April 25 – Columbus Crew will take a slight advantage into the second leg of their Champions Cup semi-final in Monterrey next week, having won their home tie 2-1 last night. Juan Camilo Hernández opened the scoring for the Columbis Crew in the 26th minute, before Maximiliano Meza equalised for Monterrey on 58 minutes. Jacen Russell-Rowe score Columbus’ winner 15 minutes later. The Columbus win ended CF Monterrey’s streak of 10 consecutive victories in the Concacaf Champions Cup. Read more … The post Columbus Crew take lead to Monterrey for Champions Cup semi-final 2nd leg. Club America a ..read more

April 25 – The European Club Association (ECA) is winning the membership battle in the football clubs stakeholder space against the newly formed Union of European Clubs (UEC). Currently holding a series of Board meetings in Madrid, the ECA has reported that it now has more than 610 members clubs, up from 266 clubs since the start of the 2023/24 season. ECA said it has members from “every one of the 55 UEFA nations, Read more … The post ECA membership pushes past 600-club mark appeared first on Inside World Football ..read more

April 24 – The president of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) Andrew Kamanga was arrested and charged with money laundering offences on Tuesday before being released.  Zambia’s Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) alleges that Kamanga obtained government funds under false pretences and was part of a conspiracy to defraud. He was arrested along with Reuben Kamanga, the FAZ General Secretary, Madalitso Kamanga and Jairous Siame. The DEC claims that the FAZ boss used money to fund trips for associates to the 2023 African Cup of Nations held in January in the Ivory Coast. Read more … The ..read more

April 24 – The Premier League has again cautioned about the potential risks associated with the establishment of an independent regulator for English football.  With the Football Governance Bill undergoing its second reading in the British Parliament in March, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters emphasised the importance of thorough scrutiny of the bill’s particulars by lawmakers. The legislation would grant powers to a body, independent of government and football authorities, Read more … The post Premier League’s Masters leads English leagues’ warning over dangers of imposing ..read more

April 24 – Some of European football’s most distinguished former players and coaches say VAR needs to become more “consistent, transparent and understandable” and that faking injury and the abuse of officials both need to be urgently addressed. A meeting of the UEFA Board chaired by Portugal’s former Real Madrid and Inter Milan winger Luis Figo on Tuesday discussed officiating, coach and player behaviour towards match officials, timewasting and VAR. The meeting included the likes of Eric Abidal, Read more … The post UEFA Board calls for ‘firm’ discipline for players faking injury and les ..read more

April 24 – Arsenal are cemented their challenge in the final stretches of the Premier League title race with an emphatic 5-0 win against London rivals Chelsea at the Emirates stadium on Tuesday. Having arguably the hardest of the run-ins of title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City, and improving Chelsea potentially looked like a tricky hurdle. In the end they anything but. Arsenal face local rivals Tottenham Hotspur, themselves chasing the fourth Champions League spot, Read more … The post Gunners fire in five against Chelsea to maintain Premier League title pressure appeared first on Insid ..read more

April 24 – A Spanish judge has ordered the bank account of a company run by former international defender Gerard Piqué to be frozen while suspicions of corruption are investigated over the hosting of the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia. Investigating judge Delia Rodrigo acted Tuesday on a request by state prosecutors to place a freeze on an account belonging to Kosmos sports entertainment company, which was started and run by Piqué. Read more … The post Piqué’s Kosmos account frozen as prosecutors dig deeper into Super Cup commissions appeared first on Inside World Football ..read more

April 24 – A football agent sent a threatening email to a senior director at Chelsea demanding a six-figure commission over the transfer of French defender Kurt Zouma, prosecutors told a London court on Tuesday. Saif Rubie sent an email to Marina Granovskaia, one of football’s most powerful women and Chelsea’s director of football under former owner Roman Abramovich, in May 2022 after Zouma’s transfer to West Ham from Chelsea the previous year. Read more … The post Former Chelsea boss Granovskaia told court she felt ‘threatened’ by Zouma’s agent appeared first on Inside World Football ..read more

April 24 – Aston Villa have triggered the one-year option in Unai Emery’s contract to extend the Spaniard’s stay until 2027.  Emery is on course to lead Aston Villa to a top-four finish and a ticket to the Champions League. He could also lead Villa to the final of the Conference League and a first European trophy since 1966. His work has reportedly prompted interest from both FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich and the club moved to ensure the Basque is not prised away by extending his contract until 2027. Read more … The post Aston Villa move to keep hands off Emery with one-year contract ex ..read more

April 24 – The Welsh FA (FAW) has launched a six-year strategy through to 2030 for the overhaul of the top tier of its men’s league, the JD Cymru Premier League, to make it more competitive on and off the field, and boost its commercial positioning as it reformats both the league and its calendar. The plan, which will see the FAW invest £6 million in the league, will see it eventually move to playing the bulk of its league matches on Friday nights, Read more … The post Welsh FA launches major overhaul of its top tier league with expansion on and off the pitch appeared first on Inside World Fo ..read more