Real Madrid deny Manchester City owner wants to buy them
December 29 – Real Madrid has denied that Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour (pictured) made a €1 billion (£902 million) offer to buy the Spanish club.
Europe
Ireland payout to Wells being investigated
December 23 – Sport Northern Ireland has launched an official review into how the Irish Football Association (IFA) acted in the Howard Wells (pictured) affair.
Abramovich deputy pulls out of race for Russian FA top job
By Duncan Mackay
December 21 – Sergei Kapkov, a close friend of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who had been expected to run to become the new President of the Russian Football Association has ruled himself out of the job which could alert clubs chasing the country’s coach Guus Hiddink (pictured).
Ford confirmed as new chief executive of FAW
December 11 – The Football Association of Wales (FAW) has officially unveiled former Coca-Cola marketing guru Jonathan Ford (pictured) as its new chief executive, as first revealed by insideworldfootball last month.
ESPN sign £60 million deal to show FA Cup
By Duncan Mackay
December 9 – ESPN signed a four-year deal £60 million deal today to broadcast live FA Cup matches in Britain to fill the void left by collapsed network Setanta.
Giveth With One Hand and Taketh with Another
By Andrew Warshaw in Cape Town
December 2 - Talk about a double whammy. No sooner did Thierry Henry’s France become the fall guys in a revamped seeding system for next summer’s World Cup than Henry’s own damaged reputation took another serious battering.
Houllier and Dein united on video technology
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By Andrew Warshaw in Johannesburg
December 1 – Two of world football’s most respected statesmen have called for the immediate introduction of goal line technology as a result of the infamous Thierry Henry handball that is showing no sign of being taken off the game’s agenda.
We may scrap play-offs after Henry handball, reveals Blatter
By Andrew Warshaw in Johannesburg
November 30 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter (pictured) today admitted for the first time that the World Cup playoff system had to be seriously re-examined as a result of Thierry Henry’s infamous handball that cost Ireland a place in the finals.
Blatter claims Henry did nothing he would not have done
November 29 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter (pictured) revealed today that he has telephoned France captain Thierry Henry to offer him support over his controversial handball in the World Cup play-off win over Ireland.
Hoeness replaces Beckenbauer as President of Bayern Munich
November 27 – Uli Hoeness (pictured) has replaced Franz Beckenbauer as president of Bayern Munich, taking the top job after 30 years as general manager it was announced today.
Irish FA President forced to defend Wells payout
November 27 – Raymond Kennedy (pictured), the President of the Ireland Football Association (IFA), has defended the decision to give former chief executive Howard Wells a six-figure payout following criticism from Northern Ireland’s Sports Minister Nelson McCausland.
Bayern Munich sign multi-million pound deal with Audi
November 26 – German car maker Audi has bought a 9.09 percent stake in Bayern Munich in a deal worth €90 million (£82 million), the club said today.
Irish accuse Blatter of going missing over Henry scandal
November 25 – John Delaney, the chief executive of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), tonight claimed that FIFA President Sepp Blatter had deliberately avoided getting involved in the debate over Thierry Henry’s handball (pictured) because he did not having to make a tough decision.
Mutko replaced by Simonian on temporary basis
November 25 – Nikita Simonian (pictured) will serve as interim President of the Russian Football Union (RFU) until February after Vitaly Mutko officially stepped down.
Blatter calls emergency meeting after a week that rocked football
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November 23 – FIFA president Sepp Blatter (pictured) has called a crisis meeting of the Executive Committee following a series of incidents that have rocked football, including Thierry Henry’s handball and allegations of widespread match-fixing in Europe.