FIFA 'CROSSED A LINE' OVER DECISION TO REVERSE STRIKER FOLARIN BALOGUN' ONE-MATCH BAN, SAYS UEFA

 

United States' Folarin Balogun was given a red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Credit: AP

Uefa hit back at Fifa’s ruling to suspend a red card shown to United States striker Folarin Balogun against Bosnia and Herzegovina after reported intervention from Donald Trump, saying it "crossed a red line".

Fifa has allowed Balogun to play against Belgium in the knock-out clash on Monday evening despite receiving a red card and a one-match ban last week, a move that led to a furious response from Uefa and praise from the US president.

If Fifa's decision stands, it will be the first time since 1962 that a red card during a World Cup did not result in a suspension.

The Monaco forward, who has scored three goals at the tournament, was dismissed for his challenge on Tarik Muharemovic during the second half of their 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

But his single-match ban has now been suspended for a probationary period of one year.

In response, the European football governing body said on Monday: “Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line."

Trump called Fifa President Gianni Infantino after the Bosnia game, asking the football body to review the red card, according to AP, who spoke to a person familiar with the call who spoke on condition of anonymity.

On Sunday, Trump hailed the decision by Fifa's disciplinary committee to allow Balogun to participate in the World Cup co-hosts' last-16 clash.

Writing on his Truth Social account, President Trump said: “Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!”

According to Fifa's disciplinary code, should the 25-year-old commit "another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement".

A Fifa disciplinary committee statement read: “By operation of Article 27 FDC, the implementation of the automatic match suspension for USA player Folarin Balogun is suspended for a probationary period of one (1) year.”

The Belgian football federation was preparing an appeal in Seattle in the early hours of Monday to challenge the Balogun ruling before a Fifa-appointed appeals judge.

- itvX

COPA LEBERATADORES FINAL | 1962

1962🏆Copa Libertadores Final, Playoff

🏟Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires: 60,000

🇧🇷Santos–🇺🇾Peñarol 3-0

1-0 Caetano 11' (o.g.)

3-0 Pelé 48', 89'

#SantosFC

THE FIRST WOMAN TO EARN THE TITLE OF GRANDMASTER | NONA GAPRINDASHVILLI

On January 11, 1965, Nona Gaprindashvili—the first woman to earn the title of Grandmaster and the fifth Women’s World Champion (‘62-‘78) playing against 28 men at once in Dorset, Great Britain.

#chess #chessgame

AGA KHAN: FIVE THINGS ABOUT PRINCE OF SPORT

Paris (AFP) – Apart from being an Islamic spiritual leader, the Aga Khan, who died on Tuesday aged 88, was a byword for the biggest and best in the world of horse racing.

The Aga Khan was a central pillar of the racing world since taking over from his father in 1960 © DOMINIQUE FAGET / AFP/File

He owned stables, stud farms and an auction house, his horses winning many of the great races across seven decades.

AFP look at five things about the Aga Khan's sporting world.

- Winter Olympian -

Before he got into racing, the Aga Khan was already a keen skier. "I like the atmosphere in ski racing," he said. "It is a democratic sport. One's name does not count."

The Aga Khan (L) training on the slopes of Val d'Isere with his ski instructor Hans Senger six years after his 1964 venture at the Innsbruck Winter Olympics © - / AFP/File

While too busy to focus full time on the slopes, he was good enough to train with the Austrian team. In 1962 he participated in the world championships at Chamonix as a member of the British team but two years later opted to compete at the Innsbruck Winter Olympics for Iran.

He finished 53rd out of 96 in the giant slalom and 59th out of 84 in the downhill. "It was respectable if not glorious," he said.

Bloodstock

With his grandfather having owned five Derby winners between 1930 and 1952, racing was certainly in the genes but it was not one of the young Aga Khan's passions.

That changed when he suddenly found himself the steward of the family's bloodstock empire when his father was killed in a car crash in Paris in May 1960, dual Classic winner Petite Etoile among the horses to fall to him.

The Aga Khan keeping an eye on the action at the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud in July 1961 © - / AFP/File

After some negotiating with his younger brother Amyn and his half-sister Yasmin, Rita Hayworth's daughter, he acquired their 60 percent interest in the stable at Chantilly.

Over the years he expanded to eight stud farms, four located in Ireland in County Kildare and four in Normandy. He also bought the French auction house Arqana in 2006.

"Thoroughbreds can be either a sportsman's hobby or a business," he said. "Where a large stable and a lot of money are involved, obviously racing is no longer a hobby."

