If La Roja beat England, Spain’s apathetic media would finally have to take notice
Slicing sourdough on the stainless-steel counter of a London tapas restaurant, Ana Lorenzo hopes victory for La Roja will banish the sexism she says still stalks women’s football in Spain.
“It’s so sexist in Spain compared to here. The attitude to women’s football is many years behind. And despite doing so well, the women’s team hasn’t really gripped the media,” she says, shaking her head.
Continue reading...Supermarkets, pubs and advertisers the winners as supporters prepare for match against Spain
Supermarkets, pubs and TV advertisers are preparing to enjoy a bumper weekend as football fans rush to celebrate the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday morning.
As many as 13.7 million people are expected to tune in when the Lionesses take on Spain in the highly anticipated fixture in Australia – the first time a senior England football team has appeared in a World Cup final since 1966.
Continue reading...Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria police turned down request for escort for Fifa president, which is normally reserved for foreign heads of state
Fifa asked Australian police in multiple jurisdictions to provide escorts for president Gianni Infantino during his travel for the Women’s World Cup, but was turned down.
Infantino asked Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales police to provide him with escorts, the Guardian has confirmed.
Continue reading...Councils accused of downplaying women’s football compared with men’s, with scarcity of planned public viewing parties
The Lionesses drew an average of 4.6 million viewers during their World Cup semi-final, yet fans are disappointed that councils have failed to respond to the team’s success by putting on free public viewing parties for the final.
The BBC said a peak audience of 7.3 million tuned in to watch England beat Australia 3-1 on Wednesday, despite the time zone difference resulting in an 11am kick-off time.
Continue reading...Club says no decision has been made about future of footballer which is ‘subject of intensive internal deliberation’
Rachel Riley, the co-presenter of Countdown, has said she will stop supporting Manchester United if the club allows Mason Greenwood to return.
Manchester United said on Wednesday no decision had been made about the 21-year-old’s future, which it said is still the “subject of intensive internal deliberation”.
Continue reading...Australian women’s football team has seen a five-fold increase in value since the start of the 2023 World Cup, analysis shows
The Matildas are Australia’s most valuable national sporting team and the worth of their brand has increased fivefold since the start of the 2023 World Cup, new analysis shows.
That brand will only increase in value over the coming days if they continue on their winning stomach-knotting run, although they do face a challenge in retaining momentum after some of the euphoria subsides, given their irregular playing schedule.
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Continue reading...Unprecedented merchandise sales have led to major stockists running low. Here’s how to buy Matildas merch, or make your own to dress the part
There has been a run on all things green and gold this week in Australia, after the Matildas’ streak of victories in the Women’s World Cup.
Nike said that there has been “record breaking” demand for the team jersey, with this year’s outselling the 2019 World Cup’s edition 13 to one. More Matildas jerseys have been sold in Australia in the past three months than before, during and after any previous tournament.
Continue reading...Bayern Munich fans delighted but commentators question price tag and Germany’s failure to nurture homegrown talent
There may have been tens of thousands of Harry Kane fans tracking his Cessna flight’s path to Munich on Saturday, followed by standing ovations when he finally appeared before Bayern Munich supporters – many already wearing “Harry Kane – 9” shirts – to the stirring strains of Rock You Like a Hurricane by German rock band the Scorpions, but scepticism about the wisdom of the Tottenham Hotspur striker’s £100m transfer was rife among German commentators.
The affection for the 30-year-old striker was not in doubt. “Citizen Kane is now officially a Bavarian!” ran one typical headline, and the greetings servus (hello) and willkommen (welcome) towards “Herry” (as some Germans pronounce it) came thick and fast at his first press conference, at which he was flanked by bottles of water and Bavarian wheat beer.
Continue reading...Ex-president’s open criticism of team started in 2019, when Megan Rapinoe said she wouldn’t visit White House after winning
Less than 24 hours after the US women’s national team suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of their longtime nemesis Sweden in the second round of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, Donald Trump gloated about the team’s elimination on social media.
The former president, a longtime vocal critic of the team, specifically Megan Rapinoe, a blue-haired talisman and outspoken LGBTQ+ advocate who missed a crucial penalty during the final moments of the game, said that the team’s loss is “fully emblematic of what is happening to our great Nation under Crooked Joe Biden”.
Continue reading...Despite narrow defeat to England, team’s efforts in Australia win praise after what some saw as a lack of official backing
Nigerian football fans in the Lagos suburb of Shomolu had nothing but praise for their team after their narrow defeat on penalties to England in the Women’s World Cup on Monday.
