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Benzema Rallies Madrid past Sevilla, Closer to League Title

Football - LaLiga - Sevilla v Real Madrid - Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville, Spain - April 17, 2022 Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Sevilla v Real Madrid - Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville, Spain - April 17, 2022 Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates. (Reuters)
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Benzema Rallies Madrid past Sevilla, Closer to League Title

Football - LaLiga - Sevilla v Real Madrid - Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville, Spain - April 17, 2022 Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates. (Reuters)
Football - LaLiga - Sevilla v Real Madrid - Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville, Spain - April 17, 2022 Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates. (Reuters)

Karim Benzema came up big yet again.

He scored in second-half stoppage time on Sunday as Real Madrid rallied to a 3-2 win at Sevilla and moved closer to winning the Spanish league title for the second time in three seasons.

Madrid conceded two goals four minutes apart in the first half but came back after halftime to win and open a 15-point lead at the top of the standings with six rounds to go.

"Everyone is waiting for Madrid to stumble but Madrid doesn’t stumble," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "Madrid has heart, character and quality. It was a deserved win. The league is not over yet, there are several matches left, but it was a big push for us today."

Madrid’s closest challenger is Barcelona, which has two games in hand, including against relegation-threatened Cádiz on Monday.

Third-place Sevilla could have cut Madrid’s gap to nine points with a win at its Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium but instead saw its 15-game unbeaten streak at home this season come to an end.

Benzema scored his 15th goal in the last 10 matches with a shot from close range after a pass by Rodrygo two minutes into stoppage time.

The France striker is the Spanish league's leading scorer with 25 goals and is having one of his best seasons yet with Madrid. He had already been decisive in recent Champions League matches against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, being crucial in Madrid's run to the semifinals.

Sevilla looked on its way to a comfortable victory after opening the scoring with Ivan Rakitic’s low free kick in the 21st and adding to the lead with Erik Lamela's goal from inside the area in a breakaway in the 25th.

But Madrid dominated after that and pulled closer with Rodrygo’s goal from close range after a pass by Dani Carvajal in the 50th. Carvajal then set up Nacho Fernández's equalizer from inside the area in the 82nd, a few moments after Nacho had entered the match.

Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior had a goal disallowed in the 74th for hand ball after a video review that lasted several minutes.

Sevilla has been hit hard by injuries and has won only one of its last six league games. It stayed tied on points with both Barcelona and fourth-place Atlético Madrid.

Atlético wins again
Yannick Carrasco converted a penalty kick 10 minutes into stoppage time as Atlético beat Espanyol 2-1 to end its three-match winless streak and strengthen its hold on fourth place.

Carrasco scored from the penalty spot in the final play of the game at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium to give Atlético a three-point cushion over fifth-place Real Betis, which was held at sixth-place Real Sociedad on Friday.

The penalty for Atlético was awarded following a lengthy video review to determine whether the ball touched the hand of Espanyol striker Raúl de Tomás inside the area.

Carrasco had already scored to put Atlético ahead in the 52nd, while De Tomás equalized for the visitors in the 74th.

Atlético played a man down from the 71st after midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia was sent off for a handball that earned him a second yellow card. Espanyol equalized in the ensuing free kick with De Tomás' shot getting past Atlético goalkeeper Jan Oblak.

Atlético hadn't won in three matches. It also hadn't scored goal during that streak, including in the 0-0 home draw against Manchester City on Wednesday in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, when it was eliminated 1-0 on aggregate after losing the first leg in England.

Espanyol had won three of its last five games, with one loss and a draw. It sits in 11th place.

Athletic stalls
Athletic Bilbao lost 2-0 at home to Celta Vigo to lose ground in the fight for a place in a European competition next season.

Iago Aspas and Fran Beltrán scored first-half goals for 11th-place Celta, which was winless in four matches.

Athletic hadn’t lost in three matches. It stayed in eighth place, four points behind Villarreal in seventh.

Levante not last
Levante moved out of last place with a 4-1 rout against Granada, which played with 10 men from the 54th after Germán Sánchez Barahona was sent off with a second yellow card.

It was the second win in the last three matches for Levante, which has won 14 points from its last nine league matches, with four victories, two draws and three losses. It next hosts Sevilla.

Granada had its second straight loss and stayed in 16th place, one point outside the relegation zone. It next visits Atlético.

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Sports

Pressure Builds on Milano Cortina Organizers Amid Climate Concerns and Funding Issues

A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Pressure Builds on Milano Cortina Organizers Amid Climate Concerns and Funding Issues

A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Pressure is mounting on Italian authorities to accelerate preparations for the Milano Cortina Olympics amid funding gaps and unusually warm temperatures, even as the head of world skiing openly advocates a fundamental overhaul of how future Winter Games are hosted.

With the Games due to start in February, International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) president Johan Eliasch said Italy’s challenges were symptomatic of deeper structural issues facing winter sport, as rising costs, climate pressure and under-used infrastructure fuel calls for a rotating model of permanent Olympic hosts.

Growing concern over climate pressure, escalating costs and the waste of Olympic infrastructure after the Games is strengthening support within international sport for a rotation system, under which a small pool of established venues would host the Winter Olympics on a recurring basis.

