Berlin’s Olympiastadion hosted the 1936 Olympic Games and the final of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, but has never been awarded one of UEFA’s main events. Germany has hosted the Champions League final on four previous occasions, in Munich in 1993, 1997 and 2012 and Gelsenkirchen in 2004. “I had expressed our wish during the 2012 final in Munich to (UEFA president) Michel Platini that we would like to again host such a global event pretty soon,” said German Football Federation (DFB) president Wolfgang Niersbach. “It is recognition of our abilities as organisers and hosts that this will now happen so soon. I thank UEFA for the trust and promise a superb football celebration in Berlin.”

The award of the 2015 Europa League final to Warsaw’s National Stadium comes after the facility was developed as a key host venue for Euro 2012, staging the opening game and the semi-final which saw Italy defeat Germany 2-1. Polish Football Association president Zbigniew Boniek said: “Needless to say this prestigious sporting event will be important for the promotion of the Polish Football Association, the city of Warsaw, our country, our society and culture. To get the possibility to organise competitions such as the Europa League final in 2015, you must have the great confidence of management bodies like UEFA.” UEFA last year awarded the 2014 Champions League final to the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica in Lisbon, Portugal, while Juventus Stadium in Turin, Italy, will stage next year’s Europa League finale.

In other news, UEFA is expected to confirm a shake-up of the Europa League today which will see the winning team earn a lucrative place in the Champions League from 2015. The Europa League is a reincarnation of the UEFA Cup, which was rebranded and restructured ahead of the 2009-10 campaign, but has continually suffered by being painted as the poor relation to the Champions League, while a huge financial chasm exists between the two competitions.

United, which won the Premier League title earlier this month, has secured a new loan from Bank of America with lower interest rates than its previous arrangement. The Associated Press reported that United had refinanced £177.78 million of outstanding 8.75% interest sterling bonds and US$22.09 million (£14.6 million) of 8.375% dollar bonds.

The new loan, which will start on June 24, will have an estimated starting interest rate of about 2.78%. The club, which has a total debt of £370 million, will see its interest payments reduce by about £10 million to £21 million per year.

United, which is owned by the Glazer family and listed on the New York Stock Exchange, has halved its total debt over the past three years. Majid Ishaq, managing director of financial advisory group Rothschild, told the AP: “They are in a position today where they have gone back to the market to refinance that particular part of the financing on very attractive terms because they have really delivered, and grown the underlying revenue and profitability.”

The Japanese electronics giant sponsored the Campinas-based club during the 2012 Brazilian season and will now have its brand displayed on the chest and back of Ponte Preta’s shirts during the 2013 Serie A campaign, which kicks off at the weekend.

Both Ponte Preta and Hitachi said the new deal has been struck with a view to expanding it to involve the club’s bid to develop a new 30,000-seat stadium. Ponte Preta currently plays at the Estádio Moisés Lucarelli, which first opened in 1948 and has a capacity of under 20,000. “We made this contract until the end of 2013 because Hitachi has an interest in participating in the Complexo Arena Ponte Preta project,” said Ponte Preta president Marcio Della Volpe. “If this comes to fruition, we will have to consider this partnership on a new wider contract.”

Toshiro Iwayama, chief executive of Hitachi Brasil, added: “Ponte told us about the project and we are interested. Of course having the name of Hitachi in an arena would be a dream, but as we are producers I believe we can make a partnership using our products.”

The Athens club, which finished sixth in the 16-team league last season, has had its licence application rejected along with Aris Salonica, PAS Giannina, OFI Crete, Panionios and Panthrakikos. Relegated Kerkyra and AEK Athens, who had submitted applications before their demotion was confirmed, also saw their applications denied.

“It was with much surprise that we were informed of the EPO’s licensing committee decision regarding the new season,” said Panathinaikos in a statement. “Panathinaikos produced full evidence… demonstrating its viability and guarantees for the present and the future. The club has taken all the necessary steps in recent months as requested by UEFA and the relative institutions in order to present a complete file for our application. Panathinaikos is confident that its appeal will be vindicated by the appeals body.”

