Sports

Portugal Changes How No. 7 Is Written to Honor Cristiano Ronaldo

Sports Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring the 1-2 goal during the FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Hungary, in Budapest, Hungary, 09 September 2025. (EPA)

Portugal Changes How No. 7 Is Written to Honor Cristiano Ronaldo

The Portugal football team is making a change to how the No. 7 is written to honor the recently-retired Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo, who wore the number and…

Sports Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho waves during Ravenna FC’s team presentation for the 2026-27 season in Marina di Ravenna, Italy, Aug. 20, 2026. (AFP)

Ronaldinho Poised for Ravenna Start and, Perhaps, One Last Goal

Ronaldinho will roll back the years this weekend when the 46-year-old Brazilian starts his first competitive match in over a decade, and in the unlikely…

Sports Mirra Andreeva plays Diana Shnaider during day six of the FAGE WTA Finals at Indian Wells Tennis Garden on November 13, 2026 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)

Andreeva Says She Is Learning to Move on Faster from Defeats After WTA Finals Sweep

Mirra Andreeva said she has learned to recover more quickly from setbacks after the Russian teenager completed an unbeaten run through the WTA Finals round…

Sports  Uruguay's players celebrate after Argentina's Leonardo Balerdi scored an own goal during an international friendly soccer match in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Nov. 13, 2026. (AP)

Uruguay Beats Argentina 2-1 in the First Match Since Messi’s Retirement

The post-Messi era began with an Argentina defeat on Friday. Argentina fell 2-1 to Uruguay on Friday in an international friendly at La Bombonera in Buenos…

Sports Elina Svitolina of Ukraine serves to Aryna Sabalenka during day six of the FAGE WTA Finals at Indian Wells Tennis Garden on November 13, 2026 in Indian Wells, California. (Getty Images/AFP)

Svitolina Stuns Sabalenka to Reach WTA Finals Semis

Elina Svitolina overwhelmed Aryna Sabalenka in the deciding set to seal a 6-3 3-6 6-1 upset on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the season-ending WTA Finals…


Sports  Spain's Lamine Yamal celebrates with teammate Rodri, left, after scoring his side's opening goal during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Saudi Arabia in Atlanta, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (AP)

Yamal Scores on Injury Return as Spain Defeat Saudi Arabia

Lamine Yamal's return sparked Spain's World Cup into life as the European champions ran riot to beat Saudi Arabia 4-0 in Atlanta. Making his first start in…

Sports Netherlands' defender #04 Virgil van Dijk (C) is helped up by Netherlands' defender #15 Micky Van de Ven (L) and Netherlands' midfielder #20 Teun Koopmeiners (R) during the 2026 World Cup Group F football match between the Netherlands and Sweden at the Houston Stadium in Houston on June 20, 2026. (AFP)

Key Netherlands Duo Hopeful of Facing Tunisia in Final Pool Game

Netherlands captain Virgil van ‌Dijk is feeling discomfort after taking a knock in Saturday’s 5-1World Cup demolition of Sweden, but is hopeful the injury…

Sports Iran's head coach Amir Ghalenoei speaks to his players during an MD-1 training session at Carson Sports Park in Carson, on June 20, 2026, on the eve of the 2026 World Cup Group G football match between Belgium and Iran. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown / AFP)

Coach Says Iran Still Being Treated Poorly by US at World Cup ahead of Second Match

Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei says that although his team is still being treated unfairly by the host US at the World Cup through travel restrictions and visa…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports  Japan's Ayase Ueda (18) celebrates scoring their fourth goal during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Tunisia and Japan in Guadalupe, near Monterrey, Mexico, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP)

Japan Stroll to Victory Over Tunisia in World Cup’s 1,000th Game

Japan marked the 1,000th game in the history of the World Cup with a 4-0 thrashing of Tunisia on Saturday to close in on a place in the last 32. Ayase Ueda…

