Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2025: A Thrilling Adventure Across the Kingdom

09:45-30 November 2024 AD ـ 28 Jumada Al-Ula 1446 AH

Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2025: A Thrilling Adventure Across the Kingdom

The Saudi Ministry of Sport revealed on Friday the details for the sixth edition of the Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2025. The highly anticipated event will once again take place in the Kingdom, from January 3 to 17.

The race will cover almost 8,000 kilometers, beginning in the Bisha Governorate in the south and traversing the Kingdom’s diverse landscapes, passing through Hail and culminating in the iconic Empty Quarter desert.

Chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation and the Saudi Motorsport Company Prince Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdullah bin Faisal expressed his enthusiasm for hosting this prestigious global event.

He emphasized the commitment to delivering an exceptional edition that will showcase the Kingdom’s stunning landscapes and highlight its growing prominence in the world of motorsports.

The Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2025 will feature the following stages:

Prologue (January 3): Bisha - Bisha, 79 km (special 29 km)

Stage 1 (January 4): Bisha - Bisha, 500 km (special 412 km)

Stage 2 (January 5 and 6): Bisha - Bisha, 1,057 km (special 965 km)

Stage 3 (January 7): Bisha - Al Henakiyah, 845 km (special 496 km)

Stage 4 (January 8): Al Henakiyah - AlUla, 588 km (special 415 km)

Stage 5 (January 9): AlUla - Hail, 491 km (special 428 km)

Rest (January 10): Hail

Stage 6 (January 11): Hail - Al Duwadimi, 829 km (special 606 km)

Stage 7 (January 12): Al Duwadimi - Al Duwadimi, 745 km (special 481 km)

Stage 8 (January 13): Al Duwadimi - Riyadh, 733 km (special 487 km)

Stage 9 (January 14): Riyadh - Haradh, 589 km (special 357 km)

Stage 10 (January 15): Haradh - Shubaytah, 638 km (special 119 km)

Stage 11 (January 16): Shubaytah - Shubaytah, 506 km (special 280 km)

Stage 12 (January 17): Shubaytah - Shubaytah, 205 km (special 134 km)

Juventus Ties Down Star Player Kenan Yildiz Until 2030

Turkish player Kenan Yildiz (Reuters)

Asharq Al Awsat

05:50-8 February 2026 AD ـ 20 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

05:50-8 February 2026 AD ـ 20 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Juventus Ties Down Star Player Kenan Yildiz Until 2030

Turkish player Kenan Yildiz (Reuters)

Türkiye midfielder Kenan Yildiz has extended his contract with Juventus through June 2030, the Italian club announced Saturday.

The 20-year-old Yildiz scored on his debut against Frosinone in December 2023. He has since inherited the club’s No. 10 jersey and last year became the youngest player to captain the team.

Altogether Yildiz has scored 25 goals and also set up 19 in 115 appearances over two and half seasons with Juventus. This season he has eight goals and five assists in Serie A.

“Kenan embodies leadership, sacrifice and the constant pursuit of improvement. He is the personification of Juventus’ values, and he carries them onto the pitch in every game he plays,” The Associated Press quoted the club as saying.

Media reports suggested the new deal made Yildiz the best-paid player in the squad.

The German-born Yildiz switched to Juventus Under-19s from Bayern Munich’s youth setup in 2022.

Sports

Late Guirassy Goal Seals Win as Dortmund Cuts Bayern’s Bundesliga Lead to 3 Points

07 February 2026, Lower Saxony, Wolfsburg: Borussia Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Borussia Dortmund at Volkswagen Arena. (dpa)

17:20-7 February 2026 AD ـ 19 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Late Guirassy Goal Seals Win as Dortmund Cuts Bayern’s Bundesliga Lead to 3 Points

Serhou Guirassy scored late for Borussia Dortmund to cut Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga lead to three points on Saturday with a 2-1 win at Wolfsburg.

Wolfsburg dominated the second half with Mohamed Amoura missing several good chances and Maximilian Arnold striking the crossbar.

Dortmund’s Maximilian Beier hit the underside of the bar with a deflected shot in the first half, when Julian Brandt opened the scoring with a header from Julian Ryerson’s corner in the 38th for the visitors.

Konstantinos Koulierakis replied in similar fashion after the break with a header from Arnold’s free kick, but Wolfsburg was to rue not taking its chances to score more.

Guirassy pounced for the winner in the 87th after good play between Fábio Silva and Felix Nmecha.

