Category: Sports

Sports news, viral moments, athletes, teams, and major competitions.

  • Samba Stars: Michail Antonio Helps Ghanaian Academy Pursue Premier League Dreams

    Samba Stars: Michail Antonio Helps Ghanaian Academy Pursue Premier League Dreams

    In the heat of rural Leicestershire, Ghanaian academy Samba Stars are pursuing their ambition of helping young players secure professional football contracts in Europe.

    Head coach Freddie Okyere has just completed a shooting exercise and gives the squad a chance to catch their breath. The teenagers have spent two and a half months in England with one clear objective: impressing clubs and earning contracts.

    The academy is backed by former West Ham and Nottingham Forest forward Michail Antonio. Although scouts regularly visit West Africa, it is unusual for academies to bring players to the United Kingdom and place them directly in front of professional clubs.

    “The talent the lads have is incredible,” said Antonio.

    “We created Samba Stars Academy to give young players in Ghana access to elite coaching, shape them as players and create real avenues into the pro game and show how much talent Ghana has.”

    Samba Stars is based in Kumasi while a new facility is being developed in Bompata, just over 100 miles north of Ghana’s capital, Accra. The academy’s decision to take its players to England has already produced results, with Bournemouth, Everton, Manchester City, Charlton, Preston, Barnsley and Peterborough all offering players trials this summer.

    “The first two or three weeks it hadn’t sunk in, but then they saw the facilities we’d be [using] and the teams we were playing,” said Okyere.

    “They want to go and show what they can do. They are hungry, they really want it. I’m hoping there will be so much interest because we have so much talent here.”

    “With the facilities we will have in Ghana we feel we will be top two, top three [academies]. We hope we can bring the best of Ghana to Europe.”

    Listowell Lord Hinneh’s path to Middlesbrough

    Samba Stars also has a growing list of success stories. Midfielder Listowell Lord Hinneh joined Middlesbrough in February after a trial and has since trained with the first team after moving from West Africa to north-east England.

    “When I came in January, it was so cold. Experiencing something like that for the first time was tough,” he told BBC Sport.

    “Moving was a big milestone. It just makes me feel the dreams I’ve been having, thinking of trying to find myself in Europe to become a professional footballer.”

    “I feel the kind of dreams that I want, I’m on the verge. I’m on the way [to] becoming who I wanted to become.”

    Hinneh, whose sister Groovy lives in Leeds, met the Samba Stars squad during their England trip and offered advice based on his own experience.

    “[I told them] what you’ve been dreaming about the future, it starts from here,” he said.

    “Don’t just try, be so passionate. You need to play and enjoy it because you can have the success in whatever you’re doing. You have to just put your heart in it.”

  • Test Your Football Knowledge With Our Daily Quizzes

    Test Your Football Knowledge With Our Daily Quizzes

    Test your ball knowledge with today’s Who Am I?, Five in Five and Brainteaser challenges.

    Source: www.bbc.co.uk

  • RB Leipzig Agree to Sign Roma Midfielder Neil El Aynaoui — Here We Go!

    RB Leipzig Agree to Sign Roma Midfielder Neil El Aynaoui — Here We Go!

    RB Leipzig Reach Verbal Agreement to Sign Neil El Aynaoui from Roma

    RB Leipzig have reached a verbal agreement with Roma to sign midfielder Neil El Aynaoui, according to Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

    The Bundesliga club will initially sign the Morocco international on loan for €4 million. The deal reportedly includes a €25 million purchase option, as well as a sell-on clause.

  • Arthur Fery Beaten by Ignacio Buse in Winston-Salem Open Final

    Arthur Fery Beaten by Ignacio Buse in Winston-Salem Open Final

    Arthur Fery’s breakthrough run ended in disappointment as he lost to Ignacio Buse in the final of the Winston-Salem Open, missing out on his first ATP Tour title in straight sets.

    Fery, who became one of the stories of Wimbledon after reaching the semi-finals at his home Grand Slam in July, was beaten 6-3 6-2 by Peru’s Buse.

    The 24-year-old became the first British player to reach the final of the ATP 250 tournament in North Carolina. His performance will lift him to 33rd in the world rankings, making him British number one ahead of Cameron Norrie. Just eight weeks ago, before his remarkable run at the All England Club, Fery was ranked outside the world’s top 100.

    “Congratulations to you and your team, Ignacio, for your second title this year,” Fery said. “I want to thank my team as well. It couldn’t be us today but thank you for everything you do for me. We have had a great year and hopefully we can finish strong.”

