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Russia 2018 World Cup May Be Without Messi and Ronaldo
As it is getting anxious for teams and players fearing missing out on the World Cup, two of the world’s iconic players are possible victims.
By the time the draw for the finals is conducted in Moscow in December, even Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo could be facing up to spending next June on the beach rather than on the fields in Russia.
For now, only seven qualification slots have been filled by Belgium, Brazil, Iran, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and South Korea.
Another 24 places are still vacant, after the latest rounds of qualifiers.
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MESSI AND RONALDO
Time is running out for the two best players in world soccer over the last decade. Not just to win the World Cup for the first time, either, because Ronaldo and Messi might not even make the trip to Russia.
As things stand in Europe, Ronaldo’s Portugal is second in its qualifying group and the reigning European champions are facing a November playoff to gain a spot in the following month’s finals draw.
At least Portugal won both games in the last week. Argentina was held by both Uruguay and Venezuela in Jorge Sampaoli’s first games in charge, despite having Messi back from suspension.
Argentina still has time to move up from fifth to the fourth and final automatic qualification place.
But the final two qualifiers next month for the two-time world champions are against Peru — currently fourth — and Ecuador — chasing Argentina in fifth place for the right to face New Zealand in a playoff.
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CHAMPIONS COLLAPSE
The World Cup will be without African champion Cameroon. Copa America winner Chile could be absent, too.
Cameroon’s qualification bid ended this week, while Chile is sixth in the South American standings and struggling to force its way into a playoff after losing to Bolivia on Tuesday.
It’s barely two months since the Chileans were contesting the Confederations Cup final where they lost to Germany, and players are feeling the heat.
“You get tired of being criticized with reason and without reason,” Chile forward Alexis Sanchez wrote on Instagram.
“You get tired of people wanting to see you lose, you get tired of saying to yourself ‘Once more I’ll get up’ after crying after a defeat, and you get tired of telling the world and people who are with you, that everything is going well.”
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AMERICANS CLING ON
The United States is in danger of missing its first World Cup since 1986 after a home loss to Costa Rica and a draw in Honduras.
Bruce Arena’s team is hanging onto fourth place by goal difference ahead of Honduras. The fourth-place team is still plunged into a playoff against Australia or Syria to qualify for Russia.
Next up in October for the Americans are a Panama side which is a point ahead of them in the third automatic qualification place and last-place Trinidad and Tobago.
It’s the first time since 1989 that the qualification fate of the U.S. has been on the line going into the finale.
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SYRIA’S BID
Several teams are still in contention to make their World Cup debuts in Russia: Burkina Faso, Panama, Uganda … and Syria.
To qualify, Syria would have to beat Australia over two games in October and then overcome a CONCACAF opponent in a November playoff round.
When Syria drew in Iran on Tuesday in qualifying, there were celebrations home back in the capital Damascus.
What makes Syria’s progress on the field even more remarkable is the team is playing as a civil war rages. That is also what makes the prospect of a Syrian team packed with government supporters appearing at the World Cup potentially problematic for critics of the President Bashir Assad’s regime.
FIFA rules say politics should be separated completely from the soccer.
A World Cup trip next June by Assad to Russia, Syria’s chief international ally, could rapidly become a sensitive issue for FIFA.
Without citing any country, the Asian Football Confederation opened an investigation on Wednesday into rule breaches linked to the need for national teams to respect political neutrality.
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DUTCH DESPAIR
The Netherlands is facing missing a second straight major tournament, with even a place in the playoffs slipping out of sight.
The 2010 World Cup finalists were dealt one of the hardest groups, but a 4-0 loss to leader France last week showed the size of the gulf between Dick Advocaat’s side and the continental powers.
The Dutch are third in their group with two games remaining, three points behind their final group opponent, Sweden.
Although France leads the group from Sweden, Les Bleus have carelessly dropped points in a late defeat to Sweden in June and a 0-0 home draw with lowly Luxembourg.
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GERMAN FAN TROUBLE
Germany’s problem isn’t qualifying for Russia as the World Cup holders lead their group by five points with two games remaining. The issue is the behaviour of fans.
There is abuse aimed often at their own player — Timo Werner — all over a dive by the striker in a German league game last season.
Far more disturbing are the Nazi slogans that were chanted during a game in the Czech Republic last week and led to FIFA opening an investigation.
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NO QATAR
Qatar’s qualification bid ended in failure last week, just like in every previous campaign.
The significance this time is that the Gulf nation will now make its debut on soccer’s biggest stage when it hosts the World Cup in 2022.
