Category Archives: Football

‘That’s the way the city works’: how the UAE changed the face of Andy Burnham’s Manchester

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The story of the emirates’ presence in Manchester winds from the Arab Spring to some of the most deprived places in England – with complicated results

When Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s long-ruling dictator, was toppled from power in the Arab spring protests of 2011, his downfall sent shock waves across the Middle East. It also helped change the face of modern Manchester.

Mubarak’s successor, the Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsi, was a sworn enemy of the United Arab Emirates, whose rulers feared the advance of Morsi’s Islamism.

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How success of Manchester City helped put Andy Burnham in power

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PM has praised Abu Dhabi group as ‘huge partner’ in reshaping Manchester, but critics say this ignores public cost of city’s transformation

In July 2016, the Manchester City player Yaya Touré ambled into a small bar near Beijing’s Workers’ Stadium and offered a bemused smile as dozens of Chinese fans rushed towards him.

Manchester City had just won their sixth trophy under the big-spending ownership of Sheikh Mansour’s Abu Dhabi United Group and the blues were international megastars. They were also magnets for investment.

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Jürgen Klopp disgusted by claims his Germany team are ‘not white enough’

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  • Says social media claims are ‘nonsense’ and ‘idiocy’

  • Coach sees ‘no reason to pay attention to these people’

Jürgen Klopp has reacted with disgust to a social media debate questioning whether the Germany team he is in the process of forming are “white enough”. Klopp said he believed there was no point in giving room to “such people and their utterances”, dismissing them as “complete nonsense”.

Asked to respond to the debate as to whether the national team were “not German enough” or “not white enough”, he said: “There is absolutely no reason to pay attention to these people. You won’t get my thoughts on this. I have little time in everyday life for idiocy – and even less on social media.

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Michael Wynn-Jones, husband of Delia Smith, dies aged 85

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Former journalist and honorary life president of Norwich City FC died peacefully at home on Monday

Michael Wynn-Jones, the journalist and husband of the TV chef Delia Smith, has died at the age of 85.

Wynn-Jones was honorary life president of Norwich City football club, which said everyone at the club was “deeply saddened” by his death.

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‘There’s a baby on the field’: Toddler invades pitch during Minnesota’s MLS win over San Jose

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  • Child wandered on field during MNUFC’s 5-1 win

  • Minnesota posts win was ‘Like taking money from a baby’

A toddler interrupted a Major League Soccer match between Minnesota United and San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday by invading the pitch – a bizarre scene punctuated by an on-air analyst saying, “There’s a baby on the field.”

With a minute and a half to play in the game that Minnesota won 5-1 at PayPal Park in San Jose, California, the small child took to the field – and the referee blew his whistle to stop play.

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Scratch of the day: local football season postponed due to ‘rock hard’ pitches

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Drought and record heat have forced the Norfolk and Suffolk league to move kick-off to the end of August as the ground is deemed too dangerous to play on

This summer’s record drought has forced a football league to delay the start of its season because “rock hard” pitches are a danger to its players.

The 2026/27 season in the Anglian Combination League of 85 amateur teams in Norfolk and Suffolk was due to start next weekend.

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Top Ugandan footballer killed by robbers armed with paving stones

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David Owori, who played for the national team, died in hospital after he tried to stop robbers taking his phone

The Ugandan football community is in mourning after the death of a player who was fatally injured during a robbery in the capital, Kampala, on Tuesday night.

David Owori, who captained Sports Club Villa, a Uganda Premier League club, and represented the national team, was attacked after resisting an attempt to steal his mobile phone and other belongings near his home in Makindye division.

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Two Iranian female footballers granted Australian citizenship after protest

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  • Players stayed in country after Asian Cup in March

  • Duo condemned as traitors in Iran for not singing anthem

Two former Iranian footballers said on Thursday they were proud to have been granted Australian citizenship after being called traitors at home for refusing to sing the national anthem before a game.

Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh were members of a group of seven from Iran’s delegation who asked for Australia’s protection after the protest during the women’s Asian Cup in March.

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White House backs Argentina players over Falklands banner in World Cup semi-final

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White House Fifa taskforce chief defends Argentina footballers, saying US believes in free speech

The White House has backed Argentina’s footballers who displayed a banner supporting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final victory against England.

After Argentina’s 2-1 win in a fractious match in Atlanta on Wednesday, some players held up a banner that said: “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” – using the country’s term for the South Atlantic islands.

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‘Malvinas are Argentinian’: World Cup holders celebrate win over England with Falklands banner

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  • Banner refers to Falkland Islands conflict in 1982

  • UK business secretary calls for Fifa investigation

The Argentina players celebrated their World Cup win over England with a banner saying “Las Malvinas son Argentinas”, making reference to the 1982 Falklands war.

Argentina were 1-0 down with five minutes to go of the semi-final in Atlanta but rallied and scored twice in quick succession to reach a second straight World Cup final, where they will face Spain in New Jersey on Sunday.

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Jude Bellingham lookalikes compete for a £1,966 Deliveroo voucher

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The match-winning England striker is ‘a good ambassador for young people’, says one contestant

All together now, with arms in the air: One Jude Bellingham, there’s only one Jude Bellingham …

Unless, that is, you happened to find yourself in Shoreditch, east London, on Wednesday, where a dozen young men who looked vaguely like the England midfielder gathered for a lookalike contest almost as competitive as the one currently continuing in the US.

