Lionel Messi’s retirement from international football does not just leave Argentina with an enormous sporting void to be fill. At a stroke it has also removed the country’s most valuable sporting commercial asset. For more
Every professional football match in Argentina this weekend will be brought to a temporary halt as part of a nationwide tribute to Lionel Messi. Play will stop during the tenth minute of each match, when
Although Argentina knew that it would happen one day, they must now plan for life without Lionel Messi after he announced his retirement from international football at the age of 39. In some ways he
Gianni Infantino’s increasingly bitter confrontation with European football has taken a potentially much more serious turn. UEFA are preparing a criminal complaint against the FIFA president over his aborted attempt to bring private investment into
What began with Gianni Infantino’s ill-conceived plan to sell off a share of the rights to future World Cups to a private investment group, linked to US President Donald Trump, has now escalated to the
Lionel Messi is considering bringing down the curtain on his extraordinary football career. It follows the death of his father, and long-term agent, Jorge Messi at the age of 68, and, although he is under
When Gianni Infantino floated the idea of selling a stake in the commercial rights to the FIFA World Cup, the proposal was met with disbelief and outrage in many corners of football. Although he was
One of the biggest controversies of the World Cup was the decision to rescind the red card given to USA striker Folarin Balogun so he could play in their round of 16 match against Belgium.
Hydration breaks became one of the World Cup's most divisive innovations. Ostensibly introduced to give players respite in the hot and humid North American conditions, they also became an additional advertising opportunity for broadcasters. Many