By Paul Nicholson
April 12 – FIFA has expanded into the media business launching its own broadcast platform – FIFA+ – that will stream a mix of live matches, acquired documentary and lifestyle programming, as well as archive content.
April 12 – Former Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba has been cleared to stand in the presidential elections of Ivory Coast’s Football Federation (FIF), which will be staged on April 23 after two years of political turmoil.
By Paul Nicholson
April 12 – Another hard-to-celebrate milestone for the beleaguered Trinidad and Tobago FA is expected in the next 10 days with the Trustee of the TTFA, charged with resolving the TTFA’s debt problems, expected to make a formal offer to the association’s long suffering creditors.
April 12 – RB Leipzig have the two hottest talents under the age of 23 in Europe, according to the latest ranking by transfer value from the CIES Football Observatory.
April 12 – Belgian club Anderlecht have vowed to preserve the budget for their title winning women’s team despite cuts across the board.
April 12 – UEFA have ordered Atletico Madrid to close a part of their stadium for Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final second leg against Manchester City.
April 12 – Online bookmaker Betcris, based in Costa Rica, has increased its sponsorship footprint in Central America with a three-year deal with Guatemalan club Toros del Malacateco (CD Malacateco).
April 11 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is having to rapidly adjust its schedules again as a new surge of covid has forced the pull out of China’s Shanghai Port FC from the Champions League group stages that start later this month.
April 11 – Manchester City’s thrilling 2-2 draw with Liverpool on Sunday captivated television audiences across the globe in the race for the Premier League title but off the field City faces more scrutiny, this time over its official global betting partner Marathonbet, which is approved by the Kremlin for its gambling operations in Russia.
April 11 – Wearing the names of heavily bombarded cities on their shirts, Ukrainian top-flight club Shakhtar Donetsk began a symbolic government-backed ‘Football for Peace’ Tour on Saturday with a game played in front of 5,000 fans against Greek champions Olympiakos.
April 11 – Following UEFA’s introduction of new financial monitoring rules, the English Football League (EFL) is also considering new financial fair play rules, including a salary cap at 70% of club revenue.
April 11 – Police are investigating an incident that saw Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo apparently slapping a phone out of a supporter’s hand as he left the field after Manchester United’s 1-0 weekend defeat at Everton.
April 11 – While the world is watching with horror and condemnation the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the increase in violence in Palestine and the West Bank has gone barely noticed in international media.
April 10 – UEFA is making €240 million over the 2020/24 cycle as club compensation for releasing players for its national team competitions, and increase of €40 million on the previous cycle.
April 11 – Egypt and Carlos Queiroz have parted ways after the Portuguese coach failed to lead the Pharaohs to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.