Sports News and Discussions

[wjfox]

UK & Ireland sole bidder for Euro 2028 after Turkey withdraws to focus on Euro 2032

12 minutes ago

The UK and Republic of Ireland will now bid unopposed for Euro 2028 after Turkey withdrew to focus on a joint bid with Italy for Euro 2032.

Turkey agreed to merge their Euro 2032 bid with Italy in July and that has now been approved by governing body Uefa.

While Italy had only bid for the 2032 tournament, Turkey had bid to host both Euro 2028 and 2032.

Both bids still need official approval by Uefa at a meeting of its executive committee on Tuesday.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/67003581

[wjfox]

Euro 2028: Uefa confirms UK and Republic of Ireland as tournament hosts

1 hour ago.

The United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland will host the 2028 European Championship, Uefa has confirmed.

The joint bid ran unopposed after Turkey withdrew to focus on a bid with Italy for Euro 2032, which was also confirmed at a meeting in Switzerland.

The UK and Ireland focused on Euro 2028, with Uefa's approval, after they ended a plan to be Europe's preferred candidate for the 2030 World Cup.

London's Wembley Stadium and Glasgow's Hampden Park hosted games at Euro 2020.

Football Association of Wales chief executive Noel Mooney said he would "like the national stadium of Wales to host the opening match" but that it is "up to Uefa" to decide.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/67062742

[Ozzie guy]

Lionel Messi has won the Ballon d'Or an 8th time. The award is very prestigious and informally means best football player in the world over the past year.

It's nearly impossible to make a coherent argument that Messi isn't the greatest football player of all time.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/vi ... ners-video

[Ozzie guy]

Ronaldo is probably going to retire with the highest goal tally in football some people predict footballs new superstars Mbappe and Haaland will surpass that.

When Ronaldo turned 23 I believe he had 92 goals.

I believe the new generations superstars had the following goals when turning 23

Mbappe 229 goals 137 ahead of Ronaldo

Haaland 211 goals 119 ahead of Ronaldo


Ronaldo had a less attacking role earlier on but I think this could have directly lead to more goal output later on via giving him a more well rounded game and indirectly via team roles/contracts due to added fame, teammates/coaches seeing him as a bigger attacking threat etc.

Personally I think Ronaldo will start to "catch up" post 25 years old and start to crush them with his extreme longevity (and motivation to continue playing when really old) from 28 onwards (27 is prime age for a striker) probably surpassing them when they are 31ish or something.

This video that is a little over 1 year old shows the most successful attacking footballers from this generation and their goal tallies across different ages

[wjfox]

European Super League: Uefa and Fifa rules banning breakaway league unlawful, says court

25 minutes ago

Banning clubs from joining a European Super League was unlawful and Uefa and Fifa are "abusing a dominant position", the European Court of Justice has ruled.

It had been claimed by the ESL and its backers, A22, that Uefa and Fifa were breaking competition law by threatening to sanction clubs and players who joined the breakaway league.

A ruling on Thursday from Europe's highest court found against the governing bodies.

However the court stated: "That does not mean that a competition such as the Super League project must necessarily be approved".

An initial report released last December by the ECJ said the rules of football's European and world governing bodies were "compatible with EU competition law".

However, the verdict will be seen as a blow to the authority of Uefa and Fifa and how they govern the game.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/67783970

[Time_Traveller]

World Cup 2026 schedule, fixture dates and stadium venues

3 hours ago

The schedule for the men’s 2026 World Cup has been announced, as Fifa unveiled a giant tournament both in geography and the sheer volume of football.

The tournament will be played across Mexico, Canada and the USA in an expanded format with 48 teams included for the first time. They will be split across 12 groups of four, with the top two progressing automatically to the knockout stages and the eight best third-placed teams also going through to the round of 32.

The World Cup will begin in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium, the site of Diego Maradona’s most famous and infamous goals against England at the 1986 World Cup. It was also the venue for two classic World Cup finals: Brazil’s win over Italy in 1970 which included Carlos Alberto’s iconic team goal to cap a 4-1 win; and Argentina’s 3-1 extra-time win over Netherlands in 1986, where Mario Kempes scored twice.

