Governing Bodies
DUTCH CLUBS FUME AT DECISION TO VOID LEAGUE
Since its formation in 1956, the Dutch Eredivisie has never concluded without a winner, but there will be no champions this season after it became the first top European football competition to officially fall victim to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Dutch Football Federation (KNVB) made the gut-wrenching decision to void the current campaign on Friday night, after the country’s government decided to extend a ban on mass gatherings until Sept 1, making it impossible to even consider holding games behind closed doors.
It said: “Public health always comes first. It’s not just a football problem here given what the coronavirus is doing to society. Nonetheless, the professional football committee is aware that today’s decisions are going to cause great disappointment for some.”
Leaders Ajax are level with AZ Alkmaar on points (56) but ahead on goal difference with nine games remaining.
Ajax’s Hakim Ziyech slammed the decision. The Morocco forward, who leaves in the summer to join Chelsea in a £33.3 million (S$58.7 million) deal, was livid after being denied the perfect swansong to his four-season spell at the Amsterdam club.
“What nonsense I have heard? We are at the top anyway. So the goal difference doesn’t count now?” Ziyech, who won the domestic treble, including the Dutch Cup and the Dutch Super Cup, last term with Ajax told local daily AD.
“How did PSV become champion in 2007? Exactly on one goal. If you have to choose one club as champion, that is Ajax to me.”
Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar also expressed his unhappiness but conceded the factors were beyond the club’s control.
“As a player and as a club, you naturally want to become champion,” he said. “You want to show it on the field and we have been at the top all year round.
“It is a pity… but in this situation, that may be understandable.”
The axing of the league is unlikely to affect Ajax’s qualification for next season’s Champions League, although KNVB will await a firm verdict from Uefa on May 25.
AZ will likely enter the competition’s preliminary rounds, with PSV, Feyenoord and Willem II set to compete in the Europa League based on the final standings despite the cancellation.
There will also be no relegation, which in turn means no team will be promoted from the Eerste Divisie this campaign.
While bottom team RKC Waalwijk were relieved to escape the drop, the top-two clubs in the second tier, SC Cambuur and De Graafschap, were outraged, with the KNVB set to face legal action.
Cambuur manager Henk de Jong did not mince his words, calling the decision “the biggest disgrace in the history of Dutch sports”.
– AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
FIFA’s independent Ethics Committee has banned former Guyana Football Federation (GFF) General Secretary Ian Alves from all football-related activities for five years after finding he sexually harassed female staff members.
FIFA also fined Alves 20,000 Swiss francs ($22,000) after determining that he had breached provisions of the FIFA Code of Ethics relating to the protection of physical and mental integrity, abuse of position and general duties.
“FIFA has a strict stance against all forms of abuse in football,” the organisation said on Monday.
The decision followed a review of written statements from the victims, documents provided by the GFF, submissions from Alves, and other evidence gathered during the investigation.
Alves stepped down from his position in 2024.
The ban came into force on Monday, when the terms of the decision were notified to Alves, and the full grounds for the ruling will be communicated within 60 days in accordance with the Code of Ethics, FIFA added.
The GFF did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Alves could not immediately be reached for comment.
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that he planned to seek re-election for a fourth term in a bid to continue to lead the governing body of world soccer.
Infantino confirmed he would run for the 2027–2031 term in the closing moments of the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, which comes less than two months before the start of the World Cup.
The election will be held on March 18 in Morocco, which is set to co-host the 2030 World Cup.
Infantino said he was “honoured and humbled” to have the chance to run for a fourth term.
The Italian-Swiss took office in 2016, replacing Sepp Blatter, and was re-elected unopposed in 2019 and 2023.
Infantino has pushed for the expansion of FIFA competitions during his tenure, with this year’s World Cup in North America the first to feature 48 teams, while the women’s tournament in 2023 has been expanded to 32 teams.
Infantino’s tenure has also drawn some criticism over issues such as high World Cup ticket prices and the decision to award the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize to U.S. President Donald Trump at the World Cup draw in December.
Earlier this month, the council of South American football’s governing body (CONMEBOL) said in a statement it would unanimously support the 56-year-old if he decided to seek another term.
-Reuters
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The supporters of Vancouver Whitecaps, a professional football (soccer) club in Canada, have staged a protest outside the FIFA Congress on Thursday, voicing fears that the Major League Soccer club could be relocated as uncertainty deepens over its ownership and long-term future.
The club is one of Canada’s most historic football institutions and has long been a central part of Vancouver’s sporting identity.
Around 100 fans gathered as delegates arrived for the annual FIFA meeting in Vancouver, chanting, singing and waving club flags in a show of solidarity. The demonstration comes just days after Vancouver Whitecaps FC revealed difficulties in securing a buyer willing to keep the club in the city.
The Whitecaps disclosed earlier this week that “stadium economics, venue access and revenue limitations” have complicated efforts to sell the club, despite a 16-month search for new ownership.
Season ticket holder Derek Hawksworth said supporters felt compelled to act amid growing fears of relocation.
“I wanted to come down given the threat of the team possibly moving,” he said. “It’s a rich history with the Whitecaps in North America… we want Vancouver to stay and not relocate. The history is here, and we want to continue with that history moving forward.”
The Vancouver Whitecaps are a professional football (soccer) club based in Vancouver, Canada. They currently compete in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top-tier league in the United States and Canada.
Concerns were heightened by reports that cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix are leading contenders should the club relocate.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has urged intervention, calling on the provincial government — which owns BC Place — to negotiate a “bridge deal” that would allow the team to remain while plans for a new stadium are explored. The club’s current lease at BC Place expires at the end of the year.
Despite the off-field uncertainty, the Whitecaps have been one of the standout teams this MLS season. They currently sit second in the Western Conference with 24 points from nine matches, just three points behind the San Jose Earthquakes.
For supporters, however, performances on the pitch offer little comfort as the future of their club hangs in the balance — a situation they hope global football leaders gathering in Vancouver will not ignore.
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