Category: Football

Barcelona abandoned their plan to return to their Camp Nou home in August on Friday, pushing the stadium’s re-opening back further.

The Catalan giants had planned to play a friendly match on August 10 as the first game in their stadium after two years of construction work, but blamed difficulty in obtaining a license to partially open the stadium for their decision.

“Barcelona informs that the first match back at the Spotify Camp Nou has been suspended,” said the club in a statement.

“Because of the magnitude of the work done, it was impossible to meet all the requirements demanded by the regulations governing the granting of the first occupancy license, despite the club’s willingness to open Spotify Camp Nou in sections.”

The first match at the Camp Nou is now set to be the La Liga game against Valencia on September 13 or 14, with Barca’s first three league matches away from home.

However, Barcelona did not state whether they can guarantee they will be able to open the stadium for the fixture, or potentially a home Champions League tie before then.

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Barca said the friendly they had planned, reported to be against Italian side Como, will take place instead at the Johan Cruyff stadium beside their training ground.

Barcelona have played at the Olympic Stadium on the city’s Montjuic hill over the past two seasons during the development at the Camp Nou.

The club initially planned to return to their home ground in November 2024 to mark the club’s 125th anniversary, but the stadium’s opening has been repeatedly delayed.

Capacity at the Camp Nou will be around 60,000 until works are eventually completed, planned to be next summer, with the stadium expanded to 105,000 seats.

Barcelona are estimated to be paying 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion) for the Camp Nou rebuild project.

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Wolverhampton Wanderers, commonly known as Wolves, have posthumously inducted Portuguese forward Diogo Jota into their Hall of Fame, honouring the late star’s significant contributions to the club.

Jota tragically lost his life in a car accident earlier this month, along with his younger brother Silva.

The fatal crash occurred near Zamora in northwestern Spain on July 3, reportedly as the two were travelling to the UK ahead of Liverpool’s pre-season.

Local reports confirmed that their vehicle veered off the road in the early hours and caught fire. Both brothers were declared dead at the scene.

Jota had joined Wolves in 2017 and quickly became a fan favourite, playing a pivotal role in the club’s promotion to the Premier League in 2018.

His consistent performances earned him a move to Liverpool in 2020, where he made 182 appearances and scored 65 goals across all competitions.

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On the international stage, Diogo Jota earned 49 caps for Portugal and was seen as a key figure in the national setup.

Wolves’ director of football administration, Matt Wild, remembered Jota as more than just a footballer.

“Diogo was not only a phenomenal player, but someone who carried himself with humility and kindness throughout his time at Wolves. He will be sorely missed by all of us,” he said.

The Wolves Hall of Fame was created in 2008 to honour players who have left a lasting impact on the club’s history.

With this induction, Jota joins an elite group that includes legends like Billy Wright, Derek Dougan, and Steve Bull.

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The fourth round draw of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 has determined the path forward for the final six Asian teams competing for a spot in next summer’s 48-team expanded edition.

Patrick Kuivert’s Indonesia were on Thursday handed a tough draw for the final round of Asian qualifying as they try to reach the World Cup finals for the first time since 1938.

Coached by former Barcelona star and Dutch great Kluivert, Indonesia will play hosts Saudi Arabia, and Iraq in Group B of the fourth round of Asian qualifying for the 2026 finals.

Qatar will host Group A and face the United Arab Emirates and Oman after the six-team draw took place at the Asian Football Confederation’s headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

Matches in both groups will be played in a single round-robin format in October in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

The two group winners will join the six Asian nations already qualified for next year’s global showpiece in Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

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The two second-placed teams will meet in November, with the winner over two legs entering an intercontinental playoff for the final spot at the 48-team World Cup.

Indonesia have embarked on a recruitment drive of Dutch-born players and backroom staff to bolster their bid for a first World Cup finals berth since becoming an independent nation.

Jordi Cruyff, son of Dutch football legend Johan, was in February appointed technical adviser to the Football Association of Indonesia to work alongside Kluivert.

Indonesia last qualified for the World Cup while still under Dutch colonial rule and lost 6-0 to Hungary in their only match of that tournament, hosted by France.

They will face a difficult task against Middle East giants Saudi Arabia, who have home advantage and will be heavily favoured to top Group B.

