AFC picks UAE and Abu Dhabi to host its star-studded awards night
July 20 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will hold its 2016 AFC Annual Awards Night ceremony at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi on December 1.
AFC News
AFC cracks down on match-fixing with life ban for refs as investigation continues
July 1 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has banned two Thai referees for life for involvement in match-fixing following a meeting of its disciplinary committee.
AFC names candidates for FIFA Council seats
June 10 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has announced the eight candidates who will contest the election for the three available Asia places on on the new FIFA Council.
AFC prepares for Goa congress; nations battle through AFC Cup qualifiers
June 9 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is readying for its Goa elective Congress on September 27 where it will vote for its representatives to FIFA’s new Council. Meanwhile member nations are battling out for the final places in the 2018 FIFA World Cup/2019 AFC Asian Cup joint-qualifiers.
AFC reform task force reviews progress and proposes new whistleblower policy
June 2 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) at a meeting of its Governance Reform Task Force has taken steps to implement a new and more detailed whistleblower policy, a first for a football confederation outside the area of match-fixing.
AFC schedules Goa Congress as Salman pledges support to on-going reform
May 12 – The Asian Football Confederation have called an Extraordinary Congress to be held in Goa, India, on September 27 to elect its three additional members to the newly established FIFA Council, including the required female representative.
Liverpool head Man Utd, Bayern, Chelsea and Arsenal on China’s Weibo
May 2 – China’s leading social media platform Weibo has seen an 18% growth in sports teams, leagues and players using the site – there are now 1,200 official sports organisations on the platform.
Japan break from male tradition to appoint Takakura as women’s head coach
By Andrew Warshaw
April 29 – Asako Takakura has been appointed the first ever female coach of Japan’s senior women’s national team, hailed as an important breakthrough in promoting gender equality and the skills of women coaches globally.
China’s Evergrande win on the pitch but lose off it with $147m deficit
By Paul Nicholson
April 28 – The cost of winning has caught up with Chinese Super League giant Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC who have revealed a staggering loss of RMB953 million ($147 million) in their year ended 2015 accounts.
Wuhan Double buys its way into Europe’s player agency business
April 22 – China’s increasingly broad-based ownership positions in sport saw trading company Wuhan Double Co announce it is to spend €39.5million buying a 100% share of Nice International Sports Limited, whose principle business is player agency.
AFC taskforce warns FIFA its sanctions only hit football, not governments
By Andrew Warshaw
April 8 – Asian football leaders are becoming increasingly concerned over individual member federations being suspended by FIFA because of government interference in their affairs, a trend they warn is seriously hindering development in the region.
AFC brings Soosay back into the fold for project-based role
By Andrew Warshaw
March 31 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has rehired its former general secretary Dato’ Alex Soosay (pictured) as a consultant less than a year after he quit over claims, still to be proven, that he was involved in a cover-up during an investigation into corruption allegations dating back to the era of Mohammed bin Hammam.
Asian football mourns Iraqi deaths after IS attacks football tournament
March 29 – Asian football has reacted with shock and anger at the deaths of at least 41 people, many of them children, caused by a suicide bomber who blew himself up just as trophies were being presented after a local tournament.
Adidas goes shopping in China as CSL season kicks off with new club sponsors
By Paul Nicholson
March 7 – Signs that China’s football market is more than a passing fad have been given further credibility with Adidas’ announcement that it plans to open 3,000 new stores in the country over the next five years, with football being a key driver of that expansion.
