Fenerbahçe drop CAS appeal against UEFA
By David Gold
April 27 – Turkish side Fenerbahçe have dropped a case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against UEFA over their expulsion from this season’s Champions League.
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Brazil is on track for 2014 World Cup, insists Ronaldo
By Andrew Warshaw
April 27 – Brazilian World Cup icon Ronaldo has attempted to play down the mountain of problems being faced by the 2014 hosts by insisting the country is on course to ensure a successful tournament in two years’ time.
Champions Festival acts as fun curtain-raiser for fans ahead of men’s and women’s UEFA finals
By David Gold
April 27 – The UEFA Champions Festival, the now traditional curtain-raiser to the Champions League final, is to take place in Munich from May 16 to 19, with the Olympiapark hosting the free event.
FIFA unveils hard-hitting new Code of Conduct to abolish corruption
By Andrew Warshaw
April 27 – FIFA’s drive to clean up its act is set to take centre stage at next month’s Congress in Budapest after the published agenda revealed that all 208 member nations have been urged to kick out bribery, match fixing and corruption once and for all.
Ronaldo urges Team GB to pick Beckham for Olympic squad
By Andrew Warshaw
April 26 – Brazil icon Ronaldo, one of the main ambassadors at Tuesday’s Olympic football draw at Wembley, has lent his support to David Beckham being selected as a member of the Team GB squad.
Exclusive: Team GB chief has no worries about football coach taking on both 2012 Euro and Olympic teams
By David Gold
April 26 – Team GB Chef de Mission Andy Hunt has told insideworldfootball that he has “no concerns whatsoever” about the prospect of men’s football coach Stuart Pearce also taking charge of the England team at this summer’s European Championships, just weeks before London 2012.
Russia will decimate country’s match fixing scourge, says RFU boss
By David Gold
April 26 – The head of the Russian Football Union (RFU) match fixing committee has promised to eradicate match fixing from the country.
Championship clubs face UEFA-like financial fair play rules
By Andrew Warshaw
April 26 – The second tier of English football is adopting UEFA’s break-even model designed to stem haemorrhaging losses and stop clubs spending beyond their means.
Chinese football corruption scandal endures as ex-CFA boss faces bribe trial
By David Gold
April 26 – The former chief of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), Xie Yalong (pictured), has stood trial for allegedly accepting bribes.
I’m ready for Euro 2012 and the Olympics, insists Stuart Pearce
By Andrew Warshaw
April 25 – Team GB head coach Stuart Pearce insists he is perfectly capable of combining London 2012 with leading England at the 2012 European Championship finals if asked to do both jobs.
Genoa ordered to play behind closed doors after under-fire players remove shirts
By David Gold
April 25 – Serie A side Genoa has been ordered to play two matches behind closed doors following bizarre scenes at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium when players gave in to demands from fans to remove their shirts during the 4-1 loss to Siena on Sunday (April 22).
Senegal Football Federation’s bank accounts frozen by court order
By Andrew Warshaw
April 25 – Senegalese football has been thrown into chaos just as the country’s under-23 team bagged the final place at London 2012.
Bring on Brazil, declares buoyant British women’s coach Powell
By David Gold
April 25 – Britain’s women’s coach Hope Powell is relishing the prospect of pitting her wits against Brazil at the Olympic Games after the draw was made yesterday.
Rangers’ administrators slam “extraordinary” transfer embargo
By Andrew Warshaw
April 25 – Administrators running ailing Scottish powerhouse Glasgow Rangers have hit out at the club being handed a crippling transfer embargo, saying the move could affect the very survival of the 54-time Scottish champions.
Team GB footballers face tough London 2012 test following group draws
By David Gold at Wembley Stadium in London
April 24 – Britain’s women were paired with Brazil in the group stage of the London 2012 Olympic Games, while the men face an intriguing tussle with Copa America champions Uruguay after the draw here today.