CBF hooked on 30-year drug sponsorship deal
By Samindra Kunti
July 17 – The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) has signed a 30-year sponsorship deal with Ultrafarma, a pharmaceutical service provider with a large network of drugstores.
World Football
Critics slam English FA for Mackay discrimination case whitewash
July 17 – A case involving alleged anti-semitism, sexism and homophobia and which lasted 11 months has finally been resolved, though with an immediate backlash, after English football authorities announced no disciplinary action will be taken against former Cardiff City manager Malky Mackay.
Caribbean storm sweeps across Gold Cup with disturbing force
By Paul Nicholson
July 17 – An unexpected Caribbean hurricane has swept through the group stages of the Gold Cup in the US, and it has nothing to do with sports politics or financial corruption.
Bulgarian sports ministry to pump cash into club academies
By Alexander Krassimirov
July 17 – The Ministry of Youth and Sports in Bulgaria has committed to allocating substantially increased funds to club youth academies in 2016. The announcement was made by Bulgarian sports minister Krassen Kralev (pictured) who outlined what would the subsidies for the Bulgarian Football Union would be for the new season.
Real Madrid cling on to top spot as world’s Most Valuable Sports Team
By Mark Baber
July 16 – Real Madrid has retained the top spot as the world’s most valuable sports franchise, worth $3.26 billion, in the 2015 edition of Forbes’ annual list of the World’s Most Valuable Sports Teams.
Prince Ali sets Manchester date for return to spotlight
By Andrew Warshaw
July 16 – Prince Ali bin al Hussein of Jordan may have gone quiet media-wise since losing the FIFA presidential election to Sepp Blatter but in under two months’ time he will be in open forum when he seems sure to be quizzed on the pros and cons of his candidacy, which gained 73 votes, and what his next move might be.
Levski bring in wage cap as new season budget is cut
By Alexander Krassimirov
July 15 – The new owners of Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia have taken emergency measures to financially stabilize the club, imposing a wage limit on players in advance of the new season.
Pakistan federation faces federal probe into accounts
By Mark Baber
July 15 – Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has launched an investigation into the accounts of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF).
Villar lines up eighth term as boss of Spanish football
By Andrew Warshaw
July 15 – Controversial FIFA vice-president Angel Maria Villar (pictured) is poised to stand for a remarkable eighth term of office as head of Spanish football despite being widely reported as being under investigation by FIFA. If re-elected the new term would take him through 30 years as the head of the Spanish federation.
Double dealing: Cajá quits Brasilierao and signs for two Emirati clubs
By Ricardo Setyon
July 15 – With the Brazilian National League now a quarter way into its season, two clubs and one man have surprised everyone. Recife from the north east of the country, and Ponta Prete from Campinas, 120km from Sao Paulo, are upsetting the accepted club hierarchy with a series of unexpected results.
Players’ union to provide funds for speed skater in landmark legal case
By David Owen
July 14 – FIFPro, football’s international players’ union, is to provide financial support to Claudia Pechstein (pictured), a German speed skater, in a legal battle that could have profound consequences for the way international sport settles its disputes.
Partizan Belgrade looks for €3m from stadium naming rights deal
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
July 14 – Partizan Belgrade is aiming to open a new stream of revenue with plans to sign a stadium naming rights deal, according to Milos Vazura, the chief executive of the Serbian football club.
Doyen banking on Brussels court seeing value in football’s ‘slave trade’
By Andrew Warshaw
July 14 – An investment company supporting Third Party Ownership says it hopes to learn by July 24 whether it has been successful in challenging FIFA’s recently introduced global ban on the practise.
Telefónica picks up €600m La Liga rights in landmark Spanish deal
By David Owen
July 13 – Telefónica, the Spanish telecommunications group, has agreed to pay €600 million for domestic broadcasting rights to La Liga for the forthcoming season, in a landmark deal for Spanish football.
CAS hits Serbia overturning UEFA decision with big award to Albania
By Mark Baber
July 13 – Friday’s decision by the Court of Arbitration in Sport (CAS) to overturn the ruling of UEFA concerning the Serbia-Albania game of October 14 and award the game to Albania leaves the court open to accusations it has been influenced by anti-Serbian sentiment.