Esports World Cup set for ‘Super Sunday’ with three grand finals

Esports World Cup set for ‘Super Sunday’ with three grand finals
'Super Sunday' will see three grand finals at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh. (Supplied)
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Updated 11 August 2024
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Esports World Cup set for ‘Super Sunday’ with three grand finals

Esports World Cup set for ‘Super Sunday’ with three grand finals
  • Can Twisted Minds earn Saudi Arabia gold in ‘Teamfight Tactics?’ Will Japan triumph in ‘Street Fighter 6?’ And are Heroic going to produce heroics in ‘Fortnite?’

RIYADH: The Esports World Cup is primed for a “Super Sunday” at Boulevard Riyadh City, with the grand finals taking place in “Fortnite,” “Street Fighter 6,” and “Teamfight Tactics.”

“Fortnite,” held at the Amazon Arena within the SEF Arena at Boulevard Riyadh City, will see American team Exceed face French side Karmine Corp in the semifinals. The winner will go head-to-head with either Heroic, the ice-cool outfit from Norway, or the victor between Americans XSET and Canadians Gaimin Gladiators.

In “Street Fighter 6,” held at the Qiddiyah Arena within the SEF Arena, eight players have reached the quarterfinal stage, five of whom are Japanese: Gachikun, Ryukichi, Hikaro, Kawano, and Higuchi. Emirati star AngryBird, American fighter NoahTheProdigy, and Korean player Leshar are also hoping to battle their way to becoming an Esports World Cup champion.

“Teamfight Tactics,” played at the stc Arena, could see a Saudi Arabian side in the grand final, with Twisted Minds up against T1 in the semifinals. The winner of that match earns the right to face either Wolves Esports or Team Vitality in the showpiece occasion.

A team prize pool total of $2.5 million is on offer across all three competitions — with $1 million each available in “Fortnite” and “Street Fighter 6,” and $500,000 in “Teamfight Tactics.” There is also a $50,000 award to the MVP in each tournament.

Every penny adds up to the Esports World Cup having the largest tournament prize pool in the history of esports, with $60 million on offer.

The Esports World Cup, which began on July 3 and runs until Aug. 25 at Boulevard City, features 22 tournaments across 21 titles throughout its eight-week duration.


Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag
Updated 04 October 2024
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Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

Judge me at the end of the season, says under-fire Man Utd boss Ten Hag

PORTO, Portugal: Erik ten Hag pleaded to be given until the end of the season as Manchester United boss after needing a late Harry Maguire equalizer to salvage a 3-3 draw at Porto in the Europa League on Thursday.
Ten Hag was under major pressure before the trip to Portugal after just two wins from United’s first six Premier League fixtures of the season left them languishing in 13th place in the table.
The Red Devils have also drawn their opening two Europa League games to sit 21st in the 36-team table.
“We will get there, don’t judge us in this moment,” said Ten Hag.
“Judge us in the end of the season. We will improve, we have two seasons where we achieved finals. Just wait, we will develop and progress this team.”
Ten Hag has fiercely defended his record after winning the League Cup and FA Cup in his first two seasons in charge at Old Trafford — ending United’s six-year trophy drought in the process.
A shock victory over Manchester City in last season’s FA Cup final was widely credited with saving his job despite finishing eighth in the Premier League.
But the United hierarchy could be forced to act in the upcoming international break after they travel to face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.
Ten Hag could not have asked for a better start in Porto as goals from Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund put United 2-0 up inside 20 minutes
However, the English giants have failed to win any of their last four away European games despite scoring three times in each of them.
Last season they crashed out of the Champions League at the group stages after losing 4-3 at Bayern Munich and FC Copenhagen plus a 3-3 draw at Galatasaray.
Another six-goal thriller took place at the Estadio do Dragao as Pepe and Samu Omorodion brought Porto level before half-time.
Omorodion smashed the home side in front early in the second half before United captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off for the second consecutive game.
But Maguire’s header from a corner at least salvaged a point for Ten Hag.
“When you get 2-0 away from home you have to be a little bit more solid and there were far too many gaps,” said Maguire.
“Too many crosses were coming into the box for sure and they ultimately punished us for it.”
The England international has lost his regular starting spot in the side to Matthijs de Ligt, who previously worked under Ten Hag at Ajax.
Maguire said the pressure his manager was facing is what comes with the “privilege” of being in the spotlight at one of the world’s biggest clubs.
“I’ve played for this club for six years, I know how it works. When you go on a bad spell players come under pressure and also the manager does,” added Maguire.
“He’s experienced enough and been at this club long enough so I’m sure he knows how to deal with it. It’s part of the privilege you have playing for this club.”


Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic

Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic
Updated 04 October 2024
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Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic

Inclusion of Dubai Basketball in ABA League is a ‘great thing’ for UAE sport, says legend Jokic
  • ‘Basketball should, needs to be much more extended,’ he says

DUBAI: Three-time NBA’s Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic has described the formation of Dubai Basketball and its inclusion in the Adriatic Basketball Association League as a “great thing” for the sport in the Emirates.

