Governing Bodies
PREMIERSHIP CHIEFS EYEING JUNE 8 RESUMPTION BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
The Premier League is eyeing a resumption of the season on June 8, behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic, with the end date falling on July 27, according to the Times of London.
The daily yesterday said English football chiefs, along with other sports governing bodies, have been holding talks with the British government on when they can restart.
The season was suspended on March 13, with Liverpool just two wins away from their first English title in 30 years. The top flight has 92 games remaining, with clubs having nine or 10 games left each.
Premier League bosses are said to have shared the “Project Restart” idea with shareholders last week.
Matches are to be played in empty stadiums – a maximum of 400 people will be permitted to attend including media, only after testing negative for Covid-19 – and they will be staged at selected stadia to minimise overloading of the already stretched medical services.
Extra changing facilities will be introduced to ensure safe distancing measures are in place. Players will be required to turn up for training individually, dressed in their kit.
Should the plan proceed without hiccups, the summer break – traditionally around three months – will be a shortened affair as Aug 22 has been suggested as the date for the start of the 2020-21 campaign.
The main sticking point, though, remains the lack of tests available.
The Sun newspaper, citing government sources, also said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had been briefed on plans for the return of football. But the country must first pass the five tests for easing restrictions before sports can be played behind closed doors. It is to be one topic up for discussion ahead of the next review on May 7.
Should the EPL season be unable to resume – the Dutch Eredivisie was abandoned without promotion or relegation on Friday – it would be a financial nightmare for clubs.
Measures being taken to alleviate the cash-flow crunch brought about by the crisis have seen the Premier League link up with DLA Piper – a law firm that has advised on TV rights deals for the league in the past – on an emergency loan fund with a maximum of £10 million (S$17.6 million) per club.
The lack of liquidity has also led Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward to predict that Premier League clubs will not be splurging “hundreds of millions” on new players when the transfer window opens in the summer.
They have led the way in terms of spending across European football’s “Big Five” leagues, including Spain, Italy, Germany and France, for three years in a row, according to Deloitte’s Sports Business Group.
But that looks set to change, with Woodward admitting teams were facing a challenging time in the market and it is unlikely to be “business as usual” even for a club like United – the richest English side and third on the Deloitte Money League after Barcelona and Real Madrid.
He told a United fans forum on Friday night: “We need visibility of the impact across the whole industry, including timings of the transfer window and the wider financial picture, before we can talk about a return to normality.
“On this basis, I cannot help feeling speculation around transfers of individual players for hundreds of millions of pounds this summer seems to ignore the realities facing the sport.”
– AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS, BLOOMBERG
World football governing body, FIFA, today clocks its 122nd anniversary, celebrating more than a century of overseeing and expanding the global game.
Founded on May 21, 1904, in Paris, France, FIFA began with just seven member associations — France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
From that modest beginning, the organisation has grown into the most influential sports governing body in the world, with 211 member associations spread across all continents.
Over the decades, FIFA has transformed football into a truly global phenomenon through competitions such as the FIFA World Cup, Women’s World Cup, Club World Cup, youth tournaments, and developmental programmes aimed at growing the game worldwide.
The organisation has also witnessed remarkable milestones, including the expansion of the men’s World Cup from 13 teams in 1930 to 48 teams beginning from the 2026 edition to be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
FIFA’s journey has equally reflected football’s growing influence beyond sport, with the game becoming a major tool for diplomacy, social inclusion, youth empowerment, and economic development across the world.
As FIFA celebrates 122 years of existence, attention is now focused on the future of the game, technological innovations, expanded competitions, women’s football growth, and the continued globalisation of football.
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UEFA has issued a lifetime ban to Petr Vlachovsky, a Czech women’s soccer coach who secretly filmed his players, the governing body announced on Tuesday.
Czech media reported that the coach was convicted in May 2025 and initially received a suspended one-year prison sentence and a five-year domestic coaching ban for filming FC Slovacko’s players in changing rooms, the youngest of whom was 17.
In a statement, UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) said it had decided to ban Vlachovsky “from exercising any football-related activity for life” following the appointment of an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate allegations of potential misconduct.
“The CEDB further decided to request FIFA to extend the abovementioned ban on a worldwide level and to order the Football Association of the Czech Republic to revoke Mr Petr Vlachovsky’s coaching licence,” the statement added.
FC Slovacko did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Football players’ union FIFPRO welcomed the ban as well as UEFA’s request for world soccer governing body FIFA to impose an international ban on Vlachovsky.
“This outcome sends a strong and necessary message that abusive and inappropriate behaviour has no place in football and that safeguarding the well-being of players must remain a priority at every level of the game,” FIFPRO added in a statement.
Vlachovsky had also previously served as coach of the Czech women’s Under-19s team.
RELATED STORY: https://sportsvillagesquare.com/2026/04/08/outrage-as-male-coach-who-secretly-filmed-women-players-still-free-to-work-in-football/
-Reuters
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Southampton have been kicked out of the Championship playoff final after being found guilty of spying on semi-final opponents Middlesbrough, the English Football League said on Tuesday.
Middlesbrough, who lost 2-1 to Southampton on aggregate in the semi, have been reinstated and will face Hull City on Saturday in what is dubbed the world’s richest soccer match.
Promotion to the Premier League, even with an immediate relegation, is estimated to be worth in the region of 200 million pounds ($268.10 million) over three seasons.
Southampton, who admitted the charges, were also found guilty of filming training sessions involving Oxford United in December and Ipswich Town in April during the regular season.
They have also been deducted four points from the start of next season in England’s second tier.
“An Independent Disciplinary Commission has today expelled Southampton from the Championship play-offs after the club admitted multiple breaches of EFL regulations related to the unauthorised filming of other clubs’ training,” the EFL said.
“Southampton admitted breaches of Regulations requiring Clubs to act with the utmost good faith and prohibiting the observation of another Club’s training session within 72 hours of a scheduled match.
“The effect of today’s order is that Middlesbrough are reinstated into the 2026 play-offs and will proceed to the play-off final against Hull City. The final remains scheduled for Saturday 23 May, with the kick-off time to be confirmed.”
The EFL confirmed that Southampton could appeal against the decision and that “parties are working to try and resolve any appeal on Wednesday 20 May.
“Subject to the outcome, it could result in a further change to Saturday’s fixture,” the statement said.
‘BORO CALLED FOR SOUTHAMPTON EXPULSION
Middlesbrough had called for Southampton’s expulsion after having a training session at their Rockliffe Park site filmed 48 hours ahead of the first leg of their playoff semi-final with Southampton which ended 0-0.
The north-east club said they welcomed the decision.
“We believe this sends out a clear message for the future of our game regarding sporting integrity and conduct,” the north Middlesbrough said in a statement.
“As a club, we are now focused on our game against Hull City at Wembley on Saturday.”
Southampton were relegated from the Premier League last season and were struggling in the early part of this campaign until a storming finish in which they went unbeaten in 19 league games to finish fourth and enter the playoffs.
The south-coast club are the first to fall foul of the Football League’s regulation 127 — brought in after Leeds United were found guilty of spying on Derby County seven years ago, an offence for which they were fined 200,000 pounds.
-Reuters
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