Pozzi and Holloway Confirmed for World-Class Hurdles Clash in Birmingham

Andrew Pozzi (GBR) and Grant Holloway (USA), the reigning world indoor champion and world record-holder over 60m hurdles respectively, will line up at the Müller Indoor Grand Prix Birmingham – a World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting – at the Utilita Arena on 19 February.

Pozzi, who won the global 60m hurdles title in Birmingham in 2018, finished seventh in the 110m hurdles at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Pre-sales launch for British Basketball Trophy Finals

With a record-breaking crowd of close to 6,000 spectators attending the 2022 British Basketball League Trophy Finals at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena earlier this year, the British Basketball League (BBL) are delighted to confirm the WBBL/BBL Trophy Finals will be returning to Scotland for next year’s Finals, with tickets available via pre-sale on 17th August.

Preethi Pal becomes first Indian woman to win two Paralympic athletics medals

Preethi Pal became the first Indian woman to win two Paralympic medals in track and field events, having bagged a bronze in the women’s 200 T35 class at Paris 2024 yesterday.

Prejudice and abuse a ‘major’ issue

Prejudice towards women playing football is a “continuous issue across many regions of the world” and too many face adverse labour conditions, say world players’ union Fifpro.

In a released report, Fifpro found that “discrimination, sexual harassment and abuse” are major issue.

The union also surveyed 186 players from the 2019 Women’s World Cup.

Of those, more than half said that they are not enough support staff at clubs.

The union called for the introduction of global standards for players as they say adverse labour conditions “still plagues the women’s game.

Of the 186 elite women players questioned in the survey, 51% said that there were not enough staff at their club to fulfil their playing needs. 41% said they do not receive health insurance from their club, while only 3% received help to relocate after a transfer and 17% said that they received no non-financial benefits from their clubs.

A spokesperson for Women in Football said: “We regularly support women who face discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace.

“The significant increase in the number of sexist reports received by us is of concern, but sadly not a great surprise.

“What is clear is that this is just the tip of the iceberg: for every offensive tweet or comment posted and reported to us, there are dozens that are not. And we know from our 2016 research, that women who experience sexism at work rarely report it – just 1 in 10 according to our landmark industry survey”.

Premier League agrees record £6.7bn domestic TV rights deal

The Premier League has agreed a new record £6.7bn domestic television deal for Sky and TNT to show up to 270 live games a season.

Premier League and EFL agree rescue package amounting to £250m

The Premier League and English Football League have agreed a £250m rescue package to help ease the financial challenge faced by EFL clubs as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The EFL will be assisted in getting a £200m loan for Championship clubs.

A £50m grant has been agreed for League One and Two clubs.

EFL chairman Rick Parry said it was a "welcome, tangible commitment to the professional game at a time when it has needed it most". The Premier League will pay up to £15m to help the EFL secure a £200m loan which it will then lend to Championship clubs interest free.

Loans are capped at £8.33m per club and must be repaid by June 2024.

The £50m rescue package for Leagues One and Two is split into two parts - £30m will be paid to the 48 clubs as a grant based on missed gate receipts from the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. A further £20m monitored grant will be provided and clubs can apply based on need. A joint Premier League and EFL panel will determine club eligibility.

Clubs receiving a monitored grant will be subject to restrictions with respect to transfer spend and player wages.

"Our over-arching aim throughout this process has been to ensure that all EFL clubs survive the financial impact of the pandemic," said Parry. "I am pleased that we have now reached a resolution on behalf of our clubs and, as we have maintained throughout, this will provide much-needed support and clarity following months of uncertainty." Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said: "The Premier League is a huge supporter of the football pyramid and is well aware of the important role clubs play in their communities. Our commitment is that no EFL club need go out of business due to Covid-19.

"We are very pleased to have reached this agreement and we stand together with the EFL in our commitment to protect all clubs in these unprecedented times." Since March, football has been played behind closed doors until restrictions were lifted in some areas of England this week, meaning clubs have missed out on vital matchday revenue. In October, EFL clubs rejected the Premier League's proposed £50m rescue package for League One and Two clubs, saying it "falls some way short" of the required amount. Top-flight clubs made the offer after deciding not to pursue Project Big Picture. But in November, clubs "agreed in principle" for those in League One and Two to receive the package from the Premier League.

The agreement came two days after after a parliamentary committee heard that 10 EFL clubs were struggling to pay wages. The EFL board approved the deal before Premier League shareholders then gave their final approval to the agreement.

