Dortmund Slumps to Another Loss at Augsburg as Leipzig Tops the Bundesliga

26 October 2024, Bavaria, Augsburg: Augsburg's Alexis Claude-Maurice (R) and Dortmund's Felix Nmecha battle for the ball during German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Augsburg and Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena. Photo: Tom Weller/dpa
26 October 2024, Bavaria, Augsburg: Augsburg's Alexis Claude-Maurice (R) and Dortmund's Felix Nmecha battle for the ball during German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Augsburg and Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena. Photo: Tom Weller/dpa
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Dortmund Slumps to Another Loss at Augsburg as Leipzig Tops the Bundesliga

26 October 2024, Bavaria, Augsburg: Augsburg's Alexis Claude-Maurice (R) and Dortmund's Felix Nmecha battle for the ball during German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Augsburg and Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena. Photo: Tom Weller/dpa
26 October 2024, Bavaria, Augsburg: Augsburg's Alexis Claude-Maurice (R) and Dortmund's Felix Nmecha battle for the ball during German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Augsburg and Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena. Photo: Tom Weller/dpa

Borussia Dortmund's awful away from continued in a 2-1 loss to Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Saturday that increases the pressure on coach Nuri Sahin.
Dortmund's fourth loss in a row in away games in all competitions — including 5-2 at Real Madrid on Tuesday — left the team seven points off new Bundesliga leader Leipzig, The Associated Press reported.
Alexis Claude-Maurice made his first start since joining Augsburg in August and rewarded his new team with two goals from distance to turn the game around. Dortmund led with an early Donyell Malen goal.
The game ended with 18-year-old Dortmund defender Almugera Kabar sent off for two yellow cards on his Bundesliga debut.
Sahin, who took over after Edin Terzic left following Dortmund's Champions League final loss last season, has seven wins, one draw and four losses in 12 games.
Leipzig on top Leipzig looks like two different teams, depending on which competition its playing in.
In the Champions League, it has lost all three of its games. In the Bundesliga, Marco Rose's team leads the standings — at least until Bayern Munich plays Sunday — and is unbeaten in its eight games.
Leipzig briefly looked like bringing its Champions League form to the Bundesliga before a second-half comeback to beat Freiburg 3-1.
Poor marking allowed Ritsu Doan to head Freiburg in front in the 15th — the first goal Leipzig conceded in the Bundesliga since Aug. 31. Goals from defenders Willi Orban and Lutsharel Geertruida got Leipzig back into the game before Loïs Openda scored from a tight angle to secure the win.
With attacking midfielder Xavi Simons set to be out for weeks with an ankle ligament injury sustained in Leipzig’s 1-0 loss to Liverpool on Wednesday, teammates Castello Lukeba and Amadou Haidara raised his shirt in tribute.
Stuttgart wins again El Bilal Touré scored a vital goal in Stuttgart's 1-0 win over Juventus on Tuesday in the Champions League, and the Mali forward did it again on Saturday with a goal and assist to beat Holstein Kiel 2-1.
Touré surged for most of the length of the field on a counterattack to set up Deniz Undav for Stuttgart's first goal and scored the second with an audacious long-range shot.
That gave Stuttgart a much-needed first Bundesliga win in over a month, but only after surviving the last half-hour with 10 men after Jeff Chabot earned two yellow cards in the space of three minutes.
Also, Wolfsburg drew at St. Pauli 0-0.
Champion Bayer Leverkusen played Werder Bremen later Saturday.



Cobolli Downs Zverev to Set Up Munich Final with Shelton

Flavio Cobolli of Italy in action during his semi-finals match against Alexander Zverev of Germany at the BMW Open tennis tournament in Munich, Germany, 18 April 2026.  EPA/ANNA SZILAGYI
Flavio Cobolli of Italy in action during his semi-finals match against Alexander Zverev of Germany at the BMW Open tennis tournament in Munich, Germany, 18 April 2026. EPA/ANNA SZILAGYI
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Cobolli Downs Zverev to Set Up Munich Final with Shelton

Flavio Cobolli of Italy in action during his semi-finals match against Alexander Zverev of Germany at the BMW Open tennis tournament in Munich, Germany, 18 April 2026.  EPA/ANNA SZILAGYI
Flavio Cobolli of Italy in action during his semi-finals match against Alexander Zverev of Germany at the BMW Open tennis tournament in Munich, Germany, 18 April 2026. EPA/ANNA SZILAGYI

Flavio Cobolli ended top seed Alexander Zverev's Munich Open title defense on Saturday as the Italian breezed past the world number three in straight sets to book his place in the final against Ben Shelton.

Fourth seed Cobolli downed the home favorite 6-3, 6-3 in just under 70 minutes in their semi-final meeting.

The 23-year-old's blistering performance put paid to Zverev's hopes for a record fourth title on the red dirt in Munich.

"It was one of my best matches ever against one of my biggest friends on tour," AFP quoted Cobolli as saying.

"I'm a little bit shy when I play with a big player, but today I played one of my best performances and I'm really happy."

Cobolli edged ahead of Zverev when he broke the German to love in the fourth game of the first set.

Zverev struggled to make inroads on Cobolli's serve over the course of the match, and when the world number 16 pounced on his opponent's first service game of the second set the writing was on the wall for Zverev.

