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JEDDAH: The city of Jeddah is gearing up to host the fourth round of the Formula 1 Powerboat World Championship on Nov. 27-29.
The Jeddah Grand Prix will be held as part of Jeddah Season 2025, following the recent handover of the championship’s hosting flag to the Saudi delegation during a special ceremony in Shanghai, China, attended by Nicolo di San Germano, the founder and international organizer of the F1 Powerboat World Championship.
RIYADH: The first two championship titles of the Saudi eLeague season have been decided, with team Bright Future lifting their first-ever trophy in the EA FC25 competition, and team The Vicious claiming the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 crown.
EA FC25 Championship: Historic win for Team Bright Future
In a tournament that brought together 16 of the Kingdom’s best clubs to battle it out on the virtual soccer pitch, Team Bright Future emerged with their first-ever championship title after star player Ibra6577 triumphed in a high-scoring showdown with S_7wi of team Twisted Minds, sealing the victory with an 11-6 aggregate score.
In the battle for third place, Al-Dahab Club pushed Twisted Minds to the limit but fell just short in a nail-biting contest that ended in a 9-8 scoreline.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Championship: Team The Vicious rise as new champions
If the story of the EAFC25 event was one of new winners, the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Championship was the tale of a giant being toppled. In a tournament showdown featuring the top four qualifying teams, The Vicious shocked Team Falcons with a dramatic 4-3 series win.
The victory not only confirmed The Vicious as the new Saudi eLeague kings of Call of Duty, their standout player, d7oomx, was named MVP for a performance that helped propel the team to the title.
The Road Ahead: 11 Championships to go
With the first two championships decided, the Saudi eLeague, described as the Kingdom’s premier esports competition, is into its most competitive phase with 11 tournaments remaining, the results of which will shape the race for the overall title.
ORAN, Algeria: French football legend Zinedine Zidane’s son Luca said on Wednesday he is “proud” to represent Algeria ahead of the north African country’s World Cup qualifier against Somalia.
Luca Zidane, 27, turned out for France’s youth team but has chosen to play for Algeria where his grandparents were born.
“I’m very happy to be here. It makes me proud and I will give everything at 100 percent to make the Algerian people proud,” the goalkeeper told a press conference in Oran.
Zidane junior, who plays for Spanish second tier side Granada, changed sporting nationality last month having never represented France at senior level.
He received his first call up for Algeria in a 26-man squad for the next two qualifiers.
“All my family are proud of me and back my choice, my grandfather is happy that I’m in Algeria and that I’ve made this decision,” he added.
His father, who was a World Cup winner for France in 1998, “had his journey, his career. As for me I have my journey, my career,” said Luca.
Algeria can become the fourth African team to qualify for next year’s World Cup if they beat Somalia, with Luca saying: “The first objective, it’s tomorrow, it’s Somalia and to win to qualify for the World Cup.”
LONDON: Ruben Amorim has been given three years to prove himself at Manchester United after co-owner Jim Ratcliffe insisted he will not make a knee-jerk decision about the under-fire manager’s future.
Amorim has endured constant speculation that he faces the sack throughout this season as United lurched from one crisis to another.
The former Sporting Lisbon boss, who was hired by Ratcliffe in November 2024, admitted earlier this term that he had considered quitting during United’s darkest moments.
Amorim’s side finished 15th in the Premier League last season — their lowest final top-flight position since 1973-74 — and squandered a chance to qualify for the Champions League when they lost the Europa League final to fellow strugglers Tottenham.
Tenth-placed United have fared little better this season, losing three of their first seven league games and crashing to a shock League Cup defeat at fourth-tier Grimsby.
Amorim has yet to record successive Premier League wins since replacing the sacked Erik ten Hag, with a trip to champions Liverpool next up for United after the international break.
Despite the talk that Amorim, whose side beat promoted Sunderland in their last game, remains in danger of being axed Ratcliffe said the 40-year-old would be given time to turn things around.
“He has not had the best of seasons. Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years. That’s where I would be,” Ratcliffe told The Business podcast, produced by The Times and The Sunday Times.
“The press, sometimes I don’t understand. They want overnight success. They think it’s a light switch. You know, you flick a switch and it’s all going to be roses tomorrow.
“You can’t run a club like Manchester United on knee-jerk reactions to some journalist who goes off on one every week.”
- ‘No free lunches’ -
Ratcliffe has owned just under 30 percent of United since February 2024, when he took control of football operations at the 20-time English champions.
That left the Glazer family, who have endured numerous fan protests since taking over in 2005, still in overall charge at Old Trafford.
United haven’t won the English title since 2013, while their last European trophy was the 2017 Europa League.
Asked what would happen if the Glazers told him to sack Amorim, Ratcliffe said: “It’s not going to happen.”
The INEOS chief said the Glazers were happy for him to take charge, adding: “That probably sums it up. We’re local and they’re the other side of the pond.
“That’s a long way away to try and manage a football club as big, as complex as Manchester United. We’re here with feet on the ground.
“They get a bad rap but they are really nice people and they are really passionate about the club.”
Ratcliffe has also come in from criticism after controversial cuts designed to drive down costs at United saw around 450 jobs axed and the removal of perks like subsidised staff lunches.
“The costs were just too high. There are some fantastic people at Manchester United, but there was also a level of mediocrity and it had become bloated,” he said.
