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  • The European Union demands TikTok’s response to Romanian files suggesting Moscow’s role in vote

    The European Union demands TikTok’s response to Romanian files suggesting Moscow’s role in vote

    LONDON — The European Union said Friday it sent TikTok an urgent request for more information about Romanian intelligence files suggesting that Moscow coordinated influencers on its platform to promote an election candidate who became the front-runner in the presidential election.

    The 27-nation bloc’s executive branch is using its sweeping digital rulebook to scrutinize the video sharing platform’s role in the election, which ended with the far-right populist Calin Georgescu coming from out of nowhere to take top spot in the first round of voting.

    Declassified files released by Romanian authorities earlier this week suggest that a pro-Russia campaign used the messaging app Telegram to recruit thousands of TikTok users to promote Georgescu.

    It is unclear from the intelligence release whether Georgescu was aware of the alleged campaign or assisted in it.

    European Commission officials said they asked the video sharing platform to comment on the files and to provide information on actions that it’s taking in response. It’s the second time the commission has asked TikTok for information since the election’s first round of voting on Nov. 24, and comes a day after it ordered the Chinese-owned platform to retain all election-related files and evidence.

    TikTok did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

    “We are concerned about mounting indications of coordinated foreign online influence operation targeting ongoing Romanian elections, especially on TikTok,” Henna Virkkunen, the commission’s executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said in a post on X.

    TikTok has 24 hours to respond to the EU request, officials told a press briefing in Brussels. Georgescu will face pro-EU reformist Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union party in a final vote on Sunday.

    “TikTok needs to step up resources to counter information operations ahead of the election weekend,” Virkkunen said.

    Georgescu’s unexpected rise in the polls has plunged the European Union and NATO country into turmoil and spurred the authorities to release the files.

    Romania’s intelligence services alleged that one TikTok user paid $381,000 to influencers on the platform to promote content about Georgescu. They said they obtained information that “revealed an aggressive promotion campaign” to increase and accelerate the candidate’s popularity.

    Some of the thousands of social media accounts used in the campaign were allegedly created years ago but were only activated in the weeks leading up to the first round vote, the files indicated.

    ___

    AP writer Stephen McGrath in Bucharest contributed to this report.

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  • MPs vote to hold private meeting with Canada Soccer investigator over spying scandal

    MPs vote to hold private meeting with Canada Soccer investigator over spying scandal

    Open this photo in gallery:

    Former Canadian women’s soccer Coach John Herdman, left, prepares for practice with Bev Priestman, at the time a member of his coaching staff, ahead of the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Championship, in Houston, on Feb. 20, 2016.Neil Davidson/The Canadian Press

    A majority of MPs voted Wednesday to meet privately with an investigator who reported on spying problems at Canada Soccer, before deciding whether a larger parliamentary probe with compelled testimony is required to examine culture issues at the sport’s national governing body.

    That decision by the standing committee on Canadian heritage effectively shut down an NDP proposal calling for testimony from some of the key players in the Canada Soccer spying scandal, as requested by MP Niki Ashton.

    Ms. Ashton filed her motion in response to recent reporting by The Globe and Mail into workplace and spying issues inside the women’s program. She wanted former head coach Bev Priestman and her predecessor, John Herdman, now head coach of Toronto’s Major League Soccer club, TFC, to appear before MPs, along with current and former executives, players and the federal Minister of Sport.

    Instead, 10 MPs on the 11-person committee approved an amendment by Bloc Québécois MP Martin Champoux that called for lawyer Sonia Regenbogen, who recently submitted her report into the spying scandal at the Paris Olympics this past summer, to meet in-camera. After that briefing, the MPs can then decide whether they want a larger hearing that would call on multiple witnesses, he said.

    “We need to start by talking to this lawyer who wrote the investigation,” Mr. Champoux told the committee, in French. “Everyone takes this issue seriously.”

    Ms. Ashton said the amendment “gutted” her motion and she was the lone dissenting voice against the approach the committee opted to take. She argued the federal government, which oversees Canada’s National Sport Organizations (NSOs), needed to intervene after revelations about culture and spying issues inside the program that have “damaged Canada’s reputation.” She referred to reporting by The Globe that showed warnings from staff about these issues were documented in workplace investigations conducted inside the women’s program more than a year before Paris.

