The Conference has recently received a Premier League windfall. Andy Brassell is not alone in asking how, and why
If you thought the Premier League was an insular, money-hoarding microworld of its own, think again. Maybe. Even at its most altruistic The Best League In The World can’t catch a break from some cynics, though their powerbrokers surely can’t be surprised that their relatively recent interest in the Conference is raising a suspicious eyebrow or two.
Paul Joyce reports on the growth of match-fixing at every level across Europe, and how the authorities are working to combat it
In November 2009, news broke of the biggest match-fixing scandal in European football history. With the support of UEFA, investigators working for the public prosecutors’ office in the German city of Bochum identified 200 matches in nine European countries where manipulation was believed to have taken place. The Bochum commission, codenamed Flankengott, had intercepted phone calls, SMS messages and emails from 200 suspects throughout Europe.
Thom Gibbs knew there would be little domestic news during the summer, but he couldn't help checking anyway
Pre-season is a tough time. After the white-hot glare of the World Cup we’re left with four barren weeks to search fruitlessly for meaning in a life devoid of competitive football. So spare a thought for the media in this difficult period, which has football space to fill but very little actual news to work with. Their normal world of match reports, gaffers’ reactions and injury bulletins goes out the window, and the paucity of genuine news is especially noticeable in an internet-enabled world. Starved of anything substantial to talk about, messageboards go into overdrive over innocuous announcements such as the season’s new squad numbers, speculating wildly about the significance of the third-choice right-back’s move from 27 to 31.
Jon Spurling looks at how footballers' holidaying habits have changed radically since the days of the maximum wage
For England’s multimillionaire footballers, there is one major consolation to having flopped so dismally on the grand stage earlier this summer. With cash to burn, they have the choice of jetting off to any destination in the short gap between the World Cup and the new season. Frank Lampard, with girlfriend Christine Bleakley in tow, holidayed in Italy with the Redknapps while the newly single Ashley Cole took a break in Los Angeles. According to the tabloids, Cole quickly got over the trauma of his split from Cheryl by partying until the early hours in “the city’s top nightspots”.
Steve Menary explains how qualification for the Champions League is becoming a closed shop
Spurs’ appearance in this year’s Champions League qualifiers is the first in four seasons by a team outside of the Premier League’s big four. Since 1994-95 and the start of the group format, just nine English clubs have played in the Champions League. The Premier League is a cash cow but between 1992-93 and 2008-09, Man Utd earned €261 million (£217m) from the Champions League – and that’s just from UEFA. Research from tournament sponsor Mastercard shortly before this year’s final claimed that whoever won would earn €120m in total.