His red and green colours became internationally famous, with the Aga Khan name-checked in Peter Sarstedt's 1969 hit song 'Where Do You Go to My Lovely'.

Winners

The Aga Khan amassed 168 Group One winners over the course of his time in racing.

He won the Epsom Derby five times, with Shergar in 1981 followed by Shahrastani, Kahyasi, Sinndar and Harzand.

The Aga Khan was a close friend of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, the pair seen here talking after his horse Harzand won the 2016 Derby at Epsom © GLYN KIRK / AFP/File

He also won the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the top race in France, four times, through Akiyda, Sinndar, Dalakhani and Zarkava.

Very close to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, he gave her several racehorses, including Estimate which gave her perhaps her most enjoyable win in the 2013 Ascot Gold Cup.

- Shergar -

Arguments can rage over which was the greatest of the Aga Khan's horses but there is no doubt about which is the most famous.

In 1981, the Michael Stoute-trained Shergar won five of his six races, including the 202nd Epsom Derby by 10 lengths -- still the biggest winning margin in the historic race -- as well as the Irish Derby and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.

He was retired to the Aga Khan's Ballymany Stud in County Kildare in Ireland whence the four-year-old was kidnapped on February 8, 1983.

The £2 million ransom was not paid and Shergar was never seen again, believed to have been killed when negotiations stalled.

Suspicion fell on the Irish Republican Army which always denied the charge.

"Ireland was a very unhappy country at the time and I don't think you can hold the people of a country responsible for criminal behaviour," said the Aga Khan. "It is ethically wrong."

Yves Saint-Martin

The Aga Khan's horses attracted the very best jockeys. Walter Swinburn rode Shergar to success in the Derby while Johnny Murtagh steered Sinndar to a brilliant treble in 2000, winning the Derby, Irish Derby and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in the space of a few months.

The Aga Khan IV (R) with Yves Saint-Martin after his victory on Akiyda after their 1982 win at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe © Philippe BOUCHON / AFP/File

But French jockey Yves Saint-Martin is perhaps the name most closely associated with him.

He steered Akiyda to the 1982 Arc and also won four Prix du Jockey-Club, with Top Ville in 1979, Darshaan in 1984, Mouktar in 1985 and Natroun in 1987.

Doping

The Aga Khan fell foul of British racing when his filly, Aliysa, was disqualified from the 1989 Oaks after testing positive for camphor, a prohibited substance.

Harzand (L) ridden by Pat Smullen gave the Aga Khan his fifth Epsom Derby victory in 2016 © GLYN KIRK / AFP/File

He felt there were failings in the testing system and removed all of his horses, only ending his boycott at Royal Ascot in 1995. Another positive test in 2000 saw him withdraw his horses from Luca Cumani's stables in Newmarket.

He retained horses with Stoute but focused more on France. It was Irish trainer Dermot Weld who provided a fifth Derby and Irish Derby double in 2016 with Harzand, and the Aga Khan's last British Classic winner Ezeliya in 2024.

© 2025 AFP

MANCHESTER UNITED HIT A HISTORIC LOW

MANCHESTER, England -- There has been a simmering discontent at Manchester United for a while now, but at Old Trafford on Monday night the dial was turned up to near mutiny in a loss to Newcastle United.

With just 30 minutes gone and Man United already 2-0 down, Joshua Zirkzee was substituted by head coach Ruben Amorim. Any of the 11 players could have been replaced -- they were all that bad in a shocking first half hour -- but it was Zirkzee who bore the brunt from the irate supporters in the stands.

When Zirkzee's number went up, there were loud cheers around the stadium. The Dutchman, only signed from Bologna in the summer, grabbed his coat and jogged down the tunnel to scattered jeers. He emerged again moments later to take his place on the bench. When the half-time whistle blew, there were boos from all four sides of Old Trafford. There were more at full-time, although by then a large number of the fans who turned up had long since decided it was time to go home.

It's now four straight defeats for Man United and six in their past eight games. For the first time since the 1978-79 season, they've lost three consecutive league games at Old Trafford. Three Premier League defeats in a row mean they will start 2025 in 14th, just seven points above the drop zone.

Man United's woes have reached the point where Amorim is being asked about the possibility of relegation.

"It is really hard on everybody and you can feel it," Amorim said after the 2-0 loss. "We show some improvement in the first games especially against [Manchester] City and Tottenham but we are losing that because of the lack of training and belief after so many losses. It is a really tough moment for everybody.

