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IOL News
2 days ago
- Sport
- IOL News
Flamengo stuns Chelsea in Club World Cup; Bayern edges Boca Juniors
SUCCESS Flamengo's Brazilian forward #27 Bruno Henrique celebrates after winning the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group D football match between Brazil's CR Flamengo and England's Chelsea at the Lincoln Financial Field stadium in Philadelphia on June 20, 2025. Picture: Franck Fife/AFP Image: Franck Fife/AFP Flamengo produced a brilliant second-half fightback to beat Chelsea 3-1 at the Club World Cup on Friday and qualify for the last 16, while Bayern Munich joined them in reaching the knockout phase with a battling win over Boca Juniors. In Philadelphia, Pedro Neto gave Chelsea an early lead but Flamengo, roared on by their frenzied supporters who made up the majority of the 54,019 crowd, did not deserve to be behind and came roaring back in the second half. Bruno Henrique came off the bench in the 56th minute and quickly equalised before setting up former Real Madrid, Manchester City and Juventus defender Danilo to make it 2-1. Chelsea were stunned, and their hopes of pulling level again were effectively destroyed when substitute Nicolas Jackson was sent off in the 68th minute for a dangerous tackle on Ayrton Lucas. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Flamengo Clinches Spot in Knockout Stage with 3-1 Victory Over Chelsea Wallace Yan then sealed the victory for the Rio de Janeiro club, the Brazilian league leaders, when he made it 3-1 late on. "It was a special day for me and our club," said Flamengo coach Filipe Luis. "We knew we would have chances against Chelsea, because we have one way to play and they know how to follow that path." Flamengo have won both matches in Group D and their place in the knockout stage was confirmed later when Esperance of Tunisia defeated Los Angeles FC 1-0 in Nashville. Youcef Belaili scored the only goal of the game in the 70th minute in front of a sparse crowd featuring Nicole Kidman. LAFC, who were last-minute qualifiers after beating Club America of Mexico in a play-off, cannot now progress further. Kane, Olise on target Chelsea and Esperance each have three points from two games and their meeting in Philadelphia next Tuesday will decide who joins Flamengo in advancing. "We expected a tough game because Flamengo is a very good team, with good players and a good manager," said Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca. "They play very well, and in Brazil they are top of the league, unbeaten for many games, so it was not a surprise for us." Flamengo's win followed Botafogo's stunning success against European champions Paris Saint-Germain on Thursday, continuing an impressive record for South American clubs at the competition. But Bayern's 2-1 win over Boca in Miami was the first time either a Brazilian or Argentinian team had lost in 10 matches since the tournament started. England star Harry Kane did not find the target when Bayern hammered New Zealand's Auckland City 10-0 in their opening game, but he opened the scoring in Miami with a clinical finish on 18 minutes.
IOL News
11-06-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Is FIFA's attempt to establish a global club game doomed before it starts?
Paris Saint-Germain's French midfielder Desire Doue celebrates during a ceremony to present the trophy a day after the club won the UEFA Champions League, at the Parc des Princes Stadium on June 1. Will the US Club World Cup, kicking off this weekend ever be able to rival Footballs premier club competition? Image: Franck Fife / AFP) Stefan Szymanski The FIFA World Club Cup, which kicks off in the US on June 14, 2025, may seem like a new competition. Certainly, soccer's governing body, FIFA, is promoting it as is it were, marketing the month-long competition between 32 of the world's biggest soccer teams as the 'pinnacle of club football,' with up to $125 million in prize money for the winning team and $250 million set aside for promoting 'football solidarity.' In reality, the competition is the latest chapter in FIFA's long-running quest – going all the way back to 1960 – to create a global championship that would determine which club really is the best in the world. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ FIFA's critics argue that the competition is nothing more than an attempt to line the governing body's coffers. FIFA's line is that it will not keep 'one dollar' from the event, and instead plans to distribute revenue to the clubs. Not helping FIFA's case is the fact that clubs and players are similarly unimpressed, protesting that the event is an unnecessary addition to an already-overburdened soccer calendar. As always, the litmus test for success will come from the fans. So far, things are not going well on that front. Falling prices on Ticketmaster bode ill for the competition. Just days before the games were due to begin, FIFA slashed prices for the opening match: MLS club Inter Miami against Egypt's Al-Ahly. Reports suggest that less than a third of tickets at the 65 000-seat venue for the opener, Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, had sold – despite the likely presence of soccer superstar Lionel Messi. Of course, the declining number of tourists coming to the U.S. since the second inauguration of Donald Trump – and the president's recently announced travel ban affecting 19 countries – hasn't helped encourage fans of the global game to the U.S., even if none of the competing clubs come