January 8 – The Oceanic Football Confederation (OFC), ahead of the inaugural OFC Pro League campaign which gets underway on January 17 in Auckland, New Zealand, has entered an agreement with TVNZ+ to broadcast matches in the new competition.
January 8 – Algeria’s extra time 1-0 win over DR Congo to secure a place in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) quarter finals has been marred by accusations of racism and disrespect off the pitch.
January 7 – Defending champions Ivory Coast coasted into the quarter-finals of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Morocco with a 3-0 win over Burkina Faso in Marrakech. Algeria needed extra time to squeeze past Congo as the last two spots in the last eight were filled.
Manchester United’s Amad Diallo (pictured), who was not part of the Ivory Coast squad which won the 2023 Afcon on home soil, starred as he took his goal tally to three at this tournament.
By James Dostoyevsky
January 7 – I am not going to spill any tears over Señor Maduro; he is what he is and as a European I have enough to worry about with certified idiots running the continent into the ground. But what I am going to say is this: US president Donald Trump, again, launched an illegal military attack against a sovereign state.
January 7 – The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) is doubling down on a talent identification approach that feels distinctly American: the combine. Recently, the league staged both its NWSL Combine and Youth Combine in Florida – invitation-only events designed to bring the country’s top prospects into one place, at one time, in front of club decision-makers.
January 7 – UEFA has locked in its broadcast partners for Albania and Kosovo through to the end of the decade, handing ArtMotion the rights to its flagship club competitions for the next four seasons.
January 7 – The Argentina Football Association (AFA) is continuing to maximise the sales momentum of the country’s 2022 World Cup win and Lionel Messi’s celebrity with their latest partnership with storage company Lexar.
January 6 – Edwin Pindi’s name can finally be separated from a case that has lingered in the background of his career for almost three years.
January 6 – Work on a new stadium in Aghdam is set to get underway after Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Youth and Sports signed off on a major construction contract for the Imaret Stadium.
January 6 – FC Nantes’ accounts for the 2024/25 financial year tell a familiar story in modern French football: structural imbalance, limited room for manoeuvre, and an owner once again required to step in to keep the numbers upright.
January 6 – Polish icon Zbigniew Boniek has never been one to soften his views for the sake of diplomacy, and his verdict on FIFA’s expanded World Cup is typically direct.
January 6 – Martin O’Neill is back at Celtic for the second time this season after the sacking of Wilfried Nancy, in a move he admits feels “a wee bit strange.”
January 6 – With Turks currently forming one of the largest minority ethnic groups in Germany, it comes as no surprise that Sportdigital has secured last-minute rights to the Turkish Super Cup.
January 6 – TNT Sports has secured the exclusive UK and Ireland broadcast rights to Spain’s Supercopa through the 2026, 2027, and 2028 editions.
January 6 – Rangers capped a fine weekend in which they beat Celtic in the ‘Old Firm’ derby by confirming Pipeline Energy Solutions as back-of-shirt lower sponsor for the remainder of the 2025/26 season.