September 22 – The newly appointed head coach of the England women’s team, Sarina Wiegman, is the latest high-profile figure to publicly oppose plans to make the World Cup a biennial event.
September 21 – Swiss judicial authorities have reportedly declined to lift the immunity granted to former special prosecutor Stefan Keller, meaning he himself cannot be prosecuted for allegedly revealing confidential information about an investigation linked to FIFA.
September 20 – Europe’s umbrella coaches association AEFCA (Alliance of European Football Coaches’ Associations) has become the latest football stakeholder to condemn FIFA’s proposal to move the men’s World Cup to a biennial cycle.
September 20 – Despite FIFA insisting it has majority support for its controversial idea of a World Cup every two years, the German and Portuguese federations are the latest bodies to condemn the concept.
September 20 – FIFA has begun the next phase of its consultation around the international match calendar, inviting members associations, confederations and other stakeholders to discuss controversial plans for the introduction of a biennial World Cup.
September 17 – Following the results of a fan survey FIFA says a majority of supporters back the world federation’s much-criticised plans to introduce a biennial World Cup, but on closer scrutiny that majority is rather a thin claim to stake.
September 17 – The war of words between FIFA and UEFA over the growing possibility of staging the World Cup every two years has taken a significant twist with UEFA boss Aleksander Ceferin demanding a face-to-face summit with his FIFA counterpart Gianni Infantino.
September 16 – Belgium remain top of the FIFA world ranking with Brazil a close second and England a newcomer on the podium, moving into third, following matches played in September’s international window.
September 15 – Players’ union FIFPRO has again said that any change to the international match calendar – and principally the introduction of a biennial World Cup – must put players and their workload at the centre of any decision-making.
September 15 – Ricardo Teixeira’s life ban from football has been upheld after the Court of Arbitration (CAS) dismissed his attempt to overturn it on appeal.
September 15 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has declared itself open-minded over the proposal of a biennial World Cup, seeking to support the “best interests of football”.
September 14 – South Africa has expressed interest in hosting the Club World Cup after Japan relinquished the hosting rights because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
September 24 – Concacaf has said that it “recognises the merits” of FIFA’s plan to create a new international match calendar – which would include a biennial World Cup – and that it will look at the proposals with an “open mind” and “positive engagement”.
September 14 – Caribbean Football Union (CFU) President Randy Harris has backed FIFA’s plans for a biennial World Cup, arguing that it would offer more “high-quality playing opportunities” for his member associations.
By Samindra Kunti
September 13 – South American confederation Conmebol has come out against plans for a biennial World Cup, joining UEFA as a critic and powerful opponent of FIFA’s dramatic proposal to overhaul the international match calendar.