    Buse takes control in Winston-Salem final

    There was little to separate Fery and Buse during the opening stages of Saturday’s final. Buse then seized the initiative by breaking serve to love to move 5-3 ahead, before serving out the first set.

    The Peruvian quickly established a double-break advantage in the second set. Fery recovered one of those breaks, but Buse responded by winning three consecutive games to complete the victory.

    For the 22-year-old Buse, the win makes him the youngest champion in Winston-Salem tournament history. It is also the second ATP title of his career, following his victory over American Tommy Paul at the ATP 500 event in Hamburg in May.

    “It is very special for me,” Buse said. “With all my team, we have been working very, very hard. “Some things are very tough that we go through as tennis players, but I also want to congratulate Arthur and his team.”

    Fery faces Musetti in US Open debut

    Fery will have little time to reflect on his run in Winston-Salem before travelling to New York for the US Open, which begins on Sunday.

    He will make his first appearance in the main draw at Flushing Meadows against a difficult opponent in Italian 13th seed Lorenzo Musetti.

    Fery is one of nine British players scheduled to compete in the main draws at the US Open, the final Grand Slam tournament of the season.

    Norrie and Jan Choinski will join him in the men’s draw, along with qualifiers Toby Samuel and Harry Wendelken and lucky loser Jacob Fearnley.

    Katie Boulter, qualifier Fran Jones and Harriet Dart will represent Britain in the women’s draw. Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu are both absent because of injury.

    Source: www.bbc.co.uk

  • US Open 2026 Singles Preview: Can Aryna Sabalenka Rediscover Her Mojo, and How Will Carlos Alcaraz Fare in His Comeback?

    US Open 2026 Singles Preview: Can Aryna Sabalenka Rediscover Her Mojo, and How Will Carlos Alcaraz Fare in His Comeback?

    Sabalenka’s four Grand Slam singles titles—two Australian Open victories and two US Open triumphs, all on hard courts—are an achievement most players can only dream of. However, the Belarusian has also lost four major finals and six semi-finals, underlining a level of consistency on tennis’s biggest stages that is unrivalled among her peers.

    In recent months, the main concern has been Sabalenka’s mental focus in less pressurised situations. That weakness was exposed again at the Cincinnati Open, where she suffered a fourth-round defeat by 20-year-old Czech player Sara Bejlek.

    Sabalenka led 5-1 in the first-set tie-break and 4-1 in the second set, but struggled to maintain composure during the rallies as Bejlek fought back to win 7-6 (9-7) 6-4.

    Sabalenka searching for greater mental consistency

    At her previous tournament in Toronto, Sabalenka lost to Russian world number 19 Ekaterina Alexandrova in the last 16 after her serve collapsed.

    Her difficulties also emerged during the clay-court season. Sabalenka surrendered the opening set before losing to Hailey Baptiste in Madrid, Sorana Cirstea in Rome and, most notably, Diana Shnaider at Roland Garros.

    “I work on my mental side of the game. I’ve been trying to reset my mind and to come back stronger,” a bullish Sabalenka said in New York.

    “It’s only a matter of time for me to come back.”

  • Haley Cavinder and Hanna Cavinder Close Out Cowboys’ Preseason With Two Head-Turning Looks

    Haley Cavinder and Hanna Cavinder Close Out Cowboys’ Preseason With Two Head-Turning Looks

    The Dallas Cowboys’ preseason is over, but attention at their final game extended beyond the field. Haley Cavinder and Hanna Cavinder attended the Cowboys’ game at AT&T Stadium to support Jake Ferguson, drawing notice with outfits that combined the stadium setting with their personal styles.

    Haley Cavinder keeps her final-game outfit simple

    Haley Cavinder chose a casual look for the final preseason night. She wore a white dotted top, light-wash jeans, white heels and a matching bag. She completed the outfit by wearing her hair in its natural style.

    Hanna Cavinder opts for an all-white look

    Hanna Cavinder took a different approach while maintaining a similar aesthetic. She wore white pants, matching heels and a white T-shirt featuring horse images, tying the shirt around her waist to create a shorter silhouette.

    A white bag and her loose hair completed the outfit, making light colors the defining feature of her look.

    How did the Cowboys perform in the preseason?

    Dallas finished the preseason with a 2-1 record. The Cowboys opened with a 17-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field before beating the Arizona Cardinals 34-13 at State Farm Stadium.

