Fifa complaint filed

GM football fans. Route One here, and we’re covering complaints about Fifa, potential changes to the transfer market and much more. Enjoy Route One? Share us with a friend on WhatsApp with this link.

TONIGHT’S NATIONS LEAGUE STATS

Scotland vs Portugal (19:45 UK). Scotland’s only win in their last 15 games came against Gibraltar in a friendly. Of their 16 previous meetings, Portugal have won 9 times and Scotland have won 4 times. Poland vs Croatia (19:45 UK). From losing five Nations League matches played out of Croatia, the 2018 World Cup finalists have now won four of their last five taken place outside of their homeland. Spain vs Serbia (19:45 UK). Spain are unbeaten in their past 12 games, but they will miss key players including Rodri, Dani Olmo, Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams. Full list of Nations League fixtures here.

Plus…

• Nations League results (More)

• Ten Premier League matches to look forward to after the international break (More)

• Arsenal have another injury concern during the international break; Martinelli muscle edema (More)

• Chelsea’s Reece James has returned to full training (More)

• Panathinaikos honour George Baldock’s three-year contract following his death (More)

• FA Cup first round draw (More)

• Watford Women draw unique US investment (More)

FIFA COMPLAINT FILED

Player unions and leagues in Europe file complaint against FIFA over congested calendar

A players' union, the European leagues' group and Spain's La Liga accused FIFA of "abuse" as they filed a joint complaint about the governing body's international match schedule. The complaint comes after a number of players hinted at a player strike over workload.

The leagues’ grievance with FIFA is that they have not been fully consulted during talks about expanding the football calendar. Fifa has said its offers of talks this year were not taken up. The global governing body also claims some leagues of hypocrisy as they “prefer a calendar filled with friendlies and summer tours”. 

Fifa has not directly responded to the formal complaint but has repeatedly downplayed the impact of expanded tournaments on player workload. It points to a recent study which suggests that clubs are not playing more matches per season. Opta too said that, for most of Europe, there is no issue with players facing too many matches. But, ultimately, elite player injuries are on the rise – fuelled by the increased intensity of matches and more international fixtures.

POLL

HEAD START

🇳🇬 Nigeria national team stuck in airport for 12 hours. Nigeria pulled out of their game against Libya after being stranded at an airport in the country for 12 hours. The team claims to have had no access to food, drink or phone signal in an alleged attempt by Libya to play mind games before the AFCON 2025 qualifier. Players called for the Nigerian government to rescue them. Bayer Leverkusen forward Victor Boniface wrote a string of social media posts on X about his team’s experience.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Pep doesn’t rule out England job. The Spaniard has been ‘sounded out’ on the England job and is expected to decide on his future in the coming weeks. Separately, speaking on Italian TV show Che Tempo Che Fa, Pep Guardiola said that he’s not made up his mind about leaving Manchester City at the of the season when his contract runs out. When asked about whether he’s interested in the England role, he said “I don’t know either, anything can happen”. It was reported that Gareth Southgate was paid around £5mn a year for the job and Guardiola earns around £20mn at City.

💲Prem floads with crypto money. As regulations tighten around gambling sponsorship, clubs are now looking at crypto companies to fill the revenue gap. Crypto firms have spent a record amount of almost £130mn on deals for the Premier League 2024/25 season. The uptick in advertising spending has come since the crypto companies recovered after a string of collapses in 2022. These companies are now attempting to rebuild their brands by associating with the Premier League.

TRANSFER RULES CHANGING

FIFA is open to changing transfer rules following the Diarra trial verdict, negotiations to start soon

Fifa is open to speaking with the sport's stakeholders about the transfer system after the European Union ruled that some aspects were unlawful. The talks should include the global players’ union FIFPro, plus representatives from clubs, leagues and national federations.

Following the ruling, some analysts speculate that the entire global transfer market will be upended. However, Fifa is adamant that its talks can focus more narrowly on player-club disputes. This includes rules related to when a player terminates a contract “without just cause”. Either way, expect players to have more control over their contracts going forward.

The landmark case that former Real Madrid, Arsenal and Chelsea player Lassana Diarra brought forward is still not finalised. The case now goes back to a local court in Belgium, where a final ruling could take years.

AROUND THE FOOTBALL WORLD

🇳🇴 Norway national team: Erling Haaland suffers the heaviest defeat of his career after Norway lost 5 – 1 to Austria; Norway fans unhappy with Haaland for not speaking after the game as captain (More)

🇸🇦 Saudi Pro League: Neymar has reportedly made significant improvements on his knee recovery and could be fit to play on October 21 (More)

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales national team: Craig Bellamy remains unbeaten as Wales manager in competitive fixtures following their 1 — 0 victory over Montenegro (More)

🇪🇸 La Liga: Athletic Club forward Nico Williams says his number one goal is to fight racism on and off the pitch (More)

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Women’s Super League: Chloe Kelly could leave Manchester City after a breakdown in her relationship with Gareth Taylor (More)

ROUTER’S VOICE

Yesterday, we asked you: Do you think national team managers should come from the same country they represent?

🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ✅ Absolutely, it shouldn't differ from players... (45.5%)

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🌎 Nope, it shouldn't matter... (53.3%)

⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (write in!)... (1.1%)

Your punditry takes:

• 🌎 Z.Z: “If that were the case, countries that are still developing the game domestically and looking for a national identity in their playstyle would never be able to compete.”

• ✅ J.H: “Absolutely, the national team should represent the best that country offers in terms of players and management. That collective is honouring that country at every tournament, you don't see an Olympic team with a different nationality flagbearer?”

• ✅ S.R: “It should be a test of a nation’s entire footballing infrastructure - managers included!”

EXTRA TIME

The clubs with the highest transfer values of players.

Goal line clearance by a water bottle.

Rooney reflects on pictures from his career.

Footage of the Nigeria players stranded in Libyan airport.

Keown and Jordan clash over Lee Carsley.

John Terry’s cameo as goalkeeper. / via X

Who are the Premier League’s luckiest charms?

GAME FACE ON

Question: Who Am I?

• My move to Man Utd was the highest transfer fee paid for a teenager at the time.

• I was named Premier League Player of the Month in my first month in England.

• I had a clause in my contract in case I won the Ballon d’Or before June 2019.

Scroll below for the answer.

ON TODAY

Nations League

• Poland vs Croatia (19:45)

• Scotland vs Portugal (19:45)

• Kosovo vs Cyprus (19:45)

• Lithuania vs Romania (19:45)

• Belarus vs Luxembourg (19:45)

• Spain vs Serbia (19:45)

• Switzerland vs Denmark (19:45)

*All times in UK. EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer

Anthony Martial.