By Chloé A. Añón Pasleau
April 15 – “It was always difficult to imagine that UEFA would allow a team that they have punished to reach the final,” said Málaga’s manager Manuel Pellegrini in his post-match press conference after Málaga´s controversial 3-2 Champions League quarter-final defeat to Borussia Dortmund.
By Paul Nicholson
April 14 – FIFA’s chief investigator Michael Garcia has been declared persona non grata and put on a ‘black list’ by the Russian government. He is one of 18 US citizens on the list who will be denied any entry to Russia.Garcia, who is central to the FIFA investigations into allegations of corruption, has yet to report any findings but is known to be looking into the ISL case and the 2022 Qatar World Cup award.
By Gareth Messenger
April 12 – The chief executive of La Liga, Francisco Roca, believes clubs in Spain will agree to sell their television rights colectively within the next three years as they look to slim down the gap in commercial sales revenues between their clubs, and also in comparison with international competition like the Premier League and the sales-revamped Bundesliga.
By Paul Nicholson
April 12 – The first TV deal by CAA Eleven, the newly formed rights company representing UEFA’s national federations for their World Cup and European Championship qualifiers has been announced with the European Broadcast Union (EBU).
By Andrew Warshaw
April 12 – The English Premier League’s decision to introduce goalline technology in time for next season has been lauded by most of football’s participants, not least the fans.
By Mark Baber
April 12 – Football contributed a massive £330 million in gross value added (GVA) to Greater Manchester’s economy in 2010-11, with the global profile that Manchester receives from football worth an additional £100m a year on an advertising-equivalency basis, according to a new report just published.
By Mark Baber
April 12 – Current Africa Cup of Nations champions Nigeria have announced they are to withdraw their national team from the 2014 African Nations Championship qualifiers due to the poor state of its finances.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent
April 12 – Claims that UEFA are deliberately stalling FIFA’s reform process, designed to make football’s corridors of power more transparent and accountable, have been dismissed by UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino. FIFA advisors have laid the blame for many of the original reform proposals being blocked squarely at the feet of UEFA, not least integrity checks for senior officials.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 12 – Brazil’s iconic Maracana stadium, plagued by setbacks since the start of reconstruction work, will stage its first test game on April 27 between teams representing two of Brazil’s greatest players – Ronaldo and Bebeto – and featuring some of the workers who helped rebuild the famous venue.
By David Owen
April 12 – FIFA’s player insurance scheme has cranked into action, with payments totalling $18.4 million made to around 20 clubs in the latter part of 2012. The Club Protection Programme (CPP) is designed to compensate clubs when their players are injured on international duty.
By Tom Parsons
April 11 – In a first for any football league globally, the English Premier League has voted to bring in goal line technology from next season, choosing British-based firm Hawk-Eye to provide the science. Hawk-Eye beat three other potential suitors, including German firm GoalControl, to the contract, announced by the Premier League this afternoon.
By Tom Parsons
April 11- Wembley plays host to this weekend’s FA Cup semi-finals with football’s first social media pen opening at the historic venue at the same time.
By Mark Baber and Andrew Warshaw
April 11 – The Russian Duma has passed a new bill banning violent and abusive fans from stadiums with 226 votes for and just one abstention. The bill will now go to the Federation Council, before being signed off by President Vladimir Putin.
By Andrew Warshaw, chief correspondent, in Manchester
April 11 – Russian football may have been blighted by hooliganism, racism and other misdemeanours on and off the field, but the whole image of the country will have changed by the time the World Cup takes place, said Alexander Djordjadze, deputy CEO of Russia’s World Cup organising committee, speaking at the Soccerex conference in Manchester today.
By Mark Baber
April 11 – Libya’s minister for Youths and Sports, Abdussalam Guaila has confirmed that Libya is planning to build a 60,000 capacity stadium in Tajoura, Tripoli and a 23,000 seater in Misrata for the 2017 African Cup of Nations.