The star match of the President Federation Cup Round of 16 is the potentially epic confrontation of Enugu Rangers and Bendel Insurance.
The history of the Nigerian National Cup is littered with the epic duels of the two who have three times contested the final matches in 1978, 1981 and recently in 2023.
They clash again four steps before the final match. The two teams were involved in two of the most memorable final matches of Nigeria’s Cup competition in its 80-year history, with honours shared in 1978 and 1981.
The Benin Arsenal tore apart the form books to shock the nation’s football fraternity by spanking Rangers 3-0 in the final in Lagos in 1978, but the Flying Antelopes somewhat repaid the compliment with a 2-0 win at the same venue in 1981.
The setting for this Round of 16 clash is also in Lagos, though a different venue. But fireworks are expected by the waterfront from two teams aspiring for continental football.
Two-time CAF Champions League winners Enyimba FC, who eliminated Cup holders El-Kanemi Warriors in the Round of 32, will take on Abakaliki FC at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba.
Nasarawa United and Bayelsa United will square up to each other in the university town of Anyigba, while Warri Wolves and Wikki Tourists battle things out in the Federal Capital, Abuja.
Two great entertainers, Ikorodu City and Beyond Limits will be at each other’s jugular at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, where Solution FC will tango with Kwara United in an earlier game. Plateau United will confront Osun United in Anyigba.
Akwa United and Inter Lagos are at loggerheads in Abuja.
Round of 16 fixtures (Men) on Wednesday
- Enyimba FC (Abia) Vs Abakaliki FC (Ebonyi) – Asaba – 4pm
- Nasarawa United (Nasarawa) Vs Bayelsa United (Bayelsa) – Anyigba 10am
- Warri Wolves (Delta) Vs Wikki Tourists (Bauchi) – Area 3 Abuja – 1 pm
- Ikorodu City (Lagos) Vs Beyond Limits (Ogun) – Benin City – 4 pm
- Akwa United (Akwa Ibom) Vs Inter Lagos (Lagos) – Area 3 Abuja – 4 pm
- Solution FC (Anambra) Vs Kwara United (Kwara) – Benin City – – 10 am
- Plateau United (Plateau) Vs Osun United (Osun) – Anyigba – 1 pm
- Bendel Insurance (Edo) Vs Rangers Int’l (Enugu) – MJA Lagos – 4 pm
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The Mohammed V Sports Complex in Casablanca, which underwent a significant renovation, reopened on Saturday as Wydad and Raja played to a 1-1 draw during the 26th matchday of the Botola Pro D1 “Inwi” football league.
The stadium is one of the designated venues for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations holding in December.
The redevelopment project of the iconic stadium in Morocco’s economic capital is part of the broader program to upgrade sports venues in preparation for upcoming major sporting events, notably the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Launched in March 2024 and completed in March 2025, the works included, according to the National Agency for Public Facilities (ANEP), the replacement of 45,000 seats in this temple of Moroccan football, the upgrading of the press stand, sound system, video surveillance, and access control systems.
The renovations also covered the development of four changing rooms and warm-up areas, the creation of a mixed zone and a new central players’ tunnel, the replacement of the turf with the latest-generation hybrid grass, refurbishment of the athletics track, lighting upgrades, and replacement of the advertising screens.
Additionally, the project involved the construction of a regulation building to manage and fully separate different access flows, the development of a new ramp for team buses, VIP and VVIP parking areas, and the TV compound.
The works also included the renovation of VIP and media lounges, the construction of a new press conference room, the creation of private boxes, the upgrading of restrooms, food and beverage areas, and public infirmaries, as well as an increase in the number of gates and access control points.
Outside the stadium, the renovations focused on the refurbishment of sidewalks and green spaces, upgrading of exterior lighting, renovation of the surrounding fence, and refurbishment of the annex area.
Officially inaugurated in 1955, the Mohammed V Sports Complex has hosted the greatest sporting events and tournaments in the Kingdom. Morocco, a true land of sports and athletes, is increasingly positioning itself as a leader in the sports sector—not only in Africa but also on the global stage.
Indeed, under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Morocco is pursuing an ambitious policy of developing its sports infrastructure in preparation for hosting the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which it will co-host with Spain and Portugal.
This proactive strategy aims to meet the international standards required by FIFA and CAF, while strengthening Morocco’s position as a continental, regional, and global sports hub.
In this regard, Morocco continues to invest heavily in its sports infrastructure to host large-scale international events such as the AFCON and the 2030 World Cup.
