Author: AFP

Arsenal ended their 22-year wait to be crowned Premier League champions on Tuesday after Manchester City were held 1-1 by Bournemouth.

City had to win to take the title fight to the final day, but the Cherries extended their unbeaten streak to 17 league games, a run which has secured European football for the first time in the club’s history.

After finishing second for the past three seasons, Mikel Arteta’s Gunners have finally made it over the line to end a six-year trophy drought.

Arsenal edged to the brink of the title with an unconvincing 1-0 win over already relegated Burnley on Monday, which took them five points clear of City.

The Gunners, who have set the pace for most of the season, have bounced back impressively since losing to City last month, winning four straight league matches without conceding a goal.

On Monday, just 48 hours after completing a domestic cup double with victory over Chelsea in the FA Cup final, City were rocked by widespread reports that manager Pep Guardiola would depart after a decade in charge at the end of the season.

Victory at Wembley on Saturday secured a 20th trophy of Guardiola’s glorious reign. But he cannot add to his six Premier League titles when Aston Villa visit the Etihad on Sunday for what is expected to be his final match in charge.

Guardiola had warned that fatigue could cost City against a highly motivated Bournemouth, who still have Champions League qualification in their sights for next season.

As it stands, Bournemouth will be in the Europa League after ensuring they will finish no lower than seventh.

Sixth could be good enough for a place in the Champions League if Aston Villa finish fifth and win Wednesday’s Europa League final.

Manchester City fans forlornly chanted “One more year, Guardiola” in the early stages at the Vitality Stadium in a bid to convince their decorated coach to see out the final season of his contract.

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But if the travelling fans hoped City’s players would be inspired to give Guardiola a glorious goodbye, they were left sorely disappointed.

Antoine Semenyo had the ball in the net on his return to Bournemouth but was flagged offside in City’s best moment of a flat first half.

The home side suddenly sprang to life to open the scoring in the 39th minute.

Eli Junior Kroupi curled a brilliant strike into the top corner to set a new record of 13 goals in a debut Premier League season for a teenager.

Nico O’Reilly wasted City’s best chance of a lifeline when he was denied by Djordje Petrovic just seconds into the second half.

Guardiola watched on pensively as his side’s title challenge fizzled out with a whimper.

After winning what was billed as a title decider against Arsenal last month, City put the destiny of the title back in their rivals’ hands by drawing 3-3 at Everton.

Guardiola looks set to depart, having failed to win the league for two consecutive seasons for the first time in his coaching career.

Rayan and David Brooks hit the post as Bournemouth should have secured victory in Andoni Iraola’s final home game in charge.

Erling Haaland’s equaliser deep into stoppage time came too little, too late to save City’s title challenge.

But it was a big goal for Liverpool, who now have a three-point cushion over Bournemouth and a goal difference advantage of six heading into the final day battle to secure a top-five finish and Champions League football.

READ: Bangladesh script home whitewash over Pakistan despite Rizwan’s 94

Fifteen-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi struck a blistering 93 to power Rajasthan Royals to a seven-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday to boost their play-off hopes in the IPL 2026.

T20 sensation Sooryavanshi, who was playing as an impact substitute, struck his third half-century of the season as he hammered seven fours and 10 sixes in his 38-ball knock to guide Rajasthan’s chase of 221 at their home in Jaipur.

Left-handed Sooryavanshi missed out on a century before Dhruv Jurel made an unbeaten 53 as Rajasthan achieved their target with five balls to spare for their seventh win in 13 matches and move into the top four of the 10-team table.

A win in their last league match against Mumbai Indians on Sunday will book the only remaining play-off spot.

Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans and Sunrisers Hyderabad have already made the play-offs of the tournament that will conclude on May 31 in Ahmedabad.

Sooryavanshi’s batting blitz trumped Lucknow opener Mitchell Marsh’s 96, a knock that steered his team to an imposing 220-5.

The T20 sensation has been in red-hot form in the 2026 IPL, and passed March’s tally of Marsh 563 runs to climb to the top of the batting chart with 579 runs in 13 matches.

He has hit one ton and has compiled his runs at a punishing strike-rate of 237.29.

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Sooryavanshi’s opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal provided the early impetus with his 23-ball 43 in a first-wicket stand of 75.

Jaiswal, a left-hander who stood in as captain in place of injured Riyan Parag, departed in the seventh over but Rajasthan kept up pace with Jurel and Sooryavanshi putting together 105 runs.

