POLITICS ASIDE WHEN IT COMES TO ROOTING FOR KENYA (HARAMBEE STARS) | CHAN 2024

 

PSG'S ULTRAS UNVEIL HUGE 'FREE PALESTINE' BANNER'

PSG's ultras unveil a huge banner ahead of the Champions League game against Atlético.

MBAPPÉ URGES VOTE AGAINST 'EXTREMES' IN FRANCE ELECTIONS

Kylian Mbappé was speaking at a news conference the day before France's Euro 2024 opener against Austria. Frederic Scheidemann - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images

 Kylian Mbappé on Sunday called on the French public to vote against "extremes," backing up the comments made by his teammate Marcus Thuram a day prior.

France striker Thuram on Saturday expressed his concern about the rise of the Rassemblement National, the country's right-wing populist party, before the country's general election at the end of the June.

"I share the same values as Marcus," Mbappé, France's captain, said in a news conference. "Of course I support him. For me, he hasn't gone too far. It's freedom of speech, and I'm on his side.

"We [the France team] are citizens, we cannot be disconnected from the world around us. We know that we are in an important situation for our country, an unprecedented situation. I want to address the French people. The extremes are at the gates of power, we have the opportunity to choose the future of our country.

"I call on all young people to go and vote, to understand the gravity of the situation. I hope that my voice resonates as far as possible. I hope we will still be proud to wear this jersey on July 7."

July 7 is the date of the second and final round of the legislative elections unexpectedly called by France President Emmanuel Macron following the European Union elections that saw the Rassemblement National receive 31.4% of the country's votes last weekend.

Asked directly whether he was calling on the French public to vote against the Rassemblement National, Mbappé added: "Kylian Mbappé is against the extremes, the groups that divide us. We have the opportunity to choose the future of our country. We must not hide ... I am in favour of ideas that unite us."

France coach Didier Deschamps said he had no issue with his players discussing politics and respects their right to free speech.

"Everyone has their own opinion. ... They are footballers but they are also citizens who don't exist outside the situation which exists in France."

Deschamps' comments echo the statement issued by the French Football Federation on Saturday after Thuram's news conference. The statement said the players were free to express their opinions but reiterated that the federation itself was obliged to remain neutral, while asking the media to refrain from asking its players in Germany to comment on elections at home.

Sources told ESPN that the FFF's president Philippe Diallo spoke to Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann on Saturday, but the squad was not aware that statement was being shared. The sources added that the team is intent on taking a position and considering making a joint statement.

France face Austria in their opening fixture of Euro 2024 on Monday.

Information from ESPN's Julien Laurens and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

- ESPN

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. IS CONSIDERING AARON RODGERS OR JESSE VENTURA FOR A RUNNING MATE

FILE - Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., speaks during a campaign event at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023, in Miami. Kennedy is having conversations with vice presidential candidates as he gets closer to announcing his runningmate for his independent presidential bid. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

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 Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is having conversations with vice presidential candidates as he gets closer to announcing his running mate for his independent presidential bid.

Kennedy told The New York Times that NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers and former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura are at the top of his list. Stefanie Spear, a campaign spokesperson, confirmed the Times report and said there are other names on Kennedy's short list.

Kennedy, a scion of one of the nation's most prominent political families, has focused on getting access to the ballot, an expensive and time-consuming process that he has said will require him to collect more than a million signatures in a state-by-state effort.

Many states require independent candidates to name a running mate before they can seek access to the ballot, a factor driving the early push for Kennedy to make a pick. Major party candidates generally don't pick vice presidential nominees until closer to their summer conventions.

Kennedy is a lawyer and environmental activist who has become a leading figure in the movement that rejects the scientific consensus around vaccines. and a vocal critic of the public health establishment.

After originally running as a Democrat, he refocused his efforts around an independent campaign last year, spooking loyalists of both Donald Trump and Joe Biden, who worry he'll pick up supporters who would otherwise back one of the major party candidates.

Rodgers, the longtime Green Bay Packers quarterback who now plays for the New York Jets, shares Kennedy's distrust of vaccine mandates and, like Kennedy, is a fixture on anti-establishment podcasts. Ventura, a former professional wrestler, shocked observers when he won the race for Minnesota governor as an independent candidate in 1998.

- JONATHAN J. COOPER

HOW TAYLOR SWIFT AND TRAVIS KELCE BECAME THE FOCUS OF BASELESS POLITICAL CONSPIRACY THEORIES

AP Photo 

 The budding love story featuring music superstar Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce took an unexpected turn into the world of political conspiracy theories this week after the team advanced to the Super Bowl.

Myriad baseless rumors emerged on social media — everything from claims that Swift has played a part in Pentagon psychological operations to the idea that she and her two-time Super Bowl champion boyfriend are key assets in a secret plot to help President Joe Biden get reelected in 2024. Another variant: That the Chiefs’ success was rigged as part of the plan for the game on Feb. 11 in Las Vegas.

Political and media figures on the right, including former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, political activist Laura Loomer and One America News Network host Alison Steinberg, have amplified the allegations.

TP MAZEMBE OWNER MOĪSE KATUMBI CHAPWE CAMPAIGNING IN KATANGA

 

MOVAK DJOKOVIC GOT A TASTE OF HIS MEDICINE AFTER BEING BOOED BY CROWD YET HE GETS UPSET

 

A furious Novak Djokovic branded the French Open crowd "disrespectful" after being booed during his third round victory over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

The Serbian superstar is looking to win just his third Roland Garros title this year, though it looks like he'll struggle to get the fans on side based on today's evidence.

During the second set of his routine, albeit somewhat laboured, victory over Fokina, Djokovic took a medical time out in order to get his thigh massaged, prompting jeers from the crowd.

In response, the 22-time Grand Slam champion sarcastically applauded and stuck his thumb up before expressing his frustration with the spectators further during his post-match press conference.

"I think the majority of the people come to enjoy tennis or support one or the other player. But there are people that love to boo every single thing you do," Djokovic told reporters.

FRENCH OPEN 2023: NOVAK DJOKOVIC CRITICISED FOR MESSAGE ABOUT KOSOVO AFTER FIRST-ROUND WIN

Novak Djokovic's political message about Kosovo at the French Open was "not appropriate" and "shouldn't happen again", says France's sports minister. 

Amelie Oudea-Castera said there needs to be a "principle of neutrality for the field of play".

Serb Djokovic wrote "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence" on a camera lens.

It is in reference to recent tension in Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008. 

CHRISTIAN HORNER ON THE FOA'S CLAMPDOWN ON POLITICAL STATEMENTS | VIA NY POST

 

BOXING: VITALI REMOVES GLOVES TO ENTER INTO POLITICS

Heavyweight Champion of the world, Vitali Klichko, has decided to take off his gloves and venture into the world of politics.