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Brazil signs Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti 1 year ahead of 2026 World Cup

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti waves as he walks on the pitch with his players during the club’s celebration of their 14th European Cup at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium, May 29, 2022. (AFP)
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Updated 12 May 2025
AP
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Brazil signs Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti 1 year ahead of 2026 World Cup

  • CBF President Ednaldo Rodrigues: ‘Bringing Ancelotti to coach Brazil is more than a strategic movement. It is a statement that we are determined to recover the top of the podium’
  • Rodrigues: ‘He is the greatest coach in history and, now, he will be with the greatest national team on the planet. Together, we will write new glorious chapters of Brazilian soccer’
Updated 12 May 2025
AP

SAO PAULO: Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti will leave the Spanish club and take over as coach of Brazil’s national team, the Brazilian soccer federation said Monday.

The 65-year-old Ancelotti, who will be Brazil’s first full-time foreign coach in a century, is still under contract with Madrid. The last round of the Spanish league will be on May 25 and the CBF said in a statement that he will officially take over Brazil the following day.

“Bringing Carlo Ancelotti to coach Brazil is more than a strategic movement. It is a statement to the world that we are determined to recover the top of the podium,” CBF President Ednaldo Rodrigues said in a statement. “He is the greatest coach in history and, now, he will be with the greatest national team on the planet. Together, we will write new glorious chapters of Brazilian soccer.”

Rodrigues said Ancelotti will take charge of Brazil’s next two fixtures in South American World Cup qualifying, with his debut at Ecuador on June 5th and five days later in front of home fans against Paraguay in Sao Paulo.

Ancelotti’s contract with Madrid ends next year but is expected to be terminated early.

He will replace Dorival Junior, who held the job for 14 months and was fired in March after a 4-1 defeat at Argentina. Brazil lags in 4th position in World Cup qualifying after 14 matches and has its 33-year-old star Neymar still in difficulties to return to top form after an ACL injury in 2023.

The top six teams will secure direct spots in next year’s tournament.

Ancelotti leaves Madrid after a frustrating season in which the team did not defend its European title and saw rival Barcelona win the
Copa del Rey and get close to securing the league title after a 4-3 victory over Madrid on Sunday.

The Italian coach and Real Madrid are yet to comment on CBF’s announcement.

Ancelotti’s signing ends a turbulent time on Brazil’s bench since Tite left after the 2022 World Cup quarterfinals elimination against Croatia. Under-20 coach Ramon Menezes and Fluminense coach Fernando Diniz took charge for several matches as Rodriguez sought Ancelotti to become coach.

Menezes and Diniz both fared poorly, and Ancelotti extended his deal with Madrid during that span. Dorival Júnior was then chosen in 2024 to take the team to the World Cup, but he was also fired after the same lack of success and unimpressive performances.

Former Al-Hilal coach Jorge Jesus, a 70-year-old Portuguese who won several titles with Brazil’s Flamengo in 2019, was the favorite to take the Brazil job until Madrid was knocked out of the Champions League by Arsenal earlier in April.

Brazil will be Ancelotti’s first international experience as full-time coach. He was an assistant to Arrigo Sacchi in the 1994 World Cup as Italy lost to Brazil in the final on penalties.

That ended a 24-year World Cup title drought for Brazil, the same time frame it will face next year in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Ancelotti, who won Serie A titles as a player with Roma and AC Milan plus two European titles with the latter as a creative midfielder, started his full-time coaching career in 1995 at Italy’s Reggiana.

He’s also coached Parma, Juventus, AC Milan, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Napoli and Everton, winning titles in Italy, England, Spain, France and Germany.

He twice won the Champions League with Milan 2003 and 2007, and added three more titles with Real Madrid in 2014, 2022 and last year.

Ancelotti will be only the second foreign coach to take Brazil into an international tournament.

The first was Uruguayan Ramon Platero, who coached Brazil in the 1925 South American championship, the predecessor of the current Copa America. He was on the job for 19 days and four matches of a round-robin competition with Paraguay and Argentina, with two wins, one loss and one draw in the final with Argentina, who lifted the title.

Portuguese coach Jorge Gomes de Lima, known as Joreca, shared Brazil’s coach position with local Flavio Costa in two friendly victories over Uruguay in 1944.

And in 1965 Argentine coach Filpo Nunez coached Brazil for one day. Nunez was Palmeiras’ coach, and Brazil’s soccer body chose the Sao Paulo-based club to play with national team shirts in a friendly against Uruguay in the opening of the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte. The hosts won 3-0.

The announcement of Ancelotti’s departure came a day after Madrid lost its fourth straight match to Barcelona this season, falling seven points behind the Catalan rival with three rounds remaining.

Former player Xabi Alonso is widely expected to take over the club’s helm after he confirmed his departure from Bayer Leverkusen.