Sooryavanshi reached his fifty in 23 balls and changed gears to smack Prince Yadav for two straight sixes and another two off Mayank Yadav in a 29-run 12th over to put Lucknow on course.

He finally fell to Mohsin Khan with Abdul Samad taking a well-judged catch in the deep but the damage was done.

Bottom-placed Lucknow, who are already out of the play-off race along with Mumbai, had a blazing start with Josh Inglis, who made 60 off 29 balls, adding 109 for the first wicket with fellow Australian Marsh.

Inglis and then Nicholas Pooran departed but Marsh kept up the pace alongside skipper Rishabh Pant, who made 35.

The Rajasthan Royals bowlers pulled things back in the final few overs and Marsh missed out on his hundred after being run out on the penultimate ball.

READ: England Cricket expects ‘significant loss’ in 2027 despite Ashes

English cricket’s increasing reliance on playing home games against India has become even clearer following a warning it is prepared for a “significant loss” in 2027 despite staging an Ashes series.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) accounts for the year ending January 31, 2026, report a £12.6 million ($16.9 million) profit on ordinary activities and an improved year-on-year turnover of £89.4 million.

They also include ring-fenced profits of £522.3 million on sales in stakes of the eight Hundred franchises, several of which were purchased by groups with links to the lucrative Indian Premier League, for internal investment in the English game and increased cash reserves of £72.8 million.

But those numbers follow England’s five-match Test series at home to India last year, a thrilling contest that ended in a 2-2 draw after a maximum 25 days’ play.

The passion for cricket in India, the world’s most populous nation, fuels money-spinning deals for overseas broadcast rights and the ECB will hope for another boost to their finances when the Indian men’s national side returns for five Twenty20 and three one-day internationals later in the 2026 English season.

And, in a notable announcement, the ECB’s financial statement issued Tuesday said the English governing body expected to lose money in 2027, even though it will be hosting a marquee five-match men’s Test series against Australia, long considered its most significant sporting property.

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But while it may remain the foundation stone of all Test cricket — England and Australia first met in 1877 — and the contest beloved above all others by most English fans, it now appears the Ashes can no longer rival matches involving India in pure financial terms.

“Turnover in the year ended 31 January 2026 amounted to £408.9 million, an increase of £89.4 million compared to the prior year,” said the ECB’s financial report.

“This is largely attributed to increased broadcast and ticketing revenues due to hosting an India men’s Test series in 2025.

“Attention should be drawn to the fact that the ECB’s revenues are inherently cyclical, reflecting the scheduling of high-value broadcast series by opposition, and while this profile is advantageous in the current year and in 2026, it is expected to result in a significant loss position in the 2027 season when the England men’s team does not host a series against India.”

READ: Virat Kohli admits battling imposter syndrome

Carlos Alcaraz’s hopes of regaining his Wimbledon title have been dashed with the two-time champion announcing Tuesday he is withdrawing as he recovers from a wrist injury.

“My recovery is going well and I’m feeling much better, but unfortunately I’m still not ready to play, I am obliged to withdraw from both Queen’s and Wimbledon,” said Spaniard Alcaraz, who lost to world number one Jannik Sinner in last year’s final.

“These are two really special tournaments for me and I’ll miss them a lot. We’ll keep working to come back as soon as possible.”

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Alcaraz sustained the injury during the first round of the Barcelona Open and subsequently pulled out of tournaments in Madrid and Rome and then Roland Garros, where he is the reigning two-time champion.

The world number two became the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam in January with his triumph at the Australian Open. The 23-year-old holds a 22-3 record this season and also won a title in Doha.

Wimbledon will be only the third Grand Slam that Alcaraz has missed since making his main draw debut at the 2021 Australian Open.

Alcaraz’s injury has stopped him continuing his exciting rivalry with Italian Sinner, 24, who is firm favourite to triumph in Paris and London.

READ: Asad Shafiq ‘hopeful’ Pakistan can create history in Sylhet Test

Veteran Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo will lead his country into the FIFA World Cup 2026 this summer after coach Roberto Martinez named the 41-year-old in his squad on Tuesday.

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United star, now at Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr, is set to appear at a record sixth World Cup.

Portugal and Ronaldo, the all-time leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 goals, have never won the competition.

