As England enters another period of lockdown, the question regarding sporting activity is once again thrust into the spotlight and although the elite levels of football have survived a second hiatus, the same good fortune has not been afforded to those lower down the chain. While although those clubs who operate within the auspices of the National League setup (tiers five and six of the English pyramid) can continue, everything else below the Vanarama North and South will have their changing rooms locked for at least a month.

With a number of players coming back from representing their country and subsequently collecting a dose of COVID-19 for their efforts, it comes as no surprise that international football has come in for something of a bashing as of late. As the club landscape becomes ever more dominant and the clamour for competitions such as the Premier League and LaLiga to run unimpeded grows further, the international theatre of football has been described as a nuisance as of late.

“It is my pleasure to introduce this month’s article written by DRD Partnership, one of the 11 UK companies that participated with the Department for International Trade at Soccerex Connected. Don’t forget that if you want to learn more about how the Sports Economy Team at the Department works to help UK companies maximise their export potential then contact us at Sport@trade.gov.uk. DRD Partnership is a strategic communications consultancy focused on building value for clients and protecting their reputations at moments of challenge and of change. Its specialist sports practice works both in the UK and internationally, combining the deep experience of their senior partner team with rigorous analysis and interrogation of issues. DRD’s partners have held senior roles in government, diplomacy, the law, international corporations, charities and leading public affairs consultancies. Combining their insight and experience of engaging stakeholders and delivering campaigns across the globe ensures that they are consistently able to meet and exceed clients’ expectations.” – Andrew Bacchus, Lead – Sports Economy, Department for International Trade.

Like so many competitions around the world, America’s National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) has had to deal with scheduling upheaval in 2020 and although navigating their Challenge Cup through to completion was difficult, there is certainly reason to be cheerful at the end of it.

Borussia Dortmund are well-recognised as a powerhouse in German and European football. From the atmosphere of the famous Yellow Wall of passionate Dortmund fans, to the silky football the team plays on the pitch, the club, its fanbase and their personality are highly regarded throughout the world of football. In the wake of COVID-19, having a strong digital presence is as important as ever, acting as a means to connect the club with the fans – Dortmund are a great example of a club that has relished the challenge and capitalised on the opportunity.

While although October saw as many as 120 international fixtures take place, the scheduling of nation versus nation activity is still a very fraught process right now and with the footballing world in a continual state of flux, it has meant a change of plans in the month of November. For those nations who are competing within the auspices of UEFA, there is a sense of business being as normal as one can hope it to be and at the time of writing, the European Championship play-offs and Nations League fixtures are still planned to go ahead.

Everton Women has signed a new multi-year principal partnership deal with MegaFon ahead of this weekend’s Vitality Women’s FA Cup Final. Digital and telecommunications company MegaFon has expanded their deal with the Club, in what is the biggest commercial deal in the women’s team’s history.

When France’s LFP announced a new four-year television deal for their Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 competitions, club chairman will have been rubbing their hands together with glee and with the contract being worth €800 million a year, you can begin to understand why. With Mediapro teaming up with the TF1 Group, plans were afoot for a new channel to be launched. One that would be called Téléfoot and this new service was launched at the start of this latest French football season.

The concept of international football has been one that has functioned for as long as the game has been existence and in the past few months, the global coronavirus pandemic has bought its own existence into question. With all manner of new protocol required to play scheduled fixtures plus a rejigging of the calendar also required, thankfully the show has still managed to go ahead and with 120 encounters taking place in the month of October, it has meant change in the latest FIFA rankings.

You wait for one radical idea in football and then two come along almost at once, as no sooner has “Project Big Picture” been kicked into touch for at least the short-term, than plans for a European Premier League are announced. Plans that would produce another seismic shock within football’s global community and after one idea was eventually dampened only recently, it is time for some governing bodies to fan the flames once again.