FIFA
A man walks past the Gazprom Arena, the stadium that was supposed to host the Champions League 2022 final soccer match in St. Petersburg, Russia, Saturday, May 28, 2022, with a sculpture of one of Bolshevik's leader Sergei Kirov in the foreground. UEFA removed Saint Petersburg as the host of the final due to the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian crisis. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky)
Sports court sets July dates for Russian soccer ban appeals

By Graham Dunbar Jun. 22, 2022 08:02 AM EDT

FIFA bans player for 18 months for same substance as Valieva

By Graham Dunbar Jun. 13, 2022 10:52 AM EDT
GENEVA (AP) — FIFA banned Ivory Coast goalkeeper Sylvain Gbohouo for 18 months on Monday in a doping case involving the same substance that Russian figure skater...

Russia delegate Alexey Sorokin, right, gestures as speaks to journalists end of the FIFA congress at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center in Doha, Qatar, Thursday, March 31, 2022. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Russian appeals against sports bans to be heard by CAS

Apr. 05, 2022 12:12 PM EDT

A screen shows support to Ukraine before the English Premier League soccer match between Everton and Manchester City at Goodison Park in Liverpool, England, Feb. 26, 2022. (AP Photo/Jon Super)
Russia ready again for urgent court case over World Cup ban

By Graham Dunbar Mar. 04, 2022 12:40 AM EST

FILE - FIFA President Gianni Infantino, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin pose for cameras at the FIFA congress on the eve of the opener of the 2018 soccer World Cup in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, June 13, 2018. In a sweeping move to isolate and condemn Russia after invading Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee urged sports bodies on Monday to exclude the country's athletes and officials from international events. The decision opened the way for FIFA, the governing body of soccer, to exclude Russia from a World Cup qualifying playoff match on March 24. Poland has refused to play the scheduled game against Russia. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)
COLUMN: Will sports ever stop cozying up to strongmen?

By Jim Litke Mar. 03, 2022 07:05 PM EST

FILE - International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, left, talks during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Second European Games in Minsk, Belarus, June 30, 2019. In a sweeping move to isolate and condemn Russia after invading Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee urged sports bodies on Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, to exclude the country's athletes and officials from international events. (Sergey Bobylev, TASS/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)
Russia facing sports isolation over invasion of Ukraine

By Graham Dunbar Feb. 28, 2022 06:57 AM EST

FILE - A general view of the St. Petersburg Stadium prior to the Confederations Cup soccer match between New Zealand and Portugal, in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 24, 2017. The British government led calls Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022 for the Champions League final to be taken off Russia by European football's governing body to punish its deepening intervention in Ukraine. The showpiece men's game is due to be played in St. Petersburg on May 28 for the biggest sporting event in Russia since the 2018 World Cup.(AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, file)
Euro backlash as FIFA refuses to expel Russia from football

By Rob Harris Feb. 27, 2022 05:53 AM EST

A soldier's helmet with a bullet hole near debris of burning military trucks, in a street in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022. Russian troops stormed toward Ukraine's capital Saturday, and street fighting broke out as city officials urged residents to take shelter. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
Poland, Sweden refuse to play Russia in World Cup playoffs

Feb. 26, 2022 11:43 AM EST

FILE - FIFA president Gianni Infantino speaks during the Confederation of African Football general assembly in Cairo, Egypt, July 18, 2019. Infantino has linked his plan for biennial World Cups to giving more hope to African people who currently risk their lives crossing the sea to Europe. Infantino's comments were in a speech to European lawmakers in Strasbourg, France on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, file)
Olympic members unite against Infantino's World Cup plan

By Graham Dunbar Feb. 02, 2022 10:27 PM EST

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, center, prepares to present the trophy to Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal midfielder Salman Al-Faraj, left, after winning the AFC Champions League final soccer match against South Korea's Pohang Steelers 2-0, at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
FIFA touts billions to be gained from biennial World Cups

By Rob Harris And Graham Dunbar Dec. 20, 2021 10:36 AM EST

Protesters hold Tibetan flags during a protest against Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics by activists of the Tibetan Youth Association in Europe front of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021. (Jean-Guy Python/Keystone via AP)
Olympic leaders criticize FIFA as activists target meeting

By Graham Dunbar Dec. 11, 2021 10:12 AM EST

Italy's Jorginho passes the ball as Switzerland's Remo Freuler closes him down during the World Cup 2022 group C qualifying soccer match between Italy and Switzerland at Rome's Olympic stadium, Friday, Nov. 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
FIFA publishes shortlists for annual best player awards

Nov. 22, 2021 01:09 PM EST

FIFA president Gianni Infantino, left, smiles after receiving the shirt of the Venezuelan soccer team with Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro, right, during his visit at Miraflores Presidential Palace in in Caracas, Venezuela , Friday , Oct 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Infantino says biennial WCups can bring youth back to soccer

By Rob Harris Oct. 20, 2021 08:25 AM EDT

El presidente de la FIFA, Gianni Infantino, sonríe luego que el mandatario venezolano Nicolás Maduro le obsequia una camiseta de la selección, el viernes 15 de octubre de 2021, en Caracas. (AP Foto/Ariana Cubillos)
Quitting FIFA mulled in Europe to fight biennial World Cups

By Rob Harris Oct. 19, 2021 05:56 PM EDT

Wolfsburg's Dominique Janssen, center left, celebrates with teammates after scoring during the Women's Champions League group A soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Servette FC Chenois at AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021. (Swen Pf'rtner/dpa via AP)
Ellis says biennial Women's World Cup can help grow the game

By Anne M. Peterson Oct. 18, 2021 03:22 PM EDT

FIFA president Gianni Infantino, left, smiles after receiving the shirt of the Venezuelan soccer team with Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro, right, during his visit at Miraflores Presidential Palace in in Caracas, Venezuela , Friday , Oct 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Atletico Venezuela vs Caracas FC 10/14/2021

Oct. 16, 2021 03:36 PM EDT

FIFA president Gianni Infantino, left, smiles after receiving the shirt of the Venezuelan soccer team with Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro, right, during his visit at Miraflores Presidential Palace in in Caracas, Venezuela , Friday , Oct 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
IOC voices Olympic concern at FIFA's biennial World Cup plan

By Graham Dunbar Oct. 16, 2021 03:31 PM EDT

FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 file photo, UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin listens to reporter's questions during a press conference at the end of the 43rd UEFA congress in Rome. Ceferin says he has “grave concerns” about FIFA’s plans to stage World Cups every two years and is astonished by the lack of consultation by Gianni Infantino’s governing body. The comments were made in a letter to Football Supporters Europe. Ceferin says he backed the group’s “extremely valid and important” concerns about the damage doubling the frequency of World Cups would cause to domestic and regional competitions. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)
UEFA says FIFA snubs request for talks on World Cup concerns

By Rob Harris Sep. 22, 2021 12:05 PM EDT

Sarina Wiegman is unveiled as the new England Women head coach at Wembley Stadium, London, Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021. Setting out on her vision as England manager, Sarina Wiegman was sure of one thing — the Women's World Cup should remain every four years. “The Euros are great, the World Cup is great, the Olympics are great so that is three tournaments," she said, pitchside at Webmley Stadium on Thursday. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
New England coach Wiegman against biennial Women's World Cup

By Rob Harris Sep. 09, 2021 01:51 PM EDT

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech during a Politburo meeting in Pyongyang, North Korea Thursday, Sept. 2, 2021. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
IOC suspends NKorea from Beijing Olympics for Tokyo no-show

By Graham Dunbar Sep. 08, 2021 01:49 PM EDT