    In their final preseason game, the New Orleans Saints defeated Dallas 27-24 at AT&T Stadium.

    Why didn’t Jake Ferguson play?

    Jake Ferguson did not sit out because of an injury. The Cowboys gave the tight end the night off along with several other starters as the coaching staff chose to protect key players before the regular season.

    Dallas will now turn its attention to the 2026 regular season, which begins on September 13. The Cowboys will visit the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in their opener.

    Source: www.marca.com

  • Match of the Day Analysis: Why Liverpool Aren’t Getting the Best Out of Alexander Isak

    Match of the Day Analysis: Why Liverpool Aren’t Getting the Best Out of Alexander Isak

    Joe Hart: Alexander Isak’s Deep Positioning Shows Low Confidence

    BBC Sport pundit Joe Hart believes Alexander Isak dropping deep to receive the ball, rather than staying forward, is a sign the striker is low in confidence.

    Hart also said Isak is not having the ball played to him in the areas where he can be most effective.

    Match Report

    Liverpool 2-2 Nottingham Forest – Premier League

    Available to UK users only.

  • Stephen Curry Arrived Alone at the Warriors and Built His Most Important Team Over 17 Seasons While Becoming an NBA Legend

    Stephen Curry Arrived Alone at the Warriors and Built His Most Important Team Over 17 Seasons While Becoming an NBA Legend

    Stephen Curry was 21 when the Golden State Warriors selected him with the seventh pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. He arrived without an NBA championship, an MVP award or any idea that the franchise taking a chance on him would eventually become nearly inseparable from his name. He was not married yet, either.

    Seventeen seasons later, Curry has led Golden State to four NBA championships, won two MVP awards and become the greatest three-point shooter in league history. The slender guard from Davidson became the face of a dynasty and one of the world’s most recognizable athletes. Now, at 38, the Warriors can place another extraordinary figure in front of him: a two-year contract extension worth as much as $136.7 million.

    Stephen Curry built a basketball dynasty and a family

    That contract figure tells only half the story of what Curry has built during his 17 seasons with Golden State.

    In 2011, two years after the Warriors drafted him, Curry married Ayesha, whom he had first met as a teenager. A year later, Riley was born. Curry was still three years away from winning his first NBA championship, and the little girl who would eventually steal the spotlight at his press conferences arrived before the basketball world fully understood what her father was about to become.

    Curry’s family grew alongside his basketball career. Ryan was born in July 2015, just weeks after Curry won his first NBA championship. Canon arrived in 2018, in the middle of the Warriors dynasty, after Golden State had won its third title in four seasons. In May 2024, Caius was born. By then, Curry had four rings, two MVP awards, a Finals MVP and virtually nothing left to prove on the court.

    Golden State made Curry the face of its franchise. At home, he is simply one of six.

    Riley is now 14, Ryan is 11, Canon is 8 and Caius, the only child too young to remember the beginning of his father’s extraordinary run, is 2. Stephen and Ayesha celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary this summer.

    Those ages show how much of life has unfolded while Curry was making basketball history.

    The 21-year-old who arrived in Golden State in 2009 is now a husband and father of four. He has watched his oldest daughter grow from a child sitting on his lap at press conferences into a teenager. His children have seen him win championships, break records, deal with injuries, return home from road trips and get up to do it all again.

    Curry does not describe that part of his life as secondary to basketball. Earlier this year, he called raising four children with Ayesha “beautiful chaos.” Watching four different personalities develop, he said, has been the “best gift and responsibility” of their lives.

    Warriors extension could cover Curry’s final NBA seasons

    The Warriors can offer Curry $136.7 million and the chance to play through age 40. For Golden State, the decision could shape the final seasons of the greatest player in franchise history. For Curry, those years will also unfold as Riley becomes a young woman, Ryan moves further into her teenage years, Canon continues to grow up and Caius begins forming the childhood memories he may one day have of his father still playing in the NBA.

    That does not mean Curry is ready to retire. Basketball remains part of his identity, and he has said the court is still his happy place. But at 38, time looks different than it did at 21.

    When Curry arrived in 2009, Golden State gave him a jersey and a place to begin his NBA career. Over the next 17 seasons, he helped transform the team into a dynasty.

    Away from the arena, he and Ayesha were building another one.

    Now, as one team decides how much it is willing to invest in Stephen Curry for the next two years, the other is already waiting for him at home.

