Canada 5 Honduras 0
June 17 – Canada over the past six years have forced their way into Concacaf’s elite but have so often flattered to deceive. They are the team everyone quite likes but have never delivered the championship title their talent screams for. Re-adjust everyone.
November 26 – The annual Premier League Truce Tournament scheduled to take place in Ypres, Belgium, December 10-13 has been called off following advice from British and Belgian authorities over safety concerns in following the raising of Belgium’s terror alert.
By Samindra Kunti
November 26 – French Ligue 1 side Olympique de Marseille have partnered with video messaging application Snapchat in a bid to up their social media presence.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 26 – Ethics officials have dismissed the suggestion that they do not have the power to remove Sepp Blatter from office – and reject claims that he has not yet received the report into their investigation against him.
By Paul Nicholson
November 26 – Real Madrid Castilla top the table of clubs that have developed players under the age of 23 and are playing in one of Europe’s Big-5 leagues. Looking just at the English Premier League, Southampton have developed most players, followed by Aston Villa and Ajax in third spot.
By Paul Nicholson
November 26 – Swansea topped the stadium capacity chart on the first weekend back after the international break, with Chelsea coming a close second and Spurs third.
November 25 – Manchester City and its fans may have escaped UEFA sanction for their persistent booing of the Champions League anthem before matches, but FIFA looks unlikely to so lenient with the Hong Kong Football Association (HKFA) who are being investigated for a second booing incident against China.
By Mark Baber
November 25 – Nissan have said they were “extremely shocked” to see Guangzhou Evergrande ditch their branding with one minute’s notice prior to the AFC Champions League final last Saturday. Nissan’s logo would have normally been on the front of the club’s shirts in what is the premier club competition in Asia, football’s most populous region.
November 25 – FIFA presidential candidate Jerome Champagne says FIFA should consider moving the 2022 Qatar World Cup closer back to the tournament’s traditional summer slot.
November 25 – Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko says security will be tightened at the 2018 World Cup following the Paris massacre and the growing threat of terrorism generally.
November 25 – Dynamo Kiev have been ordered to play their next two European home fixtures behind closed doors, with a third suspended, and fined €100,000 after their fans were found guilty of racist behaviour.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 25 – Sepp Blatter claims FIFA’s ethics committee, which he himself set up, does not have the power to remove him as president.
By Paul Nicholson
November 25 – The revenue gap between Europe’s big five leagues and the rest is getting bigger and within those leagues the big five teams in each league are getting even bigger at the expense of their domestic rivals. Manchester United, with commercial income of about €226 million, generate or receive a massive 21% of the Premier League’s total.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 25 – In what will doubtless be regarded by Interpol and anti-corruption watchdogs as a major setback in the global fight against match-fixing, Tan Seet Eng, otherwise known as Dan Tan, the suspected kingpin behind a string of cases that reportedly netted millions of dollars, is a free man after winning a Court of Appeal ruling in his native Singapore.
By Ben Nicholson
November 25 – Although Southampton FC has yet graced the US shores with any commercial pre-season campaign, the Saints are now preparing to expand across the Atlantic with its soccer philosophy. Chairman Ralph Krueger (pictured) revealed plans to take the club’s coaching initiative to the US, prospecting that it will reach over 100,000 players.
November 25 – Euro 2016 organisers, mindful of heightened security following the Paris terrorist attacks, are hopeful of retaining traditional fan zones so that supporters will be allowed to watch matches on big screens in public areas.