Brazil 2014: Spray for drawing line of wall for free kick has been authorised since 2012

The use of a vanishing spray, which allows referees to draw a white line on the ground to enforce a 9.15 metre distance between the wall and the kicker during a free kick, was authorised by the IFAB (International Football Association Board, the guardian of the laws of the game) at its 126^th…

Serie A: Stefano Pioli (Italy) to follow Edoardo Roja as Lazio manager

Stefano Pioli (Italy) will manage Lazio (Serie A) for 2014-15 with an option for an additional season, the club announced on 12/06/2014. He will replace Edoardo Roja (Italy), who had held the post since 04/01/2014. Roja had in turn had replaced Vladimir Petkovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina) who was…

Ligue 1: Paris SG beat their record with 32,500 subscribers for 2014-15 (hospitality excluded)

Paris-Saint Germain (Ligue 1) have beaten their own record by hitting their limit of 32,500 subscribers (hospitality excluded) for the 2014-15 season, the club announced on 13/06/2014. Subscribers have 70% of the 46,400 seats sold for Parc des Princes, said Paris SG. Non-hospitality subscriptions…

Video referee technology: Blatter proposes two challenge reviews per manager per match

"Why don't we give team managers the possibility of two challenge reviews for referring decisions during the match?" said Joseph Blatter, president of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), at the 64^th annual FIFA congress in Sao Paulo (BRA) on 11/06/2014. Blatter said he would…

Austria: the insurer Allianz acquires naming rights of future stadium of Rapid Vienna 2025

The German insurance group Allianz has bought the naming rights of the future stadium of Rapid Vienna (Austria) through 2025, the club announced on 06/06/2014. The stadium will be located on the site of Gerhard Hanappi-Stadion, whose demolition is to begin in summer 2014. Allianz Stadion has a…

Liga: FC Barcelona achieve over 1m followers on Chinese social network Sina Weibo

FC Barcelona (Liga) have over 1,171,170 subscribers on the Chinese social network Sina Weibo, the club said on 12/6/2014. The Spanish club offers exclusive news and photos on its official page, and hopes to take advantage of the more than 500m users of Sina Weibo to improve its digital coverage in…

Top Federation kit and equipment supplier contracts

Brazil 2014: Winner to get €25.8m; those eliminated in first round to get €5.9m

The total winnings distributed by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) will be $358m (€264.5m), to be shared by the 32 teams participating in the 20^th World Cup (Brazil, 12/06 to 13/07/2014), which begins with the Brazil-Croatia match in Sao Paulo. The winner will get $35m…

FIFA foresees revenues of €3.7bn for 2015-2018 -- 20 times more than for 1995-1998

FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) announced projected revenues of $5bn (€3.7bn) over the four year period from 2015 to 2018 in its 2013 financial report, which was approved by 209 affiliated national federations present at the 64^th FIFA congress in Sao Paulo (BRA) on…

Coca-Cola is 2014 World Cup's most represented brand, with 12 federations under contract

The U.S. beverage producer Coca-Cola is the 2014 World Cup's most represented brand, with 12 out of the 32 teams under contract. Among the company's partners are the French, Argentine and German Federations, and it is also an official sponsor of the 2014 World Cup. Its contract with FIFA…