"I warmly welcome this deal between the Premier League and the EFL which provides up to £250m support to help clubs through Covid," said culture secretary Oliver Dowden. "Fans are starting to return and we look forward to building on this as soon as it's safe.

"With a £250m support package for men's elite football and £300m government funding for women's football, the National League and other major spectator sports, we have fuel in the tank to get clubs and sports through this."

Julian Knight MP, chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, said he welcomed the rescue package but criticised the delay in agreeing the deal, adding: "This fiasco is evidence of a lack of accountability within football's governance structure."

Premier League braces for record ACL injuries with ten players already out in 2024-25

A growing number of injuries in professional football has raised an alarm this season.

Premier League clubs fail in agreement over EFL funding deal

A meeting between Premier League clubs ended without an agreement on a 'New Deal' for EFL funding.

Premier League clubs spent just £100m in January 2024 - expect a much bigger outlay this month!

The January transfer window has officially opened, and one can expect a considerable amount of transfer activity in the Premier League.

Premier League clubs spent nearly €24b on transfers since 2000

The Premier League clubs set another transfer spending record this year thanks to surging broadcasting revenues and owners with deep pockets. Before the summer transfer window closed, England’s top-flight clubs spent €2.2bn on players, nearly as Italian Serie A, Spain’s La Liga, the German Bundesliga, and French Ligue 1 combined. However, that is one-tenth of the amount England's top-tier football clubs spent on transfers over the past two decades.

Premier league clubs with the best and worst value for money players - where does your team rank?

The British transfer record was shattered twice by Chelsea last year with the signings of Enzo Fernandes and Moisés Caicedo, costing the Blues a staggering total of £221.8 million. Meanwhile, Manchester United was found to have overpaid by £208 millionon transfers over the last decade. 

Premier League inducts first two in its Hall of Fame

The English Premier League will be inducting its first two Hall of Fame names this month with a shortlist of nominees to be announced for future inclusion, voted for by fans.

It will be separate to the English Football Hall of Fame, which has existed since 2002 at the National Football Museum.

The Premier League version will recognise players of "exceptional skill and talent" from home and worldwide who have played in the game’s top tier since it began in 1992 – with candidates who have retired and whose Premier League career comes into consideration.

Each inductee will receive a personalised medallion, engraved with the year of their induction.

Premier League Chief Executive, Richard Masters, said: "The Premier League Hall of Fame is reserved for the very best in the game and will be an occasion for our fans around the world to look back over the years and help us celebrate some truly exceptional playing careers."

The likes of legends such as former Manchester United star, Ryan Giggs, Arsenal’s Thierry Henry and former Southampton, Blackburn and Newcastle United’s record-breaking striker, Alan Shearer were the first suggested names on the list of world-class players to have graced the Premier League.

Now, the very best of the best will receive a new highly exclusive honour after the Premier League’s announcement of its first Hall of Fame.

Of course, though, the millions of fans of clubs who have graced the Premier League since its inception, in 1992, have their own individual to put forward.

"Membership of the Premier League Hall of Fame will be the highest individual honor awarded to players by the League," it said in a statement.

As a footnote; on what would have been his 59th birthday - former Norwich City, Nottingham Forest and England striker, Justin Fashanu, was inducted into the National Football Museum's Hall of Fame.

Premier League players launch #PlayersTogether NHS initiative

Players in the English Premier League players have launched a “collective initiative” to help generate funds for the NHS (National Health Service) and distribute them “where they are needed most”.

The initiative – named #PlayersTogether – has been set up to “help those fighting for us an the NHS frontline amid the coronavirus pandemic.

It has partnered with the NHS Charity Together (NHSCT) in which the stars from England’s top echelons will aid in getting funds moved quickly and effectively to where it is needed most.

A collective statement, said to have been headed by Liverpool captain and England star player, Jordan Henderson, and posted by many of the stars playing in that (Premier) League; saw the creation of a contribution fund that is to be used to distribute money to where it is most needed during this crisis that is the coronavirus pandemic.

Gary Linarker, the Match Of The Day presenter and former England striker, said he was proud of the players’ decision, tweeting: ‘Footballers are doing their bit as I knew that tey would.

‘Let’s hope that others that are in a position to help, those that weren’t unfortunately targeted, do likewise.

‘Proud of our players’.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock ‘warmly welcomed’ the 'big-hearted decision’.

On his twitter, he (Hancock) tweeted: ‘Warmly welcomed the big-hearted decision from so many Premier League footballers to create #PlayersTogether to support NHS Charity.

