By Andrew Warshaw
March 29 – The war of words between FIFA President Sepp Blatter and his main challenger Mohamed Bin Hammam has started with a vengeance ahead of the election, with the Qatari claiming Blatter is personally responsible for the unpopularity of the world governing body.
By David Gold
March 28 – American businessman Thomas DiBenedetto, a partner in the group which owns both the Boston Red Sox and Premiership giants Liverpool, is in Italy leading a group aiming to buy 67 per cent of Serie A outfit Roma.
By Duncan Mackay
March 25 – Jack Warner, who is set to play a key role in shaping who leads FIFA, will be re-elected as CONCACAF President without a challenger in the North and Central American and Caribbean region.
By David Gold
March 27 – Brazil’s Sports Minister Orlando Silva responded to FIFA President Sepp Blatter’s criticism of the country’s preparations for the 2014 World Cup by reassuring him that they were making good progress and that he was confident everything would be ready in time for the showpiece tournament.
By David Gold
March 27 – Rome’s Court of Appeal has reduced former Juventus general manager Luciano Moggi’s jail term to a year.
March 26 – Indonesia edged closer to facing FIFA sanctions when a scheduled assembly to organise the association’s first leadership election in four years descended into chaos and was cancelled.
March 25 – Brazil Sports Minister Orlando Silva is seeking help from the country’s Congress to simplify bidding processes and speed-up work ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympics and Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.
By David Gold
March 24 – Bulgaria and Romania have confirmed their intention to apply to jointly host the 2020 European Championships.
By David Gold
March 24 – La Liga games on the weekend of April 2/3 could be postponed if the Spanish professional soccer league (LPF) fails to resolve its dispute with the Government over a ruling that a La Liga game per matchday must be shown on free to air television.
By Andrew Warshaw in Paris
March 23 – Britain’s new FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce says there is still time to persuade the four national Home Associations to provide players for a unified team at the 2012 London Olympics.
By David Gold
March 23 – Carlos Queiroz’s appeal against six month ban from all football and sporting activities has been successful, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced.
By David Gold
March 23 – The Football Supporters’ Federation today launched their petition to give supporters the choice to watch football games from a safe standing area at stadiums in England and Wales.
By David Gold
March 22 – Ian Watmore, the former chief executive of the Football Association, has criticised the organisation and called for it to be restructured under the guidance of an independent board.
By David Gold
March 22 – Alisher Usmanov has increased his stake in Arsenal to over 27 per cent to raise the possibility that his company Red & White Holdings Limited may make a move to buy the Premier League club outright.
By Andrew Warshaw in Paris
March 22 – Michel Platini began his second term in charge of UEFA today by launching a savage attack on the re-emergence of football hooliganism, saying he was “sick” of what was going on some parts of the continent.