Sports Julian Nagelsmann, head coach of Germany, is seen before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group E match between Germany and Cote D'Ivoire at Toronto Stadium on June 20, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario. (Getty Images/AFP)

Nagelsmann Says Germany Has Higher Ambitions Than Advancing to Knockout Stage

Coach Julian Nagelsmann was thrilled by Germany's comeback victory against Ivory Coast on Saturday, but stopped short of celebrating his side advancing to the…

Sports Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group E - Germany v Ivory Coast - Toronto Stadium, Toronto, Canada - June 20, 2026 Ivory Coast's Amad Diallo in action. (Reuters)

Ivory Coast Looks to Put Germany Loss at World Cup in Rearview Mirror

If Ivory Coast wins its next match, Saturday's loss won’t matter. After surrendering two second-half goals to Germany and missing the chance to clinch a…

Sports Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group H - Saudi Arabia v Uruguay - Miami Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida, US - June 15, 2026 Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa speaks to his players during the second half hydration break. (Reuters)

Hydration Breaks at World Cup Add Nothing but Take Away a Lot, Says Bielsa

Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa said ‌the hydration breaks introduced in each half of matches at the World Cup add nothing to football while destroying the…

Sports Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Egypt Training - University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, US - June 14, 2026 Egypt's Hamza Abdelkarim during training. (Reuters)

The Future Is Now for 18-Year-Old Striker on Egypt’s World Cup Squad

Egypt striker Hamza Abdelkarim is just 18 and one of the youngest players at the World Cup, but he's handling football's biggest stage as a seasoned…

Sports Eloy Room #1 of Curacao makes a save against Kevin Rodriguez #11 of Ecuador during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group E match between Ecuador and Curacao at Kansas City Stadium on June 20, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Getty Images/AFP)

Curacao Keeper Room Shines in Historic World Cup Draw with Ecuador

Tiny Curacao battled to a 0-0 draw with Ecuador to earn the first World Cup point in the Caribbean island's history on Saturday after an outstanding…

Sports Omar Marmoush is aiming to fire Egypt to a first World Cup win. ALEX GRIMM / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP

Marmoush Aims to Emerge from Salah's Shadow as Egypt's Hero

Omar Marmoush once rejected the chance to play for Canada, but in Vancouver on Sunday will aim to become a national hero back home in Egypt by making World Cup…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Saudi Arabia national football team head coach Georgios Donis attends a press conference in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, Saturday, 20 June 2026. (EPA)

Saudi Arabia Seeks to Repeat Argentina World Cup ‘Miracle’ Against Spain

Saudi Arabia coach Georgios Donis said his side cannot show Spain too much respect as they aim to repeat a shock victory over eventual winners Argentina at the…

Sports France's forward #11 Michael Olise prepares to take a corner during the 2026 World Cup Group I football match between France and Senegal at the New York/New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford on June 16, 2026.  (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

Real Madrid Say No Contact with Bayern's Olise

Spanish giants Real Madrid said Saturday they have not made any contact with Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise over a potential transfer. The France…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Italian MotoGP rider Francesco Bagnaia of Ducati Lenovo Team in action during the Qualifying Nr.2 session for the Motorcycling Grand Prix of the Czech Republic at Masaryk circuit in Brno, Czech Republic, 20 June 2026. EPA/MARTIN DIVISEK

Bagnaia Dominates Czech Grand Prix Sprint as Bezzecchi Crashes Out

Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia delivered a commanding performance to win Saturday’s sprint at the Czech Grand Prix, leading from the start to secure his first…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Germany's Alexander Zverev returns the ball to Taylor Fritz of the US during their men's singles semi-final match of the Halle Open ATP tennis tournament in Halle, western Germany, on June 20, 2026. (Photo by CARMEN JASPERSEN / AFP)

Fritz Rallies Past Zverev to Seal Halle Final Spot

Top seed Alexander Zverev was knocked out of the Halle Open after a battling three-set defeat by American Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals on Saturday. …

