By Andrew Warshaw
December 11 – FIFA’s highly controversial decision to purge its senior governance officials last May with the backing of Gianni Infantino has been seriously called into question in a scathing attack by the Council of Europe.
December 7 – It has been a slow burn but ticket sales have suddenly ignited for the Russia 2018 World Cup following the Final Draw last Friday. 1,318,109 tickets were requested in the first 24 hours from when the sales window opened December 6.
December 7 – Australian football has won a stay of execution after FIFA decided not to take over the running of the sport in the midst of an internal power struggle.
By David Owen
December 7 – It may come as a bit of a kick in the teeth to Russia’s sparkling wine industry, but Taittinger has just launched a limited-edition 2018 World Cup souvenir bottle of its highly-regarded Brut Réserve NV champagne.
By Paul Nicholson
December 6 – The iron fist of democracy with which Musa Bility rules the Liberian FA (LFA) has once again landed on his arch critic Rochell Woodson who has been suspended for a second time by the LFA from fulfilling her duties as an executive committee member.
December 6 – Unlikely as it may seem, FIFA are reportedly considering the option of pushing back Qatar’s staging of the World Cup to 2026 because of the current impasse in the area – and splitting 2022 between the United States, Canada and Mexico who are bidding for the later tournament.
December 5 – After considerable reflection Sunil Gulati has ruled himself out of contesting the presidential election for the US Soccer Federation (USSF). Gulati is standing aside after the United States’ abject failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup and having been head of the USSF for 12 years.
By David Owen
December 5 – Clubs which supply squad members for next year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia can look forward to massively increased payments of around $8,530 per player per day, in recognition of their “contribution to the successful staging” of the tournament.
December 4 – The conduct of Zimbabwean football boss Philip Chiyangwa (pictured), an ally of FIFA president Gianni Infantino, has been called into question in his own country amid allegations of corruption.
December 1 – If they weren’t before, they are now. The gloves are officially off in the race for the hosting of the 2026 World Cup. USA, Mexico and Canada submitted their 2026 World Cup bid, as did Morocco, before the November 30 deadline.
December 1 – French police have questioned former FIFA vice-president Reynald Temarii (pictured) in their investigation into suspected corruption in connection with the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bid process.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 29 – Football’s lawmakers look set to have be rushed into a decision over whether to allow video technology to be used at next year’s World Cup – one of the most important rule change considerations of recent years.
November 29 – Referees will have the power to stop matches if there are any obvious signs of racism by fans at next year’s World Cup, according to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
November 29 – FIFA has reported that 742,760 tickets have been allocated in the first phase of Russia 2018 ticketing. Russians account for 53% of the ticket demand to date.
November 28 -Fresh revelations at the FifaGate scandal trial in New York have heaped more unwanted publicity on 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar with the former president of Colombia’s federation testifying that a sports marketing executive told him that up to $15 million in bribe money was potentially available for South American officials to back Qatar’s bid.