The latest development comes after Saudi Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz Nasser bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in January announced he had withdrawn his offer to acquire the financially-troubled club. The prince had claimed he would invest Eur28 million into Panathinaikos if he was permitted to secure a minimum of 67.5% of the team’s shares and replace its board of directors. He then said he would invest a further Eur150 million into the development of a new stadium and provide Eur40 million in transfer funds. Panathinaikos began a new era under fan ownership in July 2012 after the ‘Panathinaikos Alliance’ group completed its takeover of the club.

The partnership began in 2007 when Hyundai initiated the ‘Goals for Grassroots’ programme to support local clubs in communities across the country in areas such as equipment procurement, grounds maintenance and uniform purchase. The car company has sponsored FFA’s top-tier A-League since 2004.

“In 2004 Hyundai Motor Company showed vision and confidence in the potential of football in Australia,” FFA chief executive David Gallop. “Without the commitment of Hyundai we would not have been able to increase the national fan base and see the sport continue to thrive and grow.”

John Elsworth, chief operating officer of Hyundai Motor Company Australia, added: “The ongoing support of the grassroots fans, players and the greater football community has seen this program develop into an integral part of the League, one which we are very proud to be a part of.”

The one-year deal will take effect from the 2013-14 season, with Lebara keen to leverage its status as one of Europe’s leading mobile telecoms operators for foreign nationals through its partnership with Dortmund. Lebara’s sponsorship will be centred on the club’s home in the heart of the North Rhine-Westphalia region -the most populous area in Germany for both migrant and native communities. Of the 1.08 million migrants who came to Germany in 2012 around 186,000 moved to this region. Lebara said it selected the club for its first venture into football sponsorship because the team also has an international profile with 60% of its followers coming from outside Germany. Many of the club’s key players are from similar ethnic backgrounds to Lebara’s customer communities. The company hopes its partnership with the club will enable it to increase engagement levels with existing customers as well as attract new customers both within Germany and further afield.

David Moffatt, CEO of Lebara Group, said: “Our business is not only about providing high-quality, low cost national and international calling, data and related services around the world; it’s about giving something back to our customers. In this case, through the common language of football. Our partnership with one of the world’s top international football clubs provides a valuable platform for our business to further extend its reach into the migrant community in Germany – our fastest-growing region, but also to tap into other migrant hotspots elsewhere in Europe.”

Lebara added that the sponsorship will strengthen its foothold in the city of Dortmund as well as reach new customers in the Polish, Croatian and Turkish markets. Although exact details of the sponsorship have not yet been confirmed, the company may launch an exclusively packaged Lebara Mobile ‘BVB 09 SIM card’. “This is a fantastic opportunity for our club and we are proud to have been selected as Lebara’s first partner in the competitive world of international football,” said Hans-Joachim Watzke, CEO of Borussia Dortmund. “Lebara encourages people to participate and share in each other’s cultures and these are interests also represented by the values of our club. This marks the start of what we hope will be a long and successful partnership which will help grow both our brands in key markets in Europe and beyond.”

Seifert, speaking in London ahead of the all-German UEFA Champions League final between Bayern Munchen and Borussia Dortmund, said staging the tournament in the Qatari summer could endanger the health of players and fans. “The priority is always first the health of the players and this is what makes me most upset that the decision was done that ignores probably the health of the players and that ignores what is real in the game,” said Seifert, according to the Associated Press. “If you make a decision which is so far away from the sports perspective if it turns out only to become, let’s say, politically driven, sports politics decision, then this is not good for the game…I’m not sure of the credibility of FIFA. Maybe first they should change the claim – because this (Qatar) is not for the good of the game.”

