The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has reserved space at hotels in five cities for the Copa del Rey final on May 30. Valencia's Mestalla and Sevilla's Benito Villamarín have presented bids to host the final between Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona, but the RFEF "has covered its bases" and also rented rooms in Bilbao, Barcelona and Madrid (AS, 3/18). ... La Liga side Getafe President Ángel Torres denied "comments he reportedly made" to Spanish Football League (LFP) President Javier Tebas regarding match-fixing of a Getafe-Zaragoza match in '12. Torres: "I said nothing like this to Tebas. These are rumors" (MARCA, 3/18). ... EPL side Hull City's lawyers "are in talks" with the FA as the club seeks to "conclude a bid to change its name to Hull Tigers." Hull believes its original application "should be reconsidered following the findings of the arbitration panel." The club therefore does "not intend to go through the process for a second time" (BBC, 3/18). ... Russian Premier League club Torpedo Moscow "must play two home matches behind closed doors because of the racist abuse" aimed at Zenit St. Petersburg forward Hulk in Sunday's match (REUTERS, 3/18). ... Qatar Labor Minister Abdullah Saleh Mubarak al-Khulaifi said that "there is no timeframe for promised reforms to the 2022 World Cup host's controversial system of tying migrant workers to a sponsoring employer." He said Qatar is "committed to improving conditions for foreign workers." But he added that he "cannot provide a date for new legislation addressing the kafala, or sponsorship system" (AP, 3/17). ... Egypt's prosecutor general has charged 16 people "in connection with the death of 19 football fans in February." Hisham Barakat said that the supporters of the Zamalek football team, "also known as the Ultra White Knights, clashed with police as they were trying to push their way into the Cairo football stadium." Twelve defendants, out of the 16 people charged for the violence, "are in police custody and are said to be members of the Ultras as well as the Muslim Brotherhood" (PRESS TV, 3/17).
