Bolt takes aim at a career in football
October 23 – Retired Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt says he wants to pursue his dream of playing professional football but admits he will not “embarrass” himself.
U17 World Cup: England, Mali, Spain and Brazil progress as Ghana get stuck in the mud
By Samindra Kunti in Guwahati and Kolkata
October 23 – England progressed to the last four of the U-17 World Cup for the first time in history with a commanding 4-1 win over the United States. Mali, Spain and Brazil complete the semi-final quartet, but the African champions’ qualification was overshadowed by diabolical playing conditions in a rain-soaked Guwahati.
LA Galaxy go full STEAM ahead with education programme
October 23 – LA Galaxy and Southern New Hampshire University are launching their first week-long Galaxy STEAM programme at the StubHub Center with the aim of improving the educational experience of 250 local middle-schoolers across Los Angeles.
Olsson says leagues will fight to narrow gap between UEFA’s rich and poor
By Andrew Warshaw
October 20 – The head of the umbrella body representing European leagues went back on the offensive today over the gap between rich and poor saying it would be a “real disaster” if UEFA fails to address future competitive balance in its club tournaments.
Man Utd earn €44.5m for Europa League win, more than twice nearest rival
October 20 – Manchester United pocketed €44.5 million of the more than €423.1 million in payments from UEFA for winning the 2016/17 Europa League. 56 clubs shared in the payments that were increased from the €411.1 million distributed in 2015/16.
FIFPro denies FIFA’s claim a deal has made to drop legal complaint on transfer system
October 20 – FIFA says it has struck a deal which it hopes will lead to world players’ union FIFPro withdrawing a legal complaint against the transfer system at the European Commission (EC).
South Africa FA leader Danny Jordaan accused of rape
October 20 – Danny Jordaan, the public face of the 2010 South Africa World Cup and head of his national association, has sensationally been accused of rape by a well-known singer and one-time parliamentarian.
US prosecutors win motion for jury to remain anonymous in Marin, Napout, Burga trial
By Paul Nicholson
October 20 – A Brooklyn federal judge has granted the request by prosecutors to keep juror names secret and for the jurors to be sequestered during the trial of Jose Maria Marin, Juan Angel Napout and Manuel Burga – the former bosses of Brazilian, Paraguayan and Peruvian football – whose trial begins on November 6.
Barca and their fans call for dialogue and respect to resolve Catalonian crisis
October 20 – Amid the euphoria of beating Olympiakos 3-1 on Tuesday despite playing a large chunk of the game with 10 men, Barcelona fans unveiled a massive banner reading ‘Dialogue, Respect and Sport’ before kick-off, calling for a resolution to the political crisis between Catalonia and the Spanish central government.
English FA hammered by sports minister as PFA expose floundering chairman Clarke
October 20 – The British government’s sports minister has stepped into the debacle over racial comments made to two England women internationals by urging the English FA to improve its handling of discrimination claims.
Nigerian FA agrees $17.5m budget as Pinnick says they can win World Cup
By Mark Baber
October 20 – Nigeria’s FA has agreed a budget of N6.3 billion ($17.5 million) for 2018, with the focus being on Russia 2018 following the national team’s successful qualification for the World Cup.
Danish women end strike to play Croatia qualifier but pay dispute still not resolved
October 20 – The Danish Football Association (DBU) says it has reached a “partial agreement” with the women’s national team over a long-running pay dispute, paving the way for the team to play the upcoming World Cup qualifier against Croatia on Tuesday.
AFC schedules both North Korea vs Malaysia Asian Cup qualifiers at same neutral venue
October 20 – The search for a suitable venue for the Asian Cup qualifier between Malaysia and North Korea in November has been partially resolved with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) confirming the game will take place on neutral ground – without for the moment saying where.
Everton are the dirtiest Premier League team ever, Chelsea are second dirtiest
October 20 – Everton are the dirtiest team to have played in the Premier League since it was formed in 1992. The Merseysiders have collected more ‘dirty points’ that any other club and are almost 700 points ahead of second placed Chelsea.
PSG and Rolling Stones find satisfaction in merchandising hook-up
October 20 – Iconic rock band The Rolling Stones have combined with Paris Saint Germain to launch a limited-edition capsule collection which will launch exclusively withinthe legendary Parisian fashion boutique Colette.