Football
SAFF U-17 Women's Championship begins Monday
The five-nation South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) U-17 Women's Football Championship' 2023, will begin here on Monday (March 20) at the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur.
Five countries, four from South Asia --- India, Nepal, Bhutan and hosts Bangladesh, along with European side Russia --will compete in the nine-day meet, organized by SAFF, under the supervision of Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF).
Hosts Bangladesh will play Bhutan at 7:15 pm (Bangladesh time) on Monday in one of the two opening day's matches while India will face Nepal in the inaugural match at 3:15 pm on the day.
In the remaining matches, Bangladesh will play Russia on March 22 at 3:15 pm, will face India on March 24 at 7:15 pm while will meet Nepal on March 28 at 3:15 pm.
After the league basis matches, the highest point-holder team will be the champions.
All the three South Asian teams--India, Nepal and Bhutan--already reached the capital on Saturday to participate in the SAFF Women's Junior meet.
Real Madrid beats Liverpool to reach Champions League QF
There was no historic comeback for Liverpool. Real Madrid's title defense in the Champions League rolls into the quarterfinals.
Liverpool never really came close to overcoming its three-goal deficit from the first leg against the titleholders at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on Wednesday, losing 1-0 to end its hopes of another run to the final.
Karim Benzema scored late and Madrid advanced to the last eight for the third straight season with a 6-2 aggregate score following a 5-2 win from the first leg in England, when it rallied from two goals down early in the first half.
Liverpool was trying to pull off something never done before in the Champions League — erase a three-goal loss as a visitor. Only five times the team that lost at home rallied in the second leg in Europe's top club competition.
"You needed a special performance and we didn't show a special performance," Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said. "In moments, it was a good performance, but Real Madrid was the team in control the whole game. Madrid was the better team and deserved to advance."
The only time Madrid failed to advance in the Champions League after winning the first leg on the road was in 2019, when it was eliminated by Ajax in the round of 16. It had won six of its last seven matches against Liverpool in the tournament, drawing another.
"It was the type of match we wanted," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "It was difficult for them to press up front. The team played well, it was focused from the start."
Napoli defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 in the other round-of-16 match on Wednesday to join Madrid, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Benfica, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Manchester City in the draw for the quarterfinals on Friday.
Benzema scored from close range after a pass by Vinícius Júnior in the 79th minute. The France striker, who had missed Madrid's Spanish league win against Espanyol last weekend because of an injury, has scored 13 goals in his last eight Champions League knockout stage matches. He limped during the goal celebration but said afterward it was just a knock.
"It was a complicated match, against a good opponent," Benzema said. "We showed from the start that we wanted to attack, so it was a good match for the fans and we are into the quarterfinals."
Liverpool came out with an attack-minded lineup and showed its intentions early, with Darwin Núñez forcing Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to make a tough save on a breakaway seven minutes into the match.
It was an open match at the Bernabéu and Madrid had its chances as well, with Eduardo Camavinga coming close to scoring in the 20th with a shot from outside the area that struck the crossbar after a deflection by Alisson Becker. The Liverpool goalkeeper also stopped a chance by Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior in the first half and another in the second in a one-on-one situation with midfielder Federico Valverde.
Klopp kept trying to push his team forward from the sideline, but as the minutes passed it became clear it wasn't going to be enough for the English team.
Liverpool had managed a big comeback at home in the 2019 semifinals, rallying against another Spanish club, Barcelona. It won 4-0 after losing 3-0 at the Camp Nou to keep alive a run that eventually ended with the team winning the trophy.
Madrid, which had beaten Liverpool in last year's final, played in its 300th Champions League game.
The loudspeakers at the Bernabéu played Liverpool's "You'll Never Walk Alone" anthem at the end of the match as fans from both clubs applauded.
"We are two heavyweights who meet each other quite frequently in international football and quite clearly we respect each other a lot," Klopp said. "It was a really nice gesture, absolutely."
FIFA expands 2026 World Cup again to create 104-game program
Zürich, Mar 14 (UNB) – The expanded World Cup in North America got even more supersized on Tuesday.
