By Jaroslaw Adamowski
November 27 – The Polish Football Association (PZPN) has decided that clubs playing in the Esktraklasa, the top tier of Poland’s football league, will be allowed to include a maximum of three players from outside of the European Union per squad at any time of the match. The regulation will come into force in the 2015-2016 season.
November 27 – On the field, Brazil’s famous yellow jersey is one of the most iconic pieces of apparel in world football. Off it, the recent unveiling of the kit Brazil will wear when it hosts the World Cup next summer has sparked the latest battle in the war for shirt supremacy between fierce rivals Nike and Adidas.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 27 – The latest publicised outbreak of racism in a major European league has prompted FIFA President Sepp Blatter to intervene by saying he was “sickened” by the reports.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 27 – The Asian Football Confederation has put its full force behind Palestine’s efforts to achieve free movement of players, officials and equipment.
By Paul Nicholson
November 27 – The leading North American match analysis and statistical provider for football (soccer) is expanding into the European marketplace with its suite of game and performance analysis tools. Match Analysis, based in the San Francisco area, is targeting clubs and leagues in a bid to “change the culture” of strategic and technical analysis.
By Paul Nicholson
November 26 – International players union FIFPro is sending a delegation to Qatar on a four-day visit (November 28-31) to hold urgent talks with the country’s football authorities and organisers of the Qatar 2022 World Cup regarding the rights of players and in particular the plight of French footballer Zahar Belounis who has been trapped in the country by the kafala work visa system.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 26 – Ronald De Boer, the Dutch legend who finished his illustrious career in Qatar, has re-iterated his view that a summer World Cup in 2022 is still possible – but only if it is staged in May.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 26 – Despite the ongoing scourge of match-fixing across the globe, FIFA Director of Security Ralf Mutschke says he has drawn “positive conclusions” from the efforts to reduce manipulation.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 26 – In an extreme case of fanaticism, a CSKA Sofia fan in Bulgaria has gone on hunger strike demanding a life ban for a referee who has already been suspended for his poor officiating in a domestic game.
By David Owen
November 26 – Swansea’s footballing stature has been on the rise in recent times, courtesy of the stylish play that has carried Michael Laudrup’s men to the Premier League and a trophy – last season’s Capital One Cup. Now the Welsh city has added another unique feather to its footballing cap: it is the home of Wolfestone, the company entrusted with the job of translating the Pope’s copy of The FIFA Weekly into Latin.
By Paul Nicholson
November 26 – The UK broadcast market continues to be fertile TV sales ground for the UEFA with TEAM marketing having concluded the final parts of licensing broadcast rights for the Champions League and Europa League in the UK for the 2016-18 cycle.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 25 – Zahir Belounis, the journeyman footballer trapped in Qatar claiming 18 months of unpaid wages, may be on the verge of winning his battle to get out of the country. The plight of the French-Algerian, who says he is a ‘destroyed’ man after being forced to sell all his possessions, has caused outrage among human rights organisations and has added to global concern over Qatar’s notorious kafala employment system that ties migrant workers to so-called ‘sponsors’.
By Paul Nicholson
November 25 – A new insurance product launched today is providing Europe’s top clubs with the opportunity to insure their players against illness or injury that could affect the club’s performance on the field and hence its financial performance off it. A club could protect up to £100 million of revenue with the cover.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 25 – Football re-unification between Greek and Turkish Cypriots has moved a further step closer with the official Cyprus Football Association (CFA) approving the historic arrangement signed by the two sides at FIFA headquarters earlier this month.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
November 25 – The city of Wroclaw has acquired full control over local football club Slask Wroclaw. Slask currently plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of Poland’s professional football league and are currently the league champions.