Efforts to "financially shore up" Spanish football clubs were "hailed" by La Liga's organizing body on Friday with the announcement that "no player in Spain's top two divisions had complained of not receiving their wages in the last year."
Players reporting non-payment to the player's association, the AFE, "has been a common occurrence" in Spanish football in recent years. Complaints peaked in the '14-15 season, with 60 players "reporting unpaid wages" totaling more than €7M, although that number fell to six players in '15-16 and a combined €493,954.
There "have been no complaints for this season" and none since Dec. '15 (REUTERS, 12/16).
FIFA officials "have rejected an appeal" by former German FA (DFB) President Wolfgang Niersbach, thereby "maintaining a one-year ban on him imposed in July."
The German "has responded by stepping down from all his football roles." He also said that "he would not take his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, putting an end to his career as an administrator."
Niersbach was suspended by FIFA's ruling body "for failing to report potential misconduct surrounding the award of 2006 World Cup hosting rights to Germany" (REUTERS, 12/16).
Superleague Greece club Larissa said on Friday that it has been "banned from wearing shirts bearing a slogan highlighting Europe’s refugee crisis."
Players were planning to have "The refugee children are our children" splashed across the front of their shirts but Greek officials rejected their idea as a "highly political message" (AFP, 12/17).
FIFA announced that the Moscow-based company Arenafoods Catering has been chosen as the public food and beverage concessionaire for the 2018 World Cup Russia and the 2017 Confederations Cup.
Arenafoods was chosen following an int'l public tender process that included submissions from 15 food and beverage companies based in Russia. Arenafoods Catering belongs to Shokoladnitsa Group, which was founded in '94 and is one of the largest food and beverage operators in Russia (FIFA).
The FA "has banned a tattoo parlour from sponsoring a local kids’ football team."
Kings Heath Concorde U10s "could fold because of it," while its U8s "could also go" because its sponsor, Arena nightspot in Stourbridge, is also considered an "inappropriate" backer (THE SUN, 12/18).
