July 28 – Australia’s leading clubs are demanding that the country’s FA (Football Federation Australia) opens its books to disclose the financial records surrounding the failed 2022 World Cup bid.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 27 – The career of Angel Maria Villar, one of the last remaining members of football’s political old guard who somehow managed to maintain his status while friends and colleagues were being swallowed up by scandal, is now effectively over after the seemingly untouchable lawyer resigned as vice-president of FIFA and UEFA.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 27 – Morocco have decided to gamble once again and take on the joint might of north America and Mexico in a bid to host the 2026 World Cup, according to leading Confederation of African Football (CAF) official Amaju Pinnick.
July 27 – Former Premier League club Aston Villa, battling to return to former glories and top flight status after a season in the Championship, are still able to attract high end sponsors with Hisense unveiled as the club’s new official technology partner.
July 27 – The French Professional Football League (LFP) has renewed partnership with BeIN Sports, Orange and Webedia for its e-Ligue 1 for a further two years. Title sponsor Orange will continue in its role until the end of the 2018/19 season.
July 27 – Ten of the 13 Chinese Super League clubs threatened with being banned next season say they have cleared their debts.
July 27 – Sports integrity lobby group SIGA kept up its calls for better sports governance at its Lisbon forum with former IOC Marketing and Broadcasting Rights Director Michael Payne saying sport has to “adapt or die, but also adapt to thrive”.
July 27 – The English Premier League has been awarded a High Court order for the forthcoming season which it hopes will combat illegal streaming by fans watching their teams for free. The blocking order will require UK Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to prevent supporters from illegal access through services like Kodi.
July 27 –Premier League Liverpool have signed Tibet Water Resources as their Official Regional Water Partner in China.
July 27 – Foreign investment interest in English clubs is not confined to the Premier League and Championship, but there is growing interest in opportunities provided by clubs in the National League, the fifth tier of English football.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 26 – Angel Maria Villar’s three-decade reign at the head of Spanish football has come crashing down after he was suspended for a year, throwing his FIFA and UEFA vice-presidencies into serious jeopardy.
By Paul Nicholson
July 26 – A study by Football Benchmark of the commercial revenue opportunity for the Chinese Super League concludes that even though the focus is on big money transfers and grassroots development, there is significant room for revenue growth for clubs in the more traditional areas of business.
By Andrew Warshaw
July 26 – While most of the leading clubs in the English Premier League have gone on a massive pre-season spending spree, one of them, Tottenham Hotspur, have been conspicuous by their lack of activity in the transfer window.
July 26 – A research report by the FIX the FIXING programme reveals the worrying statistics that 20% of the athletes were aware of a fixed game involving their team over the past 12 months, while 15% of athletes also reported that they were approached to help fix a match within the last 12 months.
July 26 – Diego Maradona has admitted that his infamous ‘Hand of God’ World Cup goal in 1986 would have been ruled out if video technology had existed back then.