Founded in 2023 by the UAE’s Abdulla Saeed Al Naboodah, Dubai Basketball is a newly established professional basketball franchise that is competing in Europe’s ABA for the 2024-2025 season.

Featuring a strong roster of players representing many different countries, including the Philippines, Turkiye, the US, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Jordan, Turkey, Latvia and Italy, Dubai Basketball have enjoyed an impressive debut in the league, with two wins in as many games so far.

Their upcoming test is a home clash at Coca-Cola Arena on Saturday against Serbian side Mega MIS, which is where Jokic began his professional career, spending three seasons there before getting drafted by the Denver Nuggets.

Jokic, who is in the UAE this week with the Nuggets for the NBA Abu Dhabi Games, has heard nothing but good things about Dubai Basketball.

“To be honest I think it’s a great thing for the country and for basketball,” the 2022-2023 NBA champion told reporters at the Etihad Arena on Thursday.

“I think basketball should and needs to be much more extended.

“I have a couple of friends that play in Dubai and they say it’s a good organization. They say everything is perfect, so hopefully they can extend basketball, even in this country.”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Jokic is in Abu Dhabi for the second time in three months, having also visited the capital with the Serbian national team during the summer ahead of their Paris Olympics campaign, which saw them claim a bronze medal.

An avid fan of horse racing and owner of several horses, Jokic was asked if he will be checking out the equestrian scene in the UAE.

He said: “I want to see the horses, because that’s where the horses are best, probably. I think I don’t have time to be honest, but maybe one time.”

Despite a shortened offseason due to his Olympic commitments, Jokic is optimistic about his fitness levels entering the new NBA season.

He said: “We will see. I think the last time I played with the national team we won the championship, so that doesn’t really affect my stamina.

“Maybe I’ll be even in better shape. We’ll see when the season starts, or maybe when the season ends.”

After winning the first NBA championship in the Denver Nuggets’ 47-year franchise history in 2023, Jokic and his teammates crashed out of the playoffs the following season against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jokic said that the early exit has had “zero” effect on his motivation levels for this upcoming season — adding “last year doesn’t motivate me”  —  and explained the challenge of trying to successfully defend an NBA title, something not witnessed since the Golden State Warriors went back-to-back in 2017 and 2018.

The 29-year-old Serb said: “They always say it’s really tough to win a championship again, but I think it’s really tough to win a championship anyhow.

“After going through so many emotions, after winning a championship … it seemed like we didn’t have a break, it just felt longer, and maybe we were tired, maybe we were not.

“I think that you should just enjoy winning the championship because most really good teams never won a championship, so I think we’re supposed to be happy that we won a championship and everything else is just extra.”

Denver Nuggets will once again rely on the dynamic partnership between Jokic and Jamal Murray, but have also brought in reinforcements in the form of veteran point guard Russell Westbrook and Croatian forward/center Dario Saric.

Westbrook, who is a former NBA MVP and nine-time All-Star, has been energetic and vocal in practice so far with the Nuggets, and brings a wealth of experience and leadership skills with him from the 16 previous seasons he has played in the league.

“He’s always positive, a great teammate, on the court, off the court,” Jokic said of Westbrook. “He has been nothing but perfect right now, so hopefully he’s going to do the same thing the whole season.”

The Nuggets face reigning NBA champions the Boston Celtics in two preseason games at Etihad Arena, Yas Island, on Oct. 4 and 6, in what is the third edition of the NBA Abu Dhabi Games.


Tottenham and Lazio stay perfect in Europa League with second straight wins

Tottenham and Lazio stay perfect in Europa League with second straight wins
Updated 03 October 2024
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Tottenham and Lazio stay perfect in Europa League with second straight wins

Tottenham and Lazio stay perfect in Europa League with second straight wins
  • Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou made seven changes to the team that beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Sunday
  • Lazio captain Mattia Zaccagni finished off the win from the penalty spot

ROME: A youthful Tottenham side maintained a perfect record in the Europa League with a 2-1 victory away at Ferencváros on Thursday, while Lazio also made it two wins out of two by routing Nice 4-1 at home.
Pape Sarr gave Tottenham the lead midway through the first half when he reacted quickly to a loose ball in the area and slotted it into the net with a right-foot shot for his second goal in two games in the second-tier European competition.
Brennan Johnson came on as substitute in the second half and scored the second four minutes from time with a left-footed strike off the far post. It was the fifth goal in five games in all competitions for the Wales international.
Parnabas Varga pulled one back for Ferencváros in the final minute.
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou made seven changes to the team that beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Sunday.
Four teenagers started for Spurs, with the 19-year-old Will Lankshear making his senior debut and 17-year-old teammate Mikey Moore making his first start.
In torrential rain at Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Taty Castellano scored twice for Lazio, first making it 2-0 in the first half by lobbing the ball over goalkeeper Marcin Bulka in a one-on-one situation and then making it 3-1 in the second half with a shot into the roof of the net.
Lazio captain Mattia Zaccagni finished off the win from the penalty spot.
Substitute Tomáš Chorý headed in a second-half equalizer for Slavia to hold Ajax to a 1-1 draw in Prague. Ajax went ahead after Branco van den Boomen sent Slavia goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot in the 18th. The visitors were reduced to 10 men in the 75th after defender Youri Baas received his second yellow card.
Anderlecht came from a goal down to beat Real Sociedad 2-1 away, with Theo Leoni scoring the winner late in the first half.
Ayoub El Kaabi scored two and Santiago Hezze added another one for last year’s Conference League winner Olympiacos to beat visiting Braga 3-0.
Hoffenheim, which are struggling in the Bundesliga, recorded a 2-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv.
Manchester United were playing at Porto later Thursday.

