Good morning football fans. It’s Tuesday, Mar. 31 - A new survey suggests the majority of fans oppose VAR, a high-profile court ruling between Cardiff City and Nantes has been dismissed, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURES
FIFA World Cup Qualifying play-offs finals (Mar 31 at 19:45 GMT / 14:45 ET): Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Italy. The visitors have averaged over two goals per game under Gennaro Gattuso but suffered two three-goal defeats in qualifying, while Bosnia-Herzegovina reached the final via penalties and sits 58 places below their opponents in the Fifa rankings. Czech Republic vs. Denmark. Denmark will be full of confidence after their 4-0 semi-final win over North Macedonia, while the Czech Republic aim to make it four straight wins and continue their strong qualifying run. Kosovo vs. Turkey. Kosovo enter the match in strong form after winning three of five qualifiers and a 4-3 semi-final win, while Turkey have been similarly consistent with four wins and one draw in their group and a 1-0 victory in their semi-final. Sweden vs. Poland. Sweden head into the match off the back of a 3-1 semi-final win despite going winless in qualifying, while Poland arrive in stronger form, unbeaten in seven under Jan Urban. See Opta’s model predict who will qualify here.
There are many international friendlies taking place on Tuesday (Mar 31), including England vs Japan, Spain vs Egypt, and Scotland vs Ivory Coast. See the full list of friendly matches here.
TOP TALKING POINTS
Fans Oppose VAR, study finds
Three-quarters of fans don’t want VAR to be used in the Premier League, according to a new survey. In a poll of just under 8,000 fans, including many matchgoers, only 2% agreed with the statement that VAR “makes football more enjoyable”, while more than 90% believed the game was better off without it. Around 86% of fans are also worried about the expansion of VAR’s remit as football’s lawmakers have now approved plans to allow the technology to be used for corner kicks and second yellow cards.
While more than 72% of fans disagree that VAR has made refereeing more accurate, the independent key match incident (KMI) review panel estimates an accuracy rate of 96-97% for refereeing decisions in Premier League matches since the introduction of VAR. The panel also says time delays caused by VAR have fallen by 25% in the past two seasons.
In a statement responding to the results, the Premier League said: “As part of ongoing dialogue with supporters, Premier League research indicates fans are largely in favour of keeping VAR, but improving the way it is used." There is little prospect of VAR being removed from the English top-flight, or even its remit being reduced, the BBC reports. This is due to the requirement that 14 of the 20 clubs vote in favour of scrapping VAR, but 19 clubs voted to keep VAR in 2024, with only Wolves voting against.
Long-Standing Case Closed
A French judge has dismissed Cardiff City’s claim for more than €120m (£104m; $137m) compensation from FC Nantes following the death of footballer Emiliano Sala on 21 January 2019. The 28-year-old forward was signed by Cardiff from Nantes for a club-record fee of €17m, but the plane he and his pilot were travelling in to his new club crashed into the sea near the Channel Islands of Guernsey.
Cardiff were claiming compensation for two main reasons. Firstly, they argued that people connected to FC Nantes were involved in arranging or facilitating a flight on which neither the aircraft nor the pilot was authorised, and which was later deemed an illegal charter. Secondly, the Welsh club claimed it suffered financially. Although they were required to pay the transfer fee for Emiliano Sala, they were relegated from the Premier League that season and believed Sala could have helped them avoid relegation. Nantes denied any wrongdoing.
The court, however, ruled that the French club was not at fault and that Cardiff also did not suffer reputational damages. The court ruled that Nantes were the ones who suffered moral damages and ordered Cardiff to pay €300,000 in damages, plus an additional €180,000 for legal costs.
Landmark Protections for Female Footballers
Female footballers - and other female athletes - in the UK will soon have significantly improved insurance cover that includes pregnancy, contraception, menopause, and other health conditions specific to women. The changes are being introduced following recommendations from the Karen Carney review into women’s football published in July 2023, and are part of the UK government's “decade of change” for women and girls’ sport.
The aim is to remove “blind spots” in insurance that previously failed to account for female-specific health needs. This includes conditions that disproportionately affect women, such as relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S), a complex syndrome caused by low energy availability. Insurance industry groups, including the British Insurance Brokers’ Association, are working with major brokers to add coverage that had previously been excluded.
The Carney review also led to the introduction of a minimum salary in the top two tiers of professional women’s football for the first time. The Women's Super League introduced a mandatory minimum salary from the 2025-26 season, with senior players aged 23 and above guaranteed at least £40,000 per year.
POLL
Do you think VAR should be completely scrapped? (Relates to Story 1 above)
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Tottenham Hotspur are in talks with Roberto de Zerbi in a bid to make him their new permanent head coach (More); dive deeper into analysis on the key tactical focuses for de Zerbi (More)
> The cheapest Euro 2028 tickets will cost £26 ($34), with 1.2 million tickets available at this price and at £52 ($69), as Uefa freezes prices for the tournament (More)
> Atletico Madrid are trying to renew Julian Alvarez’s contract, offering the Argentine €10m a year to make him the highest-paid player at the club (More/in Spanish only)
> PSG’s Desire Doue scored his first senior goals for France as they beat Colombia in a 3-1 friendly win (More) | Paris’ new mayor said he aims to resolve the ongoing negotiations with PSG and the future of the Parc des Princes stadium as his predecessor ruled out selling the stadium to the club (More)
Americas
> Football fans attending the World Cup risk being confronted with “troubling attacks on human rights,” Amnesty International has warned (More)
> Mauricio Pochettino says he might be open to remaining as U.S. coach beyond this summer’s World Cup (More)
> NWSL’s San Diego Wave have signed USWNT forward Catarina Macario from Chelsea in a deal worth $8m, the biggest total contract value in the history of women’s football (More)
> Inter Miami will open its new 26,700-seat Nu Stadium on Saturday (April 4) against Austin FC (More) | Egypt’s national team director has warned Mohamed Salah against moving to the MLS, claiming it would see the forward fade into obscurity (More)
Rest of the World
> The Africa Cup of Nations is set to be increased to 28 teams from 24, CAF president Patrice Motsepe said (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Has the international break made you more or less confident about your country going into the World Cup?
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 💪 More confident (17%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 😬 Less confident (80%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
😬 P.A: “I didn't care for this group of US players going in. I think they lack character. Key individuals took too much time off and often don't even play much for the clubs where they work. I think they have poor characters in leadership.”
😬 M.T: “The US looked lifeless in the 2nd half against Belgium! Conceding right before the half to give up the 1-0 lead was a gut punch, but we did not respond at all in the 2nd. Very disappointing. I understand we were missing 3-4 starters, but come on, professional footballers ought to have some pride and at least put up a fight. Gonna be a long summer.”
✍️ D.W: “Neither more nor less confident, as friendlies are just a mantle to assess fringe players. Our [England’s] two games against Uruguay and Japan, respectively, did not and will not define our World Cup.”
EXTRA TIME
How Fabregas’ Como is trying to be the next Disney.
Nike’s best World Cup kits.
Malta aims to build an ambitious new stadium.
Marseille unveil new club crest. (side-by-side comparison)
Who is one card away from suspension in the Premier League?
How Africa had to fight for its place at the World Cup.
GAME FACE ON
Question: In what year did Spain win their first World Cup?
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
The World Cup winner is not who scores the most goals, it’s who concedes fewer goals.
Answer
2010.