Seifert’s comments come after FIFA president Sepp Blatter last week cast further doubt on Qatar retaining its summer calendar slot for the 2022 World Cup by stating that it is not “rational or reasonable” for the tournament to be staged in June or July. Qatar 2022 last month stepped up its commitment to hosting the World Cup in its traditional summer calendar slot with general secretary Hassan al-Thawadi stating the much-talked about heat issue was well documented when the country won the right to stage the tournament. Qatar 2022 has previously reiterated that it would listen to demands for a winter tournament but is committed to implementing the technology needed for a traditional summer event.

If a decision was made to stage a winter World Cup, the switch would have a severe effect on the European football calendar – a factor that Seifert acknowledges. “From other leagues I do have the feeling they are also very upset with the situation – that the decision was done and that a four-week tournament effects maybe three years of running of professional football leagues in Europe,” he said. “It shows me that FIFA, as a body which says what’s good for the game, ignores completely the day-by-day basis in those leagues who are effectively the core and the heart of football – not the tournament that comes up every four years.” Moving the dates to winter could also spark calls for a re-vote, the DFL chief believes. “I am absolutely sure if countries like England see a chance of a re-vote they will force a re-vote,” he added.

Rapid and Malaga were two of eight clubs that had been sanctioned by UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) in December due to the presence of significant overdue payables. The clubs had to settle payments by March 31 in order to avoid the application of the suspended sanctions set out by the CFCB.

UEFA said that Malaga, along with Croatia’s Hajduk Split and NK Osijek, Romania’s Dinamo Bucharest and Serbia’s Partizan Belgrade and FK Vojvodina have fulfilled all conditions imposed by the CFCB and therefore all suspended sanctions that had been imposed will not apply. However, Rapid and Ukraine’s Arsenal Kyiv failed to meet these conditions and have had their punishments upheld. Rapid has been fined Eur100,000 and is excluded from participating in the next UEFA club competition for which the club would qualify in the next three seasons. Arsenal Kyiv has been fined a total amount of Eur75,000.

Spanish Primera Division club Malaga has had its second suspended one-year ban overturned, but still faces the prospect of being barred from European competition next season should it qualify for the Europa League. Malaga in January confirmed it had lodged an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against UEFA’s decision to impose the minimum one-season ban from European competition for infringing financial fair play (FFP) guidelines. The Qatari-owned club reached the quarter finals of this season’s Champions League.

The new home of Russian Premier League club Zenit St. Petersburg was originally scheduled to open in 2008, but has suffered repeated delays. Audit Chamber head Sergei Stepashin had said that the best-case scenario would see the US$1.1 billion arena finished in late 2016 or early 2017 because the city has failed to take into account unspecified “operational decisions” and damp might have set in through parts of the stadium already constructed.

However, Oganesyan has maintained the projected completion date of 2015, with the opening set for 2016, will be maintained. “In 2016 commissioning work will be carried out so the arena can come online,” said Oganesyan, according to Russian news agency RIA Novosti. The stadium had been projected to cost $1.3 billion, over three times its original budget, which would have seen it overtake London’s Wembley Stadium as the world’s most expensive football venue. The figure was reduced in March and Stepashin said this should be treated as a success for his auditing operation. “We’ve reduced the cost of the stadium, but it’s like Wembley, it’s very expensive,” he added.

The stadium is set to play a key role during Russia’s hosting of the World Cup where it will stage a semi-final, along with the opening match and final of the 2017 Confederations Cup.

The German sportswear giant returns to partner Goiás during its 2013 season after previously backing the club in 2006 and 2007, a period in which it managed to reach the quarter-final of the Copa Libertadores and eighth place in the Brasileiro. After lifting the Serie B title last year, Goiás kicks off its top flight campaign with a trip to Cruzeiro on Sunday.

“After a year of hard work, we managed to bring Goiás back to Serie A of the Brasileiro,” said club president João Bosco Luz. “Consequently, we were approached by Puma and can again compose a partnership that has brought extraordinary results in the past.”

President of Puma Brasil, Roberto Goldminc, added: “A month ago we closed a deal with Paysandu, the Northern club that has the largest number of fans, and now we again have partnered with the largest in the Midwest. Such expansion is crucial for truly national brand exposure.”