England’s 3-5-2: Is Gareth Southgate right to stick to one formation throughout the 2018 World Cup? June 17, 2018 There are plenty of unanswered questions about Gareth Southgate’s young England side ahead of their World Cup opener against Tunisia on Monday, yet one thing seems virtually set in stone: they will line up in a 3-5-2 formation. England will play with three centre-backs, two wing-backs, one defensive midfielder with two mobile midfielders either side [...]
World Cup 2018: An insider’s view on what England fans face in Russia June 13, 2018 England flew out to their training base in Repino ahead of their opening World Cup match against Tunisia on Monday. Gareth Southgate’s side begin their Group G campaign in Volgograd, before travelling to Nizhny Novgorod to play Panama and Kaliningrad to face Belgium. Read more: Trevor Steven: Why Neymar holds the key to this World [...]
World Cup 2018: Why have Asian, African and North American teams stagnated after showing such promise in the 1990s and 2000s? June 13, 2018 At the turn of the century it appeared that Pele’s oft-cited prediction that an African team would win the World Cup by the year 2000, while not exactly accurate, had at least forecast a coming shift in the footballing world’s balance of power. In 1996 a Nigerian golden generation featuring Europe-based stars Jay-Jay Okocha and [...]
French Open prize money 2018: How much do players get paid for winning at Roland Garros? June 9, 2018 More prize money is up for grabs than ever before at this year’s French Open but it remains the least lucrative of the four Grand Slams for players to win. The winners of the men’s and women’s singles finals this weekend will both take home a tournament record €2.2m (£1.9m/$3.1m) for triumphing on the clay [...]
Premier League overseas TV rights: English top flight makes concessions to Big Six but still treads carefully June 7, 2018 You would be forgiven for missing it but, muffled somewhat by the noise surrounding Amazon’s purchase of a Premier League broadcast package and the news of chief executive Richard Scudamore’s imminent departure, today saw another significant announcement regarding English football’s top division. From the 2019-20 season, when the next set of broadcast contracts takes effect, [...]
Chris Froome’s Giro victory should not be tarnished by the Vuelta salbutamol saga May 29, 2018 Chris Froome’s victory in the Giro d’Italia has propelled him alongside the greatest cyclists of all time – for now, at least. Rolling over the victory line in Rome on Sunday, the Briton became only the third rider to hold all three of cycling’s Grand Tours at once. And the Team Sky rider’s victory puts [...]
Hold the praise for Sergio Ramos: our willingness to applaud the dark arts of football has gone too far May 29, 2018 Football’s loose and ever-shifting moral code has been thrown under the spotlight by Real Madrid’s Champions League triumph over Liverpool, the injury to Mohamed Salah that changed the momentum of Saturday’s final, and the foul by Sergio Ramos that ended the Egyptian’s participation – and possibly his hopes of playing at the World Cup next [...]
Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is facing a fresh trial over alleged bribery March 24, 2018 Formula One's former chief executive Bernie Ecclestone is set to face a fresh trial over bribery and corruption allegations, relating to the 2006 sale of the motor racing business to private equity firm CVC Capital Partners. London's High Court announced yesterday that Ecclestone will face trial on 1 October 2019, reviving a case which Ecclestone [...]
Ollie Phillips: Danny Cipriani and Dan Robson need to be on England’s radar for South Africa tour March 22, 2018 Rumblings of the same old Eddie Jones – really impactful in the first couple of years before losing his way – are well and truly underway following England’s fifth-place Six Nations finish. Fantastic results and quality performances over the past two years have brought an expectation and that pressure will be weighing heavily upon Jones [...]
Jamie Chadwick interview: I want to reach Formula One for myself but also to show that women can do it March 14, 2018 Jamie Chadwick is not like other British prodigies tipped for future Formula One fame. Of course, there have already been the customary podium places in British F3, the interest from sponsors and the media excitement that greets any early success on the track. But whereas the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and Damon Hill [...]