La Nación reveals that Federal Police raids the Argentina FA and football clubs
Argentina’s popular newspaper La Nacion has revealed that following orders from a Federal Judge, the Federal Police has started raids on the Argentine Football Association and a group of football clubs as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering. Federal police entered the AFA’s headquarters in Buenos Aires on Tuesday morning. According to La Nacion reports, the raids have stemmed from allegations of money laundering tied to the financial services firm Sur Finanzas. The report also says the judge ordered raids on more than 10 football clubs, including top-tier clubs Racing, San Lorenzo, and Independiente. Sur Finanzas, the AFA, and a spokesperson for prosecutors did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The federal court in Lomas de Zamora, a district in the province of Buenos Aires, from which La Nacion said the judge ordered the raids, could not immediately be reached. Racing, San Lorenzo, and Independiente did not immediately respond to a request for comment. La Nacion said the probe had been made after a criminal complaint that focused on transfers of money between football clubs and Sur Finanzas’ payment service platform. The raids could increase tensions between AFA president Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia and President Javier Milei. Milei has pushed for Argentina’s clubs, which have long functioned as non-profit organizations run by their members, to become for-profit companies under private owners. The AFA has fought against legal efforts by Milei to allow for-profit clubs to join the association.
Leading footballers jailed for pending trial in Turkey gambling probe
A Turkish court has sent 20 suspects, including Super League footballers, involved in a widening football betting investigation, state-owned Anadolu news agency said on Tuesday. Last week, prosecutors ordered the detention of 46 people, including players, club presidents, commentators, and a referee, over insider betting in Turkey’s professional leagues. Anadolu reported that among those detained in the operation, Galatasaray player Metehan Baltaci and Fenerbahçe player Mert Hakan Yandas, as well as former Adana Demirspor president Murat Sancak, were now formally arrested and jailed. Anadolu reported that Baltaci pleaded with the court that he had placed bets on a few matches when he was a youth team player and had not done so after joining the Galatasaray first team. According to another local newspaper, Fenerbahce’s Yandas had reportedly said in his submission to the court testimony that he denied involvement in gambling on matches. Representatives of the two players and the former club official could not immediately be reached for comment. Last month, Turkey’s football federation suspended 149 referees and assistants after an investigation found that officials in the professional leagues were betting on games. The net then widened with the arrest of eight people, including the chairman of a top-tier club, and the suspension of 1,024 players from all leagues, on whom the federation (TFF) imposed bans.
East Bengal start their campaign in the SAFF Women’s Club Championship in style
Indian Women’s League (IWL) champions East Bengal women started their maiden SAFF Women’s Club Championship campaign, trouncing the Bhutanese champions Transport United Ladies 4-0 in their opening group fixture on Sunday. Their Ugandan striker Fazila Ikwaput (36, 72) struck the brace while youngster, Sulanjana Raul (60), and the Ugandan midfielder, Resty Nanziri (63), scored one goal each for Red and Gold Brigade in Kathmandu. Player of the Match Fazila mentioned that this is just the beginning, and the team will be aiming something bigger. This tournament will help them identify what they need to do to move ahead. East Bengal started the domination from the beginning and was able to create plenty of space on the wings for Sulanjana and Soumya to make quick runs. Still, they had to wait 35 minutes for their opening goal. On a counterattack, Soumya found some space on the right flank, which she made full use of before laying an accurate cross to Fazila, who headed home cleanly. After that, the Indian side got plenty of chances in the opening half, but they couldn’t convert them, and the score-line remained unchanged at halftime. In the second half, they showed better chemistry in their forward line, which led to two beautiful team goals near the 60-minute mark, from Sulanjana and Nanziri. In the 72nd minute, Sulanjana again showed her magical footwork to cut past her marker and assisted a chip ball to Fazila, who calmly controlled it before completing her brace. East Bengal is now in joint top position with Nepal’s APF Club with 3 points. They will next take on Pakistan’s Karachi City FC in the second group match on 11th December.
Indomitable Greaves rescues West Indies, setting a new milestone!
