Greek Cup final to be played in an empty Olympic stadium
May 10 – The Greek Cup final between AEK and PAOK tomorrow will be played in an almost empty stadium following a government decision to ban fans for fear of crowd trouble.
Europe
Ceferin calls for calm as stakeholder debate over Champions League reform intensifies
May 9 – UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has issued a call for all relevant stakeholders not to jump to conclusions amid ongoing heated debate over proposed radical changes to the Champions League post-2024.
European Leagues body says club majority is against the ECA carve-up of the UCL
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – A “vast majority” of European clubs are against the idea of overhauling the Champions League and introducing a system of promotion and relegation.
European Leagues to take ‘Big club’ Champions League battle to UEFA this week
May 7 – Europe’s major leagues are set to meet with UEFA officials in Switzerland on Wednesday in the latest talks over radical plans to overhaul the format of the Champions League post-2024.
Barca’s Bartmomeu fans UCL flames with call for more games between the biggest clubs
By Andrew Warshaw
May 6 – As European leagues began a two-day session in Madrid to address controversial plans to overhaul the Champions League, Barcelona’s president stepped up the rhetoric by insisting the likely changes could only benefit Europe’s showpiece club competition.
Nazi salutes, monkey chants: Valencia fans mar Europa League semi at Arsenal
May 7 – Arsenal say they “utterly condemn” the behaviour of a group of Valencia fans who appeared to make Nazi salutes and monkey gestures during last Thursday’s Europa League semi-final first leg, the latest incident of racism plaguing European football.
EFL splits transfer deadlines for Championship and League 1 and 2 clubs
May 3 – English Football League clubs have voted to introduce separate deadlines for the summer transfer window for teams in the second-tier Championship and lower divisions.
Spanish legend Casillas has a heart-stopping moment
May 2 – Spain’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper Iker Casillas is recovering in hospital after suffering a heart attack during training with his club Porto.
Wanda refocuses on China with €266m pledged for Dalian grassroots build
May 2 – Chinese property giant Wanda Group, which in Europe has developed a sports marketing agency, is to invest €266 million into grassroots football in China.
Headaches all round for Spurs as Ajax take a one goal lead in CL semi
May 1 – Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino insists his medical staff followed UEFA protocol after defender Jan Vertonghen was briefly allowed to return to the field despite suffering a serious-looking head injury in the Champions League semi-final loss to Ajax on Tuesday.
LaLiga vs RFEF: Spanish FA approves Cup competition format the league doesn’t want
April 30 – Further details have emerged of radical changes to the formats of Spain’s Copa del Rey and, especially, the Spanish Super Cup that have caused a huge rift between the Spanish FA and La Liga.
Lazio let-off over Mussolini banner and racist abuse at AC Milan cup game
April 30 – Lazio have somehow escaped an immediate stadium closure after around 50 supporters displayed a banner honouring Benito Mussolini and performed fascist salutes ahead of last week’s Italian Cup match against AC Milan, followed by instances of disgraceful racist abuse during the game itself.
Two arrested over Sala morgue pictures
April 30 – Two people, a man and a woman, have been arrested in the UK after a photo purporting to show the post-mortem examination of Emiliano Sala, the promising young Argentine tragically killed in a plane crash in January after he had completed a £15 million move from Nantes to Cardiff City.
PSG’s out of control Neymar get 3-match CL ban from UEFA
April 29 – Brazil’s Paris St Germain superstar Neymar has been banned by UEFA for three European games for insulting match officials on Instagram after the Champions League last-16 defeat by Manchester United.
Czech forward Sural killed in Alanyaspor team bus crash in Turkey
April 29 – Czech international striker Josef Sural (pictured) has been killed following a minibus crash in Turkey according to his club Aytemiz Alanyaspor.