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Matias Galarza (C) of Paraguay celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 group stage match Türkiye against Paraguay, in San Francisco, USA, 19 June 2026. EPA/BENJAMIN FANJOY

Paraguay Beat Türkiye 1-0 at the World Cup to Clinch Group D for US

Matias Galarza scored 65 seconds into the game for the fastest goal at this year's World Cup and Paraguay held on for a 1-0 win over Türkiye on Friday after…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group C - Brazil v Morocco - New York/New Jersey Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, US - June 13, 2026 Brazil's Neymar Jr. looks on before the match REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

Brazil Coach: Neymar Will be Available to Play vs. Scotland

After Brazil defeated Haiti 3-0 in their second World Cup match on Friday night, Selecao coach Carlo Ancelotti said he expects Neymar to be available for the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group C - Brazil v Haiti - Fans gather in New York City

Cunha Scores Twice as Brazil Win 3-0 and Eliminate Haiti at World Cup

Brazil beat Haiti 3-0 at the World Cup as Matheus Cunha struck twice and Vinicius Jr added another first-half goal to send the five-times champions top of…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Portugal Press Conference - Gardens North County District Park, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, US - June 19, 2026 Portugal's Ruben Dias during the press conference. (Reuters)

Portugal Tuning Out ‘Noise’ as Ronaldo Criticism Mounts at World Cup, Says Dias

The Portugal squad are shutting out criticism of the team and captain Cristiano Ronaldo following an underwhelming draw in their World Cup opener against…

Sports Arsenal's manager Mikel Arteta reacts during the Champions League final soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, May 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr Josek)

Arsenal Will Start Premier League Title Defense Against Coventry

Arsenal will kick off their Premier League title defense against promoted Coventry on August 21. The Premier League fixtures for the 2026-27 campaign were…

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
Sports Saudi Arabia continues preparations to face Spain on Sunday in its second Group H match. SPA

Saudi National Team Heads to Atlanta for World Cup’s Spain Match

The Saudi national football team will leave Austin, its US base, for Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday after a closed training session at Q2 Stadium, as it continues…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports TOPSHOT - Argentina's forward #10 Lionel Messi enters the pitch ahead of the 2026 World Cup Group J football match between Argentina and Algeria at the Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City on June 16, 2026.  (Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT / AFP)

Lionel Messi's Family Pleads for 'Humanity' as the Argentina Captain's Father Undergoes Treatment

Lionel Messi's father is undergoing medical treatment for an undisclosed illness and his family asked the media for “humanity” on Thursday amid rumors about…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Pointing the way: Cape Verde defender Pico Lopes (C) takes part in a training session at their World Cup base in Tampa, Florida. PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA / AFP

'Pico' Lopes -- Cape Verde Defender's Journey from Ireland to World Cup

Roberto 'Pico' Lopes might have been whiling away his time as a mortgage advisor in Ireland instead of preparing to face Uruguay in the World Cup on Sunday had…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - JUNE 18: Mahmoud Abunada #1 of Qatar lies on the pitch after sustaining an injury during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group B match between Canada and Qatar at BC Place Vancouver on June 18, 2026 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Alex Grimm/Getty Images/AFP

Jonathan David's Hat Trick Propels Canada to its 1st World Cup Win, 6-0 over Qatar

While Canada made World Cup history against Qatar, its celebration was tempered by concern for an injured teammate. Jonathan David scored three goals and…

Asharq Al Awsat
Sports Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group A - Mexico v South Korea - Estadio Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico - June 18, 2026 Mexico's Israel Reyes and teammates celebrate after the match REUTERS/Paul Childs

Mexico Edge South Korea to Win Group A

Mexico booked their place in the World Cup knockout stage as Group A winners and secured home advantage for the Round of 32 after Luis Romo's second-half…

Asharq Al Awsat