Justin Greaves delivered a nine-and-a-half-hour batting master-class before inscribing his name in the Caribbean folklore after his maiden Test double hundred helped an unlikely draw for West Indies in the opening Test against New Zealand on Saturday. The 31-year-old’s unbeaten 202 guided West Indies to finish a mammoth total of 457 for the loss of six wickets, which has been the second-highest fourth-innings total in Test match history. West Indies were chasing an unbelievable victory target of 531 at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval. Greaves never choose to show fireworks. Rather, he was patient, executing the grit and determination against the New Zealand attack, depleted by mid-match injuries to pacers Nathan Smith and Matt Henry. Greaves was on the wicket for nine-and-a-half hours, playing 388 deliveries, which finally forced New Zealand to accept a draw. West Indies were able to earn their first point in the new World Test Championship cycle, thanks to Greaves’ magnificent innings. Greaves forged a 196-run stand with Shai Hope (140) and then raised 180 with Kemar Roach (58) for the unbroken seventh wicket for a pride-restoring draw that felt as good as a win. The elated batsman said after receiving the man-of-the-match award, “It was undoubtedly a special day for me, and a special day for the team.” West Indies did not push for an unlikely victory in the final session, and Greaves felt he and his team displayed enough resilience with their second-innings batting. “It’s a word that we’ve thrown around in the dressing room a lot. So for me to be there at the end was really important. Anything for the team at the end of the day,” he said.
This World Cup may witness one of the most exciting duels between Messi and Ronaldo!
If he finally plays, then the 2026 World Cup may watch one of the most exciting duels between the two icons, for the first time and also for the last time in a World Cup. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have never clashed each other in a World Cup match. There can be two situations which can guide Argentina paly against Portugal in the World Cup quarterfinal and if not, then in the semi-final. The quarterfinal is scheduled to be held at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on 11th July while the semifinal has been scheduled on 15th July at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. But for the quarterfinal meeting, Argentina will have to top in the Group J in the first round. And in the case of second situation, if Argentina tops Group-J, Portugal qualify as a runner-up or one of the third-placed teams then they will be meeting in the last-four of the tournament. Then Messi and Ronaldo will lock horns in the World Cup semi-finals on 15th July The venue is one of America’s busiest multi-purpose stadiums, having hosted a Super Bowl in 2019 and staged six matches of the FIFA Club World Cup, including the quarterfinal between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, earlier this year. Messi led Argentina to the World Cup title four years ago, while Ronaldo guided Portugal to its first-ever international trophy, the European Championship, in 2016.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a ‘valuable player at the moment! Doubts over Neymar’s return to the national squad
Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti has commented that the country does not have the ‘referential footballer’ in the team! Referential means the ‘tag’ of most valuable footballer in the squad, which Neymar Jr. has mainly worn since the 2014 World Cup. “We have one of the world’s best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don’t want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said. His statement suggests that uncertainty still looms large over 33-year-old Neymar’s inclusion in the national team for the forthcoming World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico. The Italian has yet to pick the former captain since he took over in May. “If Neymar is better than others, he will play in the World Cup, and that’s it. But I don’t have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday following the draw. Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland. The veteran coach added, “If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list will be made after the FIFA fixtures in March.” The 33-year-old Neymar has not fully recovered from tearing his ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. He has also been playing a critical role for Santos as the club fights relegation in the Brazilian championship. On Wednesday, despite a muscle injury, he scored a hat trick for Santos. He is expected to play again Sunday against Cruzeiro. Asked about his team’s group, Ancelotti said Brazil can top it. “We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final, and for that to happen, you need to face very strong teams anyway.” Brazil won the last of its five World Cup trophies in 2002. Morocco were very good during the last World Cup in Qatar, and Scotland is also a solid squad. It will not be easy at all, revealed Ancelotti while speaking to Brazilian television station Sportv. Brazil will start their campaign against Morocco on 13th June.
