Month: November 2024

The mascots for the Euro 2012 football championships to be co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine were officially unveiled Tuesday at a Warsaw ceremony attended by senior UEFA officials and the two national football federations.

Like Euro-2008 co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland which had their twins Trix and Flix, the 2012 mascot also features footballing brothers, each wearing a jersey in their national colours, white and red for Poland, blue and yellow for Ukraine.

As in the 2008 championship, the names of the mascot brothers will be decided in a vote open to the public on UEFA s official website www.uefa.com. The result will be announced December 4.

Inspired by Polish and Ukrainian surnames, voters will be able to choose between Slavek and Slavko or Siemko and Str…

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has agreed a new deal with the Premier League club until 2018. 

The former Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers and Wales boss led Stoke to ninth last season, their highest finish in the Premier League era.

And the Welshman, who took over from compatriot Tony Pulis in May 2013, is in the midst of another impressive campaign with the Staffordshire club.

Stoke sit 10th in the table with 42 points and are only a point adrift of Swansea City in eighth.

Hughes told Stoke s official website: I think it s exciting times for Stoke City; everyone can see there s more progress to be made and we want to see how far we can take the club. 

I came here 18 or so months ago and it s gone as well as I could have hoped we ve certainly…

Frenkie de Jong is unsure whether he will be fit for the Netherlands Euro 2024 opener against Poland as he continues his recovery from an ankle injury.

De Jong was included in Ronald Koeman s final 26-man squad for the Euros despite an ankle issue preventing him from featuring for Barcelona since April 21.

The midfielder was limited to just 30 appearances in all competitions through 2023-24, as the Blaugrana finished a distant second to Real Madrid in LaLiga and exited the Champions League at the quarter-final stage.

He is yet to join in with team training despite linking up with his international team-mates ahead of warm-up matches against Canada and Iceland.

Speaking to reporters after going through an individual session on Sunday, De Jong said: I m no…

Russia 2018 will be the best World Cup in history, according to the nation s former striker Roman Pavlyuchenko.

The showpiece tournament is just over eight months away, with 15 nations having already qualified for the 32-team event.

But there remain fears the World Cup, which begins on June 14 next year, could be marred by racism, hooliganism and homophobia.

However, Pavlyuchenko – the former Tottenham striker who represented Russia 51 times – believes his homeland will deliver an outstanding tournament.

I m absolutely sure that fans will like it and I m sure that it will be the best World Cup in the history of the World Cup. All the fans will come here and enjoy it, I m absolutely sure, he told the Mirror.

There is a misconception that goin…

Frenkie de Jong has been ruled out of Euro 2024 after failing to recover from an ankle injury.

De Jong has emerged as a fixture in the Netherlands midfield since making his senior international debut in 2018, winning 54 caps and scoring two goals.

However, he has not played since sustaining an ankle injury during Barcelona s Clasico defeat to Real Madrid on April 21.

Oranje boss Ronald Koeman revealed De Jong had taken part in non-contact training on Sunday, but acknowledged he was unlikely to feature against Poland in their Group D opener later this week.

Koeman also said De Jong s place in the squad would be reconsidered if it looked like he would be unable to play during the group stage, and it has now been confirmed that he will miss the tournament.

Joe Kinnear was a man who did things his own way.

As a dependable full-back, he served as a key member of a star-studded Tottenham side before embarking upon a managerial career which brought him huge acclaim with Wimbledon’s ‘Crazy Gang’, but ended in a hail of expletives, controversy and at times ridicule at Newcastle.

No slave to political correctness, Kinnear told it how he saw it and was admired and respected by those closest to him on a journey which began in Ireland and for the most part revolved around London, but notably also took him to Nepal.

Kinnear, who has died at the age of 77, was born Joseph Reddy, the youngest of three children to Guinness Brewery stoker Joe and Margaret Reddy, in Dublin on December 27, 1946, he and older sisters Shirley a…

Jude Bellingham salvaged England s Euro 2024 hopes before Harry Kane s extra-time finish proved the difference in a 2-1 comeback victory over Slovakia in Sunday s last-16 clash.

Gareth Southgate s team appeared to be heading for an early exit in Gelsenkirchen after Ivan Schranz opened the scoring midway through the first half with his third goal of the Euros.

Phil Foden saw an equaliser disallowed soon after the interval and Declan Rice was denied by the post late on, only for Bellingham to deliver a heroic overhead-kick equaliser five minutes into stoppage time.

Kane then headed home from point-blank range just 50 seconds into extra time for the fastest such goal in Euros history, stealing victory from the jaws of defeat to tee up a last-eight meeting with Switz…

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has been withdrawn from the Euro 2016 final due to a knee injury sustained in the opening minutes at the Stade de France.

Ronaldo received treatment on his left knee after a crunching tackle from France winger Dimitri Payet.

The Real Madrid star returned to the pitch, but looked in obvious discomfort and left the field in tears to get his leg strapped up.

8 Cristiano Ronaldo made just eight touches in the final before being substituted. Depart.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe)

After valiantly trying to play on, he was replaced by Ricardo Quaresma with just 24 minutes on the clock and the score 0-0.

The Portugal captain once again broke down as he had to be stretchered off the field.

As Portuguese fans …

England have no more excuses as knockout football awaits at Euro 2024, so says Anthony Gordon, who hopes to feature from the start against Slovakia on Sunday.

Gareth Southgate s side have failed to live up to pre-tournament expectations but still topped Group C on five points.

The Three Lions overcame Serbia 1-0 in their opener before disappointing draws followed with Denmark and Slovenia.

Those latter two performances have brought questions over England and Southgate s capabilities, and Gordon acknowledged his side must put in an improved showing in Gelsenkirchen.

I think as a team we just have to come together, we have to perform when the pressure is high, the England youngster said at Friday s pre-match press conference.

Now we re into the kn…

The FIFA medical team said on Saturday that it was satisfied with arrangements put in place by South Africa ahead of the Confederations Cup in June and the World Cup next year.

My impression is positive. I am confident with what I have seen and heard, the head of the FIFA medical committee, Jiri Dvorak, told journalists at the end of a meeting with the South African FIFA local organising team.

I am personally confident that we can hold the World Cup from the medical side that the teams, the FIFA family, the FIFA delegation and also the spectators will be well taken care of, he stated.

He said that the meeting discussed strategies to combat doping during the competitions.

These will include the education of players and collaboration with local officials…