Alonso led Leverkusen to an unprecedented German league and cup double last year in his first full season after taking over the team when it was in the Bundesliga’s relegation zone the season before. He starred as a player as Madrid won a Spanish league title in 2012 and the 2014 Champions League before leaving for three Bundesliga titles with Bayern Munich.

Madrid still has to play in the upcoming Club World Cup beginning next month.

Topics: Brazil Carlo Ancelotti Ednaldo Rodrigues

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Healy becomes first Irishman in 38 years to lead the Tour de France

Updated 15 July 2025
AFP
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Healy becomes first Irishman in 38 years to lead the Tour de France

  • The 24-year-old EF rider had already won stage six in Normandy, but here the smiley Healy confirmed his promise with a career-defining ride claiming the fabled yellow jersey
  • Healy’s performance even overshadowed that of stage winner Simon Yates, who sat on his wheel all afternoon as they crossed the ancient volcanoes that mark the region
Updated 15 July 2025
AFP

PUY DE SANCY, France: Ben Healy became the first Irishman since Stephen Roche in 1987 to take the overall lead on the Tour de France on Monday with a relentless attack across eight gruelling hills in the Massif Central.

The 24-year-old EF rider had already won stage six in Normandy, but here the smiley Healy confirmed his promise with a career-defining ride claiming the fabled yellow jersey.

He becomes just the fourth Irishman to wear it following Shay Elliott, back in 1963, Sean Kelly in 1983 and Roche who went on to win an epic race 38 years ago.

Healy’s performance even overshadowed that of stage winner Simon Yates, who sat on his wheel all afternoon as they crossed the ancient volcanoes that mark the region.

Such was the Irishman’s effort as the escapees rushed through the grey-black volcanic rock villages that he was also awarded the combativity award for the most attacking rider of the day.

“Hats off to him, he’s the one that dropped everyone,” Yates said of Healy as the escape group was gradually whittled down from 30 to five.

The 2025 Giro d’Italia winner Yates attacked on the last of the day’s climbs, with Thymen Arensman of Ineos second and Healy coming third at the line 31sec adrift and having never relented on a punishing day.

Healy was born in Birmingham but chose to represent Ireland in his youth. He is also in the white jersey for the best young rider.

“The stage win I got and the yellow today both mean a lot to me,” said Healy, who had a tense wait at the line for Pogacar to cross 4min 51sec adrift and ceding the overall lead, likely for several days.

“This yellow is more for the team who worked so hard to put me here but the stage win possibly means more as it came first,” he said.

Race favorites Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard crossed the line together after eight climbs in the Massif Central where they were rarely a wheel’s length from each other.

Healy leads the Tour itself by 29sec from defending champion Pogacar, with Belgian Remco Evenepoel in third at 1min 29sec.

Denmark’s double Tour de France champion Vingegaard is fourth overall at 1min 46sec, and his Visma teammate Matteo Jorgenson sits fifth.

Third placed overnight, promising young French rider Kevin Vauquelin dropped a minute to finish the day in sixth place overall.

Recompense for the home nation on the national Bastille Day holiday came in the form of Lenny Martinez as he earned the King of the Mountains polka dot jersey with 27 points garnered on the day’s stage.

His grandfather Mariano Martinez won the polka dot jersey outright on the 1978 Tour.

Successive escape bids ensued from the off Monday as the 164 remaining riders raced out of Ennezat with top guns Pogacar and Evenepoel finally allowing one to get away over the ever-rolling terrain

Once they did, a gap over five minutes was established by a motivated group that rode so hard over the cattle dotted hills the sprinters were dropped to over 30 minutes at the finish line.

While Tuesday is a rest day, Wednesday’s stage 11 is another flat run with a sprinter expected to take the honors in Toulouse.

Topics: Ben Healy tour de france

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Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama says he’s been cleared to return following blood clot

Updated 15 July 2025
AP
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Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama says he’s been cleared to return following blood clot

  • It has been expected that the team anticipated Wembanyama would be able to start this coming season, though there was no official word until now
  • Wembanyama: I’m officially cleared to return. … I’ll finally be able to play a bit of basketball again
Updated 15 July 2025
AP

NEW YORK: San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama expects to play this coming season and has been fully cleared after dealing with deep vein thrombosis in his shoulder for the past few months, he told the French newspaper L’Equipe in remarks published Monday.

A person familiar with the situation later told The Associated Press that the Spurs have indeed received word that Wembanyama has been cleared to resume play and, barring anything unforeseen, will be able to fully participate in training camp when it opens this fall. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team has not revealed that detail publicly.

It has been expected that the team anticipated Wembanyama would be able to start this coming season, though there was no official word until now.