    “Canadians deserve the truth,” Ms. Ashton said. “We’re talking about much more than just spying now.”

    She said it was critical MPs had the opportunity to study broader issues involving Canada Soccer beyond spying, and get a full accounting of whether public funds, including those from programs such as Own the Podium, were used to help the national teams cheat.

    But Jonathan Robinson, a spokesperson for the Minister of Sport, said Canada Soccer was already under greater scrutiny than other NSOs because of financial issues that predated the spying scandal – with Ottawa demanding a financial audit and a governance review, and the creation of an external advisory group, for the federation to continue receiving federal funding.

    The minister, Carla Qualtrough, told The Globe what happened in Paris was part of “a broader culture within Canada Soccer,” but declined to comment on recent reporting on alleged governance lapses at the federation, or any of the policy changes announced by organization since Ms. Regenbogen’s report was released.

    “Canada Soccer should undertake organizational changes, implement the recommendations of its recent governance review and establish an ethical environment. This is what the Government of Canada expects, and what Canadians expect, of their national soccer organization, and what we will hold them accountable to do,” Ms. Qualtrough said in a statement.

    Ms. Regenbogen’s report, released Nov. 12, found Ms. Priestman and her assistant coach Jasmine Mander directed a staffer to use a drone to spy on an opponent’s closed practice ahead of their match at the Olympics, breaking French law – although their names were redacted from the report. Canada Soccer says neither coach will return to the organization.

    The Globe previously reported that Canada Soccer had been warned about problems inside the women’s program a full year before the Olympics. It commissioned two investigations in 2023, including one by Ottawa lawyer Erin Durant that documented staff concerns that people were being forced to spy and other allegations of harassment and a toxic work environment. Those probes did not find violations of the organization’s code of conduct and ethics, according to Canada Soccer.

    The Globe previously reported former interim CEO Jason deVos was directly made aware of concerns around spying and other workplace complaints in 2023. He told The Globe he could not discuss Ms. Durant’s findings because of confidentiality issues, but said its findings were treated with “the seriousness and diligence they warranted,” and said he introduced policy changes as a result.

    Muneeza Sheikh, Ms. Priestman’s lawyer, has said The Globe’s reporting contained allegations that were untrue, but did not specify what she was referring to. She said the allegations against her client are aimed at discrediting “a gay woman in professional sports.”

    Dean Crawford, a lawyer for Ms. Mander, said the allegations reported by The Globe that she directed spying efforts are inaccurate, but also declined to elaborate.

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  • Fox attorneys seek to dismiss shareholder lawsuit over reporting of vote rigging allegations in 2020

    Fox attorneys seek to dismiss shareholder lawsuit over reporting of vote rigging allegations in 2020

    WILMINGTON, Del. — Attorneys for Fox Corp. asked a Delaware judge Friday to dismiss a shareholder lawsuit seeking to hold current and former company officials personally liable for the financial fallout stemming from Fox News reports regarding alleged vote rigging in the 2020 election.

    Five New York City public employee pension funds, along with Oregon’s public employee retirement fund, allege that former chairman Rupert Murdoch and other Fox Corp. leaders deliberately turned a blind eye to liability risks posed by reporting false claims of vote rigging by election technology companies Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic USA.

    Smartmatic is suing Fox News for defamation in New York, alleging damages of $2.7 billion. It recently settled a lawsuit in the District of Columbia against One America News Network, another conservative outlet, over reports of vote fraud.

    Dominion also filed several defamation lawsuits against those who spread conspiracy theories blaming its election equipment for Donald Trump’s loss in 2020. Last year, Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion in Delaware for $787 million.

    The shareholder plaintiffs also allege that Fox corporate leaders ignored “red flags” about liability arising from a 2017 report suggesting that Seth Rich, a Democratic National Committee staffer, may have been killed because he had leaked Democratic party emails to Wikileaks during the 2016 presidential campaign. Rich, 27, was shot in 2016 in Washington, D.C., in what authorities have said was an attempted robbery.

