League Championship sides Fulham and Cardiff City's supporters' trusts have "written to BBC Wales to protest against the early kick-off time of the two clubs' FA Cup third round tie." The clubs will meet at the Cardiff City Stadium on Jan. 8, with the "televised fixture currently due to start" at 11:30am. Supporters traveling from London by train "have only one direct service available to them, operated by Great Western Railway, which is set to arrive into Cardiff Central station" at 10:59am (London INDEPENDENT, 12/19).
League Two side Yeovil Town Manager Darren Way and his first-team squad rewarded their supporters for making the 660-mile round trip to Carlisle United by putting £300 ($372) "behind the bar for them -- a consolation as they watched a 2-1 defeat." The Yeovil staff "issued vouchers for use in the away area bars at Brunton Park," a donation that worked out at just over £3 ($3.72) per person for the 96 traveling fans (LONDON TIMES, 12/19).
The first item on the agenda at Barcelona's extraordinary assembly was the confirmation of the sponsorship agreement with Rakuten. The Japanese company will be the global sponsor of the club and will appear on the front of the shirt for the next four seasons from July 1. The sponsorship agreement was ratified with 377 votes in favor, four against and five blank. The club also confirmed its agreement with Mission Hills Group. Barcelona CEO Òscar Grau spoke about the details of the project. One of the aims is to inaugurate an FCBEscola with seven football fields which will host over 1,000 children. Grau: "We will not create a theme park, as I have read in recent days. Our intention in Hainan is to create a FCBEscola, which will be the first directly managed by the FC Barcelona. It is an ambitious project and we have 100 percent control of this school" (Barcelona).