“I’m officially cleared to return. … I’ll finally be able to play a bit of basketball again,” Wembanyama told the French sports daily.

The fact that Wembanyama has been cleared suggests that his type of DVT was provoked, which would rule out a genetic predisposition to a clot returning. The Spurs have not disclosed specifics of Wembanyama’s shoulder issue, but there is a type of DVT that appears when a blood vessel in someone’s upper arm can be compressed by a rib (the top rib is removed in some cases to relieve the compression, if that is the cause) or a muscle. Such issues have proven to be treatable in the past.

Many other athletes have dealt with similar issues. Serena Williams came back to dominate women’s tennis after a clotting issue following the birth of her daughter; Williams needed four surgeries to address the matter. Basketball Hall of Famer Chris Bosh had to eventually retire from the NBA after he was diagnosed with multiple clots. In hockey, Tomas Fleischmann developed clots and went on to play for years afterward; Tomas Vokoun needed surgery to relieve his clotting problem and never played in the NHL again.

“I was afraid of not being able to play basketball anymore,” Wembanyama said in the interview. “I think that we all have thoughts sometimes. Irrational thoughts about the things we care about most. But this type of thinking also changes you as a person, for the better.”

Wembanyama was the league’s rookie of the year two years ago, Spurs guard Stephon Castle won that same trophy this past season, and the team has added another high pick — this year’s No. 2 selection, Dylan Harper — to a super-promising young core. Wembanyama was the front-runner to be defensive player of the year last season when he was diagnosed with the blood clot in his right shoulder in February.

“My injury was an adventure, obviously, but the hardest part is over,” he told L’Equipe. “I’m much better today, physically and mentally.”

Wembanyama was averaging 24.3 points, 11 rebounds, 3.8 blocks and 3.7 assists per game when he was shut down in February; the only other player in NBA history to finish a season averaging all that was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1975-76.

There will be an obvious ramping-up period before Wembanyama is playing at full speed again, though there is plenty of time between now and training camp for him to get back to that level.

“I have to continue specific work on my shoulder and especially get back into everything related to my basketball habits,” Wembanyama said in the interview. “It’s been five months since I’ve played a 5-on-5 match. If I had to have a game tomorrow, it would be risky. There are plenty of reflexes to find, both conscious and linked to muscle memory.”

Wembanyama has traveled extensively in recent months and spent time last month at a Shaolin temple in Zhengzhou, China. The temple is a place that welcomes visitors who wish to study Chan meditation, Shaolin Kung Fu, traditional Chinese medicine and more.

Wembanyama told L’Equipe that he studied kung fu and Buddhism during his stay there, but added that he does not identify as Buddhist.

“We were initiated there to the life of a warrior monk, which combines Buddhism and intensive kung fu practice,” he said. “It was very hard. We discovered movements that we had never done in our lives. It was more than 1,000 kicks to do per day, jumps, balance exercises, stretching. ... We used muscles that we rarely used and which were quickly overloaded. I had some of the biggest aches and pains of my life.”

Topics: San Antonio Spurs Victor Wembanyama

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Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph a ‘statement’, but what might be the cost?

Updated 15 July 2025
AFP
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Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph a ‘statement’, but what might be the cost?

  • Maresca could not have asked for much more after arriving off the back of leading Leicester City to promotion
Updated 15 July 2025
AFP

