Paul Nicholson

January 22 – Bulgaria’s Levski Sofia has been caught up in a high-stakes legal and financial standoff after its former owner, Vasil Bozhkov, who is sanctioned under the U.S. Magnitsky Act, demanded the repayment of more than €5 million in historical debts. On June 19, Levski said they had received a “notice of assignment and an invitation for voluntary execution.” The document, sent by Bohzkov’s lawyer Stoyan Baumeyer, demands the payment of €5,072,337.63 to his account within 14 days. Read more …

June 22 – The battle for control of the Somali Football Federation (SFF) has reached a crescendo with factions within the FA membership calling for the removal of the current SFF president Ali Abdi Mohamed. Mohamed is also a Confederation of African Football (CAF) executive member, deputy president for the African regional confederation, the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) as well as sitting on the FIFA Grassroots and Amateur Football Committee. Read more …

June 22 – Levi’s can’t lift the trophy. But this week, the denim makers won the only contest open to them, namely the social media one, with a brilliantly dry response to a white bag covering their name atop Levi’s Stadium in Atlanta. No explanation, no fuss. They simply changed their Instagram profile picture to the very same bag. Their 10.3 million followers noticed and so did half the soccer world. FIFA requires host stadiums to cover any sponsor signage that isn’t tied to the governing body. Read more …

June 22 – The country has fallen for this US team, and the resale market is telling the story in dollars. As the Americans beat Australia on Friday and the hope of a historic run took hold, prices for the knockout games they might play didn’t climb; they exploded. The get-in price for the round of 32 in Santa Clara on July 1 leapt past $3,000, according to TicketData. It is the same story for the round of 16 and quarterfinals, Read more …

June 22 – Germany’s gambling regulator is investigating FIFA sponsor ADI Predictstreet which is not licensed in the country. At the same, European gaming commissions are stepping up their scrutiny of prediction markets. The German regulator, the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), has opened a review into FIFA’s prediction market sponsor which features on pitch-side billboards during World Cup broadcasts but does not have license to operate and advertise in Germany. In a statement to German media, Read more …

June 22 – The rulebook says a referee can book a substitute for running on to the pitch without permission. So why, time and again at this World Cup, are they choosing not to? The answer tells you something about how the game is being officiated this summer. Friday alone saw substitutes pour on to the field to celebrate in three of the four group games. It followed the USMNT’s opener against Paraguay on June 12, Read more …

June 22 – Beleaguered Iran held Belgium to a goalless draw to retain chances of progressing from Group G at the World Cup. In Los Angeles, the Iranians once again faced the political moment of the day with their fanbase split and a fragile memorandum of understanding in place to deescalate and end the war in the Middle East. There were protests and isolated incidents in and around Sofi Stadium – Read more …

June 22 – UEFA has no plans to follow FIFA’s lead by introducing mandatory hydration breaks at Euro 2028. FIFA’s decision to implement a three-minute hydration break in every match, regardless of weather conditions, was presented as a player welfare measure ahead of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In reality, the policy has disrupted the flow of matches and ultimately generated even more commercial inventory for FIFA’s broadcast partners during an already heavily monetised competition. Read more …

June 23 – Lionel Messi’s brace drove Argentina to a 2-0 win over Austria to guarantee their progress to the round of 32, on the way him becoming the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history. Against Australia his hattrick saw him Miroslav Klose’s longstanding men’s record. His 18th World Cup goal against Austria took him past Brazilian Marta’s overall record. Messi, who has now scored in six consecutive World Cup matches, Read more …

The final whistle of the 2025-26 football season marked the end of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR), also known as ‘P&S’ in the Championship.