By David Gold
April 3 – Brazilian wonderkid Neymar (pictured centre) is to be the best paid player in the recent history of the country’s football who has not moved to Europe, after he agreed a new sponsorship deal with car giant Volkswagen.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – FIFA are stepping up their research into heart screening following the cardiac arrest suffered by Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba by setting up a worldwide database to help prevent similar cases.
By David Gold
April 3 – Louis Kilcoyne, the former President of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) and also a previous vice-president of the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI), has died at the age of 69 following a short illness.
By David Gold
April 3 – Former FIFA President João Havelange (pictured) is to leave intensive care at the Samaritano Hospital in Rio de Janeiro where he has been treated for an infection.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – FIFA is on yet another collision course with Europe’s clubs after revealing that players do, after all, have to be released if selected for the London 2012 Olympics.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 3 – Clubs in Eastern Europe are deliberately rigging domestic matches in order to “buy” where they finish in the league at the end of the season, according the boss of the international players union, FIFPro.
By David Gold
April 2 – America-born Miguel Ponce’s late extra-time strike helped Mexico win the Confederation of North, Central and Caribbean Football (CONCACAF) men’s football qualifiers for London 2012.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 2 – Yet another serious match fixing episode, this time in Italy, moved on apace today when Atalanta defender Andrea Masiello (pictured) was arrested in connection with last season’s scandal in Serie A.
By David Gold
April 2 – All Turkish teams, including those not involved in match rigging, could be banned from European competition rather than face relegation, after the suggestion from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was echoed by Yıldırım Demirören, the new Turkish Football Federation (TFF) chairman.
It was billed as a “historic day” for FIFA in terms of its reform process but what happens now? It’s one thing being accused of failing to sufficiently investigate corruption allegations against its members. But it’s quite another actually doing something about it.
Anti-corruption guru Mark Pieth’s eagerly awaited report into FIFA’s recent conduct may have been hard-hitting in its conclusions and suggested firm ways of rebuilding trust. But until and unless FIFA acts on the recommendations the cynics will still swirl around football’s world governing body.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 2 – Thirteen suspended Zimbabwean footballers based in South Africa are being allowed to continue playing for their clubs until FIFA takes official action against them.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 2 – Russia’s landslide 2018 World Cup ballot victory over England has resulted in English referees discriminating against Russian players.
Ever since Fabrice Muamba collapsed in the first half of the FA Cup match against Tottenham at White Hart Lane, not a single football event has gone by without some sympathy being expressed for the stricken Bolton player. This has included fans and players, even players in countries far removed from England, wearing T-shirts wishing Muamba a speedy recovery. His progress in hospital has been monitored with the sort of attention that was once accorded to members of the royal family and would nowadays be given to high profile pop stars.
By Duncan Mackay
April 2 – Tokuaki Suzuki, the former Competitions Director of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Japan Football Association (JFA), has been appointed by Tokyo 2020 its new communications director to oversee its bid for the Olympics and Paralympics.
April 1 – Renowned Italian events and ceremonies producer Marco Balich (pictured) has been snapped up as the creative director in charge of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of this summer’s European Championships in Ukraine and Poland.