The governing body of soccer increased the size of the 2026 tournament for the second time — six years after the first — by approving a bigger group stage for the inaugural 48-team event.
By retaining groups of four teams instead of moving to three, FIFA has created a 104-game schedule that will last nearly six weeks in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The final is scheduled for July 19.
The 16 host cities — 11 in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada — now have 24 extra games to stage on top of the 80 they already had for the inaugural 48-team tournament.
Adding about 1.5 million more tickets will also further fuel FIFA's expected record revenue of at least $11 billion through 2026 from a tournament that will rely on using high-revenue NFL stadiums.
FIFA said the decision followed a "thorough review that considered sporting integrity, player welfare, team travel, commercial and sporting attractiveness, as well as team and fan experience."
The latest push by FIFA president Gianni Infantino for more games and bigger events in a congested calendar will likely provoke more concern among stakeholders such as domestic leagues and players' union FIFPRO. They have long felt isolated from talks on soccer's future.
The six-week World Cup will start one year after FIFA launches a 32-team Club World Cup, which could also be staged in North America to test tournament logistics. The Champions League in Europe also has a new format with more teams and games in the 2024-25 season.
The new World Cup format will have 12 groups of four teams instead of 16 groups of three, the plan chosen in 2017. Both options were to go to a 32-team knockout round.
The format guarantees every World Cup team will play a minimum of three times instead of two, adding up to a stacked group stage totaling 72 games before arriving at the knockout rounds. The four semifinalists will play eight matches, one more than last year in Qatar.
The entire 2022 World Cup in Qatar amounted to 64 games in the seventh and last edition of the 32-team format. The 1998 World Cup in France was the first with 32 teams.
Increasing the World Cup's lineup was first floated in 2015. It was proposed then as a way to sweeten FIFA's 200-plus member federations into accepting much-needed governance reforms in the wake of American and Swiss investigations of corruption.
After Infantino was elected FIFA president to succeed Sepp Blatter, one of his first big strategic wins was adding 16 teams to the World Cup. Infantino persuaded FIFA colleagues that a 48-team tournament — with Africa and Asia getting more of the extra places than Europe — would fuel interest and drive development in countries that rarely or never qualified to play on the biggest stage.
That was despite FIFA's own research in 2016 suggesting that the highest quality soccer was achieved by the 32-team format.
In Qatar, the split-screen drama created by decisive group games played simultaneously helped convince FIFA that four-team groups are better.
There was also concern that scheduling groups of three could lead to match-fixing in a final game between two teams who could both advance to the round of 32.
FIFA has now found an option it said "mitigates the risk of collusion" and also gifts itself more games to sell.
The extra 24 games should drive up the price of sponsor deals and broadcasting deals not yet signed. However, some key broadcast markets are already signed, including in the United States, Brazil and the Middle East.
The 2026 World Cup was already set to earn up to $3 billion in ticket and hospitality sales for FIFA, and massively increase the tournament attendance record. That record was set in the United States in 1994 when 3.6 million spectators attended 52 games in a 24-team event.
One downside of the 48-team format is the unbalanced nature of the 32 teams that will advance.
Eight of the 12 third-place teams will move on, creating uncertainty for some teams placing third in a group not knowing if they will advance until matches are completed days later.
FIFA also explained how teams will enter the 2025 Club World Cup, including continental champions in each season from 2021-24. That means Chelsea, Real Madrid, Palmeiras, Flamengo and Seattle Sounders already secured their places.
Europe's 12 entries can also be decided by a ranking system based on the same four-year period, with a cap of two teams per country advancing with exemptions for continental champions.
FIFA also plans to create another new competition starting annually in 2024 for continental champions. The Champions League winner in Europe will play the winner of playoffs featuring the other continental champions.
AFC U-20 Women's Asia Cup qualifiers: Iran beat Bangladesh 1-0 to top Group H
Iran finished top of Group H of the AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup qualifiers at the cost of Bangladesh at the Birshreshtha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mustafa Kamal Stadium in the capital's Kamalapur Sunday.