‘You are playing your part’.

Premier League players to replace names with ‘Black Lives Matter’

On their return to action, England’s Premier League clubs are set to replace players’ names on the back of jerseys with the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ for the first games back since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic brought all activities in the UK, and around the world, to a stand-still.

The proposed intention, which is yet to be finalised, is for clubs across the country’s top Division will sport the support for the movement when the league returns on June 17

The decision by the Premier League follows support for the Black Lives Matter movement in the Bundesliga in Germany.

There, Bayern Munich players wore warm-up shirts and armbands with the ‘Black Lives Matter’ message on them, whilst Eintracht Frankfurt wore jerseys with the same message.

Following the lead taken by the Bundesliga, which subsequently followed recommendations by FIFA to not discipline players who were in violation of the Laws of the Game for displays of political or personal slogans on the field, the Football Association in England, who previously indicated that it would take steps against such acts, have said in a statement: “Where any behaviours or gestures on the pitch that may constitute a breach of the laws of the game have to be assessed, they would be reviewed on a case by case basis with a common sense approach and understanding of the context.

“The power of football can break down barriers across communities and we remain deeply committed to remove all forms of discrimination from across the game we all love”.

As coronavirus continues to take hold, in addition, the Premier League club’s jerseys are also set to feature patches that will honour the National Health Service workers for their extensive work during the pandemic.

Premier League side Newcastle United looking to sign free agent Sturridge

Newcastle United are said to be leading a list of English Premier League teams for the signing of former England striker Daniel Sturridge. The Magpies have been offered the chance to sign free agent striker for the remainder of the season.

The 31-year-old has been without a club since March 2020, when his contract with Turkish side Trabzonspor was terminated after just six months at the club. He has been keeping fit whilst mindful of the possibility of a return to football, with a move to Major League Soccer also been suggested.

However, it has been confirmed that the former Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City still yearns for the chance to return to the Premier League. West Bromwich Albion and Sheffield United have both made contact with Sturridge, but Newcastle who have just lost star striker Callum Wilson to a hamstring injury, have been said to be showing the greater interest.

Intermediaries have offered Newcastle the chance to bring in Sturridge on a short-term deal until the end of the season. Sturridge is said to be open to any Premier League offers as he is keen to prove both his fitness and his level, and the interest in him means a potential move could arrive before the current campaign comes to a close.

Newcastle are yet to make a decision on Sturridge, who has 26 England caps was a UEFA Champions League winner with Chelsea, and starred in the Team GB football team during the London 2012 Olympics. They are considering all of their options with top scorer Wilson, with ten goals this year, expected to miss up to two months of action, leaving manager Steve Bruce with only Joelinton, Andy Carroll and Dwight Gayle as senior strikers to choose between.

Starting at Aston Villa, before moving on to Coventry City, at his peak, Sturridge starred for Liverpool as he linked up with Luis Suarez at Anfield, as they formed a deadly partnership, most notably in the 2013/14 season. Injuries have hampered his career since then, but on his day he surely has what it takes to offer something to teams like Newcastle at the lower end of the table.

Premier League teams set a record by scoring 2.85 goals per game in the 2022-23 season

The Premier League is producing more goals than ever. The trend continued in 2022-23, and Premier League sides scored goals at a record rate. According to the figures gathered by SafeBettingSites.com, every PL game witnessed 2.85 goals on average, the best in league history, in the 2022-23 season. Overall, 1084 goals were scored during the 22-23 PL season.

A comparison of Premier League seasons with the best and the worst goalscoring rate reveals a pattern. The three seasons with the best goalscoring rates have happened in the last five years, and no season before 2011-12 features among the top five seasons.

Premier League trumps other top European Leagues with 40k+ average attendance in 2024/25

Among the top five European leagues, the Premier League is attracting the most fans to stadiums in 2024/25.

Premier League witness almost 8 managerial changes every season

The sacking season has begun in the Premier League with the departure of Eric Ten Hag from Manchester United.

Premier League witnessed a record-breaking 3.28 goals per game in 2023-24

The 2023-24 Premier League season has just ended, with Manchester City claiming their fourth consecutive title.

Premier League Wolves launch new music label

Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers have teamed up with Warner Music UK’s Alternative Distribution Alliance (ADA), the multi-award-winning label services division, to launch a ground-breaking new venture as the first UK football club to launch a record label. The label, Wolves Records, is an ambitious and unique proposition that will unite two of the world’s biggest passions – music and football.