Mark this date down in your calendars as it will be probably the first and last time that State of the Game has any praise for Sepp Blatter and his FIFA cronies but I want to stay as positive about this news as possible so here goes: FIFA have introduced some of the toughest measures since their inception in the worldwide fight against racism.

After outrage around Europe following high profile incidents such as the Spanish fans monkey chants at England’s black players and Samuel Eto’o’s recent problems with the racist chanting from Real Zaragoza fans, FIFA have decided to get tough and bring in disciplinary sanctions which will finally put real pressure on clubs to root out the sections of their support that are carrying out this disgusting crime.

With punishments ranging from match suspensions to points deductions (three points for a first offence, six points for a second offence and best of all, RELEGATION for a third offence), clubs are really going to have to make the stamping out of racism a number one priority with FIFA no longer willing to turn a blind eye to a problem that seems to have been on the rise again over the last few years in European football.

Blatter is talking the talk and while threatening to suspend national associations frominternational football for two years for failing to uphold the new laws, he may finally be ready and willing to walk the walk as well. I can’t say that it’s before time either as the cowardly, moronic attitudes of racist fans and the lenient “punishments ” imposed on them and their clubs over the last couple of years, particularly in Spain, have made my blood boil. There is no room in football or society for racist behaviour and if FIFA are about to make their efforts as hardline as possible to eradicate this scourge of the game then State of the Game are fully behind them.

Top internet search engine Google has been contacted by lawyers representing Arsenal and England defender Ashley Cole to explain why their search results display a suggestion for results for “Ashley Cole gay” when the player’s name is searched for. Cole’s lawyers want a categoric answer from the technology giants as to whether this is a computer generated suggestion or a manually input editorial decision on Google’s part.

Image from Andrew Johnson’s Web Publishing Blog

Google have previously explained that their search results are based solely on computer algorithms and have no human element to them but in light of Ashley Cole’s recently publicised legal action against the News of the World newspaper amid lurid allegations concerning his private life, this latest internet anomoly could wind up being a very costly problem for Google.

Former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Lord Stevens has been appointed as head of the Premier League’s independent bung inquiry.

Stevens will be investigating allegations of irregular payments in transfer deals since 1 January 2004 and will spend around six months in the position as chair of the independent inquiry.

“I will personally overview the inquiry and ensure that it meets the highest standards of investigation and evidence gathering,” said Lord Stevens.

Quest, the organisation headed by Lord Stevens, will handle the inquiry.

Speaking at a news conference, he went on: “It is our intention to interview all those involved in the transfer process and to examine all transfers during the period.

“In addition, a number will be subjected to a more detailed investigation criteria set by myself.

“I am conscious that there have been persistent allegations in the press, and I would be grateful if those responsible for the articles would provide to my team any supporting evidence or leads that they might have.

“As with all investigations, I shall go where the evidence leads. I can assure both the Premier League and you, that Quest, will not be distracted or diverted from whether or not irregularities exist, and if there is evidence of wrongdoing it shall be highlighted.”

The Premier League have reiterated their hardline stance on any wrongdoing with chief executive Richard Scudamore vowing to enforce heavy penalties,

“We are charged with administering the rule book. If there are breaches of the rules we will deal with it,” said Mr. Scudamore.

“It is a serious inquiry. The absolute bottom line is that the Premier League and its clubs want to know what is going on.

“We will get to the bottom of what is going on.”

Marius Mitu and Laurent Delorge have been sacked by Anderlecht after the pair admitted being involved in matchfixing while playing for Lierse last season.

Belgian police had begun an investigation last November after being tipped off regarding unusually heavy betting patterns on some Belgian league games.

Anderlecht General manager Herman van Holsbeeck has said about the sackings: “We have no confidence in these players and have decided now to terminate their contracts.”

FIFA vice-president Jack Warner has been found guilty of a conflict of interest over ticket sales for the 2006 Germany World Cup.

His family’s travel agency were given the rights to sell Trinidad and Tobago’s entire ticket allocation and Warner has now been judged to have violated Fifa’s code of ethics over his involvement with selling 2006 World Cup tickets.

After bringing the matter to the attention of Fifa himself, Warner may be suspended from the organisation at a meeting on 16-17 March.

Some interesting results as usual from the Deloitte Football Money League as last season’s top earners Manchester United fall behind Spanish giants Real Madrid as the highest earning club in world football.

