CAF cancels Sierra Leone’s Ghana fixtures throwing AFCON qualification into doubt
October 10 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has cancelled the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations Group ‘F’ double-header between Sierra Leone and Ghana.
Wembley £600m sell-off under threat as Khan accused of corrupt practices at Fulham
October 10 – The English FA’s controversial proposed sale of Wembley Stadium for £600 million to Fulham’s American owner Shahid Khan could be scuppered amid emerging allegations of “systemic corruption” at the club.
Fanfoot picks up $150m Brasileiro OTT rights for platform launch in 2019
October 10 – Brazil’s top league, the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, has agreed a $150 million international streaming deal with sports tech startup Fanfoot which will launch its OTT platform in 2019.
FIFA goes into extra time with Pakistan FA to align statues and organise elections
October 10 – FIFA has extended the mandate of the current Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) administration until March 2020, but with the requirement to organise fresh elections, bringing the PFF statutes in line with the FIFA statutes.
Celtic join Barca, Schalke and Monaco in Konami’s eFootball.Pro league
October 10 – Serial Scottish champions Celtic are set to test their league dominance skills internationally and join the eFootball.Pro eSports league alongside FC Barcelona, Schalke 04 and AS Monaco.
Bundesliga launches Player of Month award with fan voting on EA Sports platform
October 10 – Germany’s Bundesliga has joined forces with official licensee EA Sports to launch a new ‘Player of the Month’ award. Fans will vote for their player of the month on the EA Sports FIFA 19 website (bundesligapotm.easports.com).
Stadium issues force Penn FC out of USL, but club granted 2020 slot for third tier
October 10 – The USL, operator of the second tier of US professional soccer and soon to launch a professional third tier, has granted USL side Penn FC a spot in League 1 for the 2020 season. The club will go dark for the 2019 season and not compete in the USL.
A European league of their own: Man Utd top Barca in sponsorship table
October 9 – Premier League Manchester United with €269 million-a-year ($308.7 million) in commercial deals are top of a ranking of European club sponsorship by value. Barcelona are close behind in second with income of €261 million ($291.5 million).
Brazilian football split by politics as big name players lean right as clubs and fans go left
By Samindra Kunti
October 9 – Far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro will face Fernando Haddad in a run-off vote for the Brazilian presidency on October 28 in an election that has been marked by the campaign involvement of a large number of Brazilian footballers.
FIFA and Council of Europe sign MoU to make the world a better place
October 9 – FIFA, rarely praised on integrity issues and often the butt of fierce government criticism, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Council of Europe with an initial focus on the protection of children from sexual exploitation, the fight against match-fixing and to “co-ordinate their efforts for the preparation of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar on the safety, security and services aspects of football matches.”
Dutch and Swiss women have edge in race for Europe’s final France 2019 slot
By Samindra Kunti
October 9 – The Netherlands and Switzerland have taken pole positions to reach next month’s play-off final for the last European qualifying spot for the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France. In the first legs of the play-offs the European champions defeated Denmark 2-0 on home soil while the Swiss came back twice to draw 2-2 in Belgium.
West Ham launch esports tournament with £25k prize cash for London Stadium finals
October 9 – Premier League West Ham, one of the first English clubs to sign professional esports players, will also be one of the first to host their own esports tournament with online qualifiers open now.
Arsenal earn their big money stripes with new £300m kit deal with Adidas
October 9 – Arsenal have confirmed they are switching from Puma to Adidas for their kit deal from the 2019/20 season in a five-year ageement.
Not so sweet 16. ISL fetes ‘youngest ever’ Mukhi, but doubts raised over birth date
October 9 – Jamshedpur FC’s teenager Gourav Mukhi scored a goal within minutes of coming off the bench this weekend against Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League, but the 16-year-old sensation’s age has been questioned as the ugly spectre of age cheating rears its head again in Indian football.
FIFA and EA expand 2019 eWorld Cup qualifying and add a new eNations Cup
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.