The terrorist attacks in Madrid led to the election defeat of the Spanish government and left football uncertain when to play and how to pay its respects, writes Phil Ball
It’s not often that sport takes second, even third, place in the ranking of things in Spain, but the deaths of almost 200 people in Madrid on Thursday March 11 reduced football’s normal role as the country’s protagonist to the status of awkward bystander.
Dan Brennan looks at the shifting rivalries in Moscow, heavily influenced by the secret policeman taking his ball away
Moscow is probably second only to London in its surfeit of local derbies. The Russian capital currently provides six premier league sides and, one blip aside, has been the home of the champions of the national league since it was formed a decade ago. There is a generally accepted hierarchy among the city’s teams, based on success, tradition and support, that reads: Spartak, Dynamo, CSKA, Torpedo-Luzhniki, Lokomotiv and Torpedo-ZIL. But this does not tell the whole story, which is one of ever-changing fortunes influenced by political machinations.