London, United Kingdom | AFP | Gary Neville fears Premier League players’ lives will be put at risk if football is rushed back too soon after the coronavirus-enforced lockdown in Britain. Premier League chiefs are aiming for a return to action in June and several clubs opened their training grounds …
Read More »FIFA’s Infantino suspected of intervening to stop probe: report
Lausanne, Switzerland | AFP | FIFA president Gianni Infantino is suspected of having intervened with Switzerland’s attorney general to try to get an investigation dropped, a Swiss newspaper alleged on Monday. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) launched an investigation in early 2016, shortly after Infantino was elected president of world football’s governing body, …
Read More »FUFA to receive sh2billion virus relief fund
FIFA to give members $150m to support overcome COVID-19 effects Lausanne, Switzerland | AFP | FIFA will release $500,000 (Ush 2billion) to each national football governing body to help handle financial troubles caused by the coronavirus, the global body said on Friday. FIFA will release a total $150 million (139 million euros) …
Read More »A month into lockdown, football forced to play waiting game
Paris, France | AFP | A month has now passed since the last football matches were played before packed stadiums in Europe, and the havoc wrought by the coronavirus pandemic means that nobody can say with any certainty when the sport might return. A crowd of 50,000 filled Ibrox Stadium in …
Read More »‘No match worth risking a life’, says FIFA boss Infantino
Zurich, Switzerland | AFP | FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Friday said that “no match” is worth “risking a single human life” and that world football’s governing body would be able to help financially national federations during the coronavirus pandemic. The majority of top football leagues and international competitions have been suspended due to the …
Read More »FIFA urges clubs and players to reach agreement over wages: sources
Lausanne, Switzerland | AFP | FIFA on Monday urged clubs and players to reach agreement on wage reductions to protect clubs suffering financial damage due to the coronavirus crisis, sources said. The call from world football’s governing body comes as Premier League clubs are locked in talks with players and their …
Read More »Russia denies bribing FIFA officials to host 2018 World Cup
Moscow, Russia | AFP | The Kremlin on Tuesday “categorically” denied allegations that Russia had bribed FIFA officials for the right to host the 2018 World Cup. “Russia absolutely legally got the right to organise the World Cup,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. He said the decision was “not linked to any bribes, we …
Read More »All international football should be postponed, says FIFA
Paris, France | AFP | FIFA on Friday recommended that all international football matches scheduled for March and April be postponed due to the spread of the new coronavirus. Falling short of banning matches outright, world football’s governing body said that clubs would be allowed to refuse to send their …
Read More »Messing up African football
Why FIFA’s reform proposals are neo-colonial | CHUKA ONWEMECHILI | FIFA has ended its 6-month management takeover of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). But the future of the game on the continent is still clouded with uncertainty. In June last year the world football governing body effectively took over …
Read More »FIFA Secretary General urges Uganda to fast track new Sports Law
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Secretary General of the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), Fatma Samoura urged Parliament of Uganda to fast track amendments to the Sports Law. Samoura made the statement when she paid a courtesy call to the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga on Monday …
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