Mexico's Cruz Azul wins CONCACAF Champions Cup
Xinhua
02 Jun 2025, 12:46 GMT+10
MEXICO CITY, June 1 (Xinhua) -- Mexico international forward Angel Sepulveda scored twice as Cruz Azul clinched the CONCACAF Champions Cup with a 5-0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday.
Ignacio Rivero gave the Mexican side the lead in the eighth minute at Estadio Olimpico Universitario by sweeping a low first-time shot into the far corner.
Lorenzo Faravelli doubled the lead when he capitalized on a defensive error to fire home from outside the area.
Sepulveda made it 3-0 with a sliding effort from inside the six-yard box after meeting Carlos Rotondi's cross at the near post.
Poland international midfielder Mateusz Bogusz completed a dominant first-half from the hosts as he intercepted a wayward defensive clearance and sent a 16-yard drive into the far corner.
The Canadian club struggled to keep possession and failed to put a single shot on target against the Liga MX side, which shifted into cruise control for much of the second half.
Sepulveda was irrepressible and the 34-year-old completed the rout by heading home after Jorge Sanchez's floating cross.
Cruz Azul earned the right to host the final due to its superior record throughout the tournament.
The triumph put Cruz Azul level with its Mexico City rival America as the most successful clubs in the history of the competition with seven titles each.
The result means Cruz Azul automatically qualifies for the next editions of the FIFA Club World Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Canada cricketers celebrate T20 World Cup qualification with win over Bermuda
KING CITY – Teenage batsman Yuvraj Samra scored 45 runs Sunday as Canada celebrated qualification for next year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup with a six-wicket win over Bermuda in the final game of the four-country Americas Qualifier. Canada's seven-wicket win over the Bahamas on Saturday, coupled with Bermuda's nine-wicket loss to the Cayman Islands, sealed the Canadian qualification on the penultimate day of the four-team qualifier. Sunday's win, which improved Canada's tournament record to 6-0-0, was the icing on the qualifying cake. Bermuda won the toss and elected to bat at the Maple Leaf Cricket Ground where it was 32 C feeling like a steamy 39 for the mid-afternoon start. After a storming inning of 70 runs by No. 3 batsman Delray Rawlins, Bermuda's batting order crumbled. Bermuda finished at 131 all out midway through the 19th over. That set Canada a victory target of 132 from its 20 overs. Canada put up its half-century in the fifth over with Samra accounting for 40 of the runs. But the 18-year-old was bowled by Dominic Sabir in the sixth over with Canada at 63 for one. Samra finished with three sixes and five fours in his 23-ball knock. Fellow opener Dilpreet Bajwa was caught two balls later on 12 runs off 10 deliveries. And Pargat Singh was run out the next over with Canada at 65 for three. The Canadians were 85 for three after 10 overs. Harsh Thaker (33 runs) and captain Nicholas Kirton (17 runs) steered Canada over the victory line at 132 for four wickets in the 16th over. Canada is the 13th country to qualify for the 20-team T20 World Cup in February-March 2026. The other qualified sides are. Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, the U.S., West Indies, Ireland, New Zealand and Pakistan plus co-hosts India and Sri Lanka. Seven more teams — two from the Europe Qualifier (to be played July 5-11), two from Africa Qualifier (Sept. 19 to Oct. 4) and three from the Asia-Pacific Qualifier (Oct. 1-17) — will book their ticket through regional qualifiers. Canada made its T20 World Cup debut last year, failing to advance out of the group stage after beating No. 11 Ireland and losing to No. 8 Pakistan and co-host United States, ranked 17th. A match against No. 1 India was abandoned due to inclement weather. Canada defeated Bermuda by 110 runs in its June 15 opening match at the Americas Qualifier. Bermuda was 100 for two after 10 overs Sunday, before losing the next eight wickets for just 31 runs. Rawlins' fine innings ended when he was caught at the boundary by Shivam Sharma off Saad Bin Zafar's last delivery of the 11th over with Bermuda at 102 for three. Kaleem Sana and Zafar each took three wickets. Sana removed Bermuda opener Tre Manders with Canada's first ball. But Rawlins, the No. 3 batsman, came out swinging, scoring 14 balls off Dilon Heyliger's first three deliveries of a third over that produced 16 runs for Bermuda. Rawlins punished Jaskaran Buttar in the fourth over, with 10 runs of his first two deliveries of a 14-run over. And Rawlins attacked the spin of Thaker the next over, reaching his half-century with a four-six-four off the first three balls. Canada had a slight chance to remove Rawlins on 64 in the eighth over but a diving Singh was unable to get to a moonshot when it came down. Rawlins and Alex Dore put on an 83-run partnership before Dore, on six, was caught by Zafar off Buttar's last delivery of the eighth over. The 27-year-old Rawlins, who made his debut for Bermuda at 15 and went on to make 138 appearances for Sussex in England, slammed six sixes and four fours in his 42-ball knock. Onias Bascome added 20 runs. Canada, the Bahamas, Bermuda and Cayman Islands were competing in an eight-day double round-robin format that sent the tournament winner advance to the T20 World Cup. Canada is ranked 19th in T20 play by the International Cricket Council, compared to No. 27 for Bermuda, No. 41 for the Cayman Islands and No. 56 for the Bahamas. The Cayman Islands and Bahamas were recently promoted from the Subregional Qualifier. — This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Real Madrid beats Pachuca 3-1 in Club World Cup while playing most of the match with 10 men