Proponents argue that such a model would allow long-term planning, reduce spending and ensure consistent conditions for athletes and spectators, rather than forcing hosts to build or upgrade facilities that are rarely used once the Games end.

Eliasch said several Olympic venues were facing technical difficulties not because of shortcomings by local organizers, but because of funding issues at government level.

Games ‌organizers have said the ‌venues will be ready on time.

"We see here that there are some venues that have ‌technical ⁠difficulties. It’s not the ‌organizing committees. It’s just simply a lack of funding from the Italian government," he told Reuters in an interview.

"It’s really important that every effort is now made to make sure that everything is ready on time."

Eliasch warned that readiness alone was not enough.

"We know that we will get everything somehow ready on time," he said. "But the question is, of course, what? And that what needs to meet a certain quality threshold and also experience threshold for the spectators, the fans, the athletes, first and foremost, to make this a success."

He warned that funding constraints could push preparations beyond critical tipping points.

SNOWMAKING CONCERNS

"We shouldn’t be penny wise and pound foolish," Eliasch said. "And there are certain tipping points here in the process beyond which there is no return."

"So from a quality perspective, for ⁠what we’re trying to do here, it’s really important that funding doesn’t become an impediment to delivering the best of the best for those two and a half weeks in February," he added.

Snowmaking has emerged as a key concern as organizers prepare venues across northern Italy, and ‍Eliasch noted that parts of the downhill course in Bormio had ‍no snow on them.

"We know right now that the snowmaking equipment is working, but we have an additional problem, and that is that ‍the temperatures are very warm," Eliasch said. "Which means we can only produce snow during the night, not during the daytime because it’s too warm."

"So the theoretical capacity simply can’t be met," he added.

Alessandro Morelli, Italian Undersecretary of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, said he was happy with the situation.

"In Livigno, 53 additional snow cannons are in operation, ensuring the production of the snow needed for the smooth running of the competitions, ahead of the Olympics," he told Italian news agency ANSA.

"The situation satisfies us, and we are confident that we can achieve an even better result than we had imagined."

Eliasch contrasted the situation with regular international competitions.

"If this was a World Cup race or a World Championship race, it would be easy," Eliasch ⁠said. "We’d know exactly what plan B, plan C, plan D is. We wouldn't start making snow this late. We would have plans to bring in snow from other areas, track it in. We would have all sorts of contingency planning."

Olympic events are far more complex, making financial certainty essential.

"Without clarity on and transparency for the organizing committee that we’re trying to support in every possible way — and they are doing their best, they’re working incredibly hard — but without resources, no one is going to step forward and deliver without knowing that they will get paid," Eliasch, an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, said.

IOC HAT ON

"It is a very logical step to take," Eliasch said of a rotation model. "And I have advocated for it with my IOC hat on. Without long-term planning, people are not going to invest. And the Games are getting more and more expensive."

"Huge investments, billions of dollars, are being invested in infrastructure," Eliasch added. "Which becomes wasted after the Olympic Games have been held."

"For Olympic Winter Games, to pull all that together, they need at least five- or six-years’ notice," Eliasch said.

"I think we’re looking at maybe six to eight venues to start with," Eliasch said.

Climate pressure is accelerating the debate.

"Climate change could become an ‌existential threat," Eliasch said. "The only logical way to bring costs down to reasonable levels is to have a rotation scheme."

The stakes extend far beyond winter sport.

"We are competing with Formula One, NFL, NBA, football — we have to be at the forefront," he said. "The five rings are magical. And that’s something we must protect at ‌all costs."

Sports

Jackson at the Double as Senegal Defeat Botswana 3-0

Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
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Jackson at the Double as Senegal Defeat Botswana 3-0

Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)

Striker Nicolas Jackson scored twice as Senegal got their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign off to a winning start with a comfortable 3-0 Group D victory over Botswana in Tangier on Tuesday.

Jackson ‌converted Ismail ‌Jakobs’ low ‌cross ⁠to give ‌his side the lead after 40 minutes as they broke the resistance of a stubborn Botswana, before showing quick feet from Ismaila ⁠Sarr’s pass to finish from ‌close range just before ‍the hour-mark.

Senegal, ‍who won the Cup ‍of Nations title in 2021 and are among the favorites again, overwhelmed their opponents with waves of attacks and added a third late ⁠on from Cherif Ndiaye, one of 28 efforts on the Botswana goal.

Senegal head Group D on goal difference from the Democratic Republic of Congo after the opening round of games. The latter defeated ‌Benin 1-0 on Tuesday.

Sports

Real Madrid’s Endrick Joins Lyon on Loan

Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
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Real Madrid’s Endrick Joins Lyon on Loan

Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)

Real Madrid's Brazilian starlet Endrick has joined Lyon on loan, the Ligue 1 club announced on Tuesday.

The 19-year-old joined the Spanish giants to much fanfare in summer 2024, arriving from Palmeiras where he had led the side to back-to-back Brazilian league titles.

Endrick has scored seven goals in 40 appearances for Real Madrid but has seen his playing time at the Bernabeu limited this season under new coach Xabi Alonso.

In 14 appearances with the Brazil national team, the left-footed attacker has netted three times but his last strike for the Selecao came in June last year and he has only earned one cap in 2025.

Endrick joins French side Lyon on loan until the end of the season, with a fee agreed between the clubs of one million euros ($1.2 million).