International Football
Trump Tweets Video of Usain Bolt ‘Respecting’ Anthem at Olympics
As the controversy continue to rage on America’s National Football League (NFL) players kneeling down in protest when national anthem is being played, the United States’ President Donald Trump has tweeted that he believes the NFL should make a rule that forces all players to stand during the national anthem.
The players were sitting or kneeling to peacefully protest and many explained why they chose to do so. The protests started with Colin Kawpernick, who wanted to call attention to racial inequality and police brutality, last season.
Trump said at a rally on Friday that he wishes NFL owners would fire players who protest and tell them, “Get that son of a b- off the field right now.”
Following Sunday’s protests and his comments, on Tuesday night, Trump sent out the following tweet of Usain Bolt pausing mid-interview to stand and listen to the national anthem at the Olympics in 2012.
According to For The Win, a USAToday sports publication, since Trump and many fans have responded to NFL players’ protests as the president did in the tweet above – saying that the players are being disrespectful to the flag or America or the military by not standing for the anthem – many have shared explanations for why that line of thought is wrong.
Here are just a few of them:
Stephen Colbert:
“Wrong. Kneeling during the national anthem has everything to do with race. Just like your presidency. Those players are protesting racial injustice. They’re not protesting the American flag. Saying kneeling was a protest against the American flag, that’s like saying Gandhi’s hunger strikes were a protest against snacking. You do realize that the Civil Rights activists weren’t sitting at the lunch counter for better grilled cheese?”
WFAA sportscaster Dale Hansen:
“The young, black athletes are not disrespecting America or the military by taking a knee during the anthem. They are respecting the best thing about America. It’s a dog whistle to the racists among us to say otherwise.
“They, and all of us, should protest how black Americans are treated in this country. And if you don’t think white privilege is a fact, you don’t understand America.”
Broncos linebacker Shane Ray:
“When I hear the anthem it’s not the words that make me feel like an American. It’s us as people for one moment feeling united standing together. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize we are kneeling because we need everyone’s focus and eyes so that we can work for a change. We have your attention now. Time to start opening your eyes so that we can change and have all people proudly stand for our country.”
ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt:
“Does anybody listen to what the man (Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett) just said? Will anyone listen to what he said about what they did as a team, how they talked for days to figure out how they could show their support and not be disrespectful to the flag? That’s what they did. But if this is something that upsets you, you’re just going to be mad. And no conversation can take place if that’s all there is. It just can’t happen, if you just want to be mad. This was before the anthem and what they did was booed. So if the anthem wasn’t being played and the flag wasn’t being displayed and you’re angry at that, what are you angry about? I’m out on this one. I’m out of gas. I don’t know what else there is.”
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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