By Alexander Krassimirov
August 27 – Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia have started an educational campaign in a bid to combat the extreme racism of their fans. The club is one of the most frequently fined by the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU). Recently the fines for Bulgarian teams for racist incident, of which there are sadly many, have been increasing.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 27 – FIFA presidential candidate Michael Platini will publish his manifesto in the next six to eight weeks and not, as had been anticipated, at his first session with the international media at the conclusion of Champions and Europa League business in Monaco tomorrow.
By Mark Baber
August 27 – The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has referred the Batman Petrolspor team to the Professional Football Disciplinary Committee after the club released white doves representing peace prior to their first game of the season.
By Samindra Kunti
August 27 – Brazilian football has been in a grim state ever since Brazil’s unforgiving 7-1 defeat to Germany at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but slowly leading club Flamengo is showing the way forward with its sound financial management under chairman Eduardo Bandeira de Mello, resulting in substantial pre-tax profits.
August 27 – CONMEBOL and FIFA are to jointly audit the finances of the Bolivian Football Federation, whose leader was jailed for alleged corruption.
August 26 – Premier League Liverpool have renewed tyre manufacturer Maxxis for a further two year sponsorship, the second time it has extended its partnership with the club.
By Andrew Warshaw
August 26 – FIFA presidential contender Chung Mong-Joon, whose candidacy is in danger of hitting the buffers before it has hardly taken off, has issued a damning and defiant indictment of the entire election process as he tries to grab the moral high ground in the face of persistent speculation about his past.
By Paul Nicholson
August 26 – Consolidation in the betting market is continuing with Irish bookmaker Paddy Power and betting exchange Betfair set to merge in a multibillion euro creating a combined business of more than €1.5 billion annually.
By Mark Baber
August 26 – Bayer 04 Leverkusen have settled the outstanding case with Teldafax following a recommendation from the Higher Regional Court in Cologne, thereby ending a long-running legal dispute with the insolvency receiver involved with the TelDaFax companies.
August 26 – FIFA have denied claims by Indonesia that officials are planning a visit in October with a view to overturning the ban on the country for government interference.
August 26 – Barcelona have been quick to dispel any suggestion of Neymar leaving for Manchester United for a world-record €190 million as the summer transfer window approaches its usual frenetic final week of business.
August 26 – Almost two years after releasing Zahir Belounis, the French footballer who was trapped in the country for 19 months because of its antiquated kafala employment system, Qatar is stepping up is its efforts to set up a judicial body to resolve legal disputes.
August 26 – The English Premier League may generate the most income of Europe’s domestic leagues but tomorrow’s Champions League draw features no fewer than five Spanish clubs, the first time one country has had that many representatives in the competition.
By Ben Nicholson
August 26 – As befitting their Forbes ranking of second spot in MLS clubs’ value, LA Galaxy has pushed on to add new partnerships to their business roster, and not just foreign imports to their playing roster.
“Nil satis nisi optimum” Everton Football Club motto
How Everton’s owners must lament that history has bequeathed them as a motto a Latin phrase meaning “Nothing but the best will do” because, since their 1995 FA Cup win, Everton really haven’t been the best at anything. But it is a stick with which to beat an underperforming club, and so it was with the acronym NSNO that disaffected Everton fans appended their banner of dissent as it flew by St Mary’s Stadium last week.