Mexico and Canada will host 13 games in each, and the United States will host 78. From the quarter-finals onwards, the US will host all of the remaining matches, with the final in New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium.

https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/foo ... 90675.html

[Time_Traveller]

Sir Jim Ratcliffe officially completes £1.3bn partial takeover of Manchester United

Feb 20, 2024, 10:04pm

Manchester United have confirmed that Sir Jim Ratcliffe has now officially completed his 27.7 per cent takeover of the club in a £1.3 billion deal.

Ratcliffe said: ‘To become co-owner of Manchester United is a great honour and comes with great responsibility.

‘This marks the completion of the transaction, but just the beginning of our journey to take Manchester United back to the top of English, European and world football, with world-class facilities for our fans.

‘Work to achieve those objectives will accelerate from today.’

Joel Glazer, United’s executive co-chairman, said: ‘I would like to welcome Sir Jim as co-owner and look forward to working closely with him and INEOS Sport to deliver a bright future for Manchester United.’

https://metro.co.uk/2024/02/20/sir-jim- ... ews_item-3

Well there goes United, i don't want to get political on a sports thread but anything associated with this Brexiteer I am officially saying goodbye too even if its United.

[Time_Traveller]

Chelsea’s £90m loss raises doubt over ability to meet financial fair play rules

Thu 7 Mar 2024 13.55 GMT

Chelsea’s ability to comply with profit and sustainability rules is in fresh doubt after it emerged that the club made a pre-tax loss of £90.1m in the year to 30 June 2023.

The figures follow a loss of £121.4m in the previous year’s accounts and were revealed in the accounts of BlueCo 22, the company through which Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly bought Chelsea from Roman Abramovich in 2022.

The accounts show that BlueCo, which owns a majority stake in the Ligue 1 club Strasbourg, made a loss of £653m after tax for the period 2 March 2022 to 30 June 2023. Chelsea FC Holdings Limited’s accounts will be published at a later date and will reveal more detail about the club’s financial position.

However the revelation of a £90.1m loss will raise concerns that the Stamford Bridge club will fall foul of the Premier League’s PSR and Uefa’s financial fair play regulations. The Premier League’s rules permit clubs to make a loss of £105m over a three-year period.

Chelsea, whose new owners have spent more than £1bn on transfers, are adamant that they are operating within the league’s and Uefa’s rules. The club said: “Despite the loss in the year and the continued fallout from the sanctions placed on the club in the prior year, the club continues to comply with Uefa and Premier League financial regulations.”

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... lay-doubts

[Time_Traveller]

Oliver Bearman: Ferrari's youngest British driver in Formula 1 'marked out as special'

1 hour ago

Oliver Bearman's Formula 1 debut is coming in unexpected circumstances, after Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz's appendicitis diagnosis.

But it has merely accelerated what was already an inevitability - the British driver has looked headed for F1 for some time.

The 18-year-old from Chelmsford will be the youngest British driver to start an F1 race and third youngest debutant behind Max Verstappen (17) and Lance Stroll (18).

However, Bearman is being thrown in at the deep end at this weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, and it is unwise to expect too much.

His team-mate is Charles Leclerc, who many feel is the fastest man in F1 over one lap.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/68513354

[Time_Traveller]

Cresta Run: Women race the Grand National for first time in 103 years

10 hours ago

"Exhilarating, risky and addictive. It's even crazier than downhill skiing." That's how four-time Olympian and Ski Sunday presenter Chemmy Alcott described the iconic Cresta Run.

Switzerland's St Moritz Tobogganing Club (SMTC) is home to the world's oldest and most feared natural ice chute.

And after a ban lasting 103 years, imposed because of fears it would cause breast cancer, women have been allowed to compete again, with the Cresta Run's Ladies' Grand National race taking place last month.

Although not in the race itself, Alcott wanted to experience tobogganing head-first down the polished track, which covers 1.2km from St Moritz to Celerina.

"I don't often hand over control of my life. But the Cresta demands it. Demands that you stop fighting, find the flow, and let go," said the 41-year-old. She hit a top speed of 55mph over 75 seconds on the 10-bend ice track.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/winter-sports/68430002