FIFA

[sne]

Technically UEFA but anyhow...

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Football fans are claiming the Champions League semi-final draw was rigged after Roma allegedly advertised tickets for a match with Liverpool before the teams were paired together.

A screenshot of an email sent to Roma season ticket holders on Thursday appears to show a link to buy tickets for a match on May 2 between Roma and Liverpool.

In Friday's draw, the Italian side were duly paired with the Premier League club, and because Roma were drawn out second, they will play the second leg at home on May 2.

A screenshot of an email sent to Roma season ticket holders allegedly selling tickets for a Champions League match with Liverpool before the semi-final draw was made

Liverpool and Roma were duly paired together in Friday's Champions League semi-final draw

Seconds later, he pulled out Italian side Roma as Liverpool's semi-final opponents 

The email was said to have been sent out because of a 'technical problem of Roma's ticketing portal partner' when the club was making 'ticketing tests' on Thursday. 

The website link was swiftly taken down, but not before conspiracy theorists took to social media and online forums to claim UEFA, European football's governing body, had fixed the draw.

'So Roma knew yesterday that they'd be playing Liverpool as they advertised tickets on their website. But it's not fixed of course,' wrote PrestwichBlue on Twitter.

'If this happens, I won't trust @UEFA again!' said another Twitter user.

Another fan tweeted: 'Never seen something so rigged in my life, Roma selling tickets at 10am this morning against Liverpool away for season ticket holders.'

The draw was made at 12.15pm British time or 1.15pm Central European Time.

The Spanish defending champions Real Madrid were drawn against German team Bayern Munich in the other Champions League semi-final.

Previous Champions League draws have attracted scepticism from conspiracy theorists. Last year, the Spanish newspaper AS suggested that UEFA had used heated balls to keep Spanish sides apart.

In 2016, the Brazilian legend Roberto Carlos, conducting the group stage draw, came under scrutiny after appearing to pick up a ball, hold it for a few seconds and then drop it back again.

UEFA hit back at such speculation last year when competitions director Giorgio Marchetti said: 'How can the ball be hot or cold?

'It's impossible. With the category of player that we invite to the draw, I would never ask someone to do something that was not honest when picking the balls. It's a joke.'

The Ukrainian football legend Andriy Shevchenko conducted the semi-finals draw at UEFA's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday afternoon.

He is an ambassador for this year's final, which will be staged in Kiev.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sportsnews/article-5612603/Champions-League-fix-scandal-erupts-Roma-offer-Liverpool-tickets-draw-made.html

[HanoiVillan]

I mean, that's not even subtle, is it? I don't see how anyone could deny it's fixed after that. 

[a m ole]

3 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

I mean, that's not even subtle, is it? I don't see how anyone could deny it's fixed after that. 

I imagine a situation where Roma were testing their email marketing and picked their favoured opponent as a placeholder for the copy.

Not that I wouldn’t put it past Uefa.

[TheAuthority]

1 minute ago, a m ole said:

I imagine a situation where Roma were testing their email marketing and picked their favoured opponent as a placeholder for the copy

I agree - Most likely it was just a test and they happened to chose the team that they ended up playing - it's not like there are a massive number of permutations.

But as it's UEFA/FIFA everyone's natural conclusion will of course be that it's rigged.

[sne]

Can't really blame FIFA for this one as stuff like this happens before every big event.

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World 2026: Dogs shot near Agadir before the FIFA mission?

"Sterilized and vaccinated dogs are among the victims," witnesses said.

These are images that may taint that of Morocco, a few days before the passage in the kingdom of the mission of FIFA in the context of the candidacy of Morocco to the World Cup football 2026. 

According to testimonies of several inhabitants and volunteers of animal welfare associations in Aourir, a small village north of Agadir, stray dogs were slaughtered on the evening of Thursday, April 5, around 10 pm, by men armed with rifles. , to "clean up" according to them before the arrival of the inspection commission. These last ones would have been "mandated by the wilaya".

4 dogs killed according to a witness

In a video that we have seen, we can see men pick up what appears to be the corpse of a dog, before putting it in the back of a vehicle in an alley of the city. Dogs sterilized and vaccinated by animal welfare associations would be among the victims according to the witnesses.

According to an inhabitant present at the time of slaughter, a cartridge was fired "within 10 meters" of where he was, wounding a dog he has been caring for more than a year, which is sterilized , vaccinated, tagged. (...) He dragged himself towards me for help and he died as soon as he arrived at my level, "he says in a written statement. "4 dogs were killed 20 meters from the houses, in the dark, with only the lighting of street lamps," he says.