Chelsea also slip to 5th overall from 4th last year with an annual turnover for the 2004/2005 season of ?149.1m, a figure put into context when it is considered that they posted a ?140m loss for that period.

On a country by country basis, English clubs lead the way with 8 of the top 20 earners, 5 Italian clubs, 3 Spanish, 2 German and one each from France and Scotland.

Deloitte Football Money League ? 2004/05 season (UK ? Sterling and Euro ?)

Source: Deloitte Football Money League

Egyptian star Mido has offered an apology to national coach Hassan Shehata but has been given no indication if he will be allowed to play in the 2006 African Nations Cup final against the Ivory Coast.

Mido had been banned by the Egyptian football association for six months following his touchline row with Shehata after the coach substituted him in the semi-final win against Senegal. He then called the Egyptian coach, team and association “amateurs” before having a change of heart.

Mido, who is currently on loan at English Premiership side Tottenham Hotspur, attended Egypt’s training, apologised to Shehata and asked to be forgiven.

Shehata has accepted the apology but refused to be drawn on whether Mido would play any part in the final which he believes Egypt have every chance of winning for the fifth time,

“We are in outstanding form, and we are very focused and ready to win the final game,” he said. “However, this game is nothing like the first time we met Ivory Coast in this tournament when we won 3-1. This is a completely different story. Now we have no other choice but to win.”

Rangers chairman David Murray has said that manager Alex McLeish has been sacked and will leave his position as Rangers manager at the end of the season with the Glasgow club “some way down the road” on a deal for a new coach.

Murray refused to be drawn on the identity of McLeish’s successor but former Lyon manager Paul Le Guen is understood to be the man who will succeed him. After telling McLeish of his decision on Thursday afternoon, Murray also promised the announcement of a major investment in the club after the Champions’ League ties against Villarreal early next month and met with senior members of the first team squad to discuss the future plans.

With Rangers hopes of catching Hearts in second place in the Scottish Premier League falling further away following a 2-0 away defeat to Aberdeen this week it seems like Murray and the Rangers board have been left with no other course of action but to put McLeish out of his misery after one of the most disappointing seasons in Rangers recent history.

Tottenham Hotspur’s outspoken Egyptian striker Mido has branded Egypt’s coach, team and football association “amateurs”.

He will now miss Egypt’s African Nations Cup final against Ivory Coast on Friday having been banned for six months by his country’s FA because of a furious touchline row with coach Hassan Shehata after being substituted 11 minutes from the end of Tuesday’s semi-final win over Senegal.

“In Egypt they are amateurs. The manager is an amateur, the team are amateurs, the association are amateurs,” Mido told the Daily Express.

“They think they know everything. People can call me an arrogant Premiership player. The fact is that I am a Premiership player and they are amateurs.

“I have not spoken to Shehata since the incident. I don’t care about him. He is a local guy. Before he was in charge of the national team, he managed a second division side.

“I want to play for Egypt again, of course. But I don’t regret what I did.

“I was disappointed by the decision to ban me. I don’t know why they took it. If they win now they can say they took a good disciplinary decision. They will be heroes.

“But if they lose it will be because of Mido, and the trouble he caused. That’s how things go.”

As a World Cup on homesoil looms for Germany and the expectation levels amongst fans reaches fever pitch, it is no surprise that national coach Jurgen Klinsmann has tried to steer attention away from problems with the chosen stadia and on-pitch concerns. What is surprising is that he is turning to the coach of the German national hockey team to help him prepare his side for the World Cup.

The DFB have been in talks with hockey coach Bernhard Peters over the newly created post of technical director in a move that has outraged many football traditionalists but has the full backing of head coach Klinsmann. ‘Peters could contribute a lot,’ Klinsmann said at a recent news conference, ‘He has a different way of thinking…There have been talks with the DFB and we’ve been convinced by his way of doing things’ .

While Klinsmann has been calling for some time for a technical director to be appointed, he was initially in favour of former Germany and Scotland coach Berti Vogts being given the role but Vogts ruled himself out of the running, saying he didn’t want to get involved in a power struggle between the German FA and Klinsmann himself.

Bernhard Peters, meanwhile, has been coach of the German men’s hockey team since 2001 and led them to victory at the World Cup in 2002 and to the bronze medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004.

Whether an appointment to the technical director post will be made before the World Cup kicks off in June is another matter as is the question of whether Jurgen Klinsmann himself will extend his contract beyond the end of the summer’s football showpiece.