The deciding match ended in a goalless position in the first half. Iranian forward Negin Zandi scored the winner in the 85th minute (1-0) after Bangladesh spoiled some good opportunities to score goals.
Iran, the No. 68 team in the current FIFA ranking, topped Group H with an unbeaten run to qualify for the second round of the competition, securing six points from two straight matches. Bangladesh, ranked No. 140, were eliminated from the competition after finishing runners-up with three points from two matches.
Iran just needed a draw to top their group after crushing Turkmenistan 7-1 in the opening match. Bangladesh beat Turkmenistan 4-0.
This was the first defeat for Bangladesh against Iran in an age group football tournament following their 2-0 win against the Middle Eastern team in the AFC U-14 regional championship in Nepal in 2015.
Bangladesh also beat Iran 3-0 in the AFC U-16 tournament in Dhaka in 2016 and 8-0 in a U-15 football tournament in Thailand in 2018.
The second round of the tournament, with eight group champions, will be held during June 1-11.
Four teams from the second round will earn the right to play in the eight-team final round in Uzbekistan during March 3-16 next year along with Japan, North Korea, South Korea and the hosts.
Real Madrid to take action against Barcelona over payments
Real Madrid will side against Barcelona in the legal proceedings that the rival is facing over its payments of millions of euros over several years to a company that belonged to the vice president of Spain’s soccer refereeing committee, Madrid said Sunday after an urgent board meeting.
The decision came two days after prosecutors formally accused Barcelona of alleged corruption in sports, fraudulent management and falsification of mercantile documentation. An investigating judge will decide whether the accusations should lead to charges.
“Real Madrid wishes to express its utmost concern regarding the gravity of the facts and reiterates its confidence in the legal system,” Madrid said in a statement after the board meeting. “The club has agreed that, in defense of its legitimate rights, it will appear at the trial when the judge opens it up to the affected parties.”
It was the first time Madrid officially weighed in on the matter. Other clubs had already expressed their concerns over the Barcelona payments, as did the Spanish league and the Spanish soccer federation. The league also planned to take action against Barcelona in the legal proceedings.
Barcelona has been under scrutiny since the payments to the committee official became public last month. The payments were initially investigated as part of a tax probe into the company.
Barcelona has consistently denied any wrongdoing or conflict of interest, saying it paid for technical reports on referees but never tried to influence their decisions in games.
Prosecutors said in court documents seen by The Associated Press that the payments by the club added up to 7.3 million euros ($7.7 million) from 2001-18. They added that this “quantity was not justified because it was not foreseen in the statutes of the club nor approved by its general assembly (of club members).”
Prosecutors alleged that the former vice president of the committee, José María Enríquez Negreira, “in exchange for money, was to carry out acts tending to favor Barcelona football club in the decision-making process of referees in the games played by Barcelona, and in the results of the competitions.”
There is so far no evidence that referees or game results were actually influenced.
AFC U-20 Women's Qualifiers: Bangladesh outplay Turkmenistan in flying start
Hosts Bangladesh made a flying start in the three-nation Group H match of the AFC U-20 Women's Asia Cup Qualifiers outplaying Turkmenistan by 4-0 goals in their first match at the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mustafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur here on Friday.
Striker Aklima Khatun and midfielder Sapna Rani scored two goals each for Bangladesh, which dominated the first half by 1-0 goal.
Bangladesh Television telecasted the matches live while Bangladesh Beter broadcast the running commentary of the match like the opening match.
In the day's match, Aklima opened Bangladesh's account in the stoppage time of the first half by a volley from a goalmouth melee off Sapna's corner (1-0).
She doubled the margin in the 71st minute by a right footer, utilizing a pass of Ety Khantun (2-0).
Sapna Rani scored two quick goals in a span of only one minute (81st and 82nd minutes) enabling Bangladesh to a comfortable victory.
