January 4 – In a landmark move, Chelsea became the first Premier League side to host a safe-standing pilot scheme in Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Liverpool, marking the end of a blanket ban on standing in the top two tiers of English football which has been in place for more than 25 years.
January 4 – In a New Year message to MLS fans, commissioner Don Garber has emphasised how the league’s clubs have grown to become “essential members of our communities” and the passion US fans are showing for players and clubs.
January 4 – Salernitana, dubbed in Italy as the club that wished it had never got promoted to Serie A, have been saved from being kicked out after acquiring a new owner at the 11th hour.
January 4 – Auckland City officials say they are “bitterly disappointed’’ at having to pull out of Club World Cup finals in the United Arab Emirates for a second successive year over Covid-19 quarantine issues.
January 4 – Manchester City has agreed a sponsorship with the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi, UAE, to become the Club’s Official Luxury Hotel Partner.
January 4 – The AFC will get straight into its new competition season this week with a 31-nation draw on Thursday (6 January) for the confederation’s Futsal Asian Cup Kuwait 2022, a competition that has missed a cycle due to the pandemic.
January 4 – Mallorca are to upgrade their Son Moix stadium at a cost of €20 million, the La Liga club has announced.
January 4 – Tickets for the Club World Cup in the UAE that kicks off 3 February have gone on-sale in an exclusive pre-sale six-day window with prices starting as low as $5.
By David Owen
December 31 – European champions Chelsea have reported a massive loss for the covid-impacted 2020-21 season. The West London side posted pre-tax losses of £155.9 million, compared with a £35.7 million profit the previous year, when figures were buoyed by the sale of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid.
December 30 – Players heading to the African Cup of Nations have been given permission to stay with their clubs until January 3 – six days before the start of the tournament in Cameroon.
December 30 – UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin is still fuming at the very idea of a biennial World Cup that continues to be trumpeted by his FIFA counterpart, Gianni Infantino.
December 30 – Italian Serie A champions Inter Milan are reportedly close to signing off a sale to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) as the country expands its football portfolio and its push into the football economy.
December 30 – With the spread of the omicron covid variant increasing its pace of infection across Europe, Spanish health authorities have moved to reduce capacities for outside venues to 75% of capacity.
December 30 – Chinese authorities have banned national team players from sporting tattoos in order to set a “good example for society” – and will kick them out if they don’t oblige.
December 30 – Belgian club Anderlecht have announced a loss of €29 million, but the club claims that with last week’s capital injection bankruptcy has been averted.