By Paul Nicholson
August 4 – A long running dispute between the UAE and Qatar that began in January 2019 at the Asian Cup over the eligibility two Qatari players, has finally been settled at CAS with the UAE losing its appeal against the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) decision that the players were eligible.
August 4 – Tonight Brentford and Fulham will play in the most valuable match in world football, in fact any match in world sport, as they bid for the third promotion spot to next season’s Premier League.
August 4 – Following a meeting of its Emergency Committee, the African confederation (CAF) has revised dates and venues for its flagship Champions League and Total Confederation Cup club competitions.
August 4 – Next season’s Serie A kick-off has been postponed by a week to September 19 the Italian league announced in a bid to allow clubs and players enough rest.
August 4 – Spanish football authorities have staged an unexpected u-turn by ruling that the all-important final tier-2 fixture of the season between Deportivo La Coruna and Fuenlabrada can go ahead after all tomorrow.
August 4 – Sent off for a cough? It could soon happen. Players who deliberately cough at opponents or match officials during the Covid-19 pandemic can be red-carded under new rules introduced by the English FA and the game’s law-makers.
August 4 – With both the Europa League and Champions League resuming this week, UEFA’s chief refereeing officer Roberto Rosetti has explained the amendments to football’s laws of the game in greater details.
August 4 – Crystal Palace FC have replaced one betting firm with another as the club’s main shirt sponsor. Online gaming brand W88 will take over from ManBetX for next season.
August 4 – Inter Milan are boosting fan engagement activities via two new initiatives: a partnership with video gamemaker EA Sports for its FIFA game and a new WeChat virtual community for its Chinese fans.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 3 – FIFA came out with all guns blazing today as it savaged the decision by the Swiss authorities to launch a criminal investigation into the conduct of Gianni Infantino, insisting there was no case to answer and hinting it might be based on a deliberate attempt to bring Infantino down.
By Paul Nicholson
August 3 – Musa Bility has made it a hat-trick of hard-hitting letters in the past week with his latest being to the FIFA Council demanding they force the standing down of FIFA president Gianni Infantino following the opening of a criminal investigation by the Swiss judiciary.
August 3 – Zambia has cancelled its top flight, the Super League, following a steady rise in coronavirus infections with clubs flouting medical protocols. The league had resumed in July after the pandemic shutdown.
By David Owen
August 3 – Pandemic-related lockdowns and travel restrictions have wreaked havoc with football schedules. But the enforced isolation of individuals and family groups for weeks on end in many soccer-mad countries is evidently doing no harm at all to the video-gaming and esports booms.
By Samindra Kunti
August 3 – Belgian football has settled on a 18-team format for the next two seasons in the top flight after a court ruling, confirming Waasland-Beveren couldn’t be relegated, forced a u-turn from the Pro League. As a result, both OH Leuven, owned by King Power, and Beerschot, with a Saudi majority owner, were promoted to 1A.
August 3 – Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu (pictured) says the club will not be splashing out on re-signing Neymar this summer, putting an end once and for all to rumours of his return.