Read: Iran thrash Turkmenistan 7-1 to start AFC U-20 Women's Asia Cup qualifiers
After the day's match, both Iran and hosts Bangladesh kept their second round hope alive with an unbeaten run securing full three points from one match each and will battle each other on Sunday (March 12) for the group title.
Stronger Islamic Republic of Iran, which made a brilliant start crushing Turkmenistan in style by 7-1 goal in the tournament opener featuring a brilliant hattrick by Hasti Forouzandeh, needs just a draw to be group champions.
But, Bangladesh, which went down in the race due to poor goal differences, have to beat Iran in the last match on Sunday to assure the group crown.
The 2nd round of the tournament with eight group champion teams will be held in June 1-11 while four qualified teams from the 2nd round will earn the right to play in the eight-team final round to be held in Uzbekistan from March 3-16 next year alongwith last time champions Japan, DPR Korea, South Korea and hosts Uzbekistan.
Manchester United beat Real Betis 4-1 in rousing response to Liverpool rout
The wounds from Sunday’s humiliating 7-0 rout by Liverpool remain fresh for Manchester United. But a 4-1 win against Real Betis in the Europa League was an encouraging response from Erik ten Hag’s players.
None more so than Bruno Fernandes, who scored one and had a role in two more in the round-of-16 first leg on Thursday.
“I think he was the best player on the pitch, it showed his personality,” United manager Ten Hag said.
The Dutchman had given his team the chance to begin making amends for Anfield by naming an unchanged lineup. It had the desired effect.
Marcus Rashford scored his 26th goal of the season.
Antony swept a shot into the top corner from distance. And Wout Weghorst, who had faced a backlash on social media for touching the famous “This is Anfield” sign, let his emotion show when firing in United’s fourth.
But perhaps no one needed redemption more than Fernandes, who received the brunt of the criticism after the collapse against Liverpool. On this occasion, his efforts were greeted with approval by United fans as well as Ten Hag.
“Bruno was fantastic. He led the team with his control of the game and passing and then he scored a goal,” Ten Hag said.
The Portugal international raced toward the Stretford End after heading United into a 3-1 lead in the 58th minute and placed his hands over his ears as if to shut out the noise that has followed Sunday’s loss.
There was a moment when he let his enthusiasm overflow with a late challenge on Betis goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, but this was the night when he channelled his passion in the right way by putting United within reach of the quarterfinals.
Former United captain and now TV analyst Gary Neville had labelled Fernandes’ performance against Liverpool a “disgrace.”
Against Betis, he was United’s driving force.
The Old Trafford crowd sang his name loud as he walked out onto the field to confirm he still had their support.
It was his cross that led to the opening goal after six minutes when Luiz Felipe diverted the ball into Rashford’s path. The England striker drove into the box and lashed a shot into the top corner.
The match was level at halftime after on-loan Leicester forward Ayoze Perez fired a low shot past David de Gea in the 32nd. Perez was only denied a second when Fernandes’ challenge diverted his shot against the post before the break.
Antony put United back in front seven minutes into the second half with a curling effort from outside of the box after being played in by Fernandes. United’s No. 8 went from provider to goal-scorer when he headed in Luke Shaw’s corner to put his team in complete control.
But perhaps the biggest cheer of the night came when Weghorst lashed the ball home in the 82nd after missing a host of earlier chances. The raw emotion was evident as he celebrated only his second goal since joining on loan from Burnley in January and his first at Old Trafford.
Iran thrash Turkmenistan 7-1 to start AFC U-20 Women's Asia Cup qualifiers
Iran thumped Turkmenistan 7-1 Wednesday to start their Group H match of the AFC U-20 Women's Asia Cup qualifiers at the Birshreshtha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mustafa Kamal Stadium in the capital's Kamalapur.
They dominated the first half 4-0. Midfielder Hasti Forouzandeh made a hat-trick, with goals in the 47th, 67th and 901st minutes. Captain and striker Mohaddeseh Zolfu struck twice (28th and 42nd); Rahil Jafari (37th) and Kimia Rahiminia (48th) netted one goal each.