The Saudis have qualified for the World Cup on seven previous occasions, including the last two editions. Meanwhile, Iraq has only qualified once in its history, in 1986.

Qatar hosted the 2022 World Cup, marking their only appearance in the finals, and will be favourites to top Group A at home.

The United Arab Emirates reached the World Cup once, in 1990, while Oman has never qualified.

Australia, Japan, Jordan, Iran, South Korea, and Uzbekistan have already secured their World Cup berths from the Asian confederation.

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Young Barcelona star Lamine Yamal inherited the club’s iconic number 10 shirt, previously worn by all-time great Lionel Messi, on Wednesday.

“Messi made his path and I will make mine,” Yamal told reporters at an event at the club shop at the Spotify Camp Nou stadium.

“I will work as hard as I can, give everything, and try to make those Barca fans who are there happy and those who are at home.”

The 18-year-old winger, often compared to the Argentine superstar who also came through the club’s La Masia youth academy, helped the Catalan giants win a domestic treble last season.

He signed a new contract with Barcelona until 2031 in May, becoming one of the best-paid players at the club.

“I hope to enjoy myself more than last year and make my dreams come true,” continued Yamal, who said he wanted to win the Champions League with the Catalan giants, and also the World Cup with Spain.

Lamine Yamal has scored 25 goals for the club in over 100 appearances, making his debut in 2023 at the age of 15 wearing the number 41 shirt.

“Barca is my life, I’ve been here since I was seven, for all kids from La Masia, their dream is to make it to the first team, and I’m doing it and I have to keep working,” said Yamal.

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“When I was little, I dreamed of being at Barca and having this number.”

After a season wearing the 27, last summer Yamal followed in Messi’s footsteps by taking the number 19, which the Argentine wore at the club between 2005 and 2008.

Ansu Fati inherited Messi’s number 10 shirt in 2021, when the legendary Argentinian left Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).

Beset by a series of injuries, Fati was unable to fulfill his potential at Barca and signed on loan for Monaco earlier in July.

Other star names, including Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho, and Rivaldo, have worn the Barcelona number 10 shirt in the past.

“(Messi, Maradona, Ronaldinho) are three legends of football, three legends of this club,” said Yamal.

“I am grateful for what they gave the club, and I will try to continue this legacy.”

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Croatia captain Luka Modric has signed a one-year deal with AC Milan at the age of 39, the Italian club said on Monday.

Last week, Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri said the 2018 Ballon d’Or winner would head to the San Siro from Real Madrid after the Club World Cup.

Modric, who turns 40 in September, joined Madrid from Tottenham in 2012 and had been linked with a move to Italy since early June, after announcing he would leave the Spanish giants at the end of his contract.

“AC Milan are delighted to announce Luka Modric has signed a contract with the club until 30 June 2026 with an option for a one-year extension until 30 June 2027,” the 19-time Serie A winners said.

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Modric was in Milan earlier on Monday to undergo medical tests, but according to Italian media, he will only start training with his teammates in August.

“I’m very happy to be here to start a new chapter in my career,” Modric said in a video on the club’s social media platforms. “A big hug to everyone,” he added.

Allegri is back at the helm at Milan, having led them to the Serie A title in 2011 during his first spell in charge between 2010 and 2014.

Their first game of the new season is in the Italian Cup on August 17.

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EAST RUTHERFORD: Chelsea outplayed UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) 3-0 to clinch the FIFA Club World Cup trophy here at the MetLife Stadium, New Jersey, on Sunday.

This was the first edition of the 32-team Club World Cup, with the next tournament scheduled to take place in 2029. The Chelsea vs PSG final saw a nearly full house with 81,118 fans in attendance, including President Donald Trump.

The European champions, PSG, made their way to the United States after their triumphant campaign, with a stunning 5-0 demolition of Inter Milan in late May. However, the favorites failed to live up to the expectation as Chelsea dominated throughout the final.

The ‘Player of the Match’ in the Chelsea vs PSG final, Cole Palmer, scored two goals and set up another as the English club won the first edition of the expanded Club World Cup by beating European champions Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in Sunday’s final at the 82,500 capacity MetLife Stadium.

Palmer netted twice in the opening half-hour and Joao Pedro added the third before the break, with a roundly beaten PSG having Joao Neves sent off late on.