Ronaldo could face former Barcelona rival Lionel Messi, who is also set to play at a sixth World Cup after leading Argentina to glory four years ago in Qatar.

The Portuguese forward avoided a three-match ban despite being sent off against the Republic of Ireland in their last qualifying match for an elbow.

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Spanish coach Martinez selected a 27-man squad with no major surprises, including Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr team-mate Joao Felix.

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) stars Vitinha, Joao Neves, Nuno Mendes and Goncalo Ramos are also included, along with Manchester United playmaker Bruno Fernandes and a contingent from Manchester City, including Bernardo Silva.

In the run-up to the tournament, Portugal will face Chile and Nigeria in friendlies before their World Cup campaign begins against DR Congo on June 17.

Portugal will also face Uzbekistan and Colombia in Group K on June 23 and 27, respectively.

Portugal squad for FIFA World Cup 2026

Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (Porto), Jose Sa (Wolves), Rui Silva (Sporting Lisbon), Ricardo Velho (Genclerbirligi)

Defenders: Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Matheus Nunes (Manchester City), Ruben Dias (Manchester City), Nelson Semedo (Fenerbahce), Joao Cancelo (Barcelona), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Goncalo Inacio (Sporting Lisbon), Renato Veiga (Villareal), Tomas Araujo (Benfica)

Midfielders: Ruben Neves (Al-Hilal), Samu Costa (Mallorca), Joao Neves, Vitinha (PSG), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)

Attackers: Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr), Joao Felix (Al Nassr), Francisco Trincao (Sporting Lisbon), Francisco Conceicao (Juventus), Pedro Neto (Chelsea), Rafael Leao (AC Milan), Goncalo Guedes (Real Sociedad), Goncalo Ramos (PSG)

READ: Neymar back in Brazil squad for FIFA World Cup 2026

Pep Guardiola is set to bring his trophy-laden decade in charge of Manchester City to an end this weekend, according to multiple reports on Monday.

Guardiola, 55, has won six Premier League titles and City’s first Champions League title among 20 trophies since arriving in England in 2016.

He could add one more to his tally if City win their final two matches of the season against Bournemouth and Aston Villa and Arsenal fail to beat Crystal Palace on Sunday’s final round of Premier League fixtures.

The Daily Mail and The Athletic reported that Guardiola will step down after the visit of Villa to the Etihad. Meanwhile, City have made no comment on the speculation.

However, the club have arranged a parade through Manchester on Monday to celebrate their League Cup and FA Cup triumphs this season, which could act as a farewell to Guardiola.

Former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, who previously worked on Guardiola’s staff at City, is reportedly in line to take over next season.

Guardiola has one more year remaining on his contract, but rumours that he was set to depart at the end of the season have circulated for months.

After a first trophyless season for seven years in the 2024/25 campaign, a rejuvenated City have bounced back.

Victory over Chelsea in Saturday’s FA Cup final completed a domestic cup double, and they could still usurp Arsenal for a seventh league title in nine years.

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Pep Guardiola arrived in England as already one of Europe’s most decorated coaches. His four-year spell at boyhood club Barcelona between 2008 and 2012 captured admirers across the globe, winning two Champions Leagues and three La Liga titles.

He added three more league titles in three seasons at Bayern Munich.

A similarly short spell was expected when City lured him to the Premier League. But his influence has transformed the English game at all levels over the past 10 years.

Backed by the deep pockets of Abu Dhabi royalty, Manchester City have stepped out of the shadow of local rivals Manchester United to become the dominant force in England.

Guardiola’s brand of passing football has been copied from grassroots through to the elite level. Even City’s competitors have turned to his disciples to catch up.

Arsenal, managed by Guardiola’s former assistant Mikel Arteta, are on the brink of their first league title in 22 years.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has said his coaching philosophy was shaped by watching the City boss’ Barcelona team, while new Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso moved to Bayern in the final years of his playing career to gain the experience of working under Guardiola.

The timing of Guardiola’s exit comes with the outcome of an investigation into more than 100 alleged breaches by City of financial regulations still to be released.

First charged by the Premier League in February 2023, an independent commission hearing concluded in December 2024, with the case hanging over City’s achievements on the pitch ever since.

READ: Jose Mourinho agrees return to Real Madrid: sources

Brazil superstar Neymar was handed a dramatic recall to the country’s squad for the FIFA World Cup 2026 on Monday, returning to the national team after a nearly three-year absence.

