UEFA, FIFA and IFAB
Thursday

UEFA has confirmed players will not be sent off in its competitions for covering their mouths during confrontations. The governing body will not adopt FIFA’s World Cup rule for the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League.

Officials can still show yellow cards if mouth-covering is judged an attempt to conceal unsporting communication. UEFA will instead assess incidents individually, while keeping disciplinary investigations available for abusive conduct after matches or through formal proceedings.

Santi Cazorla
Thursday

Santi Cazorla has announced his retirement from professional football at 41. The former Spain and Arsenal midfielder ends a 25-year career after helping boyhood club Real Oviedo return to La Liga last season in Spain.

Cazorla confirmed the decision on social media, closing a career that included Arsenal, Villarreal, Malaga and two European Championship titles with Spain. His final spell at Oviedo completed a long comeback from serious injury problems.

Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes
Before his contract expires next June

Richard Hughes is not expected to sign a new Liverpool deal beyond 2027 and is likely to join Al Hilal. The sporting director is set to reunite with former Bournemouth colleague Simon Francis in Saudi Arabia.

Hughes was hired by Fenway Sports Group in 2024 and helped shape Liverpool’s recruitment structure. His expected exit creates another senior off-field change at Anfield as Al Hilal target European executive experience for their project.

England supporters and FIFA resale buyers
After England reached the last 16

England fans hoping to attend the Mexico World Cup tie face resale prices starting at about £2,600 on FIFA’s platform. Supply remains tight for the Azteca match after England’s win over DR Congo in Atlanta.

FIFA’s resale site listed limited tickets at many times face value, with supporter-value seats carrying heavy markups once fees were added. Independent marketplace prices were also high, leaving travelling fans with few affordable options nearby.

Pape Gueye and Senegal
After Senegal’s World Cup exit

Pape Gueye says he will take a break from playing for Senegal while the current management remains in charge. The Villarreal midfielder made the call after Senegal lost a two-goal lead and were knocked out by Belgium.

Gueye’s announcement deepens Senegal’s latest crisis after another controversial tournament exit under Pape Thiaw. The decision follows frustration over substitutions, late Belgium goals and a 125th-minute penalty that ended their World Cup campaign in Seattle.

Nottingham Forest, Vitor Pereira and Oliver Glasner
Wednesday

Nottingham Forest are poised to replace Vitor Pereira with former Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner. BBC Sport reports the appointment is virtually done, with Pereira blindsided after only months in charge at the City Ground.

Pereira kept Forest up and reached a Europa League semi-final, but contract talks had stalled and the club moved before pre-season. Glasner arrives with strong European pedigree after winning the Conference League with Crystal Palace.

FIFA and World Cup players
After the World Cup group stage

FIFA’s social media protection service found 89,000 abusive posts during the World Cup group stage, including a significant rise in severe racist abuse. Racism made up 11% of all online abuse tracked across the tournament.

More than six million posts and comments were scanned, with 225,000 sent for human review. Around 1,000 accounts were marked for further investigation and 181,000 hateful comments were hidden as case files were prepared.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez
Wednesday

Joan Laporta has dismissed Real Madrid’s latest UEFA complaint over the Negreira case as another tantrum. The Barcelona president claimed Madrid were trying to stretch the issue and distract from their own structural problems instead.

Perez has reportedly submitted a major dossier to UEFA seeking sanctions against Barcelona. Laporta said UEFA would not be swayed, deepening the institutional conflict between Spain’s two biggest clubs over the refereeing scandal again this week.

FIFA, Germany and Paraguay
After Germany’s World Cup shootout exit

FIFA says teams were warned before the tournament that officials would punish blocking offences like the one that saw Jonathan Tah’s extra-time goal against Paraguay ruled out by VAR review during their controversial last-32 defeat.

Referees chief Pierluigi Collina said players who move to obstruct opponents without playing the ball can be penalised, especially around goalkeepers. Germany later lost on penalties after the last-32 tie finished 1-1, deepening the fallout.

Sebastian Beccacece and Ecuador
After Ecuador’s 2-0 defeat by Mexico

Sebastian Beccacece has confirmed he is leaving as Ecuador manager following their World Cup last-32 exit. He said his contract ended with the tournament and accepted the team had not met its target in a post-tournament decision.

Ecuador reached the knockouts after beating Germany in the group stage but were comfortably beaten by Mexico. Beccacece becomes another World Cup manager to depart after elimination in North America, following several earlier exits at the last-32 stage.