“I got a lot of flak for the free lunches, but no-one’s ever given me a free lunch.
“The biggest correlation, like it or not, between results and any external factor is profitability. The more cash you have got, the better squad you can build.
“So a lot of what we have done in the first year is spend an awful lot of time putting the club on a sustainable, healthy footing.”
CASABLANCA: Liverpool star Mohamed Salah scored twice to help Egypt beat Djibouti 3-0 in Casablanca on Wednesday and qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
The 33-year-old has netted nine times in a marathon qualifying campaign that began two years ago, and victory for Egypt gave them an unassailable five-point lead in Group A with one round remaining.
Twice African Footballer of the Year, Salah helped Liverpool win the Premier League a record-equalling 20th time last season, and captured the Golden Boot award with 29 goals.
But the Egypt captain has lost his spark with Liverpool this season, scoring just three goals in nine matches in all competitions.
After Ibrahim Adel put Egypt ahead on eight minutes, Salah netted six minutes later and again on 84 minutes to complete the scoring.
While Egypt have won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times, they have been less successful in World Cup qualifying, qualifying for the tournament just four times in 15 attempts — in 1934, 1990, 2018 and now 2026.
Former Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey scored as Ghana trounced the Central African Republic 5-0 in Meknes, and need one point from their final match at home to Comoros to qualify.
Mohammed Salisu, Alexander Djiku, captain Jordan Ayew 71 and Kamaldeen Sulemana were the other scorers for the Black Stars, who led 1-0 at half-time.
Cape Verde came from two goals behind in Tripoli to draw 3-3 with Libya and edge closer to a first World Cup appearance.
The island nation of about 550,000 inhabitants off the coast of Senegal will clinch first place in Group D if they defeat Eswatini in Praia on Monday.
Known as the Blue Sharks, the Cape Verdeans are two points ahead of Cameroon, who beat Mauritius 2-0 in Saint-Pierre with Manchester United striker Bryan Mbeumo among the goals.
Cape Verde have 20 points after nine rounds, two more than Cameroon, whose eight World Cup appearances in an African record.
- Disastrous start -
Roberto Lopes, a defender with Republic of Ireland club Shamrock Rovers, conceded a first-minute own goal as Cape Verde made a disastrous start.
Telmo Arcanjo levelled for the island nation before goals either side of half-time from Ezoo el Mariamy and Mahmoud al Shalwi gave the Mediterranean Knights a 3-1 lead.
Sidny Cabral reduced the deficit and Cyprus-based Willy Semedo equalized on 82 minutes to set up a tense finish as Cape Verde sought a fourth goal and qualification.
A match-winner did not materialize, but they will be expected to beat Eswatini, who remained winless in the group after surrendering a two-goal advantage in a 2-2 draw with Angola in Lobamba.
Cameroon, firm pre-qualifying favorites to win the group, had to secure maximum points in Mauritius to keep alive their hopes of overtaking Cape Verde, but needed 92 minutes to ensure success.
Dynamo Moscow midfielder Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu put the Indomitable Lions ahead on 57 minutes and Mbeumo struck in added time with his fourth goal of the qualifying campaign.
Cameroon complete their schedule at home to Angola in Yaounde and must win to have any hope of automatic qualification.
Should Cape Verde finish first, Cameroon would hope to finish among the four best-ranked runners-up and qualify for play-offs in November.
The winners of the African mini-tournament, comprising single-match semifinals and a final, advance to six-nation inter-continental play-offs next March with two World Cup places up for grabs.
Eswatini looked set to end an eight-match winless run in the mini-league when South Africa-based Justice Figuareido pounced on long passes to score twice early in the second half.
Angola, with French coach Patrice Beaumelle in charge for the first time after the sacking of Portuguese Pedro Goncalves, halved the deficit through Jonathan Buatu.
Then slack Eswatini marking at a corner enabled Papel Ary to head the equalizer with 10 minutes of regular time remaining.
BARCELONA: Barcelona will face Villarreal in Miami in a La Liga match on December 20, the Spanish top flight said Wednesday, making it the first European league fixture to be played abroad.
Earlier this week, European football governing body UEFA said they opposed the idea of games being played overseas but would permit it on an exceptional basis, along with a Serie A match in Australia in February between AC Milan and Como.
“With this match we take a historic step that projects La Liga and Spanish football into a new dimension,” said La Liga president Javier Tebas in a statement.
“We understand and respect the concerns that this decision may generate, but it is important to put it into context — it is a single match out of the 380 that make up the season.”
The game was due to be played at Villarreal’s home stadium but will now take place at the Hard Rock Stadium in the United States, in Florida.
Villarreal will take measures to compensate season ticket holders after the game was moved.
“Villarreal season ticket holders will be able to travel for free to the match, and those who choose not to travel to Miami will enjoy a 30 percent discount on their season ticket price as part of the measures designed to reward their support and loyalty,” said La Liga.
In September a total of 18 fan groups from both teams involved expressed their “complete opposition” to the match taking place abroad.
La Liga have attempted to play matches overseas dating back to 2017 but the Spanish football federation (RFEF) frequently resisted, despite hosting the Spanish Super Cup in themselves.
Barcelona’s rivals Real Madrid have also expressed their disapproval at the decision to take a La Liga game abroad.
They said in August hosting the game in Miami would “alter the competitive balance” of the league and set an “unacceptable precedent.”
