstar Kylian Mbappé has denied reports that he wants to leave Paris St Germain during the January transfer window insisting he was “just as shocked as everyone else” over the claims.
October 17 – German sportswear giant Adidas says a row with Morocco over a controversial new Algerian kit has been resolved, and that it regretted the controversy.
October 17 – Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is the latest football stakeholder to become a member of the United Nations’ (UN) Football for the Goals (FFTG) initiative.
By Samindra Kunti in Mumbai
October 17 – After shipping 11 goals in just two matches, India are once again out of their own U-17 World Cup. India’s U-17 women lost their second Group A match 3-0 to Morocco to exit the tournament early and leave question marks over the long-term development of the women’s game in India.
October 24 – France, Poland, Switzerland and a quartet of Nordic countries will vie to land the hosting rights for the 2025 Women’s Euro, European governing body UEFA confirmed on Thursday.
By Andrew Warshaw
October 14 – Just weeks before leaving for the World Cup, Brazilian ace Neymar stands trial next week on fraud and corruption charges over his transfer to Barcelona from Santos in 2013.