Roma are fined €50,000 but escape wider sanctions, this time
By Andrew Warshaw
May 14 – Italian authorities have wasted no time punishing Roma for the racist chanting of their fans by slapping them with a €50,000 fine – but nothing stronger.
SKY Italia wins anti-trust rights case on Champions League and World Cup
By Paul Nicholson
May 14 – After a two-year wait, the Italian Antitrust Authority (AGCM) has finally ruled in favour of Sky Italia that there is no evidence the broadcaster abused its dominant position in its acquisition of Champions League TV rights (2012-15) and FIFA World Cup rights for 2010 and 2014.
FTBpro raises $5.8 million in new wave of investment in football sites
By Mark Baber
May 13 – FTBpro has raised $5.8 million from Israeli investors, Battery Ventures and Gemini Israel Ventures to expand its “fan-generated” content offering into new markets.
Russia 2018 review reports good progress and highlights legacy
By Andrew Warshaw
May 13 – Leaders of Russia’s 2018 World Cup Organising Committee have given a ringing endorsement of progress but have stayed clear of controversial subjects like racism and hooliganism.
Tanzania sets new date for elections after FIFA step in
By Mark Baber
May 13 – The Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) has re-set the date for elections to September 29 and will allow all candidates to stand following intervention by FIFA.
Platini says it is time to record ref’s conversations
By Monica Villar
May 13 – UEFA President Michel Platini has suggested that the time has come to record conversations between referees during Champions League matches. He spoke during a visit to Lille in preparation for the 2016 European championship.
Doping scandals fail to halt North Korean Han’s rise to AFC exco seat
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
May 13 – The controversial appointment of a North Korean woman to serve at the top table of Asian football is being viewed in some quarters with considerable scepticism and a backward step in terms of bringing openness and transparency back to the troubled Continent.
Serie A game halted as Roma fans chant racist abuse at San Siro
By Andrew Warshaw
May 13 – Despite a recent crackdown on racism by football’s governing bodies, Sunday’s high-profile Serie A clash between AC Milan and Roma was halted because of abusive chanting by fans. Play was stopped by the referee for about two minutes at the start of the second half after chants were aimed at Milan’s black players from visiting Roma fans.
David Owen: Why Rooney and Europe are the big questions for Moyes at Old Trafford
In 2004-05, the most profitable club in the Premier League was unfashionable Everton.
How did Merseyside’s second club outperform more illustrious rivals such as Arsenal and Manchester United, let alone Chelsea, which ran up a £140 million pre-tax loss on the way to lifting the Premier League title?
Four words: they sold Wayne Rooney, the teenage prodigy who had made Europe sit up and take notice at Euro 2004.
This simple fact reminds us of how long the careers of Rooney and David Moyes,
Ugandan government disbands rival leagues in favour of new Premier League
By Mark Baber
May 10 – The Ugandan Cabinet on Wednesday resolved to step into the dispute between the Federation of Uganda Football Association (FUFA) and the Uganda Super League Ltd (USLL) and disband the two national leagues (FSL and USL) in favour of a new Uganda Premier League (UPL) which will kick off at the start of the 2013/14 season.
BT throw down challenge to Sky with Premier League matches to screen free
By Andrew Warshaw
May 10 – Telecom giants BT have vowed to “give football back to the nation” by announcing that Premier League games will be offered free to its broadband customers next season in a revolutionary move that has taken the broadcasting world by storm.
Kenyan crisis as federation appeals for funds to fulfil fixtures
By Mark Baber
May 10 – Football Kenya Federation has made an appeal for at least 200 million shillings to support the Harambee Stars and enable them to fulfil this year’s fixtures, including world cup qualifiers.
Family trouble for Di Stefano as they seek to stop him marrying 50 years younger
By Alex O’Loughlin
May 10 – The five children of Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano (pictured with Ronaldo) have filed an injunction seeking to stop him marrying a Costa Rican woman 50 years his junior.
FT/IFA: Big hitters sign up for a blockbuster day at Rio talk shop
By Paul Nicholson
May 10 – FIFA’s top brass and the three CEO’s of the 2014, 2018 and 2022 World Cup organising committees are among the headliners for the FT/IFA one-day conference at the Copacabana Palace Hotel, Rio de Janeiro, June 17. With five weeks to go the speaker line-up for Rio is taking a star-studded shape.