Football arrests continued to rise last season although the latest increase can be attributed to the addition of drug possession as an offence under the Football Spectators Act, new figures from the Home Office show.
There were a total of 2,264 football-related arrests during the 2022-23 season, up from what was already an eight-year high of 2,198 the previous campaign.
But that increased figure included 200 arrests for the possession of class A drugs, added as an offence under the Football Spectators Act in November 2022, and 101 arrests in England and Wales that related to the World Cup in Qatar.
The figures released on Thursday counted arrests made in England and Wales relating to fixtures played overseas for the first time.
The rise in the number of a…
Chelsea maintained their European charge with a fourth successive win on Wednesday, overcoming Brighton by a 2-1 scoreline at the Amex Stadium.
Cole Palmer’s excellent header – his 22nd Premier League goal of a fine debut campaign at Stamford Bridge – put the Blues ahead after they had been denied an early penalty by a VAR review.
Both sides enjoyed plenty of chances with Pascal Gross going particularly close for Brighton, but Christopher Nkunku pounced to give Chelsea breathing room in the second half.
Chelsea captain Reece James was sent off for a petulant kick on Joao Pedro late on and Danny Welbeck halved the arrears in stoppage time, but the visitors held on to ensure a top-six finish remains in their hands going into the final day.
A vital …
David Raya saved two penalties as Arsenal beat Porto 4-2 in a shoot-out to reach their first Champions League quarter-final in 14 years.
Leandro Trossard’s first-half strike cancelled out a first-leg deficit but Mikel Arteta’s side then struggled to create chances to win the game as the tie finished 1-1 on aggregate.
All four of Arsenal’s penalty takers were faultless as Raya kept out spot-kicks from Wendell and Galeno to take the Premier League leaders past the last-16 stage for the first time since 2010.
As a player, Arteta suffered four straight defeats in this round of the competition but – having ended Arsenal’s seven-year Champions League exile – he has now guided his side into the final eight.
They could yet face rivals Manchester City,…
Italian boss Antonio Conte has illustrated his tactical acumen at Euro 2016
Last season was a nightmare that Chelsea fans are still just waking up from. Somehow the Blues went from champions to a team that eventually finished 10th in the table after briefly flirting with the relegation zone.
The appointment of the highly-controversial, but successful Italian boss Antonio Conte is regarded as a gamble by some.
If there were any doubts about Conte’s ability to be successful then Italy’s overachievement at Euro 2016 will bear testament to the Italian’s work.
It is all about preparation
During his time as Juventus boss he built a reputation as a shrewd tactician who got the best out of his players. His preparation for games is reported to be me…
Mauricio Pochettino believes Raheem Sterling can prove Gareth Southgate was wrong to leave him out of another England squad after the Chelsea forward inspired his side to a 4-1 come-from-behind win at Burnley.
Days after Southgate left him out of the squad for next week’s internationals, Sterling took his frustrations out on his old Manchester City team-mate Vincent Kompany and Burnley, having a hand in all four Chelsea goals, scoring one.
Sterling has not played for England since last year’s World Cup, and although fitness accounted for his absence in March and he asked not to play in June while he focused on getting fully back up to speed, Southgate has now chosen to leave him out of the last two squads.
But at Turf Moor he showed what England are missing a…
VAR will be introduced to the Premier League from the start of the 2019-20 season pending approval from FIFA and the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
Premier League clubs discussed the prospect at a shareholder s meeting and agreed in principle to follow the lead set in Serie A, the Bundesliga and Ligue 1.
VAR has been met with mixed reviews but a largely smooth implementation at the World Cup in Russia helped to resolve doubts over its effectiveness.
The technology is already present in the FA Cup and EFL Cup, and UEFA has confirmed it will be introduced to the Champions League next season.
The move requires ratification from FIFA and the law-making IFAB before being cleared to debut in the top flight of English football.
A Premi…
We are now a full week into Euro 2024, and the tournament continues to serve up plenty of entertainment – sometimes in the places fans least expect.
While there was nothing to separate the Netherlands and France in a dour goalless draw on Friday, Austria put on a show in Group D s other match, eliminating Poland with a 3-1 win.
Earlier on, there were emotional scenes as Ukraine claimed their first major tournament win since Euro 2020, fighting back to beat Slovakia 2-1 in Group C.
There was also plenty more happening away from the pitch, and we run through the best of the day s content here, in our social media round-up.
Tears of joy for Ukraine
Ukraine s first game at the tournament fell flat as they were thrashed 3-0 by Romania, and they were…
Barcelona suffered their first LaLiga defeat of the season after going down 4-2 against Osasuna at Estadio El Sadar.
Ante Budimir scored twice, while Bryan Zaragoza and substitute Abel Bretones were also on target for the hosts, who claimed their first league win over the Blaugrana in nine attempts.
Osasuna were unbeaten in their six previous home league games and took an 18th-minute lead when Budimir nodded home from Zaragoza s cross.
The latter, who is on loan from Bayern Munich, doubled the advantage 10 minutes later when he rounded off a swift counter.
Pau Victor halved the deficit eight minutes after the restart, but Budimir s 72nd-minute penalty put the hosts back in control, before Bretones made it 4-1 with seven minutes remaining.
Lamine Y…
PSV Eindhoven are in talks with Ivan Perisic over the possibility of the Croatian winger joining the club as a free agent, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Perisic, 35, has had an extremely illustrious career. Having started as a youthful talent at Hajduk Split, he played for Sochaux in France, and KSV Roeselare and Club Brugge in Belgium, before moving to Germany to join Borussia Dortmund in 2011. He spent 18 months there and 18 months at Wolfsburg, and made a notable mark over four years with Inter Milan. He had a loan spell with Bayern Munich, winning the 2020 Champions League with the Bavarians. He then returned to Inter and spent another two years there, before leaving as a free agent to join Tottenham Hotspur. In January this year, he returned on loan to Hajduk and signed a …
Lionel Messi finally secured his holy grail this weekend as Argentina claimed a 1-0 win over bitter rivals Brazil at the Maracana to lift the Copa America.
The six-time Ballon d Or winner has cleaned up time and again with club side Barcelona but major honours at international level had repeatedly proved elusive.
Germany beat the Albiceleste 1-0 after extra time in the 2014 World Cup final, after which Messi was named player of the tournament – a much disputed award given he appeared to be shadow of himself during the closing knockout stages.
The same could not be said when the 34-year-old lifted the individual gong in Rio. Although he was not Argentina s standout performer in the final, Messi was a man on a mission who would not be denied throughout the com…