    Fox News retracted the Seth Rich story a week after its initial broadcast, but Rich’s parents sued the network for falsely portraying their son as a criminal and traitor. Fox News settled the lawsuit in 2020 for “millions of dollars,” shortly before program hosts Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity were to be deposed, according to the shareholder lawsuit.

    Joel Friedlander, an attorney for the institutional shareholders, argued that Fox officials waited until the company’s reporting about Rich became a national scandal before addressing the issue. Similarly, according to the shareholders, corporate officials, including Rupert Murdoch and his son, CEO Lachlan Murdoch, allowed Fox News to continue broadcasting false narratives about the 2020 election, despite internal communications suggesting that they knew there was no evidence to support the conspiracy theories.

    “The Murdochs could have minimized future monetary exposure, but they chose not to,” Friedlander said. Instead, he argued, they engaged in “bad-faith decision making” with other defendants in a profit-driven effort to retain viewers and remain in Trump’s good graces.

    “Decisions were made at the highest level to promote pro-Trump conspiracy theories without editorial control,” Friedlander said.

    Defense attorneys argue that the case should be dismissed because the plaintiffs filed their lawsuit without first demanding that the Fox Corp. board take action, as required under Delaware law. They say the plaintiffs also failed to demonstrate that a pre-suit demand on the Fox board would have been futile because at least half of the directors face a substantial likelihood of liability or are not independent of someone who does.

    Beyond the “demand futility” issue, defense attorneys also argue that allegations that Fox officials breached their fiduciary duties fail to meet the pleading standards under Delaware and therefore should be dismissed.

    Defense attorney William Savitt argued, for example, that neither the Rich settlement, which he described as “immaterial,” nor the allegedly defamatory statements about Dominion and Smartmatic constitute red flags putting directors on notice about the risk of defamation liability. Nor do they demonstrate that directors acted in bad faith or that Fox “utterly failed” to implement and monitor a system to report and mitigate legal risks, including defamation liability risk, according to the defendants.

    Savitt noted that the Rich article was promptly retracted, and that the settlement included no admission of liability. The Dominion and Smartmatic statements, meanwhile, gave rise themselves to the currently liability issues and therefore can not serve as red flags about future liability risks, according to the defendants.

    “A ‘red flag’ must be what the term commonly implies — warning of a risk of a liability-causing event that allows the directors to take action to avert the event, not notice that a liability-causing event has already occurred,” defense attorneys wrote in their motion to dismiss.

    Defense attorneys also say there are no factual allegations to support claims that Fox officials condoned illegal conduct in pursuit of corporate profits, or that they deliberately ignored their oversight responsibilities. They note that a “bad outcome” is not sufficient to demonstrate “bad faith.”

    Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster is expected to rule within 90 days.

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  • Vote for Ponce Law Nashville area boys athlete of week

    There were some huge performances in the TSSAA football playoffs.

    Now you get to choose the best. Vote for who you think should be the Ponce Law Nashville area boys high school athlete of the week for Nov. 11-15. The poll will close Thursday at noon.

    Zach Borders, Macon County: Borders had 171 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries.

    Neo Clifton, Brentwood Academy: Clifton caught five passes for 205 yards and a touchdown.

    More:TSSAA football playoff brackets 2024: Tennessee high school football quarterfinal games set

    Mitchell Carey, DCA: The DII-A Mr. Football semifinalist was 10-of-14 passing for 317 yards and three TDs in a 35-28 win over Friendship Christian in the state quarterfinals. 

    EJ Gibson, Ensworth: Gibson had 11 carries for 124 yards as the Tigers dropped MBA, 28-0, to advance to the DII-AAA semifinal.

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  • Indiana high school football regional finals: Vote for top players

    Get your votes in by 2 p.m. Thursday for Indiana high school football player of the week for regional games.

    Cast your vote in poll at bottom of article, or click here to vote.

    Insider:A questionable call gave Brownsburg life. A gutsy call won the Bulldogs a regional title.