Altercation with the boss

According to other testimonies received by the  HuffPost Morocco , people living near the beach Banana Beach Aourir confirmed to have seen several men, a dozen according to some, including the guy, to go down Thursday night near their homes where many wander dogs to slaughter them. All claim to have heard gunshots.

Some witnesses (most are foreign), who filmed the scene, also say they had their cell confiscated by the guy, who removed before them the videos they had just taken. An altercation would have occurred and the guy would have uttered racist insults against them, telling them to "return to their country", according to one of the witnesses.

A resident of Tamraght, a town near Aourir, also shared this Saturday photos of traces of blood and cartridges in the alleys of the village (see below) . A publication that aims to raise people's awareness of their own safety.

False testimonials? 

Contacted by the  HuffPost Morocco , the vice-president in charge of the municipal hygiene office in Agadir, which manages the issue of stray dogs, did not wish to speak on this matter and immediately cut short the conversation.

According to another member of the same office who wished to remain anonymous, "there was no slaughter of dogs". What the witnesses say is "wrong" according to this source. "The dogs were not slaughtered, they were captured to be sterilized, as is done daily," she says, recalling that an agreement was signed in November 2016 between the animal welfare association "Heart on the leg", the municipality of Agadir and wilaya Souss-Massa, to launch a program of sterilization and vaccination to fight rabies and reduce the population of stray dogs. 

In this convention, the wilaya is prohibited from killing tagged dogs, that is to say, wearing a label on the ear. Since the signing of the convention, a thousand dogs have been captured, sterilized, vaccinated, tagged and released at their capture site. The total cost of the operation, still in progress, is about 1.5 million dirhams (including 800,000 dirhams of subsidies from the city). 

Contacted by the  HuffPost Morocco , the lawyer of the association "Heart on the Paw", Me Youssef Rharib, said to have read the testimonies of the inhabitants of Aourir and images they posted on social networks, but the "association" did not officially declare these events, it is witnesses and volunteers who affirmed that, "he says.

Previous

This is not the first time that the slaughter of stray dogs is controversial in Morocco. In June 2016, pictures of dogs shot and burned in a landfill in the city of Chichaoua (Marrakech region) had scandalized many citizens and Internet users. Residents of the city, armed with rifles, had led this raid. A few months earlier, the communal services of Salé and Ksar El Kebir had also slaughtered stray dogs. The images had caused an uproar on social networks.

For the animal welfare associations, the slaughter of stray dogs practiced in Morocco for many years has not managed to limit their number or the proliferation of diseases such as rabies that causes twenty deaths per year.

https://www.huffpostmaghreb.com/entry/des-chiens-abattus-a-agadir-avant-le-passage-de-la-mission-de-la-fifa-pour-le-mondial-2026_mg_5ac7825be4b07a3485e3e455

Still, might want to avoid the street food in Morocco  during the summer...

[Zatman]

Wait until the bid team visit USA

[sne]

Meanwhile in Russia...

Really hope this is something we'll also get to see at the WC this summer.

[sne]

Meanwhile in Russia part 2

Yes, that is a guy throwing a live rooster towards his teams manager to protest his teams poor performance.

Doubt we'll be seeing this at the WC since the guy was thrown out and is risking 15 days in jail for animal cruelty.

[sne]

UEFA has leaked this years Champions League winners on their official site now 

[fightoffyour]

Russia has been fined £22k for racism

That should sort the racism problem out once-and-for-all then. Well done FIFA. Any fears about such behaviour in the the World Cup should now be well and truly alleviated...

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The Russian Football Union has been fined £22,000 for racist chants by fans in March's friendly with France.

Paul Pogba, Ousmane Dembele and N'Golo Kante were said to be among those subjected to taunts in Les Bleus' 3-1 win over the World Cup hosts.

The game was played at Krestovsky Stadium in St Petersburg, one of the host venues for this summer's event.

 

[Stevo985]

£30,000 for displaying the poppy.

£22,000 for racist chanting

 

Makes sense

[Mark Albrighton]

So Platini then. I’m not surprised this happened, bit surprised he’s just come out with it though.

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When we organised the calendar, we did a little trickery. If we finished first in the group and Brazil finished first, we could not meet before the final.

We did not get bored for six years to organise the World Cup to not do some little shenanigans.

You think that the others did not do it for their World Cup France-Brazil in the final, it was the dream of everyone.

Link

[Demitri_C]

SCANDAL 

Michel Platini admits World Cup 1998 draw was FIXED for France to face Brazil in final

French legend and ex-head of Uefa says France 1998 schedule was rigged to ensure dream final - and claims other tournaments have been doctored too

By Martin Lipton

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Updated: 18th May 2018, 5:40 pm

MICHEL PLATINI has admitted the 1998 World Cup draw was FIXED.

