Barca greenlighted for €1.5bn Nou Camp renovation
April 29 – FC Barcelona have been given the green light by local authorities to begin work on redeveloping the Nou Camp, with the renovation expected to finish in the 2025-26 season.
Europe
UEFA warms to centralised ‘final four’ for Champions League
April 28 – European governing body UEFA is contemplating a ‘final four’ for the Champions League to replace the current, classic two-legged semi-finals and flagship final model.
Premier League vs LaLiga: Man City and Liverpool take UCL semi-final leads to Spain
April 28 – A second straight all-English Champions League final is on the cards after Liverpool swept aside Villarreal 2-0 in the first leg of their semi-final on Wednesday.
LaLiga rethinks academy structures in bid to boost player pipelines
April 28 – LaLiga is planning an overhaul of its clubs’ academy structures via a new initiative titled the ‘National Plan forthe Optimisation and Improvement of Youth Academies’.
Swedish lottery gives support to FA’s street football initiative
April 28 – Swedish lottery operator Svenska Spel has expanded its football activity with the allocation funds to support a number of street football projects across the country being developed by the Swedish Football Association (SvFF).
UEFA’s squeeze of ‘middle class’ in favour of big club UCL guarantees meets resistance
April 27 – UEFA’s plans to give two Champions League places to teams based on their historical record in Europe is being challenged by middle-ranked clubs who say the concept is unfair on a sporting level.
Ukrainian Premier League abandons season after invasion prevents restart
April 27 – Ukraine’s top-flight league, which has had no matches since the Russian invasion, has been officially disbanded with the current standings declared final and no winner because the lack of competitive action.
New study to research why pro players are 3.5 times more likely to die of dementia
April 26 – A new dementia study has been launched to investigate how to reduce risk of the disease in ex-players.
Feyenoord shelve plans for new stadium to focus on football
April 28 – Feyenoord have dropped plans to build a new stadium on the banks of the Meuse over spiralling costs.
UK government steps in to regulate big money football
April 25 – After months of heated debate about how to reform the national sport, an independent regulator is being set up with the aim of having oversight of the English game’s finances and club ownership.
Bayern Munich open doors to Ukrainian refugees as they make it 10 out of 10 titles
April 25 – FC Bayern Munich have launched an aid programme for Ukraine that will include housing for disabled Ukrainian refugees, the German club has announced.
Barca Women break own attendance world record with UCL win over Wolfsburg
April 23 – Barcelona Femení have once again set a women’s world record attendance at Camp Nou with 91,648 supporters attending the club’s Champions League semi-final against Wolfsburg.
NAC Breda shareholder shuns CFG sale for local Dutch ownership group
April 22 – Dutch club NAC Breda will not become a part of the portfolio of City Football Group (CFG) clubs after a backlash from fans saw the ‘golden share’ vote of the NOAD Foundation veto the sale.
VAR to make semi-final debut in Conference League
April 22 – UEFA will introduce the video assistant referees (VAR) for the last four of the Conference League, the European governing body has announced.
Salman says he has no link to AC Milan acquisition, or any other club
April 22 – The head of Asian football has denied reports in Italy that he is involved in talks to buy AC Milan.