WORLD

LUKE SHAW has apologised to fans for Manchester United’s performance at West Ham, insisting the players were not fit to wear the famous shirt on Saturday. Question marks have been raised over the future of manager Jose Mourinho following a tepid 3-1 defeat on the back of damning images from the training ground which appeared to show a complete breakdown ...

African nations would support Gianni Infantino for re-election as FIFA president, the head of the continental football federation Ahmad Ahmad said on Sunday, AFP reports. “I feel it is my duty… to announce this support from Africa,” Ahmad said at a special meeting of the Confederation of African Football Executive Committee, which Infantino attended, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Infantino, a ...

Germany on Thursday won the race to host the 2024 European Championship as UEFA backed a bid seen as safer than the rival Turkish proposal. UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin announced the winner following a campaign that saw politics and concerns over human rights in Turkey play a central role. Germany hasn’t hosted a major international football tournament since the 2006 ...

Ethiopia has detained 1,200 people over the deadly political violence that broke out a fortnight ago, police say. These are the first mass arrests since reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power in April. At least 28 people died in clashes near the capital, Addis Ababa, following the return of exiled leaders of a former rebel group, the Oromo ...

After Luka Modric was confirmed as FIFA player of the year, the votes of top stars including Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have been revealed. The award was decided by a collection of votes, coming from the captains of each international team, their managers, and designated media officials from each country. Modric took the top honour with 29.05 per cent ...

Gary Kurtz, producer of the first two instalments in the Star Wars series, has died in north London aged 78. In a statement, his family said he died of cancer and would be “hugely missed”. Kurtz worked with George Lucas on American Graffiti, the original Star Wars and its first sequel, The Empire Strikes Back. His other films included The ...

Emre Can reacted with stunned amazement after seeing a replay of Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card against Valencia and risked a huge backlash in the process. Juventus’ opening Champions League match of the season was locked scoreless midway through the first half when the five-time Ballon d’Or winner clashed with Jeison Murillo off the ball at the edge of the home ...

A decision to lift the suspension of Russia’s anti-doping agency has been labelled “the greatest treachery against clean athletes”. The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) has ended a three-year suspension which followed a major scandal over alleged state-sponsored doping. Leading athletes and anti-doping bodies had opposed the move. Wada president Sir Craig Reedie said the reinstatement was “subject to strict conditions”. ...

World heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has described a return to London’s Wembley Stadium for the latest defence of his title belts in front of a home crowd on Saturday as “a blessing”. The 28-year-old Londoner will put his World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organisation titles on the line against Russia’s Alexander Povetkin. “Coming back is a ...

THIS is the moment Cristiano Ronaldo was dismissed for Juventus against Valencia on his Champions League debut. Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Juventus from Real Madrid this summer and was making his Champions League debut against La Liga victims Valencia tonight. However, the 33-year-old has endured a torrid evening with the Portugal international receiving a straight red card following a collision ...