Messi to leave Barca after club unable to fund his wage demands
August 6 – After 21 years and a relationship of romance, thrill and exultation, Lionel Messi and FC Barcelona will part ways “because of financial and structural obstacles”.
World Football
UEFA brings in VAR for remainder of Qatar 2022 qualifiers
August 5 – UEFA is bringing in video assistant referees (VAR) for all remaining European Qualifier matches for the Qatar World Cup 2022.
Dominguez highlights Conmebol’s €1.3bn revenue return, saying there is more to come
August 5 – The South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) distributed $1.3 billion among its associations and clubs between 2016 and 2021, the organisation’s president Alejandro Dominguez claimed in a virtual meeting with his council.
Dutch bring Van Gaal back to manage tricky Qatar 2022 qualifying campaign
August 5 – Louis van Gaal is back. For a third time, the Dutchman will take charge of the Netherlands, succeeding Frank de Boer following Oranje’s disappointing campaign at Euro 2020.
Women’s Euro ticket sales top 140k a year before kick off
August 4 – UEFA is reporting more than 140,000 tickets have already been sold for the Women’s Euro 2022, a record for the tournament which takes place in England next summer.
England in front of UEFA disciplinary over fan violence at Euro 2020 final
August 4 – After a long wait, UEFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against the English FA over the appalling scenes that marred the Euro 2020 final at Wembley.
Cruzeiro drop non-profit status in bid to raise finance and return to top flight
August 4 – Cruzeiro has become the first major Brazilian club to abandon its non-profit entity status in favour of a company structure – ‘Sociedade Anônima’ – as the club moves to restructure its finances.
AFC Cup draw plots route through Covid challenges to October final
August 4 – The knockout draw for the AFC Cup 2021 took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia earlier today (Wednesday).
Dementia debate: balls should be sold with ‘heading health warning’ says researcher
August 3 – Debate over the possible link between repeated heading and suffering from dementia in later life has intensified with a leading researcher suggesting there should be an official health warning.
French clubs protest against Nancy and owner PMG’s flouting of transfer ban
August 3 – Eleven Ligue 2 clubs in France have denounced what they claim is unfair competition in terms of multi-ownership by the Pacific Media Group.
Barca, Real Madrid and Juve keep Super League agenda alive with help of Madrid court
By Andrew Warshaw
August 2 – Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid, the three rebel European Super League clubs who have refused to abandon the project, are celebrating winning what they claim is a potentially crucial legal battle with UEFA.
Terrorist bomb attack on Somali club bus kills 3 and wounds 6
By Paul Nicholson
August 1 – Barely two weeks after the celebration of a full Mogadishu Stadium for a top of the table league clash, Somali football was struck by tragedy on Friday after a terrorist attack on a team bus killed two players, the bus driver and wounded five others.
US men’s team back women in pay dispute
August 2 – The US men’s national team are once again backing their female counterparts in their dispute with the US Soccer Federation over equal pay.
Belarus told to play 2022 qualifiers in Russia
August 1 – Belarus have been ordered to play their home World Cup qualifying matches against both Belgium and Wales on neutral territory in Russia because of travel sanctions against the country.
Coronavirus: Rio lifts fan ban to 50% capacity for fully vaccinated
July 30 – Rio de Janeiro local authorities will allow fully vaccinated fans to attend live matches in September with stadium capacity limited to 50%.