Swiss ref falls foul of language barrier and faces federation censure
April 29 – A Swiss referee is in hot water after using an expletive towards a player during a top-flight league match at the weekend.
Europe
Relief for Deportivo as judge releases €9m TV rights cash
By Monica Villar
April 29 – After months of waiting and legal wrangling Spanish Primera club Deportivo at last have access to the funds they say they need to maintain operations.
Spanish Government set to drop age law for pro-contracts
By Gareth Messenger
April 26 – Spanish government officials are looking changing the law which states that a footballer has to turn 18 before his club offers him a professional contract.
Welsh clubs plan to build on their success
By Tom Parsons
April 25 – Cardiff City are looking to expand their 26,828 all-seated stadium to a 35,000 all-seater – and it could be ready in time for the 2014/15 season.
Albertini suggests cutting Serie A to 16 or 18 to bring back competitive edge
By Mark Baber
April 25 – Italian football federation vice-president Demetrio Albertini has suggested cutting Italy’s Serie A to 18 or even 16 teams.
Merkel drawn into Hoeness tax evasion scandal
By Paul Nicholson
April 24 – German Chancellor Andrea Merkel has been dragged into the tax evasion scandal surrounding Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness.
Polish league in turmoil as Polonia Warsaw hit the rocks
By Krzysztof Baranowski
April 24 – The crisis facing Polish top division football is deepening with Ekstraklasa club Polonia Warsaw on the brink of going out of business.
Tebas puts ending Spanish match-fixing to top of his agenda
By Andrew Warshaw
April 24 – The new president of the Spanish Football League says his top priority is bringing an end to match-fixing.
Beckenbauer signs up for Gazprom social project
April 24 – Former German icon and FIFA administrator Franz Beckenbauer has signed a personal endorsement deal with Russian gas giant Gazprom designed to promote football as a tool for social integration among children.
Judge threatens Deportivo liquidation unless deal struck over Media Pro cash
By Monica Villar
April 23 – A Spanish judge has threatened Deportivo de La Coruña with liquidation unless an agreement can be found between the banks and the club over the share out of the Media Pro money held in escrow buy the court.
Spanish consider passing law to force collective sale of TV rights
By Gareth Messenger
April 23 – The on-going Spanish debate over the collective sale of club TV rights could be ended by the government if a new law is passed to force the teams into group sales.
Sevilla chief del Nido says everyone is for sale and that the LFP must change
By Monica Villar
April 23 – Controversial Sevilla president José María del Nido has said that although they are still chasing a European place, the club’s financial crisis is such that every player has a price on his head and any of them could leave in the summer.
Bayern’s Hoeness could face tax fraud charges over undeclared Swiss account
By Paul Nicholson
April 21 – Uli Hoeness, Bayern Munich’s outspoken club president and supervisory board chairman, could face tax evasion charges in Germany after failing to declare a Swiss bank account. German public prosecutors are currently looking at his financial records to decide whether to proceed with a case against him.
Welsh FA warns players and clubs of Twitter abuse
By Tom Parsons
April 19 – Local Welsh footballers and clubs are being warned that they could face disciplinary action if they send abusive messages through social media and websites to their opponents.
AEK penalty puts Greek giant on brink of relegation
By Andrew Warshaw
April 19 – AEK Athens are set to be relegated from the top flight of Greek football for the first time in their 89-year history after a points deduction handed down for crowd violence left them stranded near the bottom with one match remaining.