By Andrew Warshaw
December 6 – FIFA has given rival Indonesian football factions until Monday (December 10) to end their in-fighting or face suspension from the world game, according to local reports.
Did the ball cross the line? It’s a question fans have been asking ever since the 1966 FIFA World Cup final when England striker Geoff Hurst’s extra time goal against Germany was dubiously yet innocently allowed to stand by the Swiss referee on the advice of his Soviet linesman.
The other more pressing question is why nothing has ever been done, in the 46 years since, to avoid countless similar occurrences of the referee getting it wrong,
By Andrew Warshaw
December 6 – FIFA has welcomed the introduction of goal-line technology, being rolled out for the first time in official competition at the Club World Cup in Japan starting today.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 6 – Blighted by an alarming crime rate, Brazil is boosting its 2014 FIFA World Cup security budget to 1.879 billion Brazilian real (£560 million/$900 million/€680 million) to make sure the event is “one of the most protected sports events in history,” the Government has announced.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 6 – The death from a routine virus of Diego Mendieta, a Paraguayan player based in Indonesia, has outraged the international players’ union, FIFPro.
By Duncan Mackay
December 5 – Premier League club West Ham United have taken a major step towards moving into the Olympic Stadium after they were “ranked highest of the bids received”, according to the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC).
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – The ongoing probe into alleged malpractice by Asian football powerbroker Mohamed Bin Hammam, which has seriously split his increasingly dysfunctional confederation, reaches a crucial stage within the next 48 hours during which FIFA-appointed United States investigators must decide what action to take against him, if any.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – The chairman of the local organising committee for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa, Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana, has branded players opting out of the continent’s showpiece event as “selfish and egotistical”.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – Two months after its first meeting, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football’s (CONCACAF) new integrity committee, set up to clean up the body after an unsavoury period of blood-letting, is beginning getting to grips with the misdemeanours of the past.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – Dutch football and society in general has been left shocked and bewildered after a part-time volunteer linesman officiating in a youth league died from severe head injuries apparently sustained while being savagely beaten by a group of teenage players.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 5 – Brazilian football authorities should have kept faith with Mario Menezes instead of sacking him just 18 months out from the FIFA World Cup, according to Mário Zagallo, one of Brazil’s greatest names.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 4 – Senegal have been banned from using their main stadium in Dakar for African competition for a year following riots in October, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has confirmed.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 4 – Former national team general manager Cheryl Bailey has been appointed executive director of the new United States women’s league that begins next spring – the third attempt at trying to create a successful model.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 4 – Significant strides have been made to bridge the footballing divide in Cyprus following breakthrough talks between Greek and Turkish representatives – the first since early 2008.
By Duncan Mackay
December 4 – A massive infrastructure project has been launched in Russia to ensure that the country is ready to host the 2018 World Cup.