The FIFA Confederations Cup which kicks off this weekend in South Africa is crucial to next year s World Cup tournament, said FIFA president Sepp Blatter on Wednesday.
It s definitely time to kick off now, not only in terms of the organisation in South Africa, but in terms of making sure they can deliver and will deliver, said Blatter, a year ahead of the first African World Cup.
That s why this Confederations Cup, one year before the big event, is crucial. It s very important for FIFA but also for the participating teams. I m sure it will be a great competition.
South Africa is ready and committed for 2010, he said in a statement marking the 12 month countdown to the World Cup.
Speaking in Johannesburg, FIFA competition director Jim Brown said the Co…
Or when he was one of several England players targeted by monkey chants in Montenegro and Bulgaria in 2019, when he scored in 5-1 and 6-0 wins.
Sterling was also at the forefront of football supporting Black Lives Matter following the killing of George Floyd and received an MBE last month in recognition of his work promoting racial equality.
But there was weariness when he discussed his activism in an interview with ITV last week, one that is entirely understandable when a minority of fans boo him and his England colleagues for taking the knee before kick-off – their peaceful, dignified protest against racial injustice.
It feels even more understandable when UK government ministers who gave licence to those booing and dismissed kneeling as a gesture are now fi…
The 30-man shortlist for the 2017 Ballon d Or has been announced and the ceremony to announce the winners of this prestigious award will take place in London later this month. In Part 2 of the shortlist analysis we take a look at the final 15 nominees and what they did to justify their inclusion.
Harry Kane (Tottenham + England)
The world class England striker won the Premier League Golden Boot for the second consecutive season last campaign, scoring 29 times as Tottenham finished in second place, seven points behind London rivals Chelsea. The striker has been in sensational goal scoring form and last season was the third campaing running in which he bagged over 20 goals for Spurs. Kane has also started this season in fine form with six Premier League goals so far, and his 94t…
Andres Iniesta believes Barcelona may have a hard year ahead of them, despite their all-conquering finish to 2010.
Barca defended their La Liga crown last season and fell narrowly short of successive Champions League triumphs, losing to Inter Milan in the semi-finals.
The first half of the 2010/11 season passed in equally impressive fashion.
The Catalan giants brushed aside all before them, with a 5-0 demolition of arch-rivals Real Madrid the highlight.
And while few would back against them collecting yet more trophies at the end of the season, midfield maestro Iniesta has warned against complacency when the campaign resumes at home to Levante on Sunday.
We are really motivated to begin the year well, but there is a hard 2011 ahead of us, Inies…
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin labelled the crowd trouble at the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy as unacceptable and warned it must never happen again.
Italy secured their first European Championship since 1968 with a penalty shoot-out victory over England at Wembley Stadium in July, but the game was marred by clashes before the final.
Hundreds of supporters without tickets attempted to gain entry prior to kick-off, with an independent review later concluding it was clear we were close to fatalities and/or life-changing injuries for some, potentially many of the fans in attendance after 17 mass breaches of Wembley s gates.
UEFA punished the Football Association (FA) with a two-game stadium ban, one of which is suspended for two years, and an £84,5…
Week 2 featured a slew of high-profile injuries across the league and, in turn, we now await the game-day status of many of those players and more ahead of Sunday.
This week’s NFL Cheat Sheet will give you all the information you need for Sunday, as Covers checks in on NFL Week 3 injuries, weather, consensus picks, and more.
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Monday Night Football doesn’t end in the regular season this year — that honor goes to Wild Card weekend, which wraps up with a clash between the Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Rams tonight. These NFC West rivals split a pair of meetings earlier this season and NFL betting lines opened with the Rams as 4-point home favorites for the grudge match.
Here are our best free NFL picks and predictions for Cardinals vs. Rams on January 17, with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. ET.
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NFL playoff betting is a double-edged sword.
The urgency and gravitas of the postseason ups the intensity and interest to peak levels, as you have elite-level teams squaring off in do-or-die contests. But with a smaller slate of games, oddsmakers can laser focus their energy on those matchups, meaning these NFL odds are the sharpest you’ve seen all season.
For a few years, betting on the NFL playoffs (especially betting on the NFL Wild Card round) was as simple as taking the points with the underdogs. From 2017-18 to 2020-21, Wild Card pups were a profitable 15-3 against the spread.
Then last year happened.
After a 28-17 ATS overall run by dogs (62%) the previous four postseasons, the 2021-22 Wild Card round produced only …
The Buffalo Bills are back from across the pond following a disappointing loss to Jacksonville. Now they get a primetime matchup in the SNF odds when they face off against the struggling New York Giants.
The Bills are massive favorites in the Week 6 odds and set up nicely for a big Josh Allen performance. He will be looking for a big bounce-back game to get himself back into the MVP conversation and for his team to remain Super Bowl contenders.
We take a closer look at the Josh Allen odds and give our best free NFL picks for Giants vs. Bills on October 15.
Also, be sure to check out our full Giants vs. Bills predictions and SNF prop picks!
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Browns vs Bengals Odds, Picks, and Predictions Week 18: Cleveland's Offense Falls Flat Under Driskel
The Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals wrap up their regular season on Sunday at Paycor Stadium. With the Browns locked into the fifth seed in the AFC and the Bengals eliminated from the playoffs, the Week 18 odds will likely showcase a boring affair in this one.
With nothing to gain from a victory, the Browns are expected to rest multiple starters, which has led to the NFL odds for this contest growing from Bengals -4 to -7. Here are my best free NFL picks for Browns vs. Bengals on January 7.
Browns vs Bengals odds
Browns vs Bengals predictions
Considering how many injuries the Cleveland Browns have dealt with, it makes sense to rest as many key starters as possible in this spot. This offense had bee…