    Here are this week’s nominees:

    Jack Browning, Center Grove: The senior has made the most of his impact on defense at linebacker for the Trojans but helped to jumpstart the offense with 11 carries for 57 yards and two touchdowns in Center Grove’s 23-15 win over Warren Central for a 6A regional title.

    Fa’Rel Carter, Decatur Central: The junior had three catches for 104 yards and one touchdown and rushed six times for 43 yards in Decatur Central’s 21-16 win over East Central for a 5A regional championship. Carter also knocked the ball away from an East Central receiver on fourth down at the 1-yard-line to end the game.

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  • FACT FOCUS: Election officials knock down Starlink vote rigging conspiracy theories

    FACT FOCUS: Election officials knock down Starlink vote rigging conspiracy theories

    As President-elect Donald Trump begins filling key posts in his second administration, social media users are pushing false claims that the 2024 election was rigged in his favor.

    One such narrative claims that billionaire Elon Musk facilitated the alleged fraud with his internet service provider Starlink, manipulating the vote count through election equipment such as ballot tabulators. Starlink, a subsidiary of Musk’s SpaceX company, uses satellites to offer high-speed internet, even in remote areas.

    Here’s a closer look at the facts.

    CLAIM: Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk used his internet provider Starlink to steal the 2024 election for President-elect Donald Trump.

    THE FACTS: These claims are unfounded. Election officials, including from multiple swing states, told The Associated Press that their voting equipment doesn’t use Starlink and is not even connected to the internet. States have additional security measures to ensure that the count is accurate, according to experts. Election officials and security agencies have reported no significant issues with the 2024 race.

    “It is not possible that Starlink was used to hack or change the outcome of the US presidential election,” David Becker, founder and executive director of The Center for Election Innovation and Research, wrote in an email. “This, quite simply, did not happen, and could not happen, thanks to the security measures we have in place, and these conspiracy theories echo other disinformation we’ve heard over the past several years.”

    Becker further explained that the country’s nearly 10,0000 election jurisdictions use a wide range of voting machines that are not connected to the internet while voting occurs and that nearly all votes are recorded on paper ballots, which are audited by hand to confirm the results of electronic tabulators.

    “If anyone tried to interfere with the machines to rig the election, it would be discovered through multiple means, including reconciling the registered voters who cast ballots with the number of votes, as well as the audits,” he added.

    Certain jurisdictions in a few states allow for ballot scanners in polling locations to transmit unofficial results, using a mobile private network, after voting has ended on Election Day and the memory cards containing the vote tallies have been removed. Election officials who allow this say it provides for faster reporting of unofficial election results on election night. They say the paper records of the ballots cast are used to authenticate the results during postelection reviews, and that those records would be crucial to a recount if one was needed. Computer security experts have said this is an unnecessary risk and should be prohibited.

    Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly said in a statement on Nov. 6 that CISA has “no evidence of any malicious activity that had a material impact on the security or integrity of our election infrastructure.”

    Despite a lack of evidence, many on social media suggested that Starlink could indeed have been used to steal the election.

    “If Trump & Elon’s ‘little secret’ was to use Starlink in swing states to tally the votes & rig the election — an investigation & hand recount is crucial. Now,” reads one X post that had been liked and shared approximately 41,700 times as of Tuesday.

    Another widely shared X post states: “Elon Musk used Starlink to hack our elections so he can have nice things while inflicting pain on Americans. Are we really going to turn a blind eye to what happened and let the worst people among us run the country.”

    Election officials in North Carolina, Georgia and Pennsylvania — three of the seven swing states Trump won — told the AP that their voting equipment is never connected to the internet. In some cases, this is mandated by state law.

    “Satellite-based internet devices were not used to tabulate or upload vote counts in North Carolina,” said Patrick Gannon, a spokesperson for the North Carolina State Board of Elections. “In addition, our tabulated results are encrypted from source to destination preventing results being modified in transit. And no, tabulators and ballot-marking devices are never connected to the internet in North Carolina.”

    The Tar Heel State prohibits its voting systems from being “connected to a network” and requires any feature that allows such a connection to be disabled. This includes the internet, as well as any other wired or wireless connections.

