Just Eat agrees renews UEFA sponsorship for new 3-year cycle
February 12 – UEFA has announced that long-term partners Just Eat have renewed their sponsorship of the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League until 2027.
World Football
German fans protest plans to sell off ‘ownership’ stakes to private equity
February 12 – Fans groups in Germany stepped up their protests at the weekend against the league’s plans to sell a stake of revenue to an outside investor.
UEFA and Adidas get Champions League final ball rolling
February 12 – UEFA and Adidas have unveiled the design for the 2023/24 Champions League final match ball.
UEFA says there is no appetite to ban Israel from competition
February 9 – UEFA has no intention of throwing Israel out of international competition despite the ongoing conflict in Gaza that has killed an estimated 25,000 people – almost half of them reportedly children – and left thousands more homeless.
UEFA doubles women’s exco slots, Ceferin suggests media should look at their own gender bias
By Andrew Warshaw
February 9 – Aleksander Ceferin’s surprise announcement not to stand for re-election for the UEFA presidency in 2027 overshadowed other key business on the agenda of UEFA’s Congress in Paris.
Denmark and Sweden drop neighbours to combine for 2029 Women’s Euro bid
February 2 – Nordic neighbours Denmark and Sweden have declared their intention to bid for the 2029 Women’s Euro, leaving their regional partner Norway out in the cold.
England adapt to life in second tier of Nations League, Scots look to future in top flight
February 9 – England were drawn with the Republic of Ireland in Group B2 of the Nations League with Finland and Greece completing the group. Elsewhere, Italy and France meet in League A.
Messi and Suarez get on the pitch in Japan, further infuriating Hong Kong and questioning the Miami business case
February 9 – After a sensational opening to the Lionel Messi American dream, which soured as 2023 came to a close, the beginning of 2024 has brought forth even more challenges, underscoring the precariousness for both the league and Inter Miami as they pin their performance hopes and business ambition on the Argentinian superstar.
With term limits clarified, Ceferin drops bombshell that he won’t run again in 2027
By Andrew Warshaw in Paris
February 8 – In a dramatic move that took most of his supporters as well as his critics totally by surprise, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin announced today that he would be stepping down in 2027, ending months of speculation about his intentions.
Ceferin says ESL backers are predators, not victims, and can’t be allowed ‘to dig football’s grave’
By Andrew Warshaw in Paris
February 8 – The threat of a revived European Super League and tackling the resurgence of racism – two of the main pressing issues across the European football landscape – dominated UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin’s address to delegates at the UEFA Congress today.
French sports minister warns UEFA federations of dangers of multi-club ownership
February 8 – French sports minister Amélie Oudea-Castéra gave her backing today to maintaining the status quo in European football, taking a veiled swipe at the idea of a European Super League and, more potently, warning of the dangers of multiple club ownership.
UEFA earmarks €2.46bn for Champions League clubs next season
February 8 – UEFA will hand out least €2.46 billion in prize money to clubs playing in the Champions League next season when the tournament is expanded to 36 teams under its new format.
New look US drop Morgan, emphasise youth, in squad for W Gold Cup
February 8 – Alex Morgan has been dropped from the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) squad for the upcoming 2024 W Gold Cup as interim manager Twila Kilgore opts for a younger roster.
Congo players protest for peace ahead of AFCON semi-final
February 8 – Congo’s players and coach Sébastien Desabre called for peace in a protest before their team’s Africa Cup of Nations semi-final against host nation Nigeria to highlight the armed violence taking place in the eastern region of the DRC.
Guinea Bissau’s Baciro Cande is latest AFCON managerial casualty
February 8 – In the latest managerial change in African football, Baciro Cande (pictured) will no longer serve as manager of Guinea Bissau. The country’s football federation confirmed on Wednesday that his contract will not be renewed.