International Football
SOUTH KOREAN FOOTBALL CLUB USE SEX DOLLS IN PLACE OF FANS
One of South Korea’s top football clubs apologised for causing “deep concern” on Monday (May 18) after being accused of using sex dolls to fill empty seats at a weekend game.
FC Seoul insisted the mannequins – used in the absence of fans, who are banned because of the coronavirus – had “no connection to sex toys”.
But some of the artificial spectators, deployed for Sunday’s game against Gwangju FC, wore T-shirts with the logo of SoloS, a sex toy seller.
Other mannequins, which wore masks and were separated according to social distancing guidelines, held placards advertising the company and some of its models.
Most of them were female, but some were male.
FC Seoul said the company which provided the mannequins had previously provided them to SoloS, hence the advertising in which they were clad.
“We are sincerely sorry for causing deep concern to fans,” FC Seoul said in a statement, following uproar from fans and media.
“We have confirmed from the very beginning that they had no connection to sex toys.”
But fans were not convinced.
“I wonder how they even came up with this bizarre idea. This is an international disgrace,” said one online critic.
Another fan added: “FC Seoul turned its stadium into a X-rated zone.”
Neither the mannequin distributor nor SoloS could immediately be reached for comment by AFP.
The K-League’s new season kicked off on may 8 after being postponed for more than two months over the coronavirus pandemic, but fans remain barred.
Instead, clubs have used cardboard cutouts, placards and banners to fill up the stands.
FC Seoul won the game, held at the cavernous Seoul World Cup Stadium, 1-0.
-AFP
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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