Ongoing projects include the construction of the Hassan II Stadium in Benslimane, the reconstruction of the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat, and the expansion and upgrading of the Grand Stade of Tangier in accordance with FIFA’s specifications.
The rehabilitation of the main stadiums in Fez, Marrakech, and Agadir is also underway, initially to meet CAF standards, followed by a second phase aimed at aligning with FIFA’s requirements. Studies for this second phase are already complete, with work scheduled to begin right after AFCON 2025.
Finally, ongoing efforts also include the reconstruction of the Al Barid Stadium and the Prince Héritier Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat.
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The Los Angeles 2028 Olympics will feature 351 medal events —22 more than at Paris 2024— the International Olympic Committee Executive Board confirmed this week in a press conference in Lausanne.
The Executive Board has approved the event programme and athlete quotas for the LA Games, with gender equality in mind. For the first time, all team sports will have at least the same number of women’s teams as men’s teams. The LA28 programme also added 698 quotas for the five sports proposed by the LA28 Organising Committee (baseball/softball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse and squash), in addition to the core athlete quota of 10,500.
“We are opening the door for more athletes to compete, win, and live out their Olympic dream at the LA28 Games where athletes have always been, and always will be, the heart of the Games.
“We are proud to champion an athlete-centric vision that celebrates excellence and the unifying spirit of the Olympic Movement,” LA28 Chief Athlete Officer, Janet Evans, said in the organisation’s official press release.
New medal opportunities
In addition to the new sports set to debut at the Los Angeles Games, exciting new podium opportunities will be available for the established sports on the Olympic programme.
Coastal rowing will debut at the Games with the women’s solo, men’s solo and mixed double sculls in Beach Sprints, which will see competitors sprint across the sand, before navigating waves and surf for the top prize.
Also making a splash are swimming’s fast-paced 50m distance swim and water polo. There will be six additional medal opportunities for the fastest swimmers in the world with the women’s and men’s 50-metre competitions in backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly. The women’s water polo tournament will expand to 12 teams, matching the men’s —making it gender-equal for the first time at the Games.
Sport climbing also gained two medal opportunities by separating a previously combined event and creating three distinct medal events: speed, boulder and lead. The sport will have a total quota of 76 athletes (38 women and 38 men).
“From the very beginning of our Olympic journey, we have always had the target of three sets of medals for our athletes. Each of our disciplines has its own unique strengths, and now everyone will see these at LA28,” IFSC President Marco Scolaris said in the federation’s press release.
While the medal events will stay the same, basketball 3×3 will also expand to include 12 teams per gender, from eight teams at the previous Olympics. This expansion reflects the sport’s growth over recent years and further highlights the sport’s global appeal and development.
“The additional quota allows more National Federations and players from all around the world to dream that they can make it from the streets to the Olympics. Los Angeles is one of the world’s most iconic basketball cities and has a thriving 3×3 basketball culture. We are very excited to be once again at the heart of a vibrant, urban sport festival atmosphere during the Games,”said FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis, according to FIBA’s press release.
Spotlight on women’s sport
Just weeks after boxing was approved for the Olympic programme after its controversial run at the Paris Games, the sport is set to achieve full parity at the next Olympics with an additional weight class added to the women’s competition: resulting in seven weight classes for both the women’s and men’s tournaments.
Women’s football will be showcased in LA28, with a record 16 teams, while adjusting the men’s tournament to 12 teams to maintain the overall tournament size consistent with previous Olympic Games.
“We’ve seen incredible growth in women’s participation in team sport and in popularity and visibility in women’s team sport, with football being an absolute leader in that regard,” The IOC’s Kit McConnell said. “Women’s football and men’s football have been hugely successful in the Olympic Games in terms of ticketing and broadcast audiences, and media coverage around the world. And what better place to increase the number of women’s teams than the USA itself?”
More mixed-teams
Six new mixed-gender team events will be part of the competition in Los Angeles. Compound archery will be at the Olympic Games in the form of a mixed-team event. It joins the five recurve events currently in the programme.
Athletics will feature a mixed 4x100m, becoming the second mixed-gender event in the sport, joining the 4x400m relay. Golf, table tennis and artistic gymnastics will also add a mixed-team event at LA28.
Overall, the LA28 programme will bring together 10,500 Olympians across the 31 sports on the initial sports program, with up to 700 more athletes competing in the five new sports proposed by LA28 and added to the Olympic sports programme by the IOC.
-Inside The Games
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