August 3 – FIFA has launched a campaign focusing on “raising awareness of the symptoms of mental conditions”. The #ReachOut campaign, supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), aims to encourage individuals in football to seek help when they need it.
July 30 – A Swiss court has rejected FIFA’s bid to revive a criminal probe against former president Sepp Blatter over a 2005 deal with the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) to sell World Cup broadcasting rights.
July 29 –Conmebol wants to introduce time-outs for VAR checks in a bid to protect playing time as well as allow teams to request reviews of refereeing decisions.
July 27 – World federation FIFA has awarded the 2022 World Cup and 2023 Women’s World Cup TV rights to New World TV in French-speaking Sub-Saharan Africa.
July 26 – Yet another Haitian official has been kicked out by FIFA after being found guilty of sexual abuse.
July 20 – Three Russian footballers have been suspended by FIFA’s disciplinary committee for breaching anti-doping regulations.
July 19 – Africa has given its backing to staging the World Cup every two years – in direct opposition to Europe’s standpoint.
July 19 – American-owned Serie A club Spezia Calcio say they will appeal against a two-year transfer ban imposed by FIFA based on the previous owners breaking transfer rules by recruiting young players from Africa.
July 6 – Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has repeated his call for the World Cup to be played every two years as part of a complete overhaul of the international calendar.
June 25 – FIFA’s latest ranking of Women’s national teams sees the US still top and extending their lead, but France have moved into the top three ranking positions, jumping ahead of the Netherlands. Germany are second.
June 24 – Constant Omari, for years one of African football’s most influential as well as controversial figures, has been suspended by FIFA for a year for breaking its ethics code.
June 22 – South Sudan were forced to withdraw from their Arab Cup qualifier against Jordan due to a number positive Covid-19 tests. FIFA awarded a 3-0 win to Jordan, who will participate in the regional tournament which will serve as a test for World Cup hosts Qatar at the end of the year.
June 22 – FIFA president Gianni Infantino has met with Russian president Vladimir Putin to discuss the legacy of the 2018 World Cup as well as preparations for the global finals in Qatar next year.
June 20 – World federation FIFA have sanctioned the Mexico football federation (FMF) for the ‘puta’ homophobic chants from supporters during Olympic qualifying matches for the men’s team. As a punishment, Mexicans fans will be banned from El Tri’s first two World Cup qualifiers.
