23-year-old footballer Christian Mbulu found dead at home

Christian Mbulu, 23, died in Morecambe, one of the English League Two teams. Stating that Mbulu was found dead in his home, police teams said they did not think it was a suspicious situation.

The 23-year-old defender Christian Mbulu, who played in Morecambe, one of the teams of the English Second Football League (EFL League Two), lost his life. .

Libertadores and Sudamericana De; sucking, spitting and changing the ball is prohibited

The South American Football Confederation banned football players from changing to form, streamer, spitting and kissing the ball during the matches to be played in the Libertadores and Sudamericana tournaments.

The soccer players were forbidden to kiss and change the ball in the matches played in the Libertadores and Sudamericana trophies organized by the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). -19) Some measures have been announced due to the outbreak.

Jose Mourinho facing nervous wait over whether FA will charge him for reaction to Marco Ianni's goading

Jose Mourinho faces an anxious wait to find out whether or not the Football Association will charge him for his furious reaction to the goading of Chelsea coach Marco Ianni.

Telegraph Sport understands referee Mike Dean is set to include the spat between Ianni and Manchester United manager Mourinho in his report, which the FA will study on Monday.

Mourinho had to be stopped from chasing Ianni down the Stamford Bridge tunnel after Chelsea’s second assistant coach wildly celebrated Ross Barkley’s stoppage-time equaliser in front of him.

Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri immediately apologised to Mourinho for the incident and Ianni was later sent to say sorry to the Portuguese himself.

UEFA Europa League Fenerbahce, Besiktas and Akhisar Spor were the opponents

UEFA Europa League Fenerbahce, Besiktas and Akhisarspor'un opponents have been certain. Beşiktaş was in Group I with Genk of Belgium, Malmö of Sweden and Sarpsborg of Norway. Fenerbahçe took place in Group D with Anderlecht of Belgium, Dinamo Zagreb of Croatia and Spartak Trnava of Slovakia. The opponents of Akhisarspor were Sevilla in Spain, Krasnodar in Russia and Standard Liege in Belgium in Group J!

Turkish amateur club signs player with bitcoin

A Turkish amateur league football club has transferred a player by paying him with bitcoin, in what the club chairman said is the first signing of a player in cryptocurrency.

Harunustaspor chairman Haldun Sehit told Turkey's Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that the club paid Omer Faruk Kiroglu 0.0534 bitcoin (2,000 Turkish lira) in addition to $540 (2,000 Turkish lira).

Sehit said the club decided to sign Kiroglu with the cryptocurrency to make the team known "in Turkey and the world."

Sehit said: "God willing, bitcoin will bring us the championship."

Harunustaspor competes in the first division of the amateur league in Sakarya, a city about 100 kilometres (60 miles) east of Istanbul.

Messi signs new contract with FC Barcelona until 2021

The five-times world player of the year agreed the new contract with Barcelona in July but the Catalan club did not release the usual photo of the player putting pen to paper, fuelling speculation he could depart in June 2018.

Football legend Lionel Messi has signed a new contract with FC Barcelona until 2021, the La Liga leaders confirmed, ending speculation that the five-times world player of the year could leave the club where he has spent his entire career next June.

"FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi signed on Saturday morning a new contract that will keep the Argentine superstar at the Club through the 2020/21 season," said a statement from Barca, posting a picture of Messi signing the deal alongside president Josep Maria Bartomeu.

"The buyout clause was set at 700 million euros ($835.10 million)."

Turkey's amputee football team wins European championship

Turkey wins the European Amputee Football Federation (EAFF) championship after beating England 2-1 in the final held at Istanbul's Vodafone Park arena.

An emotional evening in Besiktas's home stadium proved to be a title night for a Turkish amputee football team that scored the winning goal in injury time to claim the European Amputee Football Federation (EAFF) championship.

Turkey led 1-0 at halftime thanks to a goal in the 25th minute by Omer Guleryuz. 

Although the dominant display from the Turkish team continued until the final minute, England's Ray Westbrook still managed to tie the game in the 50th minute. 

However, Turkish team captain Osman Cakmak scored two minutes later to give Turkey the title.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan congratulated the Turkish amputee team on Twitter. "I congratulate our national amputee football team for becoming European champions by beating England. Turkey is proud of you!" he said.

Liverpool to host undefeated Manchester United in North-West derby

While in-form United hope to mount a challenge for their first English title since 2013, Liverpool, already seven points behind their second-placed rivals, are battling to stay relevant after an inconsistent start.

Turkey Beat Croatia in Critical World Cup Qualifier

Cenk Tosun's follow-up goal in 75th minute gives Turkey crucial 3 points against group leaders
Turkey's National Football Team defeated Croatia 1-0 on Monday night in a 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifier Group I match.

CROATIAN CYCLIST DURASEK WINS TOUR OF TURKEY

Croatian cyclist Kristijan Durasek has won Sunday the 51st Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey.

Durasek, racing for Lampre-Merida, completed the tour in 31 hours, 6 minutes and 44 seconds.

Spanish cyclist Lluis Guillermo Mas Bonet of the Caja Rural – Seguros RGA team claimed victory in the eighth and final stage of the tour held in Istanbul.

The 26-year-old racer Bonet won the 124-kilometer stage in 2 hours, 45 minutes and 3 seconds, beating British cyclist Mark Cavendish and Spanish racer Carlos Barbero Cuesta at the finish line by a hair's length.

Ronaldo backs coach Ancelotti

Madrid - Real Madrid top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo has signalled strong support for coach Carlo Ancelotti and sent a clear message to club president Florentino Perez that he does not want the Italian to be sacked.

Perez is widely expected to make Ancelotti the scapegoat after Real ended the season without winning a major trophy but the intervention of dressing-room heavyweight Ronaldo may make him think twice.

