Abramovich allegedly dodged tax payments through superyacht scheme
January 30 – Former Chelsea supremo Roman Abramovich allegedly dodged paying millions in taxes to British authorities through an elaborate fictitious superyacht hiring scheme.
Europe
Man City, PSG avoid early exits from UEFA Champions League
January 30 – Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain secured vital victories on the final matchday of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League group phase to ensure qualification to the play-off round.
Municipality of Split begins €25million renovation of Poljud Stadium
January 30 – The Municipality of Split is preparing the process to reconstruct and renovate the Poljud Stadium, Croatia’s largest football venue with a capacity of 33,987 seats.
Barca in home hunt for El Clasico in May
January 30 – The El Clasico, between Real Madrid and Barcelona is widely considered to be the biggest club game in world football and is eagerly awaited every season. On May 11, the second La Liga instalment following Barca’s thrashing of Madrid 4-0 at Estadio Bernabeu, is scheduled to take place at the Camp Nou, however, the game is now in jeopardy of having no facility to play in.
Marseilles-Nice derby marred by racist banners and homophobic chanting
January 29 – The French league has condemned yet another incident of homophobic and sexist chanting and racist banners, this time by home fans during a top-flight match between Nice and visiting Marseille last weekend.
French football and rugby union ready to join forces to manage Stade de France
January 29 – The French Football Federation (FFF) and French Rugby Federation (FFR) are preparing to join forces to manage the Stade de France if negotiations with GL Events for the stadium’s operation collapse.
Israeli top tier game abandoned over security fears, and it wasn’t the Palestinians
January 29 – A top-flight Israeli game was abandoned at halftime for security reasons after fans threw flares at players and rushed onto the field.
UCL reaches winner-takes-all final round of league matches with 27 clubs still in the hunt
January 29 – Tonight the UEFA Champions League concludes its league phase with, for the first time, all 18 games being played on the same night and with the same kick-off time.
The new format has been a major success. 27 of the 36 teams still have something to for, whether it is getting into the top eight teams, or securing a place in the next 16 places for the knockout play-offs.
Greeks hail success of digital ticket system in combatting hooliganism
January 29 – Dimitris Papastergiou, Greece’s Minister of Digital Governance, has described the introduction of electronic tickets for football matches in the country as a huge success.
DFL to trial referee announcements in an attempt to boost transparency
January 28 – In a move aimed at boosting transparency and fan engagement, the Bundesliga and 2.Bundesliga will trial public referee announcements during Matchday 20.
Euro winner Luis de La Fuente extends Spain contract
January 28 – Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente has extended his contract until 2028 after leading the team to last year’s European Championship title.
Belgium’s Radja Nainggolan arrested as part of cocaine trafficking investigation
January 28 – Serie A champion, and former Belgian international, Radja Nainggolan has been arrested as part of an investigation into cocaine trafficking into Europe from South America.
Rudi Garcia tasked with returning Belgian pride and winning teams
January 27 – Frenchman Rudi Garcia (pictured) has been named the new manager of Belgium following the dismissal of Domenico Tedesco. His contract runs through until the 2026 World Cup.
Julian Nagelsmann to stay with German national team through to 2028 Euros
January 27 – Julian Nagelsmann has renewed his contract as head coach of the German national team for an extra two years beyond the 2028 European Championships.
UEFA’s shows zero tolerance of Serbia’s bad boys anti-Kosovan behaviour
January 27 – The Serbian FA has lost its appeal to UEFA over sanctions totalling €119,000 fine for fan misconduct during their Nations League match against Switzerland last November. Serbia’s appeal, challenging the original decision handed down in December, was rejected by the confederation’s Appeal Body on Friday, confirming the full extent of the penalties.