Mingazova Kamila pulled one back for Turkmenistan in the 76th minute.
Bangladesh, placed in Group H with Iran and Turkmenistan, will start their campaign by taking on Turkmenistan Friday at 5pm. The hosts will face a stronger Iran Sunday in the last group match.
How will Liverpool and Man United respond to 7-0 rout?
Jurgen Klopp had a question of his own when addressing journalists after Liverpool’s 7-0 rout of Manchester United on Sunday.
Resisting the temptation to bask in a record win that almost certainly put an end to United’s feint Premier League title challenge, he remained level-headed and cast his mind back to Liverpool’s previous goalfest in the early weeks of the season.
“Does anybody know when we won against Bournemouth 9-0 how the next result was?” he asked.
The answer was a 2-1 win over Newcastle, which came courtesy of Fabio Carvalho’s goal in the eighth minute of added time. That victory came on Aug. 31. Liverpool didn’t win again in the Premier League until Oct. 16, when the team beat Manchester City 1-0.
Klopp’s point: Even big results mean little unless they are capitalized on.
Liverpool’s problem this season has been an inability to produce consistent winning runs, which is why a team that competed for four trophies last season is fighting to secure Champions League qualification this year.
United’s issues have been the opposite.
Read more: EPL: Liverpool humiliate Manchester United with 7-0 rout
While Sunday’s result equaled the biggest defeat in the club’s history, it was not the first time United manager Erik ten Hag has been humiliated in his early reign at Old Trafford.
The 4-0 loss to Brentford in only the second game of the season sparked debate about whether the Dutchman would keep his job. Then there was the 6-3 loss to Manchester City in October, which led him to question his players’ bravery.
Yet United went into Sunday’s game on the back of winning the League Cup and still in contention for three more titles. That may no longer be the case with a title challenge now likely beyond them after falling 14 points behind Premier League leader Arsenal, but Ten Hag will hope for another rousing response from his players to ensure a season that is still full of promise does not unravel.
LIVERPOOL’S MOMENTUM
There have been signs in recent weeks that Liverpool is coming into form at just the right time to salvage a desperately frustrating season.
Champions League qualification is now in sight, with Liverpool only three points behind fourth-place Tottenham with a game in hand and superior goal difference.
Newcastle is one point behind Liverpool and has played a game fewer, but it is the Merseyside club that appears to have the momentum and has also been boosted by key players returning from injury.
KLOPP’S FORWARDS
Liverpool’s new look attack produced its most ruthless display against United as Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah scored two goals each.
Klopp’s success in recent years has been built on his attacking trio of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Salah. Understandably, it has taken time for him to reconstruct his forward line and Sunday provided a glimpse of the future.
Gakpo’s performance, in particular, may have left United regretting the decision not pursue the player that Ten Hag wanted to sign in January, following the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.
CONSISTENCY
On only one occasion this season has Liverpool managed to put a run of more than two league wins together — a four-game sequence spread over either side of the World Cup in November and December.
Since the start of 2023, there have been humbling losses against Brentford, Brighton and Wolverhampton.
Newcastle’s wobbles have opened a path to the top four, but Klopp will likely need his team to go on an extended winning run to capitalize.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE?
The 5-2 loss to Real Madrid last month has left Liverpool with an enormous task to advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
If the second leg was at Anfield, rather than the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, then another famous European comeback might not have been out of the question for a club that overturned a 3-0 loss to Barcelona in the semifinals of 2019.
But even if it is unlikely Madrid will collapse, the win against United will serve as a reminder of Liverpool’s threat.
TEN HAG’S TOOLS
After the loss to Brentford, Ten Hag ordered his players to come in the next day and run 8.5 miles (about 13.5 kilometers) during a British heatwave in August. It was the difference between the distance run by both teams in that match and Ten Hag joined in on the run as a show of unity.
After losing to City, he publicly called out his players and notably left Ronaldo on the bench at the Etihad Stadium.
On both occasions, Ten Hag got the desired effect. United beat Liverpool and Arsenal in the aftermath of Brentford and lost only one game in 12 in the league after City.
