UEFA extended its Kit Assistance Scheme which provides uniforms and equipment for Europe's smaller national associations. The program, which runs in two-year cycles, will continue until '22. UEFA launched a tender for a supplier in January and Italian company Macron was selected (UEFA).
Plans to field a China U20 side in Germany's fourth tier "have hit problems less than a day after the deal was signed," with three of the teams in the league "refusing to play against the Chinese side." Chinese execs on Wednesday confirmed the U20 side will compete in the regionalized fourth tier as a "developmental initiative." Of the 19 teams in the league, 16 "have given the green light to the project," but Mannheim, TuS Koblenz and Stuttgarter Kickers said "no" (AFP, 8/17).
Bolivian Football Federation (FBF) President Marco Peredo resigned on Wednesday, citing "the carnival" that persists in Bolivian football and "the resistance to his presidency" as his motives. He said, "Do whatever you want with football. I'm going to play somewhere else, where people want to play fair, and I've already decided what I'm going to do about my life in football. It is not worth it. This, this is a carnival" (INSIDE WORLD FOOTBALL, 8/17).