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Struggling pub landlords given a lifeline by England’s World Cup heroes

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One manager expects takings to treble during England’s semi-final with Argentina on Wednesday; while national sales are up 10%

The beleaguered pub sector is getting a boost from England’s World Cup run, with some landlords reporting roaring sales as anticipation builds for a bumper night on Wednesday for the semi-final clash with Argentina.

Lisa Mayall, the manager of the British Oak in Kingswinford near Dudley in the West Midlands, was jubilant after England’s 2-1 win against Norway on Saturday night and brisk takings at the pub’s till. She expects hundreds more customers for the team’s next game at 8pm BST.

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White House’s World Cup head defends Trump lobbying Fifa over red card

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Andrew Giuliani claims actions of referee Raphael Claus over US player Folarin Balogun ‘very, very highly suspicious’

Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House’s World Cup taskforce, has defended Donald Trump’s lobbying of Fifa to lift the suspension of US player Folarin Balogun for Monday’s game against Belgium.

The US president claimed that Brazilian referee Raphael Claus, who showed Balogun a red card in the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, was “a little bit suspect, if you check his past”. This was apparently a reference to a match-fixing investigation by Brazil’s senate in 2024 that examined how referees were assigned to games but did not accuse Claus of wrongdoing.

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French prosecutors investigate racist abuse of Kylian Mbappé by Paraguayan senator

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Celeste Amarilla could face charges after French Football Federation complains about social media posts over World Cup match

Prosecutors in France have opened an investigation into the racist attack on Kylian Mbappé by a Paraguayan senator, with officials weighing whether to demand that the senator be charged with aggravated public insult or incitement to hatred or violence.

The Paris prosecutor’s office told the Guardian on Tuesday it had launched the inquiry after the French Football Federation (FFF) filed a complaint with the national unit for combating online hate.

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Pull an all-nighter? How parents, schools, fans and police plan to cope with England’s 1am kick-off

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Popular national pastimes of drinking and football will make post-Mexico Monday a day of sore heads and sleepy children

England are through to the round of 16 in the World Cup and, as is customary in the run-up to a major international footballing fixture, the country may be losing its mind.

Because piled on top of the 60 years of hurt for the men’s team, England fans have another obstacle to overcome with the forthcoming fixture: a gruelling kick-off time of 1am BST.

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‘Bigger than football’: Norway fans’ Viking row makes waves at World Cup

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From Times Square to the Norwegian parliament and even in fighter jet cockpits, the choreographed row is everywhere

The fans have done it, in their thousands, in the stadiums. The players have done it on the pitch. Pretty much anyone who was there did it in New York’s Times Square. Norwegian MPs did it in parliament.

Prince Sverre Magnus, third in line to the Norwegian throne, rowed in an Oslo subway carriage. Care home residents in their 90s rowed in rural Norway and Norwegian Royal Air Force pilots rowed in their F-35 fighter jets.

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Four people die in mass fan celebrations in Mexico City after World Cup victory

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  • Three of the victims died from suffocation

  • More than a million people gathered in Mexico City

Four people died, three ⁠from suffocation, as thousands of fans crowded Mexico City streets during World Cup celebrations, the capital’s health secretariat ⁠said in the early ⁠hours ​of Wednesday.

The deaths occurred near the Angel of Independence landmark, where thousands of fans had gathered to ⁠celebrate Mexico’s 2-0 victory over Ecuador in the last 32.

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Prosecutors in England and Wales expect rise in domestic abuse during World Cup

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CPS urges victims to go to police, saying they will be taken seriously and it ‘won’t hesitate’ to bring abusers to justice

Prosecutors in England and Wales are expecting incidents of domestic abuse to increase during the men’s World Cup, and have urged victims to come forward, saying those responsible “will be held accountable”.

“We often see more domestic abuse cases around major football tournaments like these,” the CPS national stalking lead, Olivia Rose, said. “The point that we want to get across is that those responsible will be held accountable, and that we won’t hesitate to bring them to justice.”

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‘You’re history itself!’: how Arab World Cup commentators fuel fans’ passions

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Arabic’s rich history of poetry lends itself well to ‘beautiful commentary that … sounds like a love letter to football’

Even before Cristiano Ronaldo’s close-range shot had hit the back of net, the commentator had begun shouting. “Allllllllaaaaaaah!!!!” exclaimed Amer al-Khudhiri, an Omani football announcer for BeIN Sports, as the Portugal star scored his first goal of the 2026 World Cup against Uzbekistan on Tuesday.

He took a deep breath and then began his soliloquy. “I knew you were coming for revenge. I knew you would answer everyone, the world, the World Cup, the doubters, those who have lost their memory,” al-Khudhiri said. “Oh history, put Ronaldo here as Portgual’s all-time top scorer, through all its history. Allah, Allah, Allah!”

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‘Everyone is talking about Cape Verde’: World Cup run delights diaspora community in UK

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Cape Verdeans in Britain feeling ‘incredibly proud’ after team’s hard-fought draws against Spain and Uruguay

For as long as she can remember, 13-year-old Lauryn struggled to find a map that included Cape Verde. Now, to her great delight, the tiny African island nation is finally centre stage.

“Seeing our country shown across the world at the World Cup makes me feel incredibly proud,” Lauryn says. “After the first match, everyone was talking about Cape Verde. People saw the talent and the skill of our players.”

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