Platini was booted out of Fifa and Uefa after revelations he had received a “disloyal payment” of £1.35million from disgraced world boss Sepp Blatter

France won their home World Cup in 1998 - but Michel Platini says the draw for the tournament was fixed

Michel Platini congratulates Didier Deschamps as France went up to lift the trophy - in the knowledge they had rigged the draw for the World Cup

But the midfield ace, France boss between 1988 and 1992, has admitted he was involved in a plot to ensure the 1998 hosts could not meet favourites Brazil until the final.

Fifa has long agreed that the host nation should be given a pre-draw seeding spot while the other seven seeds for the first 32-team tournament were allocated on a calculation mixing the world rankings with performances at the three previous World Cup.

Fifa regulations for the competition stated that the seeds should be randomly assigned at the Finals draw, which took place inside the Stade Velodrome in Marseilles.

But Platini, who had been appointed co-president of the World Cup Organising Committee in 1992, pressed for a change that would allow France and Brazil to be kept apart until the ultimate showpiece.

Disgraced former Fifa and Uefa chief Platini says organisers rigged the draw so France and Brazil would meet in the final

Organisers allegedly fixed the draw to ensure France could only face Brazil in the final of their home tournament

The former midfield star was to become a close ally of Blatter and his predecessor Joao Havelange before Fifa’s house of cards came crashing down in 2015, taking him with it as he was forced out of his role as President of Uefa.

Platini, speaking in a French radio interview, confessed: “When we organised the calendar, we did a little trickery.”

Whereas Russia were the only seeds who knew their spot for the 2018 draw, Brazil were announced a the top seed in Group A, with France taking the corresponding spot in Group C.

With the paths to the final pre-ordained by the match calendar, the fix was in.

Platini, who remains banned from all football activity until next year, added: “If we finished first in the group and Brazil finished first, we could not meet before the final.

“We did not work until we were bored for six years to organise the World Cup not to do some little shenanigans.

Ronaldo is consoled at the end of the game after Brazil were beaten by France in the World Cup final

“When you are at home, you want to be able to enjoy things.

“You think the others do not do it for their World Cups? France against Brazil in the final, that was the dream of everyone.”

Both sides did win their group and kept their scheduled date in the Stade de France, won 3-0 by the hosts with two from Zinedine Zidane and the third scored by Emmanuel Petit.

The final is much remembered for the conspiracies that flew around concerning Brazil striker Ronaldo. The superstar was withdrawn from the team in the build-up to the match before being reinstated at the last minute.

He endured a terrible game, contributing to France's heavy win.

He later revealed he suffered with convulsions and lost consciousness for several minutes before the final.

 

Click

And people laugh when they say there is no fixing in football :( this is a disgrace and he should be thrown in prison 

[Zatman]

Fix is being dramatic, no games were manipulated the schedule was

[Demitri_C]

12 hours ago, Zatman said:

Fix is being dramatic, no games were manipulated the schedule was

Platini is French so that to me is just as bad. Any way to help the French out. Disgrace 

[Zatman]

1 hour ago, Demitri_C said:

Platini is French so that to me is just as bad. Any way to help the French out. Disgrace 

France were about 5th favourites that World Cup and in same side of draw as Italy And Germany

[Demitri_C]

1 hour ago, Zatman said:

France were about 5th favourites that World Cup and in same side of draw as Italy And Germany

Host nation 5th favourites? Don't sound right to me. Regardless they still have them an unfair advantage.

Platini is a "clearing in the woods" 

[MrDuck]

FIFA fixing a world cup draw? That's unpossible!

 

[OutByEaster?]

Seems legit.

https://apnews.com/article/international-soccer-world-cup-statutes-franz-beckenbauer-germany-bd01f9fea23cd41bbd73c5d154209880

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FIFA ends bribery case against Germany great Beckenbauer

Beckenbauer and other German officials who helped organize the 2006 World Cup had been subject to a FIFA ethics investigation opened in 2016. There was no time limitation on bribery prosecutions in FIFA’s ethics code until it amended the rules in 2018 to add a 10-year limit.

 

 

[Straggler]

Fifa president: more World Cups could save African migrants from death in the sea

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The president of Fifa, Gianni Infantino, has said his plans for a World Cup every two years could stop African migrants from finding “death in the sea”, in an extraordinary address to European politicians.

Speaking at a session of the parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe, a trans-national body dedicated to the support of human rights, Infantino said that countries outside Europe needed greater access to national football competitions to prevent drastic consequences.

Not all hero's wear capes.