  • Jerry Jones Sends Dak Prescott a Clear Message About His Backup After Cowboys Preseason Games

    Jerry Jones Sends Dak Prescott a Clear Message About His Backup After Cowboys Preseason Games

    Since 2010, every NFC team except the Dallas Cowboys has appeared in the NFC Championship Game at least once. Dallas, the world’s most valuable sports franchise, has not reached the doorstep of the Super Bowl since winning its last championship during the 1995 season.

    As the Cowboys confront that frustrating drought, which includes a recent two-year playoff absence, quarterback Dak Prescott has declared that the current season is strictly “Super Bowl or bust.” Prescott noted that outside criticism will always follow the franchise, making a trip to the Super Bowl the clearest way to silence the doubters.

    Dallas Cowboys Focus on Defense and Dak Prescott’s Legacy

    Dallas’ biggest weakness in recent seasons has been its defense. The unit ranked last in franchise history last year for points allowed per drive, prompting the front office to hire defensive coordinator Christian Parker and use seven draft selections on defensive talent.

    On offense, the Cowboys remain anchored by Prescott, but the quarterback’s biggest challenge arrives in January. His 2-5 postseason record contrasts sharply with his regular-season production.

    Following the 2026 season, Prescott could further cement his legacy as arguably the greatest regular-season quarterback in Cowboys history. He is already the franchise’s all-time leader in passing yards with 35,989. Prescott also trails Tony Romo by only eight touchdown passes, with Romo holding a 248-243 advantage, while Prescott’s 83 victories leave him 11 wins behind the franchise record of 94 shared by Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach.

    Jerry Jones Hints Cowboys Could Keep Sam Howell and Joe Milton

    With Prescott firmly established as the starter for his 11th professional season, one of Dallas’ most difficult 53-man roster decisions concerns the backup quarterback competition between Sam Howell and Joe Milton.

    Because injuries can disrupt a season without warning, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones offered insight into the team’s thinking after the preseason finale, hinting to ESPN that Dallas may avoid choosing between the two quarterbacks.

    “That’s one that we may just split the difference and have two backup quarterbacks here,” Jones remarked.

    Howell held a narrow advantage during the early training camp workouts under head coach Brian Schottenheimer, but both quarterbacks delivered strong summer performances. Their close competition prompted Schottenheimer to describe the battle as completely “neck and neck”.

    The Cowboys therefore appear positioned to keep both quarterbacks on the active roster, providing additional emergency depth behind Prescott as they pursue a return to the playoffs and their first NFC Championship Game appearance since 1995.

    Source: www.marca.com

  • Football Transfer Gossip: Woltemade, Grealish, Fernandez-Pardo, Gnonto and Paixao

    Football Transfer Gossip: Woltemade, Grealish, Fernandez-Pardo, Gnonto and Paixao

    Napoli are showing the strongest interest in Newcastle United forward Nick Woltemade, while Sunderland are confident of signing Manchester City winger Jack Grealish on loan. Arsenal are also exploring a move for Lille forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo.

    Napoli lead interest in Nick Woltemade

    Several Italian clubs have expressed interest in Newcastle striker Nick Woltemade, 24, with Napoli reportedly the most serious suitors for a loan deal involving the Germany international.

    Sunderland target Grealish and Etta Eyong

    Sunderland want to sign Manchester City winger Jack Grealish on loan and are confident of securing the 30-year-old England international.

    The club are also considering a move for Levante striker Karl Etta Eyong, 22. The Cameroon forward has a £26m release clause.

    Sunderland are close to agreeing a fee with Marseille for Brazilian winger Igor Paixao, 26, although the French club are continuing to try to retain the player.

    Arsenal monitor Fernandez-Pardo

    Arsenal are exploring a move for Lille forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo, 21. The Belgium international is valued at £60m.

    Liverpool linked with Ismaila Sarr

    Crystal Palace winger Ismaila Sarr, 28, is keen to join Liverpool, with talks continuing between the clubs over a deal for the Senegal international.

    Other transfer developments

    Fiorentina have made enquiries to Leeds United about signing Italy winger Wilfried Gnonto, 22.

    Aston Villa have made Manchester United an offer for Ivory Coast attacker Amad Diallo, 24.

    Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic has urged the club not to send English left-back Ryan Giles, 26, on loan to Burnley after an agreement was reached.

    AC Milan have reached an agreement with Nottingham Forest to sign English winger Omari Hutchinson, 22.

    Source: www.bbc.co.uk