    Gannon added that North Carolina has “no evidence of any alteration of votes by anyone” and requested that people stop spreading misinformation about elections.

    Mike Hassinger, a spokesperson for the Georgia secretary of state’s office, called the claims spreading online “absolutely conspiratorial nonsense.”

    “We don’t use Starlink equipment for any part of our elections, and never have,” he said. “Our election equipment is 100% air-gapped and never connected to the internet.”

    The term “air-gapped” refers to a security measure that isolates a secured computer network from those that are unsecured. This means it is impossible to use the internet to manipulate the software that tallies Georgia’s votes or the memory cards on which they’re recorded, according to Hassinger. He explained that memory cards are transported by hand in secure bags with tamper-evident ties to a central elections office where votes are tabulated. There is also a chain of custody protocol in place so that their movement is well documented.

    Matt Heckel, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of State, wrote in an email: “Counties do not use Starlink to transmit unofficial or official election results. No voting system in Pennsylvania is ever connected to the internet.”

    A pilot program in Arizona’s Coconino, Apache and Navajo counties intended to “enhance connectivity in underserved areas” uses Starlink systems to for electronic pollbook synchronization, according to JP Martin, a spokesperson for the Arizona secretary of state’s office. The state’s election equipment is air-gapped, one of many security measures.

    Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin also employ stringent precautions to protect the integrity of their voting equipment.

    Some posts spreading online pointed to a local news segment in which the registrar of voters in Tulare County, California, noted that internet connectivity at the county’s poll sites was improved this year thanks to Starlink. Stephanie Hill, a systems and procedures analyst for the agency, wrote in an email that “this connection is strictly for voter check-in purposes only and in no way a part of our voting system.” California is among the states that prohibit their voting equipment from being connected to the internet.

    Trump is currently beating Vice President Kamala Harris in Tulare County with 60% of the vote.

    Pamela Smith, president and CEO of Verified Voting, agreed that the idea that Starlink was used to rig the election is absurd.

    “While Starlink provided connectivity in a number of jurisdictions for electronic poll books (EPBs) in this election, neither Starlink nor other types of communication networks play any role in counting votes,” she wrote in an email. “Our elections produce huge quantities of physical evidence. A satellite system like Starlink cannot steal that.”

    —

    Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.

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  • Harris is turning to video games and sports betting to try and win back some of the ‘bro’ vote from Trump

    Harris is turning to video games and sports betting to try and win back some of the ‘bro’ vote from Trump

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    Kamala Harris is placing ads on video game and sports betting sites in an effort to win back the male vote – often referred to as the “bro” vote – from Donald Trump.

    Harris is placing ads on DraftKings, a sports betting company, and Yahoo Sports, NBC News reports. Her campaign is now the first to advertise on DraftKings, the outlet added. She will also place ads on video game sites IGN and Fandom.

    Some of these ads will be 30-second spots featuring celebrities such as NBA legend Magic Johnson and actor Ben Stiller.

    “Let’s break down Kamala’s economic plan. She has a plan to cut taxes for over 100 million Americans,” Johnson says in one of the ads. “Now let’s look at the other guy. He’s a failed businessman, plain and simple.”

    “You know this election is a lot like dodgeball. Kamala Harris is the average Joe underdog and … Ha No, this isn’t a time for jokes,” Stiller says in another ad. “You know what? It’s way too important. Donald Trump wants to terminate the Constitution. Project 2025 will give him nearly unlimited power. We can’t let him get anywhere near the White House. So, vote for Kamala Harris.”

    Ben Stiller stars in an ad for Harris that will be featured on sites typically popular with men
    Ben Stiller stars in an ad for Harris that will be featured on sites typically popular with men (Kamala Harris for President)

    This push comes as Trump leads Harris in polls among men. The gender divide between Trump and Harris voters is generally significant, according to national polls, with women leaning left and men leaning right.

    In most swing states, there’s a noticeable gender divide, especially in Georgia, where Harris enjoys a 12-point lead among women, while Trump has a 14-point lead among men, according to a previous analysis from The Independent.