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Jude Bellingham and Arda Güler scored first-half goals and short-handed Real Madrid bounced back from a disappointing performance in its Club World Cup opener to beat Pachuca 3-1 on Sunday in front of 70,248 spectators at Bank of America Stadium. Seven minutes in, defender Raul Asencio received a red card, forcing Real Madrid to play the remainder of the match with 10 men. It hardly mattered as Madrid dominated the Mexican club rest of the way. Bellingham got the Spanish power on the board in the 35th minute when he took a pass from Fran Garcia just inside the box and belted a perfectly placed left-footed shot past goalkeeper Carlos Moreno into the right corner. Eight minutes later, Güler made it 2-0 when he delivered a right-footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom left corner off an assist from Gonzalo García. Federico Valverde put the final touches on the win in the second half with a sliding right-footed shot off an assist from Brahim Díaz. Goalkeeper Thabaut Courtois was on form with five saves in the first half. He turned away two point-blank shots in the early going and finished with 10 saves. Elías Montiel ended Courtois' bid for a shutout when he scored in the 80th minute for Pachuca, which fell to 0-2 in group play. Kylian Mbappé has missed both Club World Cup starts as he continues to recover from being hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis. He did not travel to Charlotte, but the team remains hopeful that he'll be ready to play on Thursday night against Salzburg. Key moment There were some uneasy minutes early in the match for Madrid when Asencio pulled down Pacheco's Agustin Palavecino as he was entering the box following a breakaway, forcing Aurelein Tchouameni to move to center back. But Madrid stayed on the attack and Bellingham had the breakthrough goal. Takeaways Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Madrid looked very much out of sync on Wednesday, playing Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal to a 1-1 draw in coach Xabi Alonso's first game when Federico Valverde's stoppage-time penalty was saved. That changed on Sunday as the talented roster began to mesh, with precise passing leading to both first-half goals. Noteworthy The game was played on a temporary grass field. The stadium is home to the NFL's Carolina Panthers, who play on an artificial surface. … With temperatures in the low 90s Fahrenheit (low 30s Celsius), players were given a water breaks midway through each half. ___ AP soccer:
Ottawa Citizen
4 hours ago
- Ottawa Citizen
What do we know about the Ottawa Redblacks through one-sixth of the CFL season?
Article content Adeboboye rushed for 96 yards on 10 carries that included the biggest play of the game, a 52-yard burst up the middle that preceded him scoring the afternoon's only touchdown on a nine-yard reception. Article content A former Argo who already has two Grey Cup rings, Adeboboye received more work than he may have normally had because the ratio rule limits the number of snaps American William Stanback is in for while Ottawa is forced to start another American on the offensive line. Article content Stanback did enough with his time in the game – running nine times for 82 yards, including 76 on a key second-quarter drive that followed a goal-line stand and set up one of Lewis Ward's four field goals – to prove there's still plenty of life in his 30-year-old legs. Article content But also having a big day was the O-Line, which gave up one sack when it wasn't creating running holes. Article content 'It starts with those guys up front,' head coach Bob Dyce told Jakubec. 'I thought they were physical and they kind of imposed their will on (the Stampeders defensive front) with their physical (play) and pass protection too.' Article content Article content Dyce also threw accolades at his receivers – who dropped about five slippery balls thrown by Crum – for their contributions in the run game. Article content 'I have to give them credit, they do a great job,' said Dyce. 'They take their blocking seriously. You don't get those long runs if those guys aren't working. So it was a whole offensive unit (with the same) mindset.' Article content How bad is the Redblacks' injury situation? Article content For the Calgary game, Ottawa had 11 players on its one-game injured list and three more on the six-game. The Stamps, by comparison, had nine on the one-game list and eight on the six-game. But hitting the Redblacks hardest is that of their 14 injured players, 10 are Canadians. Calary's list of injured Canadians is at an easier-managed seven. Article content 'We've talked about that fact,' said Dyce. 'Even though we've got some guys down, we have faith in everybody in the room. 'Those (Canadian replacements) have stood up all year, and they showed it today.' Article content Article content If the Redblacks can get one of their three injured Canadian O-lineman back – and it sounds like Eric Starczala is the closest to returning – then he can move in at centre and Jacob Ruby can slide down to right tackle, to replace American Darta Lee. Article content That would allow the Redblacks to utilize Stanback and Adeboboye as they wish and not have their decision dictated by the ratio rule. Article content Who has been the most pleasant surprise on defence? Article content While Charlie Ringland did a nice job as a fill-in for fellow Canadian Alonzo Addae (season-ending elbow injury) at safety with an interception (on a pass he should have dropped as it came on a Stampeders third down game and gave the Redblacks worse field position than they otherwise would have had) and five defensive tackles, American Adrian Frye has solidified the strong-side cornerback spot. Article content Frye, a 26-year-old Texas Tech product who made his first CFL start last Oct. 25, had five defensive tackles and a tackle for a loss on the goal-line stand that rates as Saturday's defensive play of the game. He also had another forced fumble, giving him three in two road games to go along with the fumble recovery he had in Saskatchewan. Article content 'At the goal line, it's just who wants it more,' Frye told Jakubec when asked about stopping former NFL quarterback P.J. Walker, who had nine starts with the Carolina Panthers (2020-23) and is now a Calgary backup. 'When it came down to it, I just flew off the edge and figured he was gonna try to get to the perimeter, find one of them, B or C gap holes. I just flew down there and hoped I could fill it for him.'
