ITV looks to Euro 2016 to boost flat advertising performance
By Mark Baber
March 3 – UK broadcaster ITV is banking on the Euro 2016 Tournament in France to boost its ad revenues after a flat performance in the first quarter.
Match-fixing suspicions grow in Belgium as second game is identified
By Samindra Kunti
March 3 – A Belgian top-flight match between KV Oostende vs Waasland-Beveren has been identified in a German TV documentary as showing signs of betting related match-fixing. The new revelations cast what is becoming a growing shadow over Belgium’s Jupiler Pro League.
Leaderless UEFA needs Platini to step aside, says Germany’s Rauball
By Andrew Warshaw
March 3 – Michel Platini should throw in the towel and step down as UEFA president as soon as possible in order to avoid a leadership vacuum, according to the boss of the German FA.
Liverpool still feeling the Suarez effect with £60m profit boost
By Paul Nicholson
March 3 – The legacy effect of Luis Suarez at Liverpool lives on with the club reporting a record a profit of £60 million for the year to end May 2015. Suarez, sold for an estimated £75 million to Barcelona in June 2014, gave the numbers a huge boost but the club insists that money has been reinvested in buying new players.
UEFA bans Galatasaray from Europe after failure to meet FFP rules
March 3 – In a firm statement of intent, UEFA have thrown Galatasaray out of European competition for a year for breaching financial fair play rules.
English clubs hold Super League breakaway talks in London with US backer
By Andrew Warshaw
March 3 – The spectre of a breakaway European super league has been rekindled after reports that secret talks had taken place on a new closed-shop competition featuring the Continent’s biggest clubs.
Man Utd turn on the power with new Yanmar deal
March 3 – It appear Manchester United fans like motor vehicles and the club likes motor manufacturers as global sponsors. Chevrolet are the club’s shirt sponsor, and sit alongside Japanese industrial Yanmar who have extended their deal to become the club’s first Agricultural Vehicles Partner.
100-day countdown to EURO2016 begins with French focus on security and legacy
By Samindra Kunti
March 2 – EURO2016 preparations are gaining speed across France as the hosts celebrate a milestone 100 days to go until the kick-off of this summer’s big football tournament, but security remains a top concern for the organisers.
Hayatou gets cash bonus as reforms prove to be good business
March 2 – Issa Hayatou’s enthusiasm in making sure FIFA’s reform package was passed by Congress last Friday before he stepped down as acting president may be partly explained by the fact that he had a six-figure incentive.
Guatemala send on-the-run football boss Jimenez to face US justice over $200K bribes
By Mark Baber
March 2 – Former Guatemalan Football Federation president and member of FIFA’s Committee for Fair Play and Social Responsibility Brayan Jimenez was extradited on a commercial flight from La Aurora airport to the US on Tuesday to face charges of corruption, money laundering, fraud and embezzlement.
Platini returns to CAS in final attempt to overturn his ban
By Andrew Warshaw
March 2 – As widely anticipated, Michel Platini has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against his suspension from football-related activity as he seeks to annul the sanction upheld by the FIFA appeal committee last week but reduced from eight to six years.
Infantino to push video ref trials at IFAB and sets 2026 and 40-teamWorld Cup agendas
By Andrew Warshaw
March 2 – His old boss at UEFA may have taken a somewhat different view but Gianni Infantino seems likely to approve trials of video technology when he attends the International FA Board meeting in Cardiff later this week, his first official function as the new FIFA president.
Matt Scott: UEFA’s oversight on Olympiacos has opened dangerous ground
“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” Juvenal, Satires
“Who watches the watchmen?” This question, first posed by classical writers thousands of years ago, is perhaps one we would do well to ask ourselves now, as civil liberties hard won in the second millennium are gradually eroded in the third.
US hangs out new shingle in $1m rebranding exercise with Nike
March 2 – The United States Soccer Federation (USSF) has unveiled a new crest, which it says respects the past and represents the future. USSF revealed the crest by sending packages to its Members and encouraging them to share the news and merchandise on social media platforms.
US prosecutors follow the money trail with Citibank subpoenaed in corruption scandal
By Mark Baber
March 1 – Citibank has confirmed that it has received a subpoena from US prosecutors investigating alleged bribery, corruption and money laundering associated with FIFA.