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Atlético de Madrid's Stadium Renamed Riyadh Air Metropolitano

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA
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Atlético de Madrid's Stadium Renamed Riyadh Air Metropolitano

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA

Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia's new national airline, issued a press release announcing that it has signed a nine-year strategic agreement (valid until 2033) with Atlético de Madrid club that entails renaming the stadium of the Spanish club "Riyadh Air Metropolitano".
The official unveiling of the stadium's new name is set to take place on October 20 during the upcoming match. Thousands of fans will witness the new name of the stadium being revealed on the main facades, alongside the Riyadh Air logo, SPA reported.
The partnership with Atlético de Madrid started on August 10, 2023, when Riyadh Air became the club's official sponsor. During the first year of sponsorship, the Riyadh Air logo was featured on the front of the men's first team kits in all domestic and international matches.
According to the release, the partnership between the two entities will be further strengthened by this new strategic agreement, which makes the Saudi Arabian company the most important sponsor in the club's history. It is based, the release says, on a shared vision that goes beyond the boundaries of traditional sport, focusing on innovation, excellence and sustainability as key pillars of future growth.
Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas said: "It is an honor to become the naming partner for the Riyadh Air Metropolitano and extend our partnership with Atlético de Madrid until 2033. Both organizations are driven to succeed at the highest level and having our name on such an iconic stadium will elevate the awareness of Riyadh Air across the sporting world and beyond."
Atlético de Madrid CEO Miguel Ángel Gil said: "We are all proud and very happy ... with the agreement whereby our stadium will be named Riyadh Air Metropolitano."

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Injuries and Retirements Rush Germany into a New Phase of Post-Euro 2024 Rebuild

Bayer Leverkusen's German midfielder #10 Florian Wirtz reacts during the German first division Bundesliga football match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Holstein Kiel in Leverkusen, western Germany on October 5, 2024. (AFP) /
Bayer Leverkusen's German midfielder #10 Florian Wirtz reacts during the German first division Bundesliga football match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Holstein Kiel in Leverkusen, western Germany on October 5, 2024. (AFP) /
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Injuries and Retirements Rush Germany into a New Phase of Post-Euro 2024 Rebuild

Bayer Leverkusen's German midfielder #10 Florian Wirtz reacts during the German first division Bundesliga football match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Holstein Kiel in Leverkusen, western Germany on October 5, 2024. (AFP) /
Bayer Leverkusen's German midfielder #10 Florian Wirtz reacts during the German first division Bundesliga football match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Holstein Kiel in Leverkusen, western Germany on October 5, 2024. (AFP) /

Florian Wirtz is only 21 and he's already one of the most experienced players in a new-look Germany team.

As Germany switches focus to the 2026 World Cup, injuries, retirements and a short-term focus on Euro 2024 have left it with a Nations League squad that lacks international experience but isn't especially young either.

Wirtz, the star attacking midfielder from Bayer Leverkusen, is the second youngest player in the squad but also the fifth most experienced player on 25 caps, as Germany prepares to play Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday and the Netherlands on Monday.

None of the three goalkeepers in the squad — Oliver Baumann, Alexander Nübel and Oliver Blaswich — have ever played for Germany. With Barcelona's Marc-André ter Stegen injured for months to come, one of them will have to step up.

Six of coach Julian Nagelsmann’s preferred players were unavailable with injuries as of Tuesday; Leipzig left back David Raum the latest to drop out. New faces such as Jamie Leweling, Jonny Burkardt and Tim Kleindienst are Bundesliga regulars but untested at international level.

“Though it's a shame that this time we have to do without some injured regulars who contributed through the home Euros in the summer, we're very much looking forward to seeing our new players in the team environment and in training,” coach Julian Nagelsmann said on Monday in remarks reported by dpa.

Even before Bayern's Jamal Musiala, Arsenal's Kai Havertz and West Ham's Niclas Füllkrug all dropped out injured, Germany's squad was looking threadbare after a spate of high-profile retirements following the run to the quarterfinals at Euro 2024.

Toni Kroos, Manuel Neuer, Ilkay Gündogan and Thomas Müller called time on Germany after Euro 2024, taking a combined 451 caps' worth of experience with them.

There's a wider effect, too, from the pressure Germany felt to succeed when it hosted Euro 2024.

Short-term thinking was Germany's official policy when Nagelsmann was appointed last year on a contract that ran only through to Euro 2024, and he focused on getting a misfiring group of experienced players to gel again. Nagelsmann later extended his stay through to the 2026 World Cup.

Germany can usually count on Musiala and Wirtz, two of the brightest young talents in world football, but other young players once hyped as Germany's future have yet to break through.

Borussia Dortmund's Karim Adeyemi has lacked consistency and had injury problems. Striker Youssoufa Moukoko and defender Armel Bella-Kotchap were Adeyemi's teammates at the 2022 World Cup but haven't been selected since. Progress seems to have stalled for 21-year-old forward Maximilian Beier since he joined Dortmund this season, too.

One player who'll be expected to perform against Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Netherlands is Bayern forward Serge Gnabry, back in the team after 11 months away.

In a sign of how much things have changed, Gnabry's 22 international goals mean he's scored more for Germany than everyone else in the squad put together.