Ukraine crisis: UEFA bans Belarus teams from playing at home
March 3 – Belarus and its club sides have been banned from playing matches at home by UEFA. Instead they will have to find neutral venues to play behind closed doors.
Vietnam picks up group hosting to complete AFC Cup line-up
March 4 – Vietnam has been confirmed as the centralised hosts of Group I in the AFC Cup 2022. Matches will be played June 24-30.
Abramovich confirms Chelsea is for sale with price tag put at $2.5bn+
By Andrew Warshaw
March 3 – Roman Abramovich, the Russian oligarch whose fortune transformed Chelsea from perennial also-rans into one of the most successful clubs in Europe, has decided to pull the plug and sell up.
Saudi Arabia to host all five AFC Champions League (West) groups
March 3 – Saudi Arabia will host all five of the centralised groups for the west zone of the AFC Champions League 2022. The decision to go to Saudi follows the successful hosting last November of the 2021 AFC Champions League final in Riyadh.
Everton cut ties with Russian sponsors and Usmanov’s spectral presence
March 3 – Everton are the latest football club to severe sponsorship ties with Russian companies following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
SIS report details rise in match-fixing and sports betting turnover passing €1.45 trillion
March 3 – Bet monitoring agency Sportradar Integrity Services (SIS) is reporting a record number of suspicious matches were detected in 2021. A year in which global sports betting turnover topped €1.45 trillion for the first time, according to SIS estimates.
Turner Sports agrees 8-year media deal for US national teams
March 3 – Turner Sports has picked up men’s and women’s US national team games in a reported $200-220 million deal.
Albanian elections postponed after local court suspends president
March 3 – The Albanian Football Federation has postponed its presidential election until March 15, following a dispute with one of its regional associations.
Palmeiras bounce back after CWC final loss to win South American Super Cup
By Samindra Kunti in Sao Paulo
March 3 – Palmeiras defeated Athletico Paranaense 2-0 to claim the South American Super Cup 4-2 on aggregate and their first prize under new club president Leila Pereira.
Arsenal losses double as pandemic-linked refinancing lifts borrowings from Kroenke
By David Owen
March 2 – Arsenal, the North London club striving for a return to the Champions League next season, have posted a swingeing loss for the covid-impacted 2020-21 period.
Fire sale? Abramovich shops Chelsea to billionaire boys club
March 2 – Speculation is mounting than Chelsea’s billionaire oligarch owner Roman Abramovich may be about to sell the club in the wake of his country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Belgians get radical with revamped second tier format, addition of U23 teams and play-offs
March 2 – The Belgian second division will expand to 12 teams with the introduction of both four U-23 teams and a playoff system from next season, the Pro League has confirmed.
TFF plays Russian roulette with SuperLig TV rights as Digiturk questions their value
March 2 – The Turkish Football Federation are playing the ultimate game of brinkmanship over their domestic rights deal that could conceivably plummet from a high of $500 million from the last rights cycle, to just $100 million for the next.
UEFA Foundation releases €1m+ in emergency aid for Ukrainian children
March 2 – UEFA has released €1 million from its Foundation for Children to help children in Ukraine as well as child refugees in neighbouring countries.
ECA boots out its seven Russian club members
March 2 – The European Club Association (ECA) has kicked out its Russian members following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.