Ahead of another final, Muller shows respect to Messi
Inter Miami and Vancouver Whitecaps step into an unprecedented Major League Soccer (MLS) Cup final on Saturday, each chasing its first Philip F. Anschutz trophy in a spectacle fuelled by the renewed rivalry between Lionel Messi and Thomas Müller. Ahead of the final, Muller had respect in his words for Messi as he stated, “This is a final I wanted. The good thing is not only playing against the best player who has ever played our sport and who continues to do so, but I think when you have a match like this, more people see you.” The 36-year-old striker continued, “Perhaps they rely on him a little more than this team relies on me.” “If you play with these great players and names, then it’s a little more exciting for more people around the world. It’s a perfect situation for everyone involved,” added German legend. With ticket prices at record highs, the free global broadcast will reach more than 100 countries, while the MLS is rolling out its most ambitious production yet for a final featuring two of Europe’s stars. At 38, Messi produced the season Inter Miami had hoped for when it brought the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner to Florida, with him steering the club to its first MLS Cup final and setting an all-time assist record of 405 along the way. The Argentine captain had 29 goals and 19 assists in the regular campaign, plus six goals and seven assists in the postseason. Longtime Bayern Munich talisman Muller, who arrived in Vancouver in August, was instrumental in driving the campaign of the CONCACAF Champions Cup runner-up, delivering seven goals and three assists across seven regular-season matches. The head-to-head between the two veterans tilts the contest in favour of the German, with him winning seven of their 10 meetings, including two Bayern thrashings of Barcelona in the Champions League in 2013 and 2020, as well as Argentina’s painful defeat in the 2014 World Cup final. As Muller suggested, the match-up’s profile has lifted the entire event, driving record demand and the most ambitious broadcast MLS has ever assembled.
Injured Neymar strikes a hat-trick; desperate to get a national call-up
Despite sustaining a knee injury, Neymar Jr. struck a hat-trick, helping his childhood club Santos FC to go out of relegation from the Brazilian Premier league. The 33-year-old Brazilian World Cupper scored three goals within only 17 minutes, sending Santos FC to record a 3-0 victory and two points clear of the bottom four with one match left. Neymar is not being called up in the national preparatory camp by national coach Carlo Ancelotti since 2023 and looks desperate to get a national call-up. Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti said in October that Neymar remains in his plans for next year’s World Cup, but the striker must regain full fitness. The striker has scored five goals so far and provided one assist in his club team’s last three matches, guiding the club to garner seven points to be placed at 14th in the League table. Santos hosts Cruzeiro on Sunday in the last match of the campaign.
Starc surpasses Wasim Akram; scalps most Test wickets as the left-arm pacer
Mitchell Starc cracked Pakistan legend Wasim Akram’s record, becoming the left-arm pacer with the most wickets in Test history. Starc achieved the feat during the second session of the opening day of the Pink-ball Test of the ongoing Ashes series. He dismissed Harry Brook after getting the wickets of Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope earlier in the day. Starc has broken Akram’s record in 102 matches after starting off the Ashes series on fire. In the first Test in Perth, Starc picked up seven wickets in the first innings and followed it up with three in the second innings. Now, Starc has achieved 415 wickets in 102 matches, while Wasim Akram finished his career in Test, scalping 414 wickets in 104 matches. He now sits on the 16th all-time wicket-taker’s list and has Shaun Pollock, who has 421 wickets in his kitty, and Harbhajan Singh, with 417 wickets after him. Another legendary fast bowler, Richard Hadlee, is ahead of them with 431 wickets. The Australian speedster continues to dominate in pink-ball Tests, claiming over 80 wickets at an average of just over 17. From a first-over dismissal of Ben Duckett to breaking Akram’s record, Starc has cemented his legacy as one of the greatest left-arm fast bowlers in cricket history.
Former England batsman Robin Smith dies unexpectedly, his family reveals
England’s former batsman Robin Smith has died at the age of 62. The news was announced by his English county, Hampshire, on Tuesday. Smith played 62 Tests between 1988 and 1996, died unexpectedly on Monday in Australia, where he lived, his family said. “It is with the deepest and most profound sense of sadness and loss that we must announce the passing of Robin Arnold Smith, beloved father of Harrison and Margaux and cherished brother of Christopher,” Smith’s family said in a statement released by Hampshire Cricket. Robin died unexpectedly at his South Perth apartment on Monday, 1st December. The cause of his death is at present unknown.” Smith had only recently met with the England Lions squad in Perth ahead of the first Ashes Test at the invitation of team coach Andrew Flintoff. Robin rose to fame as one of England’s most charismatic and popular players,” Smith’s family said. It added: “Since his retirement from the game in 2004, his battles with alcohol and mental health have been well documented, but these should not form the basis of speculation about the cause of death, which will be determined at postmortem investigation.” Hampshire chairman Rod Bransgrove said: “Robin Smith is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, of all time Hampshire cricket heroes. “He was a batsman of awesome power and control, and amongst the most courageous players this club has ever seen — especially against bowling of real pace.”