He described the Liverpool loss as unprofessional. Whether that is enough to get a reaction from his players will become clear in the coming weeks.
WORK IN PROGRESS
The latest humbling was a reminder that Ten Hag is still in the process of building this United team and his squad remains short in key areas.
It was notable that Gakpo — a player Ten Hag had targeted in January — came back to haunt him, while loan signing Wout Weghorst was ineffective at Anfield.
Games like this also underline how much United misses the assuredness and creativity of Christian Eriksen, who is out with an ankle injury.
Ten Hag wants to bring in a top center forward in the offseason, with Harry Kane linked with a move from Tottenham. He also needs more cover in midfield, with Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong and Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham both admired by United.
TROPHY HOPES
The Premier League title was always a long shot and it now looks like a two-horse race between Arsenal and Manchester City.
But the loss to Liverpool doesn’t greatly change United’s season. Champions League qualification is still in its own hands, while the FA Cup and Europa League are there to be won.
United hosts Real Betis in the round of 16 of the Europa League on Thursday and faces Fulham at home in the FA Cup quarterfinals later this month.
After winning the League Cup, another trophy of any description would be considered a major success alongside a top-four finish.
EPL: Liverpool humiliate Manchester United with 7-0 rout
Liverpool brought Manchester United crashing down to earth in a stunning 7-0 rout at Anfield on Sunday.
Only a week after winning the League Cup, United experienced their heaviest defeat in the Premier League and the club’s joint worst loss in all competitions.
Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah all struck twice and Roberto Firmino scored the other, with six of the goals coming in an explosive second-half performance.
It also delivered a major blow to Erik ten Hag’s four-pronged pursuit of trophies, with a league title challenge now looking increasingly unlikely.
Liverpool, meanwhile, took advantage of losses for top-four rivals Newcastle and Tottenham on Saturday to strengthen their bid to qualify for the Champions League.
Salah became the Merseyside club’s all-time leading Premier League scorer with 129 goals.
Liverpool may have endured a frustrating campaign so far as Jurgen Klopp’s side have struggled for consistency but Anfield was in raptures at the sight of fierce rival United being humbled on Merseyside.
To add to that, the gap to fourth-place Tottenham is down to three points, with Liverpool still having a game in hand.
While Liverpool eyed the top four, United knew anything other than a win would be a huge blow to its challenge for the title after Arsenal’s late 3-2 victory against Bournemouth on Saturday.
History, however, was not on the visitors’ side, having failed to win at Anfield since 2016. United lost 4-0 in the same fixture last season.
For all of United’s progress under Ten Hag, this was the latest test of his team’s nerve on the big occasion, having already seen losses at Manchester City and Arsenal this season.
And seven days after the Dutch manager won his first trophy at United came this humiliating setback.
Gakpo put Liverpool ahead in the 43rd minute when collecting Andrew Robertson’s pass. He immediately charged into the box, sidestepped Raphael Varane and then swept a shot past David de Gea and into the bottom corner.
United’s players had been guilty of wasting chances of their own before that goal with Bruno Fernandes missing the target with a far post header and Marcus Rashford firing tamely at Alisson with only the goalkeeper to beat.
If United fans expected a response after the break, they were instead left stunned by Liverpool’s explosive start to the second half.
Nunez extended Liverpool’s lead when heading in Harvey Elliott’s cross after Luke Shaw failed to clear the ball.
It was 3-0 in the 50th after Salah’s clever footwork beat Lisandro Martinez and he then clipped a pass for Gakpo to lift over De Gea.
From there it went from bad to worse for Ten Hag as his team still tried to get back into the match.
Liverpool ruthlessly exploited United’s ragged defence, with Salah making it 4-0 in the 66th and Nunez scoring again in the 75th.
It was 6-0 when Salah scored in the 83rd and substitute Firmino stepped off the bench to score in the 88th.
Liverpool’s seven goals came from just eight shots on target.
Also read: Real Madrid routs Liverpool 5-2 in CL stunner at Anfield