"It is a bit embarrassing to be Manchester United coach and lose a lot of games. I think our club needs a shock and we have to understand that."

There was little shock that Newcastle were by far the better team and deserved to win their first league game at Old Trafford for more than a decade. Man United managed to calm some of the anger with a more competent second-half performance, but by then the damage had already been done.

Alexander Isak scored for the sixth game in a row after just four minutes to make it 1-0. Before 20 minutes had elapsed, Joelinton made it 2-0. It could have been much worse. Isak had a goal ruled out through offside, and Sandro Tonali hit the post when he should have scored.

Only then did Zirkzee come off. He was replaced by Kobbie Mainoo and Man United finally turned up to play. By half-time, Newcastle had taken 11 shots at André Onana's goal. As the game drifted towards its conclusion, the travelling Newcastle fans sang, "You're getting sacked in the morning," at Amorim.

After the initial optimism of his arrival to replace Erik ten Hag in November, it has been a bruising December for the Portuguese coach with Premier League defeats to Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Wolves and now Newcastle. Man United haven't lost five league games in a calendar month since 1962.

Throw in the Carabao Cup defeat to Tottenham and it's six losses in all competitions, a low point not seen since September 1930. For the first time in more than 100 years, a Manchester United manager has lost five of their first eight league games.

Casemiro, left, and Harry Maguire react with anguish in Manchester United's latest loss on Monday, this time to Newcastle United in Premier League play. Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images

The question, though, is whether it's Amorim or the players who should be shouldering the blame. For now, Amorim is refusing to criticise his squad despite further evidence week after week that the majority are not good enough.

He's routinely peppered with questions about his 3-4-3 system and whether he will -- eventually -- have to adapt. But his formation had nothing to do with Isak having a free header six yards out after getting in between Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martínez to head past Onana.

It had nothing to do with Joelinton bulldozing Martinez out of the way to head in the second. It had nothing to do with all the missed tackles and missed passes.

"I am responsible," said Amorim. "I don't like to arrive here and make excuses. I think people are tired of excuses in this club. I never watch a coach winning games by not protecting the players. What I have to say to the players I say in the dressing room. "I have to sell my idea. If I change all the time it is going to be even worse. It is a very difficult moment and we have to fight for the next game and to also have a performance."

Writing in his programme notes ahead of the game, Amorim said he had "no doubt" that the run of miserable form "will not last forever." It is, however, unlikely to end immediately with United scheduled to visit runaway leaders Liverpool next weekend.

Defeat at Anfield would send Amorim and his players deeper into the mire. The anger is already deepening, the mood worsening by the day.

Even for a club that has made a habit of lurching from crisis to crisis, United are reaching new levels of despair.

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

ROCKY MARCIANO | 1962

Former world champion Rocco Francis Marchegiano, aka Rocky Marciano, shows off the rugged, ring-worn fists that scored 43 knockouts in 49 ring victories, an almost 90 percent KO ratio. 

Photo taken in 1962.

MARIO ZAGALLO, WORLD CUP WINNER AS PLAYER AND A MANAGER, DIES AGE 92

Brazilian won as a player in 1958 and 1962 before winning the tournament as a manager in 1970

 

Former Brazilian manager Mario Zagallo. Photograph: Gabriel Bouys/AFP via Getty

 

Mario Zagallo, a four-time World Cup winner as a player and coach for Brazil, has died, aged 92.

Zagallo won consecutive World Cups in 1958 and 1962 before overseeing his country’s tournament wins in 1970 – as manager – and then as an assistant coach in 1994.

Zagallo, who also took Brazil to the final in 1998 where they were beaten by France, became the first person to win the World Cup as both a player and manager.

Franz Beckenbauer and Didier Deschamps have subsequently achieved the same feats for Germany and France respectively.

A diminutive left-winger, Zagallo played for Flamengo and Botafogo in Brazil and won 33 caps for the national team.

As a manager, he was nicknamed The Professor by his players throughout his coaching career, due to his tactical awareness and commanding presence on the bench.

"A social media message posted to Zagallo’s Instagram account read: “It is with great regret that we announce the passing of our eternal world champion, Mario Jorge Lobo Zagallo.

“A devoted father, loving grandfather, caring father-in-law, faithful friend, victorious professional and a great human being. Giant idol. A patriot who leaves us a legacy of great achievements.”

Brazilian and Manchester United footballer Casemiro tweeted: “A legend of our football left today. Thank you for everything! Rest in peace, Zagallo.”

 

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