from one of those countries. Inter Miami's Argentine forward Lionel Messi runs with the ball during the Major League Soccer match between Inter Miami and Montreal at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on May 28. Ticket sales for the opening match this weekend are slow despite Messi's star pulling power. Image: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP FIFA vs UEFA So, given all the problems and controversies, why is FIFA so invested? As someone who has long researched the nexus of soccer, money and power, I see the World Club Cup as part of a struggle between UEFA, the European governing body that runs the Champions League – currently seen as the pinnacle of soccer club competition – and FIFA, which wants to supplant the Champions League with its own competition. UEFA's power stems from hosting the world's biggest clubs. Only one club from outside Europe appears in soccer data website Transfermarkt's list of the 50 most valuable squads – with Palmeiras from Brazil squeaking in at 50. Top players in their prime rarely quit Europe to play on another continent – the high-profile names that opt to play in the US or Saudi leagues tend to be veterans cashing in on their name. Meanwhile, the world's soccer talent flocks to European clubs. It's not just that big clubs like Real Madrid, Liverpool or Bayern Munich that can pay top dollar for the star players – less storied clubs like Brentford, Real Sociedad or VfB Stuttgart have the wherewithal to fish in the global player market. The wealth and status of these clubs form the muscle behind UEFA. And the jewel in the UEFA crown is the Champions League, an annual competition that brings together the best clubs in Europe. The game remembered for establishing the dominance of European club competition is the 1960 final between Real Madrid and Eintract Frankfurt – a 10-goal thriller that Real Madrid won 7-3. It was witnessed by a crowd of 128 000 at Hampden Park in Glasgow. Image: File A game of two halves While UEFA also has its own national competition, the Euros, its pull is nowhere near as great as FIFA's World Cup. This division – with FIFA dominating the international team competition and UEFA the club competition – dates back to the 1960s and the early years of mass television. When the 1966 World Cup was hosted by England, it was one of the very first global sports events, watched by an estimated audience of 400 million people worldwide. The 1970 World Cup, a legendary event in the eyes of boomer soccer fans, established the four-year ritual that surpasses even the Olympics as a global sporting event. At this time, UEFA's Euros were barely a competition at all. The 1968, 1972 and 1976 editions – played in Italy, Belgium and Yugoslavia, respectively – each had only four teams and only four or five games. UEFA had by then established its role in club competition. The European Cup, as the Champions League was then called, started in 1955. But the game remembered today for establishing the dominance of European club competition is the 1960 final between Real Madrid and Eintract Frankfurt – a 10-goal thriller that Los Blancos won 7-3. Witnessed by a crowd of 128 000 at Hampden Park in Glasgow, Scotland, the more important statistic was the estimated 70 million television audience in Europe. The 1968 final at London's Wembley Stadium, when Manchester United overcame Benfica in honor of the 'Busby Babes' – Manchester players who died in a 1958 Munich air disaster while traveling home from a European Cup game – saw a TV audience of 270 million. Real Madrid claimed the 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, a forerunner to the Club World Cup, with a dominant 3-0 victory over Pachuca at Lusail Stadium. Since 2006, all the winners bar one – Brazil's Corinthians in 2012 – have been European clubs. Image: AFP A history of failure The ambition to create a club world cup to rival the European Cup goes back to the 1950s. Soccer powerhouses Brazil and Argentina in particular promoted the idea that the top clubs in Europe should face off against the top South American teams. The resulting Intercontinental Cup ran from 1960 to 2004, with the top teams from UEFA and CONMEBOL, the South American soccer federation, taking part. But played in midseason, it barely made an impression on the fans. In 2000, FIFA created the Club World Championship, with eight teams drawn from the five international federations. It also attracted little love, and the 2001-to-2004 editions had to be canceled for lack of financial backing. In the early years, it seemed like an excuse to emulate the Intercontinental Cup, and the first three winners were South American. However, since 2006, all the winners bar one – Brazil's Corinthians in 2012 – have been European. FIFA president Gianni Infantino (R) looks on as Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani (C) and US President Donald Trump (L) participate in a signing ceremony after a state dinner at the Lusail Palace in Doha on May 14. Image: Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP Europe is 'on the beach' Then, in 2017, Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, announced plans to expand the competition and move it to the summer. With 32 teams, the competition will look more like the World Cup and will receive a lot of TV coverage. The fact that it will be free to watch will help. So too will the presence of Messi. Yet the overwhelming feeling going into the competition is that, like its predecessors, the revamped FIFA club competition is destined for failure. With the European domestic leagues all completed and the Champions League final – the unofficial marker of the end of the soccer season – having taken place on May 31, players and fans appear to be 'on the beach,' to use a favorite phrase of soccer commentators. Ultimately, FIFA's revamped World Club Cup faces the same issues that beset its forerunners: European teams are overwhelmingly tipped to win. Rather than the global soccer 'solidarity' that FIFA hopes, the competition sets to reinforce the dominance of European clubs – and of Europe's governing body when it comes to club competition. Stefan Szymanski is Professor of Sport Management, University of Michigan
