Swedish clubs reject introduction of VAR into top-tier league
April 26 – Sweden is set to reject the introduction and implementation of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) after elite clubs voiced their opposition to the technology.
Federations
English FA drafts in Sue Day from rugby union as new director of football
April 25 – The English Football Association has announced the appointment of Sue Day as its new director of women’s football.
Welsh FA launches major overhaul of its top tier league with expansion on and off the pitch
April 24 – The Welsh FA (FAW) has launched a six-year strategy through to 2030 for the overhaul of the top tier of its men’s league, the JD Cymru Premier League, to make it more competitive on and off the field, and boost its commercial positioning as it reformats both the league and its calendar.
Belgian top tier clubs all pass club licensing criteria but second tier teams have difficulties
April 23 – All Belgian top flight clubs have been issued a license for the 2024-25 season by the Belgian FA (RBFA) but in the second division KV Oostende, Patro Eisden and Francs Borains all failed to be meet the licensing criteria.
Czech’s hand former national team coach Petr Rada three-month ban for racism
April 23 – Former Czech national team coach Petr Rada has been handed a three-month ban and fined by his federation for a racist slur against a rival.
Inter Milan secure Serie A title with ‘away’ win over AC Milan at San Siro
April 23 – Inter Milan have won their 20th Serie A title after a heated 2-1 win at arch-rivals AC Milan gave Simone Inzaghi’s side an unassailable lead in the standings with five matches remaining.
With demolition of CSKA’s stadium a month ahead of schedule, attention turns to new build
April 23 – The BGN 1 million (€500 000) demolition of the CSKA Sofia Bulgarian Army stadium has begun and is expected to be completed within two months – a month earlier than planned – making way for a new BGN 90 million (€45 million) stadium and events centre.
Man Utd controversially squeeze past Coventry to set up FA Cup final against Man City
April 22 – It was seconds away from being one of the most memorable FA Cup stories in the competition’s long history – if not the most. Then a combination of a highly contentious VAR call and a penalty shootout snatched it all away.
On a fiery night in Rotterdam, 10-man Feyenoord beat NEC to win Dutch Cup
April 22 – Ten-man Feyenoord defeated NEC 1-0 to win the Dutch Cup for the 14th time in a match that was halted twice because of flares at their stadium De Kuip.
The New Saints join the roster of Europe’s ‘invincibles’ as they hunt Welsh treble
April 22 – The New Saints, the 16-time JD Cymru Premier champions, have joined an elite group of clubs in world football after completing an unbeaten league season for the first time.
Bulgarian FA puts the boot into cyberbullies in fight against hate speech
April 22 – The Bulgarian Football Union (BFU) has joined the UEFA campaign to combat social media bullying with the federations leading players 2023 – Kiril Despodov and Evdokia Popadinova, as well as junior national players Chung Nguyen Do and Steven Gerard Jean Yves Gaote – leading the campaign.
With big clubs lurking, Germany sign up Nagelsmann through to 2026 World Cup
April 19 – Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann has extended his contract until the 2026 World Cup, the German Football Association (DFB) said on Friday.
RFEF plunged back into crisis as president-in-waiting Rocha becomes suspect in bribery case
April 18 – Interim Spanish FA (RFEF) president Pedro Rocha says he has no intention of resigning despite an investigation being opened into his alleged role in an ongoing bribery scandal.
FA Cup replays scrapped as part of calendar overhaul for English top-tier
April 18 – FA Cup replays will be scrapped from the first round onwards in the 2024-25 competition, as part of a series of changes made by a new six-year agreement between the Football Association (FA) and the Premier League.
‘Positive’ De Rossi given another year at Roma after Mourinho’s negative exit
April 18 – Daniele De Rossi will continue as AS Roma’s manager for next season and the “foreseeable future”, his contract extended after just three months in the job.