By Andrew Warshaw
December 30 – Brazil has declared three days of national mourning as tributes poured in from across the globe to mark the death of Pele, arguably the greatest player ever, at the age of 82.
By Samindra Kunti
December 28 – For Angelo Anastasio, an immigrant from Polistena in Southern Italy, June 10, 1975 turned out to be an unpleasant day. On that day, the defender was cut from the New York Cosmos roster. And while no football-minded soul genuinely expressed any interest in Anastasio’s fate, that move signified a seismic shift in the American football landscape. The end of the Stone Age had arrived.
By Paul Nicholson
December 28 – The Asian Football Confederation is undertaking a major revision of its men’s club competitions as it injects a more competitive foundation into its flagship Champions League and AFC Cup, both likely to be renamed as part of the new three-tier structure.
December 30 – Russian football bosses are reported to be considering quitting UEFA and applying to join the Asian Football Confederation to enable its clubs and national teams to resume playing.
December 30 – Earlier this week Iranian authorities ordered a Dubai-bound flight to land, preventing the family members of outspoken Iranian football legend Ali Daei from leaving the country.
December 30 – Argentina’s World Cup-winning captain Lionel Messi has reached a deal to renew his contract at Paris St-Germain, according to unconfirmed French media reports.
December 20 – Dortmund and England star Jude Bellingham is worth a staggering €211.3 million in the transfer market, according to new data from the CIES Football Observatory.
December 30 – Real Madrid tops the table of broadcast revenue LaLiga is distributing to its clubs for the 2021/22 season at €160 million, marginally ahead of rivals Barcelona. Atletico Madrid rank third with €130 million.
December 30 – In a deeply polarized country, Pelé’s passing, an event Brazilians and football fans at large had hoped would never arrive, has provided a moment of rare national unity.
December 30 – Annually, the world’s biggest football clubs fight for the title of wealthiest club in the world. Real Madrid and Barcelona were the two leading contenders in 2022, not only for the football betting, but also for the coveted title of world’s wealthiest football club.
December 29 – LaLiga has won three rulings in Spanish courts in the fight against piracy and the protection of their broadcast copyright and license fee income.
December 29 – Leading sports integrity advocate Dr Franco Frattini, 65, died on Christmas Day, after a battle with cancer.
December 29 – FC Barcelona, currently revamping its Camp Nou complex and stadium, have commissioned Mediapro Exhibitions to create a temporary museum for the club.
December 13 – The boom in the iGaming industry’s worldwide growth in the last couple of years has left punters with multiple football betting options as punters wager on the players and teams they like. Not all the odds being offered are necessarily good and using a resource like www.silentbet.com, where you will find reviews of the hottest betting websites, can be vital in choosing where you place your money.
December 22 – Morocco have climbed the FIFA ranking following their spectacular semi-final run at the World Cup, with newly crowned world champions Argentina moving into second and quarter-finalists Brazil just about holding on to top spot.