December 21 – With the World Cup at an end and Doha returning to some sense of normality, FIFA is thinking of the future and has reportedly re-floated the idea of staging the World Cup on a triennial basis.
December 21 – Football Australia has issued the first two of a number of lifetime bans it expects to hand out as part of its ongoing investigation into the pitch invasion that left a player and a referee injured during last weekend’s abandoned Melbourne derby.
By Samindra Kunti in Doha
December 21 – Nigerian football official Amaju Pinnick (pictured) has claimed that the finances of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) are “a big mess”.
December 21 – French football authorities have condemned online racist abuse directed towards some of the country’s players after they were targeted in the wake of the penalty shootout loss to Argentina in Sunday’s World Cup final.
December 21 – The fledgling Canadian Premier League (CPL), set to enter its fourth season, will in future negotiate its contracted players’ terms and conditions with the Professional Footballers Association of Canada (PFA Canada) under a collective bargaining agreement.
December 21 – The USL Championship, the 24-team second professional tier in US soccer, has unveiled its competition structure for the 2023 season.
December 20 – In a joint letter to the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF), FIFA and UEFA have warned that they could face an international suspension if they do not follow the statutes of the two governing bodies.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 20 – Qatar’s World Cup chief Hassan Al Thawadi insists the tournament changed perceptions of the region and transformed his country.
December 20 – La Liga has become the latest football body to denounce FIFA’s plans for a 32-team Club World Cup in 2025, saying it may take legal action to stop it.
December 20 – US businessman John Textor and his Eagle Football group have completed the long running takeover of Olympique Lyonnais. on Monday.
December 20 – An analysis of the Argentine player data from World Cup qualifying to World Cup final by the CIES Football Observatory shows how coach Lionel Scaloni used 40 players en route to the big prize.
December 20 – French football authorities have sanctioned 76 players, coaches and managers for failing to respect the ban on sports betting during the 2020-2021 season.
December 20 – Online e-commerce site eBay is upgrading its relationship with Serie A’s Inter Milan to become the club’s shirt sleeve sponsor from the January 4 with the home game against Napoli.
December 20 – The FIFA World Cup will be in the US in 2026, but the Homeless World Cup will get there before it, with Sacramento in California hosting the event in July 2023.
December 19 – The World Leagues Forum (WLF), has joined the world players’ union Fifpro in condemning FIFA for its “unilateral decisions” on international calendar which it says are “damaging for the football industry”.