NEW YORK: For Chelsea, victory in Sunday’s Club World Cup decider completed a fine first season under Enzo Maresca, and also finally brought the curtain down on a marathon campaign that they must hope does not catch up with them down the line.
The Cole Palmer-inspired 3-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain at the MetLife Stadium outside New York was Chelsea’s 64th game of a season which lasted 11 months.
By any measure it was one of Chelsea’s best ever campaigns, with their Club World Cup triumph — placed on a par by Maresca to winning the Champions League — following victory in the UEFA Conference League and a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League.
Maresca, an ex-assistant to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, could not have asked for much more after arriving off the back of leading Leicester City to promotion.
“It has been a fantastic season but I am especially happy for the players,” said the Italian, who has succeeded in putting together a coherent team out of the endless line of new signings being brought in by the club’s owners.
“We have said many times that talent alone is not enough. You need to find a way for them to all fit together.”
It all represents considerable progress from just two years ago, when the Stamford Bridge side finished in the bottom half of the Premier League.
Maresca incorporated more new faces during the Club World Cup, with Joao Pedro making a remarkable impact — the Brazilian forward cut short a holiday to complete a £60 million ($79 million) transfer from Brighton and Hove Albion, and went on to score twice in the semifinal against Fluminense and once in the final.
Liam Delap, Dario Essugo, Mamadou Sarr and Andrey Santos all joined up ahead of the month in the United States, while Jamie Gittens has since arrived from Borussia Dortmund and fellow winger Estevao Willian now joins from Palmeiras in Brazil.
Chelsea will hope those signings, added to a squad led by the likes of Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, can make a real push for the Premier League title off the back of their impressive triumph at FIFA’s new tournament.
“It’s a big statement,” captain Reece James told English media shortly after lifting the trophy alongside US President Donald Trump.
“I’m happy with how much the club has progressed and how next season you know we’ll be competing in the Premier League, to win the title and compete, and to go far in the Champions League as well.”
Chelsea have also pocketed a stunning $115 million in prize money from the Club World Cup, but what if there comes a point in 2025/26 when their exploits of this season catch up with them?
While Chelsea have been competing at the Club World Cup in draining weather conditions, Premier League champions Liverpool and runners-up Arsenal have enjoyed extended off-season breaks.
Manchester City were also at the Club World Cup but they went out over a week earlier.
Global players’ union FIFPro has been the leading voices expressing concerns about the demands on the game’s biggest stars in an ever-expanding calendar.
One of the safeguards it proposed in a study published before the tournament was a mandatory four-week off-season break, along with four-week retraining periods before returning to competition.
Chelsea’s off-season is drastically reduced, with their first match of the next Premier League campaign against Crystal Palace slated for August 17, exactly five weeks after the Club World Cup final. They have a friendly against Bayer Leverkusen on August 8.
“Tomorrow I have three weeks of holiay which is all I want right now because I have not stopped in 15 months,” said Maresca on Sunday.
It remains to be seen if Maresca and his players come back sufficiently refreshed before attacking a season in which they hope to go far in the Champions League, and which will end with the World Cup in North America.
PSG face an even tighter squeeze after a historic campaign for Luis Enrique’s team, capped by their triumph in the Champions League final.
Their first competitive match of next season will be the UEFA Super Cup against Tottenham Hotspur in Italy on August 13, exactly one month after their defeat in New York — a chance to win more silverware, but at what cost?

Topics: Chelsea

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Jorge Jesus returns to Saudi Pro League with Al-Nassr

Updated 15 July 2025
Reuters
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Jorge Jesus returns to Saudi Pro League with Al-Nassr

  • According to a club statement on X deal is for one year
Updated 15 July 2025
Reuters

Al-Nassr appointed Portuguese Jorge Jesus as coach on Monday, two months after he left their bitter Saudi Pro-League rivals Al-Hilal.
The 70-year-old won the domestic treble in his second stint with Riyadh-based Al-Hilal in the 2023-2024 season, but left the club in May after they lost in the AFC Champions League elite semifinals to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli.
“It’s official Mr. Jorge Jesus is the new coach of Al-Nassr” the Saudi club posted on X.
The former Copa Libertadores winner with Brazil’s Flamengo, who replaces Italian Stefano Pioli, has signed a one-year contract with Al-Nassr.
Nine-times Saudi champions Al-Nassr have extended the contract of 40-year-old five-times Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo until 2027.

Topics: football soccer Saudi Arabia Saudi Pro League SPL Al-Nassr

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Barca snap up Copenhagen’s Bardghji, sell Torre to Mallorca

Updated 14 July 2025
AFP
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Barca snap up Copenhagen’s Bardghji, sell Torre to Mallorca

  • Bardghji scored 15 goals in 84 games for Copenhagen after reaching the first team in the 2021/2022 season
  • He is Barcelona’s second signing of the summer after they brought in goalkeeper Joan Garcia from local rivals Espanyol
Updated 14 July 2025
AFP

Barcelona signed right winger Roony Bardghji from FC Copenhagen and sold midfielder Pablo Torre to Mallorca, the La Liga champions said Monday.
The 19-year-old Sweden Under-21 international joined for around 2.5 million euros ($3 million), according to reports in Spanish media.
“(Bardghji) has signed for the next four seasons, until June 30, 2029,” said Barca in a statement, without specifying the cost of the deal.
Bardghji scored 15 goals in 84 games for Copenhagen after reaching the first team in the 2021/2022 season.
He suffered a severe knee injury in May 2024, which kept him out of action for nearly a year, with the youngster making his return in March 2025.
Bardghji becomes Barcelona’s second signing of the summer after they brought in goalkeeper Joan Garcia from local rivals Espanyol.
The Catalan giants also announced the sale of 22-year-old playmaker Torre to Mallorca for an undisclosed fee, estimated to be 5 million euros according to Spanish media, as well as a percentage of the profit on any future sale.
“Torre is a new Mallorca player for the next four seasons, until June 30, 2029,” said the island club in a statement.
“Torre arrives from Barcelona, where he moved in 2022 and with whom he won La Liga twice, two Spanish Super Cups and the Copa del Rey.”
The midfielder played a total of 27 times for Barcelona’s first team, scoring five goals.

Topics: FC Barcelona La Liga football league

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