Beckham takes Inter Miami pitch to Qatar for sponsorship backing
January 21 – David Beckham’s new franchise is holding talks with Qatar to secure a headline sponsorship for Inter Miami ’s first season in the Major League Soccer.
News
Klopp brands AFCON switch back to January a ‘catastrophe’ for Liverpool
January 20 – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has come out fuming over the decision to move the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations to January, calling it a “catastrophe” for his club.
Atletico Madrid target expansion in Canada with CPL and Ottawa Fury
January 20 – LaLiga’s Atletico Madrid is bidding for a club franchise in Ottawa to compete in the Canadian Premier League (CPL).
UEFA accused of rigging Ronaldo vote
January 20 – UEFA stand accused of deliberately manipulating their team of the year award to accommodate Cristiano Ronaldo.
Globo refuse to meet Flamengo terms leaving Carioca kick off without broadcast coverage
January 20 – Flamengo’s curtain raiser in the Rio state championship, a 0-0 draw with Macae on Saturday, was not broadcast after the club and TV Globo failed to reach a rights agreement.
Barca, Premier League and Ronaldo dominate Chinese social media rankings
January 20 – Barcelona are the most popular club online in China, the Premier League is most influential competition and Cristiano Ronaldo is still the player that excites Chinese more than any other, according to the latest Red Card Report from Mailman, published last week, which ranks online performance in the country.
Lagardere Sport push for $90m compensation as CAF/FIFA struggles to table new deals
By Osasu Obayiuwana
January 17 – A leading figure at Lagardere Sport, the French sports marketing company, has told Insideworldfootball that his company is seeking up to $90 million in compensation from the Confederation of African Football (CAF), for breaking their 12-year marketing contract.
UEFA and ECA rumoured to be close to deal on expanded Champions League
By Andrew Warshaw
January 17 – In a hugely significant move that will have major repercussions for domestic leagues, UEFA and the European Clubs’ Association (ECA) are apparently “close to an agreement” to add four more rounds of fixtures to the Champions League each season.
Barcelona add online financial trader FBS in 4-year global deal
January 17 – Barcelona have signed a four year global partnership with online trading platform FBS that will run through to end June 2024.
Europe’s leagues generate record €21bn but obesity warnings issued on Big 5 clubs
January 17 – The 712 top-flight clubs in Europe’s 55 leagues earned a record €21 billion in the 2018 financial year, up by 20% according to the latest “benchmarking” report from UEFA.
Africa’s convenient climate change. AFCON 2021 switches back to January play
By Andrew Warshaw
January 16 – A host of European-based African stars look set to miss a crucial part of next season after it was announced that the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations is reverting back to the competition’s traditional January slot.
South Africa pull out of CAF Futsal finals over politically disputed ‘Moroccan’ venue
January 16 – The disharmony within African football’s top brass has suffered another telling blow with South Africa boycotting this year’s Africa Futsal Cup of Nations to be hosted by Morocco.
Medical research into ‘football dementia’ prompts SFA to ban headers for U-12s
January 16 – In a ground-breaking move, children under-12 in Scotland could be banned from headers due to links between football and dementia.
Liverpool players dominate UEFA.com fan vote, Ronaldo and Messi make Best XI again
January 15 – Liverpool players dominate a fan vote on UEFA.com for the website’s team of the year 2019. While the club are the new face of European football dominance, two old faces, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, both made the final XI.
New year, same old issues. Greek FA raided by financial police
January 16 – Greek football has been plunged into further controversy following a raid by local police on the headquarters of the Hellenic Football Federation (HFF).