Rooney staying at Man Utd as big money Chinese move fails to materialise
February 24 – England captain Wayne Rooney has ended talk of a possible move to China saying he wants to remain at Manchester United.
Gold Cup 2025
Gold Cup’s breakthrough strikers make case for Golden Boot and glory
June 27 – The Gold Cup 2025 has been the showcase for a number of forwards to make their case for international recognition and potential moves to Europe’s big leagues as they chase the Golden Boot for the competition’s top scorer.
Hyundai manoeuvres into co-title sponsorship of Singapore’s S.League
February 24 – Singapore’s S- League has signed Hyundai Motors as a new co-title sponsor in a two-year deal believed to be worth $1 million.
Infantino urges Qatar to ensure 2022 World Cup leaves a lasting historical legacy
February 24 – FIFA president Gianni Infantino has spoken of the need for Qatar to leave a lasting legacy when it stages the 2022 World Cup, almost certainly the last with 32 finalists.
Exclusive: Welsh challenger O’Connor stakes claim for a seat at UEFA’s top table
By Andrew Warshaw
February 23 – When the previously little-known Aleksander Ceferin gained a stunning victory to win the presidency of UEFA last September, his landslide 42-13 triumph over Michael van Praag was a giant statement for the smaller European federations like his own Slovenia.
AFC lands Allianz as major club competition sponsor in four-year deal
February 23 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has added another official sponsor partner for its club competitions with international financial services company Allianz becoming the first sponsor in this category.
Chinese march on the Saints gets a rival second column
By Paul Nicholson
February 23 – Chinese interest in acquiring Premier League Southampton looks to have doubled with a reported £246 million bid from materials giant Amer International and CITIC Securities to rival the Lander Sports Development bid of £200 million that was rejected by the club’s owner Katarina Liebherr.
Politics and money. FIFA head to Caribbean with Jamaica to host federation workshop
By Paul Nicholson
February 23 – FIFA is continuing its meeting of member nations in regional workshops with the latest stop on their schedule being Jamaica, March 1-4, where 14 Caribbean member associations will be gathered.
Jersey appeal to CAS in last ditch bid to get UEFA membership
February 23 – Jersey’s appeal against UEFA’s rejection of their membership bid will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on June 28.
Africa pushes for 10 slots in the 48-team World Cup expansion
February 23 – The regional fight for more slots in an expanded World Cup from 2026 is already under way with Africa stating it is looking for 10 places, double its current quota.
New Caledonia make history with first qualification for U17 World Cup finals
By Samindra Kunti
February 23 – New Caledonia and New Zealand have qualified for the Under-17 Football World Cup in India after defeating Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea in two nail-biting semi-final clashes at the U17 OFC Championship.
Britain’s betting breaches are just the tip of a global iceberg
February 23 – A total of 53 footballers in Britain have been reported over potential breaches of betting rules according to the BBC.
Qatar awards seventh main construction contract for 2022 stadium build
February 22 – The 40,000-seat stadium to be built in the Al Thumama district of Doha, Qatar, for the 2022 World Cup, will have as its main contractor a joint venture between Qatari construction firm AlJaber Engineer and Turkey’s Tekfen Construction.
Twitter: Chelsea hit the 8m mark but gap to Arsenal is not narrowing
February 22 – Chelsea have passed the 8 million mark in twitter followers, third only to Arsenal with 9.2 million and Manchester United with 10.2 million. Looking at the weekly figures Chelsea’s gain was still almost 16,000 behind Arsenal’s 67,400 new followers for the week.
FIFPro names 55 top scoring players in voting for Women’s World XI
February 22 – FIFPro have released the list of 55 female players who received most votes for the 2016 World XI. The list includes six players from Germany’s Olympic Gold medal team, though the US has most naems on the list with nine, and France has eight players.
Chinese on verge of completing €740m AC Milan buy
February 22 – The long awaited completion of the sale of Italy’s AC Milan to a group of Chinese investors looks now to be set for March 3.