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Cole Palmer opened the scoring midway through the first half and struck again to make it two on the half-hour mark, before taking advantage of passive defending to set up Joao Pedro for the third on 43 minutes.

A bad day for PSG was summed up when Joao Neves was shown red following a VAR review four minutes from the end for pulling Marc Cucurella by the hair off the ball.

It was a scoreline that few could have predicted, as Chelsea capped what has been a long but memorable season by becoming the first-ever winners of the Club World Cup, having also won the UEFA Conference League and finished fourth in the Premier League.

They will also take away around $125 million in prize money, meaning the prospect of a drastically curtailed summer break before returning for next season will surely feel worth it.

For PSG, the financial benefits are similar, but there is a real sense of disappointment in not being able to add this title to their Champions League victory and their double win in the French league and cup.

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Donald Trump will on Sunday appear in the FIFA Club World Cup final, showcasing his unexpected attachment to a sport in which “America First” remains a dream, for now.

The US president is attending the final of the newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup in his latest use of the beautiful game as a soft power political weapon.

His appearance at the MetLife stadium in New Jersey, where Paris Saint-Germain face Chelsea, is very much a trial run for the World Cup final, which will take place in the same stadium next year.

Trump has made it clear that he views both tournaments, as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as showcases for what he calls the “Golden Age of America” during his second term.

The billionaire Republican’s close friendship with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a frequent visitor to the White House, is also a factor in his appearance.

Trump has kept the Club World Cup trophy next to his desk in the Oval Office since Infantino dropped by in March.

But Trump’s embrace of football, or soccer as he would say, is also personal.

The president’s 19-year-old son, Barron, is a fan, as Infantino pointed out in a press conference at FIFA’s new office in Trump Tower in New York on Saturday.

Asked if Trump liked the game, Infantino replied: “Well, I think he does. In his first term as president of the United States, there was a soccer goal in the garden of the White House.

“He then explained to me that his son loved football and that he loved the game. And of course, when you are a parent, you love what your children love, so I think that he loves it.”

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As a student at the New York Military Academy, Trump himself also reportedly played the game for a season.

Trump’s apparent fondness for football may seem unusual for a country where, despite growing popularity, the sport still lags behind American football, basketball, and baseball.

The former reality TV star has, however, always had an eye for popularity, power, and influence. And football, in its own way, brings all three.

Trump pointed out when Infantino visited the White House in March that the United States won the right to host the 2026 World Cup in 2018, during his first term as president.

He said he was “so sad” because he assumed he would not be president when the tournament came around — but his 2020 election loss meant that he would after all.

The FIFA Club World Cup has meanwhile proved more successful than its critics predicted, with around 2.5 million people attending games across the country and some gripping games.

Infantino, who is no stranger to dealing with hard-nosed leaders around the world, thanked Trump for his support on Saturday.

He said Trump “embraced immediately the importance of the FIFA Club World Cup, and of course, the World Cup next year.”

Infantino also joked that Trump “certainly loves as well the trophy” — whose gold-plated curves match the gilded makeover that the president has given the Oval Office.

But in typical form, Trump has also mixed political controversy with his football fandom.

Hosting Italian side Juventus in the Oval Office in June, he delivered a diatribe on transgender people in sports before asking the players: “Could a woman make your team, fellas?”

Most of the players looked bemused before Juventus general manager Damien Comolli replied: “We have a very good women’s team.”

“He’s being very diplomatic,” said Trump.

Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown — part of his “America First” policy — has meanwhile sparked fears that football fans will be discouraged from coming to the United States.

In May, Vice President JD Vance said that 2026 World Cup fans were “welcome to come… but when the time is up, they will have to go home.”

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Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) coach Luis Enrique on Friday urged his team to conclude the best season in the club’s history by winning the Club World Cup, but warned not to expect Sunday’s final against Chelsea to be a “simple formality.”

“This is absolutely not going to be a simple formality,” the Spanish coach insisted, refusing to accept that PSG are necessarily overwhelming favourites to lift the trophy at MetLife Stadium despite their fearsome form.

“I have analysed Chelsea. They have a great squad. Enzo Maresca is doing a great job, and I really like what he is doing,” Luis Enrique said. “They are a very complete team.”

PSG can complete a remarkable clean sweep of trophies with victory, having won a French league and cup double before claiming the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history at the end of May.

