Lazio Crowned Italian Supercup Champs after Defeating Juventus in Riyadh

Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
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Lazio Crowned Italian Supercup Champs after Defeating Juventus in Riyadh

Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)
Lazio players celebrate after winning the Italian Supercup. (SPA)

Lazio beat Juventus 3-1, their second win over the Turin giants in little more than two weeks, to win the Italian Supercup on Sunday, the annual meeting between the Coppa Italia winners and Serie A champions.

Second-half goals from Senad Lulic and Danilo Cataldi won the match which was being played in Saudi Arabia for the second year running.

Chairman of the General Sport Authority Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal handed the trophy to the Lazio players.

Lazio also beat Juventus 3-1 in Serie A on Dec. 7, handing their opponents their first defeat under coach Maurizio Sarri.

Lazio, the Coppa Italia victors, went ahead after 17 minutes when Sergei Milinkovic-Savic laid the ball off for Luis Alberto to fire into the net.

Paulo Dybala levelled for the Serie A champions at the end of the first-half from a rebound after Cristiano Ronaldo's shot was parried by Thomas Strakosha.

Juventus seemed to be in control in the second half and Ronaldo was close with a shot which went just over but they were caught out when Marco Parolo's cross flew across the face of goal and Lulic volleyed in at the far post in the 73rd minute.

Juventus had midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur sent off in stoppage time and Cataldi curled the resulting free kick into the net with the last action of the game.

"I am super happy," Cataldi said. "I heard so many people say how difficult it would be to beat Juve twice in one season, let alone in a couple of weeks, but instead we lifted a trophy and beat one of the three best teams in Europe.

Juventus can content itself with heading into the winter break joint top of Serie A with Inter Milan, six points above Lazio - which has a match in hand. The Bianconeri are also in the last 16 of the Champions League.

"We came into this game with a deficit of physical and mental energy, this happens," Sarri said. "We are sorry we lost a trophy, but we still have many competitions at stake in the next five months. There is anger but crying over it does not solve the problems."

The Italian league has a contract with Saudi Arabia to play three Supercups in the country over five years.



Alcaraz Ready to Get His Socks Dirty with Return to Clay

Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz poses for a selfie with a fan after his training session held at Murcia Royal Tennis Club 1919 in Murcia, Spain on 31 March 2026. (EPA)
Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz poses for a selfie with a fan after his training session held at Murcia Royal Tennis Club 1919 in Murcia, Spain on 31 March 2026. (EPA)
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Alcaraz Ready to Get His Socks Dirty with Return to Clay

Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz poses for a selfie with a fan after his training session held at Murcia Royal Tennis Club 1919 in Murcia, Spain on 31 March 2026. (EPA)
Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz poses for a selfie with a fan after his training session held at Murcia Royal Tennis Club 1919 in Murcia, Spain on 31 March 2026. (EPA)

Carlos Alcaraz said he ‌was eager to get his socks dirty on clay again as the world number one returned to his preferred surface in Monaco this week to build momentum for his French Open title defense.

Alcaraz won his fifth Grand Slam title by beating Jannik Sinner in an epic final at Roland Garros last June, adding to his 2025 clay court triumphs in Monte Carlo and Rome and a runner-up finish in ‌Barcelona.

"This is probably ‌one of the best times ‌of ⁠the season for me," ⁠Alcaraz told reporters in Monaco on Sunday.

"I miss clay every time the clay season is over. It's been a long time since Roland Garros that I haven't touched clay. In my first practices, I said to my team that it's time to ⁠get the socks dirty again. It feels ‌amazing to be back ‌on clay."

Alcaraz, who missed last year's Madrid Open due to ‌injury, hoped to play a full schedule before ‌Roland Garros, where the main draw begins on May 24.

"Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome ... that's the plan," said the 22-year-old.

"It's very demanding physically and mentally. The week in ‌Barcelona is perhaps when I should rest, but Barcelona is a very important tournament ⁠for ⁠me.

"My plan is to take care of my body as much as possible during matches and tournaments."

The seven-times Grand Slam champion said winning the Monte Carlo title proved to be a turning point last season.

"After the feeling that I got here, I just got better and better," he added.

"I understood and I realized how I should play after this week. That's why I did an exceptional year."

Alcaraz will open his campaign against either Stan Wawrinka or Sebastian Baez in the second round.


Jodar Continues Spain's Teenage Tradition with ATP Title in Morocco

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 22: Rafael Jodar of Spain returns a shot against Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina during Day 6 of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 22, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rich Storry/Getty Images/AFP
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 22: Rafael Jodar of Spain returns a shot against Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina during Day 6 of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 22, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rich Storry/Getty Images/AFP
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Jodar Continues Spain's Teenage Tradition with ATP Title in Morocco

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 22: Rafael Jodar of Spain returns a shot against Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina during Day 6 of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 22, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rich Storry/Getty Images/AFP
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - MARCH 22: Rafael Jodar of Spain returns a shot against Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina during Day 6 of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 22, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rich Storry/Getty Images/AFP

Rafael Jodar joined the list of title-winning Spanish teenagers with his victory at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Morocco on Sunday and the 19-year-old said having the right mentality was the key to success in his first ATP tournament on clay.