“That’s part of football,” Dortmund coach Niko Kovač said of his team’s scrappy win. “But then to decide it with one action is also a quality.”

Eighteen-year-old Italian defender Luca Reggiani went on late for Dortmund for his Bundesliga debut.

American winger Kevin Paredes made his first Wolfsburg start since April 25 after recovering from two operations on his right foot.

Bayern, which failed to win its last two games, can restore its six-point lead with a win over high-flying Hoffenheim on Sunday.

Borussia Mönchengladbach was hosting Bayer Leverkusen later.

Bremen loses on coach's debut

Werder Bremen’s coaching change did little to alter its fortunes as the team lost 1-0 in Freiburg on Daniel Thioune’s debut.

Jan-Niklas Beste let fly and found the top far corner in the 13th for Freiburg, which had Johan Manzambi sent off early in the second half for a foul on Bremen’s Olivier Deman.

Thioune’s team was unable to capitalize on the extra player and is now 11 league games without a win. Bremen faces a visit from Bayern next weekend.

Welcome win for St. Pauli

St. Pauli boosted its survival hopes with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Stuttgart.

The Hamburg-based team remained second-from-bottom, but it opened a four-point gap on bottom side Heidenheim, which lost 2-0 at home to Hamburger SV. Bremen's defeat means St. Pauli is just two points from the relegation playoff place.

Mainz keeps winning

Nadiem Amiri scored two penalties, one in each half, for Mainz to beat Augsburg 2-0 for its third straight win.

Amiri ripped off his distinctive carnival-inspired jersey as he celebrated the second one to seal the win. The thoughtful Lee Jae-sung picked it up so he could resume when the celebrations died down.

Mainz next visits Dortmund.

Sports

Man United Wins Again to Make It Four in a Row for New Coach Michael Carrick

Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United scores the 2-0 goal during the English Premier League match between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, in Manchester, Britain, 07 February 2026. (EPA)

16:18-7 February 2026 AD ـ 19 Sha’ban 1447 AH

Man United Wins Again to Make It Four in a Row for New Coach Michael Carrick

Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United scores the 2-0 goal during the English Premier League match between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, in Manchester, Britain, 07 February 2026. (EPA)

It's four Premier League wins in a row for Manchester United under Michael Carrick and a season that was unraveling just weeks ago now looks full of promise.

A 2-0 victory against Tottenham on Saturday extended Carrick's 100% start as head coach and will further strengthen his case to be given the job on a long-term basis.

“Michael has won everything here and he knows what it means for these fans, what it means for the club to win and how much is needed to win in this football. I think that adds something special to the team,” United captain Bruno Fernandes told TNT Sports.

It was the first time in two years that United has won four straight league games and boosted its hopes of a return to the lucrative Champions League after missing out for the last two years.

Bryan Mbeumo and Fernandes scored in each half at Old Trafford in a game that saw Spurs reduced to 10 men after captain Cristian Romero was sent off in the 29th minute.

Carrick has transformed United's fortunes since he was parachuted in to replace the fired Ruben Amorim last month. Initially given a contract until the end of the season — having previously had a three-game interim spell in 2021 — his impressive impact will likely put him in serious contention to keep the job as the club's hierarchy consider its long-term plans.

“I think Michael came in with the right ideas of giving the players the responsibility, but some freedom to take the responsibility on the pitch, doing the decisions that were needed,” said Fernandes. “He's very good with the words.

“I think he still remembers what I told him the last time he was our manager for our last game. I was sure that Michael could be a great manager, and he’s just showing it.”

United is fourth and after moving up to 44 points, the 20-time English champion has already exceeded last season's total of 42 points for the entire campaign.

Fernandes’ goal, with a controlled finish off his shin in the 81st, was his 200th goal involvement since joining United in 2020.

It sealed victory after Mbeumo had given United the lead in the 38th when firing low from a corner to score his 10th goal of his debut season at the club.

While United's captain was inspirational, Tottenham's Romero did his team no favors with his sending off in the first half.

Having described as “disgraceful” the fact that Spurs were reduced to 11 fit players for the draw with Manchester City last weekend, Romero hardly helped his team’s cause with his red card for a dangerous tackle on Casemiro.

The league's stats partner Opta said it was Romero's sixth sending off since joining the club in 2021 — more than any other Premier League player in that time.

Dakar Rally Saudi Arabia 2025: A Thrilling Adventure Across the Kingdom