Ukraine’s Euro 2012 organisation in doubt
Due to the ongoing economic crisis, Ukraine is having difficulty financing the infrastructure needed to co-host Euro 2012 with Poland. According to UEFA's alternative plan, some matches may take place...
View ArticleFootball World Cup offers homeless second chance in life
The Homeless World Cup 2009, an international street soccer event for homeless people around the globe, is underway in the city of Milan, providing players from 48 nations with a unique chance to...
View ArticleCan football fever beat malaria in Africa?
The 'United Against Malaria' campaign hopes to use the excitement of preparations for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa to help the continent win the fight against malaria, a preventable disease...
View ArticlePoland, Ukraine given thumbs-up for Euro 2012 progress
Poland and Ukraine still have minor problems to solve but are otherwise making good progress as they prepare to host Euro 2012, UEFA President Michel Platini said last weekend.
View ArticleFootball clubs to be compensated for losing young players
European football clubs who train young players only to see them sign their first professional contract with another EU team can now claim compensation for the loss, European judges ruled yesterday (16...
View ArticleEuro 2012 cup could spur Ukraine’s EU application
The successful preparation of Euro 2012 will be a moral application for Ukrainian EU membership, the country'se deputy foreign affairs minister, Konstantin Yelisieiev, told EurActiv in an exclusive...
View ArticleWorld Cup victory ‘may offset recession in Spain’
While the International Monetary Fund has predicted a 0.4% decrease in the Spanish economy this year, economists note that the euphoria generated by Spain winning the FIFA World Cup for the first time...
View ArticleTripartite Bosnian representation exasperates FIFA and UEFA
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) could be excluded from playing international football. In football as in politics, the country is represented by its three ethnic entities, but international football...
View ArticleRussia scoops Europe’s 2018 World Cup
FIFA awarded the 2018 World Cup finals to Russia yesterday (2 December), shattering the hopes of a bemused England and rejecting joint bids from Spain/Portugal and Belgium/The Netherlands.
View ArticleCommission mulls cap on football transfer fees
EU Sport Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou has described as "incredible" some of the recent multimillion euro transfer fees paid for professional football players. In an interview with EurActiv, she...
View ArticleRe-elected Platini pledges to control football spending
UEFA President Michel Platini this week (22 March) pledged to continue his efforts to keep a lid on club spending and combat match-fixing and crowd violence following his re-election as president of...
View ArticleUkraine rejects accusation of racism in stadiums
A Ukrainian diplomat yesterday (5 June) slammed a BBC documentary depicting the presence of racism and hatred at stadiums in his country. The documentary was released just days before Friday's start of...
View ArticleEuro 2012: Five lessons learned in Ukraine
The Euro 2012 became a genuine festival of people-to-people contacts and cultural exchange in a wider United Europe by taking place in "undiscovered territory" - Ukraine, Kostiantyn Yelisieiev say in...
View ArticleParliament mulls EU laws to fight organised crime in sport
Plans for an EU-wide legal approach to match-fixing and money laundering in sport are under way, with the European Parliament committee on mafia and organised crime holding a debate on the issue...
View ArticleAnti-slavery group calls for boycott of 2022 Qatar World Cup
EXCLUSIVE / A call has gone out for the international community to shun the 2022 World Cup in Qatar unless it reforms its indentured labour practices on the Unesco International Day for Remembrance of...
View ArticleBrussels to investigate Barça, Real over illegal state aid
The European Commission will begin disciplinary action against seven Spanish clubs including Real Madrid and Barcelona over possible illegal state aid, Spanish foreign minister Jose Manuel Garcia...
View ArticleBrussels will investigate Barça, Real Madrid over illegal state aid
The European Commission will begin disciplinary action against seven Spanish clubs including Real Madrid and Barcelona over possible illegal state aid, EU Commissioner for Competition Joaquin Almunia...
View ArticleCommission to reject challenge to ‘financial fair play’ rules
The European Commission plans to reject a complaint filed against UEFA's new rules punishing soccer clubs which run up big financial losses, a source close to the process said yesterday (20 May).
View ArticleAlmunia counter-attacks in high-profile Spanish football tax case
Joaquín Almunia, the Spanish Commissioner in charge of policing the EU's antitrust rules, has denied accusations of a conflict of interest in the handling of an investigation into unfair tax breaks...
View ArticleGermany bumped up to ‘best nation’, exceeding US in global ranking
First world champion in football, now best image: in a global comparison, Germany was bumped to best nation status – not least because of its top performance in sports – while Russia suffered the...
View Article