    However, in the swing state of Arizona, there is not a significant distinction between how men and women are voting.

    As Harris places these ads, Trump has been targeting 18- to 29-year-old men by dedicating time to YouTubers such as Logan Paul and podcasters like Theo Von, The New York Times reported earlier this year.

    The former president sat down with Paul in June for his Impaulsive podcast, which garnered six million views. During that appearance, Trump gifted Paul with T-shirts featuring his Fulton County, Georgia, mugshot.

    The Trump campaign has also worked with the Nelk Boys, known for their YouTube pranks and the Full Send political podcast, during which they often host Trump-world guests. Trump appeared on the podcast in April, and his running mate JD Vance sat down with them in August.

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  • Football Fans Vote For Top 10 Rules They Want Changed

    Football Fans Vote For Top 10 Rules They Want Changed

    Key Takeaways

    • 2000 football fans have been asked what changes they would like to see introduced to the sport.
    • American influences, including an All-Star game and half-time cheerleader shows, were a popular choice.
    • Major changes to VAR were also suggested, including its removal.



    There have been a lot of slogans used to describe football over the years. The beautiful game. The world’s game. But perhaps most importantly, the people’s game. While it may have lost some of its charm due to the politics and money that surrounds it, football has always been about the fans who dedicate their lives to it every single weekend.

    The evolution of the sport has meant that it has become less accessible and enjoyable for supporters when things should be headed in the opposite direction. How can this issue be addressed? Well, a report from The Sun has potentially provided some answers. 2000 matchgoing adults were quizzed about what they thought would make football an even better spectacle. From the removal of VAR to the introduction of cheerleaders, if just one of these were implemented, it would change the entire outlook of the Premier League as we know it.


    10 Changes Fans Want to See Added to Football

    Rank

    Change

    1.

    Introduce a salary cap for all teams

    2.

    Greater travel support from clubs in getting to away games

    3.

    Bring back/increase the number of safe-standing terraces in stadiums

    4.

    Better scheduling of away games

    5.

    Banning VAR

    6.

    Allow managers to challenge refereeing decisions

    7.

    Ban foreign ownership of clubs

    8.

    Letting fans drink alcohol at their seats in stadium

    9.

    Half-time cheerleader shows

    10.

    Create an All-Star game with the league’s best players


    10 Create an All-Star Game

    Lebron James Kobe Bryant All-Star

    Remember when Todd Boehly reportedly pitched the idea of a Premier League All-Star game taking place? Turns out the American may have been onto something, as according to the poll, there may be an appetite among fans to see it introduced.

    The All-Star game is common in the United States, most notably in the NBA. There have been different formats used, including an Eastern vs Western conference game and also two team captains choosing from a select pool of world-class talent. Imagine the possibility of Erling Haaland and Virgil van Dijk at either end of the pitch in the same team. Well, if this was brought into effect, you wouldn’t have to.


    9 Cheerleader Shows

    Another common fixture in America could cross the Atlantic

    NFL Cheerleaders
    Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

    Give me an F. Give me an O. Give me another O. You get the idea, the word was football. However, this could be something that would go down well if brought into ‘soccer.’ With musical shows at half-time just missing the cut, the introduction of cheerleaders creeps into the top 10 list of what fans want to see.

    Of course, this is another staple in the United States across all sports but has never found the same popularity in the United Kingdom. Just like anything though, if it became a regular occurrence, it may just end up feeling like second nature to supporters. Plus, a Netflix documentary on a Premier League football team’s cheerleaders would likely be just as popular as the Dallas Cowboys one.


    8 Alcohol at Seats

    Fans are currently not permitted to drink alcohol in the stands

    MixCollage-20-Aug-2024-09-45-AM-7099

    Alcohol and football are two things that are synonymous with one another. Sometimes that can be a recipe for disaster, but there is no getting away from the drinking culture that surrounds the sport, specifically in England.

    However, as of this moment, those attending a game live are not allowed to take any alcohol to their seats with them. Instead, they must discard it or finish before they make their way to the stands. This has clearly irked several, as being allowed to take their beverage with them is one of the more in-demand changes fans are asking for.