The inclusion of Neymar, Brazil’s all-time leading goalscorer with 79 goals in 128 appearances, was the biggest surprise in the 26-man squad named by coach Carlo Ancelotti.

Ancelotti announced Neymar’s selection at a gala ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, with loud cheers ringing out as the veteran attacker’s call-up was confirmed.

Speculation has raged for months over whether the 34-year-old former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain attacker would force his way back into the national team set-up.

The forward, a veteran of the 2014, 2018 and 2022 World Cups, had not played for Brazil since suffering a knee injury during a World Cup qualifying game against Uruguay in 2023.

A mixture of injuries and poor form had left him outside the national team set-up, with Ancelotti citing concerns over his fitness after leaving him out of Brazil’s squad for March friendlies against France and Croatia.

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However, Neymar, who rejoined boyhood club Santos in January after an injury-ravaged stint in Saudi Arabia, has now earned Ancelotti’s stamp of approval for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

“We monitored Neymar throughout the year and observed that, in recent times, he has been playing consistently and his physical condition has improved,” Ancelotti said. “We believe he is an important player.”

Injuries have restricted Neymar to just 15 appearances in 31 matches since his return to Santos in 2026.

Brazil, who are chasing a record sixth World Cup crown, open their World Cup campaign against Morocco on June 13 before playing Haiti and Scotland in Group C.

Neymar joins a potent line-up of attackers that includes Barcelona striker Raphinha and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior.

Ancelotti, meanwhile, said he believed the World Cup would be won by the most “resilient” team.

“The World Cup won’t be won by a perfect team — because a perfect team doesn’t exist,” he said. “It will be won by the most resilient team.”

Brazil squad for FIFA World Cup 2026

Goalkeepers: Alisson (Liverpool), Ederson (Fenerbahce), Weverton (Gremio)

Defenders: Alex Sandro (Flamengo), Danilo (Flamengo), Leo Pereira (Flamengo), Bremer (Juventus), Douglas Santos (Zenit St Petersburg), Gabriel Magalhães (Arsenal), Ibanez (Al-Ahli), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Wesley (Roma)

Midfielders: Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle), Casemiro (Manchester United), Danilo (Botafogo), Fabinho (Al-Ittihad), Lucas Paqueta (Flamengo).

Forwards: Endrick (Lyon), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Igor Thiago (Brentford), Luiz Henrique (Zenit), Matheus Cunha (Manchester United), Neymar (Santos), Raphinha (Barcelona), Rayan (Bournemouth), Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)

READ: Croatia names Luka Modric-led FIFA World Cup squad

Skipper Pat Cummins’ 3-28 and an attacking 70 by Ishan Kishan helped Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) book their play-off spot in the IPL 2026 with a nervy five-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Monday.

The result at Chennai’s M.A. Chidambaram Stadium ensured a play-off berth for Gujarat Titans as well. Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru were the first team to qualify for the play-offs.

Five teams now jostle for one remaining play-off place in the T20 tournament that will conclude with the final on May 31 in Ahmedabad.

Australia’s Cummins struck key blows with his pace bowling to restrict the opposition to 180-7 in Chennai’s last home game.

Hyderabad slipped to 56-2 in their chase before the left-handed Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen, who made 47, put on 75 runs to guide the team home with six balls to spare.

Chennai’s Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad denied Klaasen his fifty and Hyderabad lost another key wicket of Nitish Kumar Reddy before Kishan, a wicketkeeper-batter, struck decisive shots.

He departed after his 47-ball knock laced with seven fours and three sixes, but the job was done and Ravichandran Smaran hit the winning four.

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Five-time champions Chennai’s fate hangs by a thread.

Bowlers led by Cummins set the tone for Hyderabad’s domination after the Australian quick struck first to dismiss Sanju Samson, caught behind for 27.

Cummins then took down skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, for 15, and Kartik Sharma, for 32, as Chennai lost regular wickets.

Dewald Brevis hit a 27-ball 44 and put on 59 runs with Shivam Dube to raise Chennai’s hopes of a 200-plus total but it was not to be.

Sri Lanka’s Eshan Malinga bowled Brevis and fellow quick Sakib Hussain rattled the stumps of left-handed Dube to hurt Chennai.

In reply, Hydebarad lost their attacking openers including Travis Head, for six, and Abhishek Sharma, for 26, before Kishan and Klaasen took charge.