“We want to finish this historic season in the best possible way,” said the former Barcelona coach.

“Now we must open the next chapter, win more major trophies. We want to make more history by winning on Sunday.”

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PSG were spellbinding at times in their 4-0 victory against Real Madrid in the semi-finals and also put four goals past Atletico Madrid and Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami during the competition.

“But we have to win this game to round things off. However, in a final, there is always a winner and a loser, and that doesn’t mean the loser has necessarily done anything wrong,” Luis Enrique added.

“We will lose again at some point, because that is what happens in top-level football, but I think the path is clear for everyone.”

This is the first edition of the 32-team Club World Cup, and whoever wins on Sunday will be world champions for four years, with the next tournament scheduled to take place in 2029.

“We are aware of the importance of this match, that it is a golden opportunity to be in a World Cup final,” said captain Marquinhos.

“This only happens every four years, and we don’t know where we will be in four years.”

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Liverpool have announced a series of tributes to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva when the Reds return to action on Sunday at Preston for the first time since the Portuguese international’s death.

The 28-year-old player was killed in a car crash near Zamora, northwestern Spain, alongside his brother, André.

The incident occurred on July 3 near Palacios de Sanabria on the Requejo Bajas Highway (A-52).

Liverpool’s return to pre-season training was delayed until Tuesday as a result.

However, the match at English Championship side Preston will go ahead as scheduled in the first of Liverpool’s pre-season friendlies.

A rendition of Liverpool’s anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” will be played prior to the 1400GMT kick-off, and Preston will lay a wreath in front of the away supporters.

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A minute of silence will be observed, with digital tributes displayed on the stadium’s big screen and on pitchside advertising boards.

Players from both teams will wear black armbands in honor of Diogo Jota.

Father of three Jota, who married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso 11 days before the accident, died alongside his brother after a Lamborghini they were travelling in came off the road and burst into flames.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot and a number of first-team players, led by captain Virgil van Dijk, attended Jota’s funeral last Saturday.

For the unversed, Diogo Jota debuted for Liverpool in 2020 and appeared in 182 matches for the club, amassing 65 goals across all competitions.

The 28-year-old was also pivotal in the club’s recent triumphs, which included their 2024-25 Premier League title, FA Cup victory in 2022, and League Cup victories in 2022 and 2024.

Apart from his club appearances, Jota also represented the Portugal national team in 49 matches, featuring in the UEFA Euro Tournament and the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

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Xabi Alonso is looking forward to “starting from scratch” with Real Madrid next season after being thrown in at the deep end as coach of the Spanish giants in the Club World Cup.

Alonso was given a reality check on Wednesday as Madrid were eliminated 4-0 by European champions Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the semi-final at the MetLife Stadium.

“PSG are a team who have been built over time, whereas we are practically just beginning,” Alonso said after seeing Real Madrid go two goals behind inside nine minutes.

It was 3-0 before half-time, and PSG added a late fourth as they advanced to Sunday’s final against Chelsea.

“We have lots of room for improvement. There are many things that we want to do better,” Alonso added.

“We have to be self-critical. This will tell us things for the future that will help us to compete at a much better level than we did today.”

Xabi Alonso was appointed at the end of May, taking over from Carlo Ancelotti after a successful two-and-a-half years at Bayer Leverkusen.

Real Madrid finished as runners-up to Barcelona in La Liga and the Copa del Rey, and went out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals against Arsenal.

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The Basque technician, a former Madrid player, would have preferred a full pre-season with his squad before being thrust into competitive action, and it was always going to be a big ask for them to beat PSG’s well-oiled machine.

“They are at a very high level and have been since the start of the knockout phase of the Champions League,” Xabi Alonso said.

“They have shown it again here and we have to accept it — we are just beginning, learning things about where we want to go and how we are going to get there.”

Real eased into the knockout phase of the Club World Cup despite being held by Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia in their opening game.

They then recorded narrow wins over Juventus and Borussia Dortmund prior to Wednesday’s defeat.

Alonso’s La Liga debut as Real coach is scheduled to be on Tuesday, August 19, at home to Osasuna.

Attempts to have the fixture postponed have so far been unsuccessful, meaning there are fewer than six weeks for the players to have a break and then embark on a full pre-season with their new coach.

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