“The message has been lost. It is now not dissimilar to a
fancy hashtag or a nice pin badge...Taking the knee will
not bring about change in the game – actions will”
Les Ferdinand, QPR director of football- The Premier League to be reduced from 20
teams to18, with the club finishing16th joining
three Championship sides in the play-offs. - Scrapping the EFL Cup and Community Shield.
- A payment of £100 million for the FA.
- Parachute payments for teams relegated from
the Premier League to be replaced by a £250m
rescue fund for the English Football League. - Radical changes to the loan system, allowing
Premier League sides to send up to four
players to a single EFL club. - 25 per cent of Premier League TV income
to be distributed amongst the EFL. - A new fan charter aiming to reduce ticket
prices, subsidise away travel and introduce
safe standing.
Premier League clubs however soon agreed
that Project “Big Picture” would not be “endorsed
or pursued”. A £50m rescue package for clubs
in League One and League Two was also later
rejected, meaning discussions over financial
support for the EFL continue to take place.
GLOBAL FOOTBALL INTELLIGENCE
KAZUYOSHI MIURA
The 53-year-old recently became the oldest
player inJ.League history, starting Yokohama’s
3-2 defeat to Kawasaki Frontale. Sound
familiar? That’s because Miura has been
breaking records every year since 2017,
when he replaced Stanley Matthews as the
oldest professional footballer of all time.KARIM BENZEMA
Benzema hit his 250th goal for Real Madrid in
the 2-0 win over Levante. He’s now Real’s fifth
all-time top scorer behind Cristiano Ronaldo,
Raul, Alfredo Di Stefano and Santillana.LANDON DONOVAN
Now managing San Diego Loyal, the USA
legend led his team off the pitch in a crucial
USL Championship clash with Phoenix Rising
after a homophobic comment was aimed at
one of his players. Forfeiting the match cost
Loyal a place in the play-offs, but after the
alleged slur went unpunished, Donovan said:
“If they’re not willing to act, then we have to.”ROMA
The Italian club continues to announce new
signings on social media alongside appeals for
information on missing people. Chris Smalling’s
signing was confirmed alongside a missing
teenager, and she later became the seventh
person to be found safe thanks to Roma.RYAN REYNOLDS & ROB McELHENNEY
Just months after a consortium led by actress
Natalie Portman announced plans to create
LA’s first women’s team, more plans for football
investment has come out of Hollywood. Actors
Reynolds and McElhenney are in talks to take
control of National League side Wrexham.HEROES VILLAINS
Ancient...Kazu MiuraForgotten...Australia’s 2019 away kit has been given
an upgrade, but it failed to include women’s sizesCHRISTOPH METZELDER
AreportinGermany has claimed that the
former Dortmund, Real Madrid and Germany
defender has allegedly admitted to possession
of child pornography, after being charged with
possession of 297 indecent images and sending
similar content to three women via WhatsApp.LUIS SUAREZ
Before joining Atletico Madrid, Suarez was
in talks withJuventus, and with Serie A sides
limited to how many non-EU players they can
have in their squads, the Uruguayan took an
Italian citizenship test. However, the University for
Foreigners of Perugia (where the test was taken)
is now under investigation, with suggestions
that Suarez’s final score was agreed beforehand
and that he “demonstrated only an elementary
knowledge of the Italian language.”BAMBO DIABY
The defender has been hit with a two-year ban
from all forms of football activity after testing
positive for Higenamine, a banned substance
used to help aid weight loss. In an open letter
on Barnsley’s official club website he said:
“I maintain my innocence, something the
FA have acknowledged themselves but
I must handle this decision with my family
and look forward to a brighter future.”FOOTBALL FEDERATION AUSTRALIA
Football Federation Australia (FFA) was left
embarrassed after neglecting to release their
new away kit in women’s sizes. The mistake
was a particular own goal given that Australia
will co-host the Women’s World Cup in 2023.
In a statement, the FFA said the decision was:
“Not consistent with the values in which FFA
seeks to uphold and promote.”