Tag Archives: FIFA

Reuters reports: A Brooklyn federal jury on Thursday convicted a former 21st Century Fox executive and acquitted another after a trial over an alleged scheme to bribe South American soccer officials to secure lucrative broadcasting rights. Jurors found Hernan Lopez guilty but acquitted Carlos Martinez on the same charges. South American sports marketing company Full Play Group SA was also …

The Associated Press reports: Two former Fox executives went on trial Tuesday, accused of bribing South American soccer officials for TV rights to one of the continent’s biggest annual tournaments and using information gathered in the process to help the network’s winning World Cup broadcast bid. It’s the latest case to go to court in the sprawling FIFA corruption scandal. …

CNN reports: A request by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to share a message of world peace prior to kickoff at the World Cup final on Sunday has been rebuffed by FIFA, a source told CNN. The source said Zelensky’s office is offering to appear in a video link to fans in the stadium in Qatar, ahead of the game and …

The Daily Beast reports: English soccer fans have been banned from dressing up as knights in shining armor ahead of Friday’s World Cup match against the U.S. in Qatar because the outfits are considered offensive to Muslims. British supporters have dressed up as St. George—the patron saint of England—at international sports tournaments for at least two decades. But international soccer …

The Hill reports: Both English and German soccer associations are considering legal action against FIFA after the sporting body banned players from wearing OneLove armbands promoting diversity and inclusion at the World Cup in Qatar. The German Football Association (DFB) may file a claim at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland to challenge the legality of FIFA’s threat …

The Guardian reports: Germany’s players placed hands over their mouths and wore rainbow stripes on their warm-up tops and boots in a powerful statement of defiance against FIFA before their Group E match against Japan. Their message was reinforced by the German interior minister, Nancy Faeser, who also wore a OneLove armband, which promotes tolerance, diversity and LGBTQ+ rights, as …

The Associated Press reports: Discriminatory chants allegedly by Ecuador fans at the World Cup opening game led FIFA to open the first disciplinary case of the tournament on Tuesday. FIFA said the charge was brought “due to chants” at the game against Qatar on Sunday and cited the section of its disciplinary code dealing with discrimination. The chants were reportedly …

The Associated Press reports: America’s top diplomat on Tuesday criticized a decision by FIFA to threaten players at the World Cup with yellow cards if they wear armbands supporting inclusion and diversity. Speaking alongside his Qatari counterpart at a news conference, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was “always concerning … when we see any restrictions on freedom …

ESPN reports: The captains of England, Wales, Belgium, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands will not wear the ‘OneLove’ anti-discrimination armband in their World Cup opening games after confirmation that their captains would be given yellow cards if they took part in the initiative. The announcement came just before their World Cup campaigns were scheduled to start. The national federations said …

Reuters reports: A Qatar World Cup ambassador has told German television broadcaster ZDF that homosexuality was “damage in the mind”, as the Gulf state prepares to host the global tournament in less than two weeks. Khalid Salman addressed the issue of homosexuality, which is illegal in the conservative Muslim country. “They have to accept our rules here,” Salman said. “(Homosexuality) …

The Associated Press reports: Russia’s request to freeze a FIFA ban on its soccer teams ahead of next week’s World Cup qualifying playoffs was denied Friday. FIFA said the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed the Russian soccer federation’s bid for an urgent interim ruling to freeze the ban pending a full appeal, which could come within weeks. The CAS …

Politico Europe reports: World football’s governing body, FIFA, announced Monday that it would suspend Russia indefinitely from international tournaments — expelling it from the World Cup 2022 playoffs one month before the final qualification matches. FIFA had come under fire Sunday night for its initial proposed sanctions on Russia, which proposed only a temporary ban on its name, flag and …

ESPN reports: FIFA backed away from immediately expelling Russia from World Cup qualifying on Sunday but said it remained an option, deciding instead the squad can play using the “RFU” acronym of its football federation, the Russian Football Union. The unanimous ruling by the Bureau of the FIFA Council, which includes the six regional football confederation presidents, was also that …

ESPN reports: The CONCACAF Nations League final in Denver between the United States and Mexico was marred by unruly fan behavior that included objects thrown onto the field and a brief pause in the game because of fans using an anti-gay chant. The pause occurred during the final moments of the second half before the game went to extra time …

Reuters reports: The Euro 2020 qualifier between Bulgaria and England was twice halted by the match referee in the first half on Monday under a three-step UEFA protocol to tackle racist abuse from the crowd. Britain’s Sky Sports television said racist chanting was heard from the stands and reported by England players to manager Gareth Southgate, with the referee informed …

Sports Illustrated reports: Know your audience. Megan Rapinoe has always had an uncanny ability to pick the right tone and the right words when she speaks in public, and she did it again on Monday in Milan as she received the FIFA award for the women’s world player of the year. On this occasion, Rapinoe realized that the audience she …

Fox News chortles: President Donald Trump met with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and U.S. Soccer President Carlos Cordeiro at the White House on Tuesday to commemorate North America winning its bid for the 2026 World Cup. Cordeiro and Infantino both gifted Trump commemorative soccer jerseys, but near the end of the photo op, Infantino reached off camera to get one …

The New York Times reports: A combined bid from the United States, Mexico and Canada won the hosting rights for soccer’s 2026 World Cup on Wednesday, bringing the tournament to North America for the first time since the 1994 event on a pledge of record crowds, record revenues and, perhaps crucially, a record $11 billion in profits for FIFA, world …

USA Today reports: President Donald Trump waded into the campaign aimed at bringing the 2026 FIFA World Cup to the United States on Thursday, tweeting out a veiled threat to withdraw political support from nations who vote against the bid. In a wildly surprising development, Trump, who previously has shown little appetite for soccer, appeared to throw his full backing …

The Associated Press reports: FIFA’s anti-discrimination advisers are warning gay soccer fans going to the 2018 World Cup in Russia that displays of affection could be met with an aggressive response from intolerant locals. As fans prepare their trips after Friday’s World Cup draw, the FARE network said it will produce a guide spelling out the threats to be prepared …