August 25 – He may feel unloved in Spain where he has been handed a five match ban for laying his hands on a referee after he had been sent off, but he was certainly feeling the love from the rest of Europe last night when he picked up the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award for the 2016/17 season.
August 25 – While Europe’s top players were focussed on picking up awards and Champions League draws, Europe’s most expensive player, Neymar, was focussing on what he is good at, chasing down money.
August 25 – Manchester City’s Official Tablet and Handset partner TECNO Mobile has launched an African marketing activation that will see 13 youth players from across Africa spend a week being coached at the City Football Academy.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 24 – Cameroon’s flickering hopes of staging the 2019 African Nations Cup have been plunged into further doubt following FIFA’s appointment of a normalisation committee to run the national federation (FECAFOOT).
By Paul Nicholson
August 24 – Manchester City owner City Football Group (CFG) has bought a 44.3% stake in LaLiga club Girona alongside Pere Guardiola, brother of Man City manager Pep, who will also own 44.3%. No value was put on the acquisition.
By Paul Nicholson
August 24 – Clubs that are relegated from one of Europe’s Big 5 leagues to their national second tiers will not be saved by parachute payments alone, that money will only soften the blow, according to research by KPMG’s Football Benchmark teams.
August 24 – Some of world football’s biggest stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Paul Pogba, are leading the #EqualGame campaign, a new digital and social media platform launched by UEFA to promote inclusion, diversity and accessibility to football.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 24 – He was perhaps the only genuine world-class player in an England side that promised so much but too often under-performed, the greatest goalscorer in the history of the national team.
August 24 – Steroids allegedly used by a string of players during the 2010 World Cup should be completely banned, according to FIFA’s former chief medical officer.
August 24 – Just seven weeks into the 2017 United Soccer League (USL) season, the fast growing second-tier division in the US has announced record breaking attendances of more than 1.5 million, beating its 2016 total attendance, itself a record.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 23 – FIFA has been quick to condemn the notorious hacking group Fancy Bears for releasing documents alleging that 25 players were allowed to take prohibited substances for medical reasons – known as Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) – at the 2010 World Cup.
August 23 – Uruguay and Argentina will officially launch their joint bid for the 2030 World Cup next week at a ceremony involving the country’s two leaders.
August 23 – Facebook Live has acquired the Indian digital streaming rights from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the remaining fixtures of the AFC Cup, the continent’s second tier club competition.
August 23 – Cristiano Ronaldo has reacted furiously to his five-game ban for pushing a referee being upheld by Spain’s administrative sports court.
By Mark Baber
August 23 – The executive committee of the Ukrainian FA has voted 28-2 in favour of continuing to hold Ukrainian Premier League matches in Mariupol, notwithstanding Dynamo Kiev’s apparent decision not to play in the city this weekend.