By Andrew Warshaw
May 29 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has given the clearest indication yet that he will not support Palestinian calls for sanctions against Israel at next month’s FIFA Congress in Brazil. Blatter has made finding a compromise between two political foes one of his main priorities and has just completed his latest mediation visit to the region.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 27 – Corruption in Asian football has spread to the Maldives islands, with the Asian Football Confederation warning the local federation risked being suspended for unilaterally launching an investigation into alleged misconduct in selling AFC Challenge Cup tickets.
By Mark Baber
May 21 – City Football Group (CFG), owners of Manchester City, Melbourne Heart and New York City Football Club have taken a minority stake (believed to be 20%) and formed a partnership with the Nissan-owned Yokohama F Marinos, one of Japan’s leading sides.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 21 – The lifting of the ban on Muslim women footballers wearing the hijab has been welcomed by organisers of the 2016 under-17 Womens World Cup in Jordan, a tournament viewed as potential breakthrough it terms of breaking down social barriers.
By Mark Baber
May 20 – Monday’s kick-off of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup final is being hailed as a remarkable achievement for the Maldives (total population 340,000) which has managed to refurbish two stadiums to bring them up to AFC standards.
By Andrew Warshaw
16 May- The most comprehensive survey ever conducted into the extent of Asian-dominated betting fraud has revealed that criminal gangs are laundering a staggering $140 billion, mainly on football.
By Andrew Warshaw in Jordan
May 14 – One of world football’s most influential female executives has joined the chorus of disapproval over English Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore’s already infamous sexist remarks.
By Andrew Warshaw in Jordan
May 13 – The head of Palestinian football warned today that time is running out for Israel to stop its “bullying” in the occupied territories or risk a demand for it to be thrown out of FIFA.
By Andrew Warshaw in Jordan.
May 13 – The head of Qatar’s 2022 world cup organising committee was forced to pull out of Asia’s first ever Soccerex forum today for unspecified reasons.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 12 – Amidst political tension between its two most influential officials, Asian football attempts to redress the balance this week as figures from across the Continent and beyond converge on the eastern shores of the Dead Sea for two days of discussions aimed at promoting the positive side of developing the game on and off the field.
By Mark Baber
May 9 – Indian sports broadcaster Ten Sports has agreed a 3-season deal with the Football Federation of Australia (FFA) to broadcast Australia’s top tier competition – the Hyundai A-League – across the Indian sub-continent, from this October.
May 2 – In a blow to the development of Asian football, the launch of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) Super League could be delayed until 2016 because of administrative issues.
By Mark Baber
May 1 – King Abdullah Football Stadium, the new national stadium of Saudi Arabia which will be home to Jeddah’s two Premier League clubs, Al-Ittihad FC and Al-Ahli SC officially opens today with an inauguration ceremony and the hosting of the final of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup.
By Mark Baber
April 28 – Following the successful auction of Indian Super League (ISL) franchises, the new competition has run into difficulties with fixture congestion and recruitment of players. With Bollywood superstars have been drawn into popularising the game, the AIFF for the first time has suggested a merger possibility of the new league with the pre-existing I-League.
April 25 – The Malaysian ringleader of Australia’s notorious match-fixing scandal has been jailed for three years – with two of them suspended – and the club involved deducted eight points.