Conference League
The third-tier UEFA Conference League saw a couple of high-scoring games as Cercle Brugge routed St. Gallen 6-2 after a hat trick from Kevin Denkey, and Omonoia beat Vikingur Reykjavík 4-0 at home in Cyprus.
Legia Warsaw edged Real Betis 1-0.
Scottish side Hearts traveled a long way to Sumgayit, Azerbaijan, to take home a 2-1 victory over Belarusian champion Dinamo Minsk.
UEFA banned Russian clubs from all its events over the country’s invasion of Ukraine but has allowed Belarusian teams to keep playing despite the country’s support of Russia, as long as the games are hosted outside of Belarus without a crowd.


FIFA agrees on interim transfer rules to help players go to 2025 Club World Cup in US

FIFA agrees on interim transfer rules to help players go to 2025 Club World Cup in US
Updated 03 October 2024
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FIFA agrees on interim transfer rules to help players go to 2025 Club World Cup in US

FIFA agrees on interim transfer rules to help players go to 2025 Club World Cup in US
  • The move on Thursday opens the door for players whose contracts expire on June 30 to sign early as free agents for one of the 32 teams
  • They include Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain

ZURICH: FIFA has agreed on interim transfer rules aiming to help players change teams and go to the Club World Cup in the United States next June-July.
The move on Thursday opens the door for players whose contracts expire on June 30 to sign early as free agents for one of the 32 teams who qualified for the relaunched FIFA club tournament. They include Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.
Potential free agents who could be pursued by Club World Cup teams include Liverpool trio Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk, plus Lille forward Jonathan David and Tottenham captain Son Heung-min.
FIFA’s council approved interim transfer market rules that give member federations the option of opening an exceptional transfer window from June 1-10.
If agreements are reached between clubs, the FIFA transfer amendments would let players represent a new team for two weeks from mid-June, before their formal contract expires, in a tournament that is technically still part of the current season.
Had the Club World Cup been scheduled this year, Kylian Mbappé’s pending free agency on June 30 would have complicated the issue of him going to the US as a PSG or Madrid player.
FIFA’s aim to help get players to the Club World Cup also could see those with expiring contracts sign a two-week extension through to the end of the June 15-July 13 event.
Star players at Club World Cup teams with contracts expiring in June include Man City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and Bayern teammates Alphonso Davies and Joshua Kimmich.
Players cannot represent two different teams during the tournament being staged in 12 stadiums.
FIFA also agreed on an exemption to the long-time rule that clubs must release players to national duty for games and tournaments on dates protected by the calendar of international games.
That affects US and Mexico players who might have been called up for the Gold Cup, also being played in the US from June 14-July 6.
The Club World Cup lineup includes Seattle Sounders, Leon, Monterrey and Pachuca as the past four champions of the CONCACAF region. One more space is left open for an MLS team to represent the host nation.
FIFA previously amended transfer market rules in 2020 when the soccer shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic extended the traditional season from June into August.
In one notable transfer four years ago, Germany forward Timo Werner declined an option to stay with Leipzig and resume in the Champions League knockout rounds in August. He instead moved to Chelsea on schedule, though could not play until the next season.


Juventus defender Bremer set for long layoff after knee surgery

Juventus defender Bremer set for long layoff after knee surgery
Updated 03 October 2024
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Juventus defender Bremer set for long layoff after knee surgery

Juventus defender Bremer set for long layoff after knee surgery
  • Bremer suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee in the sixth minute of the game the Italians won 3-2
  • He will undergo surgery in the coming days, Juventus said

ROME: Juventus defender Gleison Bremer will undergo surgery on a knee injury picked up in midweek Champions League action against Leipzig, the Serie A club announced on Thursday, with the 27-year-old facing up to six months on the sidelines.
Bremer suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee in the sixth minute of the game the Italians won 3-2. He will undergo surgery in the coming days, Juventus said.
His recovery is expected to take at least six months which could rule him out for most of the season, according to Italian press reports.
“Unfortunately, the results of the tests confirmed the worst-case scenario,” Brazilian international Bremer wrote on Instagram.
“It’s a challenge that I will face with my usual motivation, it will be an opportunity to grow, improve and come back even stronger.”
The Brazilian has been a key element in coach Thiago Motta’s defensive strategy, playing all their Champions League and Serie A games this season.
Juventus are second in Serie A, one point behind Napoli after six matches.
The Turin side will also be without Argentine forward Nico Gonzalez who injured his right thigh in Wednesday’s game.