Ed Warner: English cricket must accept that The Hundred is dead in the water May 4, 2023 England gave cricket to the world. It followed up with the generous present of T20. The Hundred, though, remains a gift unwrapped and a spurned England and Wales Cricket Board is now scrambling to secure its place in the crowded T20 world market. It’s not too melodramatic to say that the future of first class [...]
Play it again, Sam: Leeds confirm Allardyce appointment for four-game rescue mission May 3, 2023 Leeds United have confirmed the appointment of former England manager Sam Allardyce in a bid to swerve relegation from the Premier League. Allardyce becomes the club’s third manager this season and replaces Javi Gracia, who has been sacked after winning just three times in his 12 games. Leeds currently sit 17th in the Premier League, [...]
English football eyes change to post-Brexit transfers – here’s what it means May 2, 2023 For better or for worse remains to be seen, but Brexit’s impact on English football has changed the game for how teams now operate in the transfer market. Clubs now face various legal hurdles and visa requirements to get international talent in their colours, with immigration rules allowing teams to sponsor an elite player who [...]
Fifa threatens England with ban on watching Lionesses at 2023 Women’s World Cup May 2, 2023 English football fans could be denied the chance to watch the Lionesses bid to win this year’s Women’s World Cup after Fifa president Gianni Infantino threatened a broadcasting blackout. Infantino said the biggest tournament in women’s football would not be shown in Europe’s “big five” markets unless media companies serving Britain, France, Germany, Italy and [...]
Sheikh Jassim aims to win Manchester United takeover battle with extra $1bn May 1, 2023 The Qatari bid for Manchester United, led by Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani, hopes to swing the takeover battle in its favour with the promise of an extra $1bn set aside for investment in the club. The $1bn (£800m) is additional to Sheikh Jassim’s offer for the club, which values United at around £5bn, [...]
Talor Gooch takes prize money earnings to $20m in a year on LIV Golf circuit May 1, 2023 If there is one player who has benefited most from joining LIV Golf then Talor Gooch must be a strong contender, having trebled his career earnings in less than a year. Gooch became the first player to win back-to-back tournaments on the big-money breakaway circuit on Sunday when he beat Sergio Garcia in a play-off [...]
Ed Warner: Sport England data shows activity is falling. We need to make it easier April 27, 2023 As Sport England’s latest Active Lives survey shows that we are exercising less, Ed Warner argues that we need to make participation easier. An elite athlete cadges a lift to skip a couple of kilometres of an ultra race. Tough Mudder turns Finsbury Park into a swamp and is barred from using the venue next [...]
‘Players will be rightly angry’: Football at loggerheads over plans for a salary cap April 26, 2023 Plans to implement a salary cap in European football have received an immediate backlash, with unions accusing the game’s governing bodies of ignoring the views of players. Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin revealed this week that talks had begun on introduce a cap in order to stabilise club finances and improve competition, and that “everybody agrees”. [...]
Manchester United sale: Will bidders call the Glazers’ bluff? April 25, 2023 Five months after Manchester United’s owners, the Glazers, fired the starting pistol on a potential sale, bidding is finally expected to draw to a close on Friday. The Glazers’ bankers, the Raine Group, surprised some earlier this month by extending the process to a third round of offers for the 20-time English champions. It has [...]
Wrexham’s promotion: ‘Feelgood fairy tale’ or ‘brand-building exercise that sticks in the craw’? Our writers debate April 25, 2023 Wrexham clinched the National League title at the weekend, securing their promotion to the English Football League two years after being bought by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. But is the story, which has been played out in a reality TV series as well as on the pitches of England and Wales, an [...]