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
📸 PSG crowned kings of Europe: a night to remember in pictures 🏆🤩
📸 PSG crowned kings of Europe: a night to remember in pictures 🏆🤩 After so many years, of struggle and fight... This Saturday, May 31 marks a turning point in the history of French football. 32 years after the crowning of its historical rival, PSG becomes the second club in the hexagon to lift the big-eared cup. Advertisement Let's look back at this match that will forever remain in the annals. 📸 FRANCK FIFE - AFP or licensors 📸 ODD ANDERSEN - AFP or licensors 📸 MARCO BERTORELLO - AFP or licensors 📸 Justin Setterfield - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Lars Baron - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Dan Mullan - 2025 Getty Images 📸 ODD ANDERSEN - AFP or licensors 📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Justin Setterfield - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Dan Mullan - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Dan Mullan - 2025 Getty Images 📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here. 📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images
The Citizen
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Citizen
PICTURES: The best from the world of sport from the past weekend
PICTURES: The best from the world of sport from the past weekend Here is a selection of the best sporting pictures from around the world over the last weekend, including all the action from Roland-Garros. Former Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal (second from right) poses with Britain's Andy Murray (right), Serbia's Novak Djokovic (left) and Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer during a ceremony honouring his career on Philippe-Chatrier court on the opening day of the French Open at Roland Garros on Sunday. Nadal won 14 titles on the French clay. Picture: Franck Fife/AFP This photograph shows the sunset over Philippe-Chatrier court during the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland-Garros complex in Paris on Sunday. Picture: Alain Jocard/AFP Sunrisers Hyderabad's South African batter Heinrich Klaasen celebrates after scoring his century during the Indian Premier League match against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday. Picture: Money Sharma/AFP Liverpool's Andrew Robertson (left) and team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold celebrate with the Premier League trophy at the end of their English Premier League football match against Crystal Palace at Anfield on Sunday. Picture: Paul Ellis/AFP Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola (right) hugs his midfielder Kevin de Bruyne after his final game for City during their English Premier League football match against Fulham at Craven Cottage on Sunday. Picture: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo lifts the Italian Serie A trophy surrounded by team-mates after they won the title at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples on Friday. Picture: Carlo Hermann/AFP Paris Saint-Germain captain Marquinhos raises the trophy as he celebrates with team-mates after winning the French Cup when they beat Stade de Reims at the Stade de France on Saturday. Picture: Franck Fife/AFP McLaren's British driver Lando Norris (centre) celebrates after winning the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix at the Circuit de Monaco on Sunday. Picture: Gabriel Bouys/AFP Aprilia Racing team's Italian MotoGP rider Marco Bezzecchi sprays the champagne on the podium after winning the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday. Picture: Adrian Dennis/AFP Arsenal's players celebrate with the trophy after winning the Uefa Women's Champions League when they beat Barcelona in the final at Jose Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon on Saturday. Picture: Filipe Amorim/AFP Union Bordeaux Begles wave to their supporters during the team bus parade in Bordeaux on Sunday after their team were victorious over Northampton Saints in the European Champions Cup rugby final in Cardiff on Saturday. Picture: Christophe Archambault/AFP The Pumas celebrate with the SA Cup trophy after beating Griquas in the final at Mbombela Stadium on Saturday. Picture: Dirk Kotze/Gallo Images The United States team celebrates with the trophy after winning gold at the Men's Ice Hockey World Championship when they beat Switzerland in the final in Stockholm on Sunday. Picture: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP Lidl-Trek's Spanish rider Carlos Verona celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the 15th stage of the Giro d'Italia cycling race from Fiume Veneto to Asiago on Sunday. Picture: Luca Bettini/AFP Britain's Daniel Goodman crashes during the British Talent Cup race at Silverstone on Sunday. Picture: Adrian Dennis/AFP
