It's time for FIFA to rethink international football. In 1992, UEFA changed the European Cup to the Champions League and transformed European club football into a more entertaining product that generates vast sums of money. It also didn't hurt that the tournament now attracts a cumulative television audience of 4 billion viewers in 227 countries. […]

After leading 1-0 from the first leg, Schalke had to have had some confidence going into Madrid for the second leg. A strong performance from Atletico saw them thump the German team 4-0 to advance to the group stage for the first time since 1996-97. I had picked Atletico as my 'dark-horse' team in the […]

UEFA's Control and Disciplinary Body has stripped Portuguese champions Porto FC of their place in next season's Champions League over alleged bribery of referees during the 2003/04 season. UEFA cited Article 1.04 (d) of the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League regulations (available via this PDF) in their decision. The article states that to be eligible to […]

FIFA recently approved the “6+5 rule” in a 155-5 vote among member nations. The rule would mandate that clubs field at least six players from the nation in which they play. By targeting wealthy clubs, particularly English ones, buying foreign players, FIFA feels they would revive national teams and achieve greater parity. This policy would […]

I've been meaning to do an in-depth piece on FIFA president Sepp Blatter's proposal to introduce quotas on the number of foreign players that teams can field. Yesterday, FIFA held a vote and Blatter's proposal cleared its first major hurdle. The FIFA Congress delegates voted 155-5 in favour of the proposal which would limit the […]

I've been meaning to do an in-depth piece on FIFA president Sepp Blatter's proposal to introduce quotas on the number of foreign players that teams can field. Yesterday, FIFA held a vote and Blatter's proposal cleared its first major hurdle. The FIFA Congress delegates voted 155-5 in favour of the proposal which would limit the […]

If you're desperate to follow the Champions League Final today, you can't watch it on TV and you don't have a Slingbox, listen to the live radio commentary from The Sun. The audio quality is usually suspect, but at least you'll be able to follow the biggest match of the year online. And, don't forget, […]

It has been a day of introductions here at EPL Talk, so let me be the latest to say hello to all of you. I am honored to be joining the site alongside all the new members, and I would like to thank The Gaffer for the opportunity to write here. Now to the big […]