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.
Imagine the outcry if a leading English club was deducted three points just as it was about to clinch the Premier League title – for no other reason than being a victim of its own integrity and honesty.
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
April 28 – Steaua Bucharest’s controversial owner Gigi Becali has announced he will not seek to win the forthcoming auction of the club’s badge which is owned by the Romanian Armed Forces. Instead the businessman, who is currently serving a prison sentence for corruption, kidnapping and match-fixing, says that he wants to focus the club’s efforts on securing new transfers for the 2015/16 season and potential UEFA Champions League qualification.
By Mark Baber
April 28 – The Spanish Football League (LFP) has continued its journey into China to sign sponsorship partners with the announcement of a deal with Snow Beer, China’s biggest beer brand, which will allow the Chinese brand to incorporate LFP branding and player images in its advertising in Asia.
April 28 – Premier League Liverpool have announced record numbers through the turnstiles for the Anfield Tour and Museum over the past 12 months. Nearly 200,000 visited the club attraction, up from 50,000 the previous year.
By Matt Scott
April 28 – Widespread match-fixing allegations in Greek football hardened yesterday as Evangelos Marinakis (pictured), the Olympiacos owner and president, was charged by prosecutors with a series of alleged offences.
April 28 – A makeshift bomb that injured nine people at Sunday’s Turin derby may have been the work of fans of hosts Torino and not visitors Juventus as originally believed.
April 28 – As it makes strides on the field to develop its fledging footballing status, Gibraltar is in danger of becoming the latest haven for match-fixing.
April 28 – Saransk, in the Mordovia region of Russia, has announced details of its post-World Cup 2018 legacy programme saying that the 792-room ‘Tavia’ hotel complex will be converted to affordable family apartments after the tournament.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 28 – There are heartwarming football stories. And then there is the story of Bournemouth. Celebration and euphoria were mixed with sheer disbelief last night when the tiny club on the English south coast, close to oblivion only a few years ago, effectively sealed their promotion to the top flight of the Premier League for the first time in their 116-year history.
By Paul Nicholson
April 28 – West Ham have responded swiftly to a call by a Charlton Athletic supporters group for a review of the rental agreement on the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, London, saying that their bid was the best option both for London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) and that this was the best deal on the table for the taxpayer.
By Paul Nicholson
April 27 – They may lag behind rivals Arsenal and Chelsea in the Twitter follower rankings if you just take into account their English language twitter feeds, but Man Utd are top of the world when it comes to total number of Twitter followers when adding in all language accounts held by clubs.
By Mark Baber
April 27 – Western Sydney Wanderers’ last home game of the season on Saturday was marred by controversy as police, including members of ‘Strike Force Raptor’, a specialised force designed to carry out operatives against gangs engaging in criminal activity, reacted to a flare being lit by entering the ‘active support area’ and using OC (pepper) spray, leading to a 14-year old boy being hospitalised for 7 hours.
April 27 – He is perhaps Aston Villa’s most influential self-proclaimed supporter. But at the height of an election campaign, he suddenly forgot where his allegiance lay.
April 27 – It’s known as the ‘eternal derby’ featuring one of the most notorious rivalries in European football. And once again it has been marred by crowd trouble.
By Paul Nicholson
April 27 – The row over West Ham’s move to London’s Olympic Stadium was re-ignited last week with Charlton Athletic Supporters Trust (CAST) seeking a review of the terms of West Ham’s rental agreement at the venue.