The left-right batting combination of Kishan and Klaasen put the chase back on track and despite wickets at the end Hyderabad sealed the win and the ticket into the next stage.

READ: Iran squad touches down in Turkey ahead of FIFA World Cup

Iran’s football team arrived in Turkey on Monday for a training camp and to complete visa applications ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup, AFP correspondents said.

The 22 players and coaching staff in the “Team Melli” delegation flew into the Turkish resort of Antalya where they could be seen leaving the airport dressed in navy blue tracksuits.

The players were to stay several weeks before heading to the global tournament that is being co-hosted by the United States, which began bombing Iran on February 28 alongside Israel, sparking war.

The team will be based in Arizona in the United States and play all three of their group matches there in spite of the war, which has been temporarily halted by a ceasefire since April 8.

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But with negotiations in the doldrums, new weekend drone attacks on Gulf countries and fresh threats from US President Donald Trump have heightened fears that fighting could resume.

The team are hoping to play two friendlies in Antalya, including one against The Gambia on May 29, according to Sam Mehdizadeh, an Iranian-Canadian who heads a company that sets up friendlies for the team and is working to set up a second match.

Iran and the United States cut diplomatic ties in 1980 and the players will use their time in Turkey to complete visa applications, head coach Amir Ghalenoei said on Saturday.

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Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic announced Monday a preliminary 26-man squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026, to be led by veteran Luka Modric, the key architect of the country’s historic success in recent years.

The 40-year-old AC Milan midfielder led the nation of 3.8 million people to a second-place finish at the 2018 World Cup.

The former Real Madrid star was also key for Croatia third place at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In 2023 the Balkan nation lost to Spain in the Nations League final.

But Modric sustained a cheekbone fracture after clashing heads with Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli at the San Siro in late April, and underwent a surgery.

The former Ballon d’Or winner was expected to be out of action for between six to eight weeks but should be free to play in the upcoming World Cup, a source told AFP at the time.

“He’s training with a (facial) mask and doing well. Maybe this break helped him,” Dalic told reporters in Zagreb.

“We’ll see his condition, but I don’t doubt him, he’ll be in good form”.

Croatia’s defence was also weakened due to leg fracture of Manchester City’s Josko Gvardiol in January that sidelined him for months.

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“We hope he’ll be ready to play,” Dalic said adding that the 24-year-old will be given chances in the warm-up matches to build up his form for the tournament, which kicks off June 11.

“We expect him to be a major boost for us in the US.”

Commenting on his expectations from the tournament, Croatia’s most succesful coach, who took over in 2017, stressed the first goal was to get “through a tough group”.

“We have quality, youth, and experience… which gives me optimism.”

Croatia play their opening Group L match against England on June 17. They will later face Panama and Ghana.

During preparations for the championships they will play two friendlies at home against Belgium and Slovenia respectively.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Dominik Livakovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Dominik Kotarski (Copenhagen/DEN), Ivor Pandur (Hull City/ENG)

Defenders: Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City/ENG), Duje Caleta-Car (Real Sociedad/ESP), Josip Sutalo (Ajax Amsterdam/NED), Josip Stanisic (Bayern Munich/GER), Marin Pongracic (Fiorentina/ITA), Martin Erlic (Midtjylland/DEN), Luka Vuskovic (Hamburg/GER)

Midfielders: Luka Modric (AC Milan/ITA), Mateo Kovacic (Manchester City/ENG), Mario Pasalic (Atalanta/ITA), Nikola Vlasic (Torino/ITA), Luka Sucic (Real Sociedad/ESP), Martin Baturina (Como/ITA), Kristijan Jakic (Augsburg/GER), Petar Sucic (Inter Milan/ITA), Nikola Moro (Bologna/ITA), Toni Fruk (Rijeka)

Forwards: Ivan Perisic (PSV Eindhoven/NED,) Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim/GER), Ante Budimir (Osasuna/ESP), Marco Pasalic (Orlando City/USA), Petar Musa (Dallas/USA), Igor Matanovic (Freiburg/GER)

Stand-by list: Lovro Majer (Wolsfburg/GER, Franjo Ivanovic (Benfica/POR), Dion Beljo (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivan Smolcic (Como/ITA), Karlo Letica (Lausanne/SUI), Luka Stojkovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Adrijan Segecic (Portsmouth/ENG)

READ: Who could emerge as the breakout star of FIFA World Cup 2026?