October 9 – The football esports calendar is becoming as crowded as the match schedules for clubs and players. FIFA and EA Sports, hard on the heels of the success of the 2018 eWorld Cup, have announced the schedule for 2019 FIFA 19 Global Series.
By Paul Nicholson
October 8 – Growing fears within the UK betting business of a hardline approach to regulating how bookmakers market themselves has prompted one leading bookmaker to put in a pre-emptive strike and call for an industry-imposed ban on TV ads before the 9pm watershed.
By Samindra Kunti
October 8 – Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has launched another stinging attack on his successor Gianni Infantino, accusing the latter of “selling out the people’s game,” alluding to Infantino’s expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams and his mysterious $25 billion investment plan.
October 8 – Turkish giants Galatasaray AŞ who seemingly have spent as much time fighting UEFA over financial fair play breakeven regulations as they have competing in European club competitions, are back in hot water with UEFA’s the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB).
October 8 – Premier League clubs make up six of the top 20 most commercially valuable sports rights-holders worldwide, but are behind Real Madrid and Barcelona globally, according to the newly launched POWA Index, a real-time sponsorship evaluation engine.
October 8 – Saudi Arabia has aggressively been building a portfolio and presence in football, but in Egypt the kingdom’s efforts to exert influence have backfired as the meddling of Saudi sports minister Turki Al-Sheikh hasn’t been received well by local administrators and fans.
October 8 – Facebook has expanded its live football output picking up rights to South America’s Copa Libertadores matches in a four-year package from 2019-2022 for its Watch platform.
October 10 – Japan claimed the 2018 AFC U-16 Championship title on Sunday thanks to a narrow 1-0 win over Tajikistan in Malaysia.
By Paul Nicholson
October 8 – FIFA has carried out its threat and suspended the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) with immediate effect. FIFA, which has long been battling for the preservation of the incumbent administration in Sierra Leone led by president Isha Johansen, took its action despite on-going criminal investigations into the leadership.
By Samindra Kunti
October 5 – US sportswear behemoth Nike and gaming giant EA Sports have expressed their concern over the rape allegations against Cristiano Ronaldo, but his club Juventus have come out in defense of the superstar. On Thursday, the Portugal captain was dropped from the Portugal roster for the October fixtures with Poland and Scotland.
By Paul Nicholson
October 5 – The English Premier League are entering the esports business with the launch of ePremier League with league partner Electronic Arts. The ePL will be played on the FIFA19 game and operated by esports tournament organisers Gfinity.
By David Owen
October 5 – AFC Bournemouth, the Russian-controlled south coast minnows who have become an established and increasingly accomplished Premier League force under Eddie Howe, their bright young manager, have put plans for a new stadium on hold.
October 5 – While Barcelona were busy confirming they had broken the $1 billion revenue barrier and had profit of €124 million, LaLiga rivals Celta Vigo showed the huge scale of financial difference between clubs in the Spanish top tier, announcing they achieved a €12 million profit last season, and a budget of €72 million for the current season.
October 5 – The opposition to La Liga president Javier Tebas’ plan to play a regular season fixture in the US has not stopped the mercurial Spanish leader insisting that the idea iss still alive and is their “right”.
October 5 – The Brazilian top flight will be interrupted during next year’s Copa America, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) revealed in announcing the calendar for the 2019 season.