What have Borussia Dortmund, Manchester City and Real Madrid got in common?
It’s not just that they were drawn together in the toughest group in the Champions League this year.
They also all finished a distant and disappointing second in their domestic leagues.
Dortmund can be excused of course. They have achieved miracles in the Champions League, and who’d really be able to keep up with Bayern Munich the way they have played throughout 2012/13.
By Tom Parsons
May 16 – News that the English Premier League could have its first-ever play off for a Champions League spot if results went a certain way this weekend, has sparked a wave of social media excitement and betting activity.
By Gareth Messenger
May 15 – Arsenal are expected to receive a windfall of around £3million after Barcelona were officially revealed as the new champions of Spain.
By Mark Baber
May 5 – The ‘Neighbours Series’ tournament, scheduled to be hosted by Fulham FC at Craven Cottage between the national sides of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh in June, has been cancelled.
By Mark Baber
May 15 – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the award of a 3-0 win to Dynamo Moscow, imposed by the Football Union of Russia (FUR), after the game between Dynamo and Zenit was abandoned after Dynamo’s goalkeeper was hit by a flare thrown by Zenit fans. The panel also rejected Zenit’s requests to sanction Dynamo Moscow.
By Paul Nicholson
May 15 – The value of kit deals in the English Premier League has jumped a massive 32%, while the cost of a replica shirt in England has risen 8.3% but is still the lowest priced on average in comparison to Europe’s other major leagues, according to a report released today.
By Paul Nicholson
May 15 – The battle for premium broadcast football rights continues in the UK with ITV picking up the rights to England Euro 2016 and 2018 World Cup qualifying competitions.
By Monica Villar
May 14 – Calls for an overhaul of the Spanish refereeing system are becoming louder. Spanish referees have come under fire as the season comes to a close and poor decisions potentially mean life or death in the race to survive in la Liga’s top division.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 14 – FIFA President Sepp Blatter has once again reacted to the latest incident of racial abuse by fans, denouncing the Italian authorities for being too weak and saying lessons have still not been learned.
May 14 – FIFA has extended worldwide a raft of bans imposed on eight players by the Estonian FA and one player by the Lebanese FA following matchfixing and fraud inquiries.
By Mark Baber
May 14 – A Rio court has stayed the execution of an injunction preventing the controversial handover of the Maracana stadium to a private consortium.
By Mark Baber
May 14 – News International is to use Premier League football clips to drive subscriptions to its Sun+ service, the digital offering of the UK’s highest circulation tabloid newspaper. The subscription will cost £2 a week in the UK.
May 14 – Three-quarters of European football fans interviewed in a new survey want the option to stand while watching games.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 14 – With goalline technology on the horizon, FIFA has selected the 10 referees for the forthcoming Confederations Cup in Brazil – with all of them in pole position to be sent to the World Cup next year unless they mess up.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 14 – Even before the Premier League season has ended, the sack race has begun – with Manchester City’s Roberto Mancini the most high-profile victim.