Ronaldo netted a hat-trick in Real's final game of the campaign on Saturday, a 7-3 drubbing of city rivals Getafe at the Bernabeu, taking his tally at the top of the La Liga scoring chart to 48 goals.

It was his best single-season haul in Spain's top flight since he joined from Manchester United in 2009 and two short of the record of 50 set in 2011-12 by Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, who scored 43 this term.

After the match, Portugal captain Ronaldo posted a message on his Twitter feed with a photograph of himself and Ancelotti.

"Great coach and amazing person," Ronaldo wrote. "Hope we work together next season."

Ancelotti, who led Real to a record-extending 10th European title and a King's Cup triumph in his debut year in Spain in 2013-14, has made it clear he wants to carry on but said on Saturday if Real do let him go he would take a year out.

His contract runs until the end of next season and he said he expected to meet with club officials early next week to discuss his future.

Media reports in Italy have suggested the 55-year-old could return to former club AC Milan, with whom he won the European Cup as both a player and coach.

Napoli's Spanish coach Rafa Benitez is the frontrunner to replace Ancelotti at Real, where he had a stint as a youth trainer, according to local media.

Real's Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez also backed Ancelotti after Saturday's game.

"He arrived two years ago and he knows the team, he knows how we are and how we go about things," he told Spanish television. "But it's not my decision and it's not my place to talk about it."

View the original article here

FIFA candidates targets of blackmail

Singapore - Two men who launched challenges to Sepp Blatter for the leadership of world football body FIFA have been targeted in an attempted blackmail scam, a report said on Saturday.

Prince Ali bin al Hussein and Michael van Praag, who has now pulled out of the race, were both approached by Kenya-based conmen who said Blatter had gathered sensitive information about them.

Singapore's The New Paper and Dutch daily De Volkskrant said the men demanded money to hand over the information from what they claimed was a smear campaign orchestrated by Blatter.

According to The New Paper, Jordan's Prince Ali, who is now Blatter's sole challenger in next week's FIFA vote, and van Praag both confirmed approaches.

"We have had a number of individuals coming forward with similar allegations," a spokesman for Prince Ali was quoted as saying.

"Our approach has been to try and set up meetings with these individuals so we can assess them and the information they are giving for ourselves."

The conmen said the director of an India-based security company put together a surveillance report on Prince Ali for submission to Blatter's daughter, Corinne.

But when contacted by The New Paper, both the investigator and Corinne Blatter denied all knowledge and said they had been set up.

"I do not know who is behind it but it is clearly intended to damage my father's reputation," Corinne Blatter was quoted as saying.

According to the report, the approaches by email appeared genuine but details such as the investigator's phone number and email address were wrong.

"I have no idea who would want to set me up, especially on such an elaborate scam as this," the investigator, who was not named, told The New Paper.

"I have never worked for Ms Corinne Blatter in any way."

Van Praag received an email which stated: "Some time in late August 2014, Sepp commissioned some espionage work on you fearing you might stand against him in future."

The Dutch FA chief said: "What do you think it would mean for my image if I were to respond to those e-mails?

"If it is true that they are working on a case against me,then so be it. I have nothing to hide."

Van Praag and Portuguese great Luis Figo withdrew from the FIFA race on Thursday, leaving Prince Ali as the only man standing between Blatter and a fifth term as president on May 29.

Swiss-based FIFA has been hit by a succession of scandals, including claims of widespread bribery in the run-up to Qatar's successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup.

View the original article here

Renard quits as Ivory Coast coach

Abidjan - Frenchman Herve Renard has stepped down as coach of his Africa Cup of Nations winners Ivory Coast, according to official sources on Friday.

The charismatic 46-year-old led the 'Elephants' to their first African title since 1992 in February, when they defeated Ghana on penalties, but is now hotly tipped to take over at Ligue 1 side Lille.

"I said to myself, that after the success at the CAN, it would be difficult to do better and I have to open myself up to other challenges," Renard told the press.

Renard had been at the helm of the Ivory Coast since August 2014 after signing a two year contract but that deal has now come to an end.

View the original article here

Cosafa Cup quarter-final line-up

Johannesburg - Cosafa Cup quarter-finals line-up.
Sunday, May 24
Namibia v Zambia - 15:00
Botswana v South Africa - 17:30
Monday, May 25
Ghana v Madagascar - 17:00
Malawi v Mozambique - 19:30

View the original article here

Pope Francis tests basketball skills on St. Peter’s with Harlem Globetrotters

Published time: May 07, 2015 15:31 This handout picture released by the Vatican press office shows Pope Francis posing with members of the Harlem Globe Trotters basketball team at the end of his weekly general audience on May 6, 2015 in Vatican. (AFP Photo/Osservatore Romano)

Pope Francis pulled off some cool basketball moves in Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square at his general audience on Wednesday. He was encouraged by visiting US basketball team the Harlem Globetrotters, who made the Pontiff an honorary member.

The pontiff is known to be an ardent fan of football, especially of his Argentinian home team. However, on Wednesday the Pope showed interest in basketball at his general audience on St. Peter’s Square as he met with the famous entertainment basketball team.

The Pope was walked through how to spin a ball on his fingertip and encouraged to try the move. He was also presented a jersey of an honorary member of the team adorned with the name Pope Francis and the number 90 on the back.

Only nine people, including Pope Francis, former Pope John Paul II and Nelson Mandela, have been given the honor by the Globetrotters.

The Globetrotters stopped in Vatican on Wednesday as part of their Italy tour. The American exhibition team was founded in 1926 and over the years has played more than 20,000 games in 120 countries. The Globetrotters are claimed to be the first professional basketball team.

View the original article here