By Paul Nicholson
June 23 – Javier Tebas was his typical forthright self at a media event today where he covered multiple topics from the failed European Super League to next year’s LaLiga attendance expectations, the importance of LaLiga’s right to govern itself, and the relative importance, or unimportance, of Lionel Messi to Spain.
June 23 – Crowd capacity at Wembley will be raised to more than 60,000 for the semi-finals and final of Euro 2020, the largest attendance at any sporting event in the country for 15 months.
June 22 – The mayor of Munich has described as “shameful” a ruling by UEFA to ban his city’s plans to illuminate the Allianz Arena in rainbow colours in support of LGBTQ+ rights for tonight’s Germany-Hungary Euro 2020 clash.
June 23 – Former Lille owner Gerard Lopez has stepped forward to save plagued Girondins de Bordeaux from going bust after an agreement was reached according to the Ligue 1 club for an undisclosed sum.
June 23 – The AFC is to hold the draw for its expanded Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 Qualifiers tomorrow. There will also be a draw for the play-off match-ups for the final two spots in the closing qualifying for the men’s Asian Cup China 2023.
June 23– Having secured rights for UEFA’s prime club competitions across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in a $600 million deal earlier this month,beIN Media Group has expanded its partnership with UEFA by securing rights to seven further countries in Asia.
June 23 – Aston Villa have landed China-based online betting firm OB Sports as their new sleeve sponsor for the 2021/22 season.
June 23 – Nike lead Adidas 9-8 in the Euro 2020 battle of the kit suppliers though Adidas take pride of place when it comes to the biggest deal, spending €85.2 million on their German partnership, compared to Nike’s biggest deal being the €60.8 million they spend with England.
June 22 – South Sudan were forced to withdraw from their Arab Cup qualifier against Jordan due to a number positive Covid-19 tests. FIFA awarded a 3-0 win to Jordan, who will participate in the regional tournament which will serve as a test for World Cup hosts Qatar at the end of the year.
June 22 – FIFA president Gianni Infantino has met with Russian president Vladimir Putin to discuss the legacy of the 2018 World Cup as well as preparations for the global finals in Qatar next year.
June 22 – LaLiga has reported total income of €5.045 billion for the 2019-20 season, a 3.6% increase on the 2018-19 despite the impact of the start of the covid pandemic. It is the only one of Europe’s Big 5 leagues of Spain, Italy, England, France and Germany to report income growth.
By Andrew Warshaw
June 22 – In the land of Hans Christian Andersen, a modern fairytale has been written to warm the hearts of football fans worldwide.
June 22 – Covid-19 has struck at the heart of the England and Scotland squads ahead of tonight’s Euro 2020 Group D finale, ruling out three players including Scotland’s key midfielder Billy Gilmour who will miss his country’s must-win game against Croatia just when they need him most.
June 22 – Former Nigeria coach Samson Siasia’s life ban for bribery related to match-fixing has been reduced to five years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) which argued he did not profit from his misdemeanor.
By Samindra Kunti in Saint Petersburg
June 22 – Even at a walking pace, Belgium were a superior team. Roberto Martinez’s team won group B following a routine 2-0 victory over Finland to confirm their presence in the knockout phase of Euro 2020.