West Ham’s ‘Mr Nice Guys’ in poll position for Europa League reward
May 8 – ‘Nice guys come last’, so the saying goes, but in UEFA’s world being a good corporate citizen wins your country an additional Europa League place.
Spanish crisis deepens as La Liga players threaten to strike over TV cash
By Mark Baber
May 8 – The crisis in Spanish football, which threatens to bring football to a halt in the country from May 16, has deepened with the player’s union (AFE) aligning itself with the federation (RFEF), calling for a strike to begin on May 16 – the Spanish league (LFP) has already declared strike action illegal.
MATCH exec Whelan is back in the game, bruised but not battered
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – Ray Whelan, the British director who was arrested and detained in Brazil after being wrongly accused of selling VIP World Cup tickets at inflated prices, is back working as a consultant for Match Services, FIFA’s official marketing partner, and is planning to write a book about the entire experience.
Russian 2018 build boosts other sports and infrastructure
May 8 – The Russian investment in building infrastructure and facilities for the 2018 World Cup appears to be having a positive knock-on effect for sports facilities generally in the country with 12 new sports centres expected to be opened in Moscow in 2015.
Blatter says women’s game set for global breakthrough and calls for more girl power
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – Sepp Blatter reckons the upcoming women’s World Cup could be the biggest breakthrough yet for the sport and that more women should occupy positions of administrative power at FIFA.
Honduras step up for U20 Women’s championship hosting
May 8 – Honduras have stepped up to host the second regional championship in the country in a year, with the CONCACAF Under-20 Women’s Championship 2015 this December. The championship will decide the three teams to qualify for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Papua New Guinea 2016.
Zenit drive new partner deal with Nissan
May 8 – Zenit St Petersburg has signed a three-year deal with Japanese carmaker Nissan who becomes an official partner of the club. No value was announced for the agreement.
Enfield Town head to Wembley HQ to appeal ‘Big Brother’ sanction
May 7 – Enfield Town, the tiny part-time club in the eighth tier of English football whose case against being docked three points for no other reason than being honest has made national headlines, will discover tomorrow whether they will be let off the sanction.
Israelis send ‘not us’ letter to federations in bid to avoid expulsion
May 7 – The head of Israeli football has launched a pre-emptive strike, metaphorically speaking, to try and stop a Palestinian proposal to ban his federation from FIFA being supported at the FIFA Congress later this month.
Slovakia’s MFK Kosice unveil €15m stadium project
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
May 7 – MFK Kosice have unveiled its plans to move to a new stadium under a project estimated to be worth €15 million. The Slovak side’s new stadium is expected to be completed in 2017.
Indonesian politicos scrambling to beat FIFA ban but PSSI assets stay frozen
By Andrew Warshaw
May 7 – FIFA have given Indonesia a final ultimatum to resolve a bitter internal row or risk being thrown out of international competition because of government interference.
Real Madrid, Barca and Man Utd top Forbes rich list at over $2bn each
By Mark Baber
May 7 – Real Madrid tops the annual Forbes list of the world’s most valuable clubs, for the third year in a row, with Barcelona and Manchester United still in second and third place respectively.
Greeks agree UEFA deal to keep teams playing internationally
By Andrew Warshaw
May 7 – The crisis in Greek football that led to a threat by UEFA and FIFA to throw them out appears to have been resolved after the country’s controversial new sports law, designed to crack down on fan violence, was submitted to parliament with the requisite adjustments.
Spanish federation suspends La Liga over government-backed TV sales deal
By Andrew Warshaw
May 7 – Spanish football has burst into outright warfare over plans to introduce the sale of centralized tv rights from 2016. The Spanish football federation has indefinitely suspended competition from May 16 in a dispute with the government over a new law on collective bargaining, effectively halting the final two rounds of La Liga and the rest of domestic football.
Flamengo banks Caixa cash as sponsorship deals boom
By Samindra Kunti
May 7 – Rio de Janeiro giants Flamengo will renew their club sponsorship deal with Brazilian bank Caixa, worth €7.3 million, this week. Flamengo’s shirt is projected to have a total sponsorship value (shirts carry more than one sponsor logo) of €26.1 million this season.