Category: Sports

Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter on Monday backed calls for fans to “stay away” from FIFA World Cup matches in the United States because of the conduct of President Donald Trump and his administration at home and abroad.

Blatter was the latest international soccer figure to call into question the suitability of the United States as a host country in a post on X that supported Mark Pieth’s comments from an interview last week with the Swiss newspaper Der Bund.

Pieth, a Swiss attorney specializing in white-collar crime and an anti-corruption expert, chaired the Independent Governance Committee’s oversight of FIFA reform a decade ago. Blatter was president of the world’s governing body for soccer from 1998 to 2015. He resigned amid an investigation into corruption.

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Former Ghana national team psychologist Dr Patrick Ofori has publicly defended head coach Otto Addo against recent criticism, calling the attacks unfair and overly simplistic.

Speaking to Citi Sports, Dr Ofori argued that the challenges facing the Black Stars are a collective responsibility and cannot be placed solely on the head coach.

“If you look at it, unfortunately in our part of the world, even when you have a management committee, people bypass the management and go straight to blame the coach,” Dr Ofori said. He stressed that modern football demands a strong technical support system around the manager.

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Brighton and Hove Albion Sporting Director Jason Ayto has stated that a loan move to Birmingham City represents a “good opportunity” for the development of young Ghanaian winger Ibrahim Osman.

The 21-year-old, who joined Brighton from Feyenoord, has now secured a temporary move to the EFL Championship side after an initial six-month loan spell in France’s Ligue 1 with AJ Auxerre.

Speaking to Brighton’s official media, Ayto expressed confidence in the move, saying, “This is a good opportunity for Ibrahim to continue his development back here in England after a six-month spell in the French league.”

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Senegal beat Morocco to win the Africa Cup of Nations for a second time, but only after a dramatic and controversial final that saw the champions briefly refuse to continue play.The match, which was goalless deep into added time, was overshadowed when Morocco were awarded a stoppage-time penalty, prompting Senegal’s players to walk towards the tunnel in protest. Order was eventually restored, and Senegal went on to seal victory in the fourth minute of extra time.

Villarreal midfielder Pape Gueye scored the decisive goal with a brilliant solo effort in the 94th minute, securing a second continental crown in five years for the Lions of Teranga.Controversy erupted in the 98th minute when referee Jean Jacques Ndala, following a VAR review, awarded Morocco a penalty after El Hadji Malick Diouf was judged to have fouled Brahim Diaz.

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Ghana Football Association (GFA) Communications Director, Henry Asante Twum, has revealed that discussions are ongoing with Austria over a potential friendly match for the Black Stars.

The senior national team, preparing for their fifth World Cup appearance, are gearing up for the 2026 tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

As part of their preparations, Otto Addo’s squad will face Germany in an international friendly on March 30 in Stuttgart.

Asante Twum confirmed that the GFA is exploring multiple friendly fixtures, with Austria among the prospective opponents.

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Former Black Stars striker Asamoah Gyan has revealed that the greatest pressure he felt while representing Ghana did not come against football’s heavyweights, but rather in matches against lower-ranked opponents where expectations were sky-high.

Widely regarded as one of Ghana’s greatest footballers, Gyan rose to international prominence at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, where his goals helped announce him on the global stage.

He would go on to carve out a remarkable international career, becoming Africa’s all-time top scorer at the World Cup and Ghana’s leading goalscorer of all time.

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Nigeria coach Eric Chelle has warned of a stern challenge ahead as his Super Eagles prepare to face Morocco in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semifinals.

The showdown takes place at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, where the hosts, the Atlas Lions, await.

In a media briefing on Tuesday, Chelle acknowledged the increasing difficulty of each match in the tournament.

“Each match that passes is a bigger test than the one before,” he said, adding that his team will approach tomorrow’s clash as if it’s their last. “Tomorrow won’t be easy at all,” he admitted.

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