Jodar's 6-3 6-2 win over Marco Trungelliti put him into an elite group of Spaniards who captured ATP titles as teenagers in the professional era, including Rafa Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, Carlos Moya, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo.

Ranked outside the top 900 a year ago, Jodar climbed to ⁠a career-high world ⁠number 57 on Monday.

"It was the first tournament on clay for me so it was going to be difficult at the beginning, but I always have the mentality that I have to give my best tennis and what I have in that match," Jodar told the ATP ⁠website, according to Reuters.

"That's what I did in all the matches, so it means a lot to win my first ATP title in Marrakech."

Jodar said he was trying to follow in the footsteps of his idol, 22-times Grand Slam champion Nadal, but he did not set himself targets for the year.

"I never set a goal in the season. Just to try to give my best and improve my tennis level," he added.

"But overall, I think I did a great ⁠week on ⁠clay here in Morocco, so I'm very happy how the week went for me and I will try to make sure this is just the beginning. It has to give me motivation for the next challenges."

Argentina's Trungelliti was left impressed by Jodar after a 69-minute mauling.

"Today, I guess I got kicked by this young man," said the 36-year-old, the oldest first-time tour-level finalist in the professional era.

"It was sad for me because I was expecting a great final, but at least you saw a great final from one side."


Leeds Beats West Ham to Reach FA Cup Semifinals for 1st Time Since 1987

Soccer Football - FA Cup - Quarter Final - West Ham United v Leeds United - London Stadium, London, Britain - April 5, 2026 West Ham United's Mateus Fernandes in action REUTERS/Tony O Brien
Soccer Football - FA Cup - Quarter Final - West Ham United v Leeds United - London Stadium, London, Britain - April 5, 2026 West Ham United's Mateus Fernandes in action REUTERS/Tony O Brien
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Leeds Beats West Ham to Reach FA Cup Semifinals for 1st Time Since 1987

Soccer Football - FA Cup - Quarter Final - West Ham United v Leeds United - London Stadium, London, Britain - April 5, 2026 West Ham United's Mateus Fernandes in action REUTERS/Tony O Brien
Soccer Football - FA Cup - Quarter Final - West Ham United v Leeds United - London Stadium, London, Britain - April 5, 2026 West Ham United's Mateus Fernandes in action REUTERS/Tony O Brien

Leeds threw away a two-goal lead in second-half injury time and had a double scare in extra time before going on to beat West Ham in a penalty shootout on Sunday and reach the FA Cup semifinals for the first time since 1987.

Mateus Fernandes and Axel Disasi struck in the 93rd and 96th minutes as West Ham leveled the score at 2-2 at London Stadium and forced extra time — where two goals for West Ham were chalked off for offside — before Leeds won the quarterfinal shootout 4-2. West Ham debutant Finlay Herrick saved a penalty from Joel Piroe but Leeds eventually prevailed with Pascal Struijk scoring the winning penalty.

“At least I’m old enough that I was already born when there was the last semifinal for Leeds United in the FA Cup in the '80s," Leeds manager Daniel Farke said. “It was a crazy game."

The thousands of West Ham fans who had left early were trying, and failing, to get back in when Taty Castellanos thought he had put the Hammers ahead in the opening seconds of extra time after a bad error from Leeds goalkeeper Lucas Perri, only for VAR to rule Castellanos offside.

Then Jarrod Bowen crashed a shot against the crossbar, with Pablo offside when he rolled in the rebound.

The 20-year-old Herrick came on as a replacement for Alphonse Areola, who left the field to receive treatment with five minutes of extra time remaining, The Associated Press reported.

Ao Tanaka and Dominic Calvert-Lewin's penalty had previously built a 2-0 lead for Leeds in a classic FA Cup game between two relegation-threatened teams in the Premier League.

FA Cup semifinal draw Leeds will play Chelsea in the semifinals in a repeat of the 1970 FA Cup final, which Chelsea won after a replay.

Manchester City and second-tier Southampton meet in the other semifinal match with games to be played April 25-26 at Wembley.

The draw was held after Leeds’ victory.

West Ham averted some controversy after it backed down on a decision, reportedly taken by the safety officer before the match, that a penalty shootout would not be taken in front of the end housing 9,000 Leeds fans because of “safety concerns.”

As it was, the coin toss went West Ham’s way.

Farke said: “You could imagine what I think about such a situation."

Absent fans Stoppage time, extra time and the shootout were played in front of a half-empty stadium after the exodus of home fans.

“What I saw on the pitch was more important than anything,” West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo said.

“What I saw was a group of players, a group of boys that didn’t give up. This is the major lesson that we have to take from today.”