Barca’s Faus calls for expanded CL and reduced home leagues
February 5 – Barcelona president Sandro Rosell may have departed but the club’s vice-president is continuing Rosell’s legacy of calling for changes to the structure of the game.
Europe
Yeung resigns from Birmingham City as money laundering trial continues
By Andrew Warshaw
February 5 – The unpredictable and often precarious nature of foreign ownership in club football has been starkly illustrated by Birmingham City owner Carson Yeung resigning as a director of both the club and its parent company Birmingham International Holdings Ltd (BIHL) as he awaits the verdict of a money laundering trial.
Hertha welcomes new US investor and €61m of ‘long-term’ cash
By David Owen
February 5 – Yet more US investment is flowing into European football, with the announcement that Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) has forged a strategic partnership with Hertha BSC of the German Bundesliga.
Rummenigge insists FFP must be enforced and points finger at PSG
By Andrew Warshaw
February 5 – Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who heads the European Club Association representing the interests of more than 200 clubs across the Continent, has urged UEFA to crack down on any big spenders who breach financial fair play regulations.
Skrill drops Football Conference title sponsorship
February 4 – The Football Conference, which organises the fifth and sixth tiers of English football across three divisions, is looking for a title sponsor following the decision by current sponsor Skrill, to finish its relationship with the league at the end of the year.
Less is more as CFR Cluj owner offers stake in Romanian club
By Jaroslaw Adamowski
February 3 – Arpad Paszkany (pictured), owner of CFR Cluj, has confirmed plans to find a new investor for the Romanian club which currently plays in Liga 1, the top tier of the country’s professional football league.
Philipp Lahm: Is Bayern’s maturing wunderkind Germany’s lethal weapon?
By Paul Nicholson
February 3 – Pep Guardiola’s biographer Daniel Martinez reckons that the Bayern coach sees Philipp Lahm as his most important player. And if Bayern retain the Champions League and Germany win the World Cup then the aging defender turned midfield general would be nailed-on for the next FIFA player of the year.
Germans gone soft? Beckenbauer questions current ‘will to win’
By Andrew Warshaw
February 3 – Mental strength has long been regarded as one of German football’s greatest qualities but Franz Beckenbauer, the country’s most revered footballing icon, believes it may have been lost.
French sex trial clears Ribery and Benzema of all charges
February 3 – French football stars Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema have been cleared on all charges in their underage sex trial in Paris. The prosecution had been tasked with proving they had illegally slept with a teenage prostitute – a crime which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
Football mourns the loss of Spanish history maker, Luis Aragones
February 3 – Tributes have poured in from around the world for Luis Aragones, the man who ended Spain’s 44-year wait for a major international trophy by winning Euro 2008.
Leeds turmoil as in-coming Cellino fires manager before deal completes
By Andrew Warshaw
February 3 – First he was the manager, then he wasn’t, then he was again: all within 24 hours. The mayhem surrounding the prospective Italian takeover of iconic English club Leeds United took several farcical twists over the weekend when Brian McDermott was re-instated by the club’s directors after seemingly being sacked.
Genoa derby switched to evening kick-off after fans protest
February 3 – The Genoa derby, one of the most passionate in Italian football, will take place tonight after its original lunchtime kick-off on Sunday was called off when fans threatened to boycott the game in protest of a switch from the traditional afternoon start to accommodate television schedules.
BT scores with market as Sky Sports viewing hits highest level for six years
By David Owen
January 31 – The market continues to applaud BT’s high-profile push into sports broadcasting, in spite of the impact its strategy is having on costs both in its retail division and at rival Premier League broadcaster British Sky Broadcasting.
BETFUZE launches crowdsourcing app for sports bets
By Paul Nicholson
January 31 – A new app using crowdsourced insights into betting patterns has been launched for iPads. BETFUZE, a London-based technology driven business, has developed the app as a tool for sports betting.
Leeds sale falls through with other buyers rumoured to be in the wings
January 31 – The management-led buyout of English Chamoionship club Leeds United has fallen apart with the incoming consortium Sport Capital, headed by Leeds managing director David Haigh, failing to conclude a deal to buy 75% of the club from Bahrain-based investment bank GFH Capital.