Graham Potter’s time as Chelsea manager left more questions than answers April 3, 2023 And so Graham Potter joins the graveyard of former Chelsea managers. At the current rate, it will soon be rivalling Brompton Cemetery, next to Stamford Bridge, for inhabitants. His main legacy: bringing the term “glow-up” to a wider audience. As for his epitaph, it’s unlikely to be complimentary. To some, the former Brighton, Swansea and [...]
Ex England cricket captain Michael Vaughan ‘cleared’ of using racist language in Azeem Rafiq row March 31, 2023 Michael Vaughan has said that an England and Wales Cricket Board charge of using racist and/or discriminatory language against him has been dismissed. The former England captain was alleged to have used the term “you lot” towards a group of four Yorkshire players of Asian ethnicity prior to a T20 match in June 2009, including Azeem Rafiq [...]
Premier League to ban potential owners on human rights grounds March 30, 2023 The Premier League has announced tougher rules for anyone looking to buy one of its clubs, including incorporating human rights in its new owner’s and directors’ test (OADT). English top-flight clubs unanimously approved the changes, which will take effect immediately, at a shareholders’ meeting today. Potential owners could now be banned from purchasing clubs if [...]
How Premier League clubs may have avoided paying £250m in tax March 30, 2023 Premier League clubs may have avoided paying up to £250m in tax, experts have warned. The Tax Policy Associates say that the 20 top flight clubs could have cost a quarter of a billion in lost tax between 2019 and 2021, and £470m since 2015. The group says in their report that: “Football clubs at [...]
Manchester City owner Mansour bin Zayed named UAE vice president March 30, 2023 The owner of Manchester City, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has been named vice president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The move comes amid a number of major political appointments by Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the nation. Sheikh Mohamed also named Kahled bin Mohamed as Crown Prince of Abu [...]
Ed Warner: Is China about to bring Russia and its athletes in from the sporting cold? March 30, 2023 The war in Ukraine doesn’t look like ending any time soon. Just as Russia is recalibrating its geopolitical and industrial relations, so the prospect of a conflict stretching years into the future will necessitate a realignment of its place in the sporting world. Asia’s warmth towards the Kremlin points a way back into the international [...]
Spurs: Fifa ban club’s managing director of football Fabio Paratici March 29, 2023 Tottenham Hotspur’s search for a new manager has been plunged into uncertainty after the club’s managing director of football, Fabio Paratici, was handed a worldwide ban. Fifa confirmed on Wednesday that it had agreed to a request from Italian football chiefs to extend globally a 30-month domestic ban issued to Paratici in January. Paratici was [...]
London Irish confirm players WILL be paid amid uncertainty March 29, 2023 Premiership club London Irish have confirmed that all staff will be paid amid reports of players waiting growing anxious over payday. This comes as a buy-out for the club has reportedly been delayed, according to the Daily Mail. Premiership Rugby are doing “everything possible” to help a takeover of the club with current owner Mick [...]
Premiership Rugby’s Newcastle Falcons deny plan of voluntary relegation March 29, 2023 Newcastle Falcons have denied suggestions that the club’s recent cost-cutting is paving the way to voluntarily drop out of the Premiership next year. City A.M. has learned of a growing belief in English rugby that the Tyneside team could be looking to ease their financial situation by joining the Championship as part of a wider [...]
Premier League chief denies trying to kick football regulator into the long grass March 28, 2023 Premier League chief executive Richard Masters has rebuffed suggestions that the organisation tried to “kick into the long grass” talks over an independent football regulator. Masters was persistently questioned on the point by MPs at a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee hearing on Tuesday. After denying that the expression had been used by anyone [...]