    7 Ban Foreign Ownership

    Sheikh Mansour and Khaldoon Al Mubarak

    This is the first rule that could really impact the way the game is played on the pitch, as the poll suggests that fans would like to see less foreign investment and ownership in the Premier League. The riches that have come from abroad have completely changed the fortunes of clubs like Manchester City and Newcastle in recent years. Without them, we could be looking at two teams that aren’t even in England’s top flight.


    6 Allow Managers to Challenge Referee Decisions

    A review system is used successfully in sports like tennis and cricket

    Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola remonstrates with fourth offical Mike Dean on the touchline.

    Many people have complained about how VAR has been used in English football. The inconsistency over decisions, and the confusion it creates surrounding certain laws of the game. We still don’t really know what a ‘clear and obvious’ error is. One suggestion to fix this is allowing managers to appeal certain key decisions.

    Sports like cricket and tennis use review systems expertly, and while the incidents in football aren’t always as black and white as whether a ball is out or not, those on the sidelines could be given a certain number of reviews per game to force the referee to watch a replay of the foul or misdemeanour in question before proceeding with the action.


    5 Scrap VAR

    Why use a review when you can get rid of VAR altogether?

    VAR screen at Euro 2024

    If the review still isn’t for your taste, maybe just get rid of VAR instead. While the likes of Howard Webb will tell you that the use of technology has improved refereeing decisions, many fans, who again are the heartbeat of any sport, will state the opposite and that it creates more of a headache than anything else.

    Last season alone, there were 31 VAR mistakes that the PGMOL admitted to. This is after five years of seeing it at the top of English football. And still, these errors are so commonplace. If it continues, at some point, someone has to call a spade a spade and say that VAR has had its time so it can ride off into the sunset until it is ready to be utilised properly.


    4 Better Away Game Schedule

    Fans are tired of the travel demands of away fixtures

    Arsenal

    According to the results of the poll, as many as one in four fans requested that rule-makers pay more attention to how they schedule away fixtures due to the toll it takes on the travelling supporters. Long-distance travel for midweek matches, particularly for evening kick-offs, often leaves fans facing long journeys home late at night or needing to take time off work.

    While there is an element to this that is somewhat unavoidable, more can be done to ensure that the fixture schedule runs as smoothly as possible, with fans not having too many treks across the country in a short space of time.


    3 Return of Safe Standing Terraces

    Safe-standing terraces were first banned in 1989

    The Anfield Road Stand at Anfield, Liverpool.

    Safe-standing terraces were effectively banned in English football following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989. The disaster, which occurred during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, resulted in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans due to overcrowding in a standing terrace at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough Stadium.

    This ban lasted until recent changes, where safe standing sections have been reintroduced under strict guidelines, allowing limited standing areas with barriers for safety in some top-flight stadiums starting in 2022. With these steps now being taken, fans are eager to see a more permanent return in the near future.


    2 Greater Travel Support From Clubs

    Fans want clubs to do more to ensure safe journeys

    brentford fans

    As of now, Premier League clubs are not required by league regulations to provide transportation for travelling fans. While some do offer solutions and information on how to travel, spectators want to see more being done to prevent supporters from potentially being unable to get home.

    This revelation comes not long after an announcement was made during Southampton’s visit to Bournemouth that made the Saints fans aware that the final train to get back to Southampton had been cancelled, meaning that those who had travelled to the game via public transport would have to seek an alternative route home.


    1 Introduction of a Salary Cap

    Capping players’ wages could minimise the gap between the teams at the top and bottom

    Erling Haaland

    At the start of this article, it was mentioned how money had impacted the importance of fan sentiment in football. It has now become a financial juggernaut, with the teams who are making the most money continuing to prosper, while those who languish at the bottom fight a losing battle.

    With players earning so much from their top-flight careers, the one thing above all else that fans want to see introduced is a salary cap. Not only will this allow finances to be spread in other areas to benefit fans, but it may allow for teams to compete more evenly as it limits the way in which clubs can use their financial muscle to bully their way to the top.

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