By Paul Nicholson
January 27 – The timing could not have been better. Just as Southampton were celebrating their EFL Cup semi-final win over Liverpool, so Chinese stadium constructors turned would-be club owners Lander Sports Development, were announcing to the financial markets that they had agreed a deal for the English south coast club.
January 27 – Eye-watering figures have been released by FIFA which show exactly why Chinese authorities have agreed to reign in spending, impose restrictions on foreign players and help local talent develop.
January 26 – San Diego, which is pitching for a franchise in the expanding MLS, could be getting a 20-30,000 capacity new stadium costing $200 million as part of $1 billion redevelopment of the Qualcomm Stadium property.
January 25 – Barcelona are the most efficient club in Europe’s Big 5 leagues when it comes to valuing their playing squads. Spurs are the second most efficient. In contrast Man Utd are 95th and PSG are rock bottom in 98th spot.
January 25 – The World Football Forum is heading to the Chinese city of Changsha for its 2017 event from May 18-21.
January 20 – An American consortium looking to secure a deal to takeover former European champions Nottingham Forest say a revised bid has been rejected.
By Paul Nicholson
January 19 – Manchester United have emphatically beaten Barcelona and Real Madrid to the top of the Deloitte Football Money League, beating second place Barca by almost €69 million. Eight Premier League clubs were in the top 20 that collectively generated a record €7.4 billion in the 2015/16 period – more than FIFA generates in its four-year cycle.
By Paul Nicholson
January 17 – KPMG’s Football Benchmark team has released their European Champions Report 2017. The findings might not be revolutionary in terms of new numbers but it is thought-provoking when looking at a Europe-wide view. The analysis, based on hard financial data, do show a huge swing from the days of spending big to win big, to a more sustainable management model.
January 17 – Neymar and not Leonel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo is the most valuable player in Europe, at €246.8 million, according to a new study which values 10 players at more than €100 million.
January 14 – The antics of Nottingham Forest Football Club owner, Kuwaiti businessman Fawaz Al Hassawi, in the protracted (attempted) sale of one of England’s oldest clubs, are taking on ludicrous proportions.
By David Owen
January 13 – José Mourinho and his team look to have received payments totalling more than £8 million from Chelsea after parting company with the West London club in December 2015 following a string of poor results.
By Paul Nicholson
January 12 – UEFA has released its latest club benchmarking report – an impressive and exhaustive (and exhausting) analysis via a range of indicators of the health and current position of European club football.
January 12 – After a wait of more than a year, Chelsea have been granted planning permission to rebuild their Stamford Bridge stadium replacing the current 41,600 capacity venue with a 60,000-all seater.
January 12 – Partizan Belgrade have been banned from European competition by UEFA for the next three seasons in the latest crackdown over unpaid debts.
By Andrew Warshaw
January 6 – In an unprecedented move that could prove a watershed moment and potentially change the face of football’s global transfer landscape, Chinese authorities have rebuked the country’s leading clubs for “burning money” in the relentless race to enlist top foreign stars to the detriment of local talent.