By Andrew Warshaw
November 9 – The English Football Association has written to FIFA demanding answers to “important questions”, following Sepp Blatter’s revelation that a pre-arranged pact was made to hand the 2018 World Cup to Russia before the vote.
We may be heading towards a tipping-point in the globalisation of football. Actually, that is not quite exact: we may be heading towards a tipping-point in the Europeanisation of world football culture. What I have in mind is the point when the big European leagues – Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Serie A – start to earn more from international rights to broadcast their matches than domestic rights.
November 8 – Suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter has been ordered to rest because of stress as he awaits the outcome of an ethics investigation into alleged financial misconduct.
November 8 – One of Europe’s most famous derbies was played out in front of thousands of empty seats on Sunday as fans of both Roma and Lazio boycotted the game in protest over increased security measures at the Olympic Stadium.
By David Owen
November 8 – The President of three-times European Cup winners Internazionale has been elected chairman of the Indonesian Olympic Committee.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 8 – Secret documentation obtained by Insideworldfootball appears to contradict the assertion of a senior German 2006 World Cup official that no financial inducements were paid to land the tournament.
By Paul Nicholson
November 8 – Two Bahraini footballers at the centre of the human rights abuse allegations against FIFA presidential candidate Sheikh Salman have come forward saying there was “absolutely” no torture and that they have no knowledge of him being involved in action against protest marchers in 2011.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 6 – The leader of Palestinian football has accused Saudi Arabia of playing politics and pulling rank after his country was ordered to play a vital forthcoming World Cup qualifier on neutral ground instead of on home soil.
By Tom Parsons
November 6 – Manchester City have unveiled their first ever annual Christmas photo which stars first team players such as Joe Hart and Jesus Navas as well as former Manchester City player and local legend Mike Summerbee.
By Mark Baber
November 6 – The Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) has officially launched the 2016 edition of the COSAFA Cup with the announcement that Castle Lager will return as title sponsor of the tournament for the next five years.
By Tom Parsons
November 6 – Tottenham Hotspur have extended their global reach through Spurs TV broadcast deals which will now see them have their content available to over 300 million people worldwide.
November 6 – Leading FIFA sponsors Adidas have broken their silence over the ongoing corruption scandal by insisting the crisis has not adversely affected its brand.
November 6 – Real Madrid’s French international striker Karim Benzema has been placed under formal investigation in connection with a sex tape blackmail plot according to French reports – but his club are standing by him.
November 6 – Former FIFA vice president Eugenio Figueredo, one of the infamous ‘Zurich Seven’, is hoping to avoid being extradited to the United States by co-operating instead with a separate investigation in his native Uruguay.
By Andrew Warshaw
Nvember 5 – Critics of Sepp Blatter have long been calling for his head and while he has certainly been feeling the heat, residents in a small south of England town have taken the burning issue of his alleged role in FIFA’s unprecedented corruption scandal to somewhat incendiary lengths.