The suburb, home to much of the country’s printing industry, is usually a hive of industrial activity, but many of its presses fell silent on Monday morning as workers gathered in groups around televisions to watch the Super Falcons take on the European champions in Brisbane.
Continue reading...Fans gathered in Sydney were delirous as Australia’s 2-0 win over Denmark sent them into the quarter-finals of the World Cup
Foord and Raso keep Australian dream alive
They came in the thousands, armed with picnic blankets, umbrellas and deck chairs and adorned in green and gold.
Hours before the Matildas took to the pitch they were already gathering, a sea of supporters packed into Sydney’s biggest live site at Darling Harbour.
Continue reading...Offensive chants about tragedies such as Hillsborough can be public order offences under new guidance
Football fans in England and Wales could be banned from matches if they mock tragedies such as the Hillsborough disaster, under updated guidance from the Crown Prosecution Service.
The CPS guidance will state that actions such as singing, chanting or displaying offensive messages about disasters or accidents involving players or fans can be seen as a public order offence.
Continue reading...As the German national team gathered before their opening match of the Women’s World Cup, a convincing win over Morocco in Melbourne, a curious knitted mascot sat on the grass in the middle of the huddle.
Lying on top of a shirt bearing the name and number of defender Carolin Simon, who was ruled out through injury on the eve of the tournament, sat a koala named “Waru”.
Continue reading...Lewis, whose family owns Tottenham Hotspur FC, is accused of ‘brazen’ insider trading
Lawyers for the British billionaire Joe Lewis have accused prosecutors of making an “egregious” mistake, as the 86-year-old pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of securities fraud and conspiracy.
Lewis, who heads the family that owns Tottenham Hotspur FC, was arraigned on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court with 16 counts of securities fraud and three of conspiracy to commit fraud, which prosecutors called a “brazen” insider trading scheme to enrich his friends, lovers and employees, including two private jet pilots.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Billions deployed since early 2021 in a move critics say is an attempt to distract from human rights record
Saudi Arabia has spent at least $6.3bn (£4.9bn) in sports deals since early 2021, more than quadruple the previous amount spent over a six-year period, in what critics have labelled an effort to distract from its human rights record.
Saudi Arabia has deployed billions from its Public Investment Fund over the last two-and-a-half years according to analysis by the Guardian, spending on sports at a scale that has completely changed professional golf and transformed the international transfer market for football.
Continue reading...Billionaire allegedly gave friends, employees and romantic partners information on companies in which he was investor
The billionaire owner of Tottenham Hotspur football club was charged with orchestrating “brazen” insider trading by US federal prosecutors on Tuesday.
According to Damian Williams, the US attorney for the southern district of New York, Joe Lewis gave friends, including his personal pilots, assistants and romantic partners, inside information from companies in which he was an investor.
Continue reading...From Suffolk to Sheffield, youngsters inspired by England’s Euros triumph sat down before big screens to enjoy the side’s World Cup campaign
Ninety minutes before the Lionesses took to the pitch for their World Cup opener, the under-11s Hadleigh United girls’ team kicked off their own tournament – a mini World Cup five-a-side organised by coach Matt French. More than two dozen girls, representing global national teams, showed off their skills to cheering families and friends.
After the final whistle, it was time to head to the clubhouse to watch the England women’s team play.
Continue reading...Average was once every 16 seconds across 10 matches last season, with a total of 3,522 in West Ham v Chelsea
Betting company logos appear as often as 3,500 times during the course of a televised football match, the majority on pitchside hoardings, prompting renewed scepticism about top-flight clubs’ plan to give up front-of-shirt betting ads only.
A study led by psychology experts from four universities measured the volume of gambling adverts during 10 matches that took place last season, featuring every Premier League club.
Continue reading...Advertising Standards Authority rules against two promoted tweets featuring Premier League coaches
The advertising watchdog has banned two adverts run by the sports betting business Ladbrokes for appealing to under-18s by featuring well-known Premier League managers including Frank Lampard and Eddie Howe.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) launched an investigation into the two promoted tweets, published in January and February, after concerns that the use of images of managers of top flight teams would break UK rules banning ads that have a “strong appeal” to young people under 18 years old.
Continue reading...A man has been arrested at Wembley after a picture emerged of a football fan wearing a jersey with what appeared to be a reference to the Hillsborough disaster printed on the back.
The Metropolitan Police Events Twitter account retweeted a picture of a man wearing a Manchester United shirt that had the number 97 on the back and the words “Not Enough”.
Continue reading...