Two punishing crosscourt forehands followed up by a crisp volley to finish off game seven secured Cobolli a double break and gave him the chance to serve for the match.

But Zverev hit back immediately as he secured his first break points of the encounter, converting at the second time of asking to halt his opponent.

A brilliant forehand on the run handed Cobolli match point in the next game and when Zverev framed a deep return the match was decided.

Cobolli advances to his second final of the season, where he will look to add to the title he picked up in Acapulco in February.

Shelton, who later Saturday beat qualifier Alex Molcan 6-3, 6-4, will be the man standing in Cobolli's way as the American seeks to go one better than last year when he lost the Munich title match to Zverev.

Second seed Shelton broke in the sixth game of the first set to get his nose in front against the 166th-ranked Slovakian and then secured a crucial second break of the match to go 5-4 up in the final set.

The 23-year-old was on form with his serve as Molcan managed to engineer just one break point across the two sets, which Shelton saved.


Eta Makes History as Bundesliga's 1st Female Coach, Dortmund Gives Bayern Chance to Seal Title

Union’s new head coach Marie-Louise Eta reacts during the Bundesliga soccer match 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Wolfsburg in Berlin, Germany, 18 April 2026.  EPA/CLEMENS BILAN
Union’s new head coach Marie-Louise Eta reacts during the Bundesliga soccer match 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Wolfsburg in Berlin, Germany, 18 April 2026. EPA/CLEMENS BILAN
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Eta Makes History as Bundesliga's 1st Female Coach, Dortmund Gives Bayern Chance to Seal Title

Union’s new head coach Marie-Louise Eta reacts during the Bundesliga soccer match 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Wolfsburg in Berlin, Germany, 18 April 2026.  EPA/CLEMENS BILAN
Union’s new head coach Marie-Louise Eta reacts during the Bundesliga soccer match 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Wolfsburg in Berlin, Germany, 18 April 2026. EPA/CLEMENS BILAN

Marie-Louise Eta has made history as the first female coach in the Bundesliga, but her Union Berlin team failed to live up to the occasion on Saturday with a 2-1 defeat to Wolfsburg.

She has four more games to ensure Union stays in the top division before she takes over Union’s women’s team for next season.

Patrick Wimmer and Dženan Pejčinović scored early in each half for the visitors to end their 12-game run without a win and revive their hopes of escaping relegation. Wolfsburg remains second to last but it’s just two points behind St. Pauli in the relegation playoff place with four rounds remaining.

Union ultimately paid the price for a lack of efficiency after creating the better chances and finishing strongly. Oliver Burke’s goal in the 85th minute was too late for the Köpenick-based team, The Associated Press reported.

Union, which has only won two games in 2026, fired Steffan Baumgart after last weekend’s loss at Heidenheim and finds itself just six points above the relegation zone.

Eta previously made history in 2023 as the first female assistant coach in the men’s Bundesliga, also at Union, and has been coaching the under-19 men’s team at the club.

Bayern can clinch the title on Sunday Andrej Kramarić scored two penalties for Hoffenheim in a 2-1 win over second-placed Borussia Dortmund. That opens the way for Bayern Munich to seal the title at home against Stuttgart on Sunday.

Bayern, which has five games remaining compared to Dortmund’s four, leads by 12 points and needs just one more point to be sure of finishing top.

Werder Bremen boosted its survival hopes with a 3-1 win at home against Hamburger SV in their northern derby. Bremen moved level with the visitors on 31 points, five points above St. Pauli.

Midtable Augsburg defeated Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 away and dented the home team’s hopes of Champions League qualification.

Eintracht Frankfurt hosted Leipzig later.


Morocco Frees Senegal Fans after Sentences Served

The Moroccan flag is seen in front of a destroyed building following the devastating earthquake in Marrakesh last month. (Reuters)
The Moroccan flag is seen in front of a destroyed building following the devastating earthquake in Marrakesh last month. (Reuters)
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Morocco Frees Senegal Fans after Sentences Served

The Moroccan flag is seen in front of a destroyed building following the devastating earthquake in Marrakesh last month. (Reuters)
The Moroccan flag is seen in front of a destroyed building following the devastating earthquake in Marrakesh last month. (Reuters)

Morocco on Saturday released three Senegalese fans from jail after they completed a three-month prison sentence for participating in the violence that broke out during the Africa Cup of Nations final in Rabat, an AFP journalist saw.

The trio left Al Arjat 2 prison, northeast of Rabat, in a police vehicle to go to a police station before being released.

Upon leaving the police station, the three smiling Senegalese fans were greeted by members of the Senegalese embassy. One said to AFP, "dima Maroc, dima Maghrib" ("long live Morocco").

Senegalese defense lawyer Patrick Kabou thanked "diplomatic and consular representation for their efforts" in a post on X.

On the eve of the trio's release, he asked that the public "support them and, above all, help them come to terms with the initial shock of leaving prison".

In connection with the same case, 15 other Senegalese fans remain incarcerated after receiving sentences ranging from six months to one year and which were upheld on appeal on Monday.

Detained since the January 18 final, won by Senegal but later awarded on appeal to hosts Morocco, they were charged with "hooliganism," an offence including acts of violence, notably against law enforcement, as well as damage to sports facilities, invading the pitch and throwing projectiles.

A Frenchman of Algerian origin was also released on Saturday after serving three months in prison for throwing a water bottle during the final.