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McLaren's Piastri Takes F1 Chinese Grand Prix Win Ahead of Teammate Norris

Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 23, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri celebrates on the podium after winning the Chinese Grand Prix REUTERS/Edgar Su
Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 23, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri celebrates on the podium after winning the Chinese Grand Prix REUTERS/Edgar Su
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McLaren's Piastri Takes F1 Chinese Grand Prix Win Ahead of Teammate Norris

Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 23, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri celebrates on the podium after winning the Chinese Grand Prix REUTERS/Edgar Su
Formula One F1 - Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China - March 23, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri celebrates on the podium after winning the Chinese Grand Prix REUTERS/Edgar Su

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri has cruised to his maiden Chinese Grand Prix win from pole position with the Australian untouchable ahead of his teammate Lando Norris as the pair completed McLaren's milestone 50th one-two placing in Formula 1.
Piastri, who took his maiden pole position on Saturday, got a great start in Sunday's race to lead into the first corner, as Norris passed Russell for second, The Associated Press reported.
The Australian then slowly stretched his legs in an untroubled drive for his third career win.
Norris had a trickier afternoon to earn his runner-up spot - with the Brit having to pass Mercedes’ George Russell and Williams’ Alex Albon after his stop. He then trailed his teammate to the checkered flag, though in the closing stages had to deal with a worsening brake pedal issue that threatened him finishing the race.
Russell completed the podium, his second-straight for the season.
Last year's race winner, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took fourth from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the closing laps, with the Monégasque’s race compromised by lap one contact with his Scuderia teammate Lewis Hamilton that sheared the left-front endplate from his front wing which hampered his car's aerodynamics throughout the race.
Hamilton, who took Saturday's Sprint race for his first victory for Ferrari, was in sixth place.

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Eta Appointment ‘No Surprise’ for Union Berlin’s Ascendant Women

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)
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)
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Eta Appointment ‘No Surprise’ for Union Berlin’s Ascendant Women

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)
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)

The appointment of Marie-Louise Eta as head coach of Union Berlin's men's Bundesliga side may have captured global headlines, but few inside the ambitious club were surprised.

The rapid rise of Union's women's side, who Eta will coach from the summer, is a direct result of the club prioritizing the team.

While still in the amateur regional leagues, Union took the unusual step of paying players and coaching staff professionally.

Union are putting the finishing touches on a shiny new complex which will become the first training center in European football with identical facilities for the men's and women's teams.

Despite playing in the second division last season, Union's women averaged crowd was 7,190, the best mark in Germany and behind only Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United across Europe.

The crowds have continued to climb this season as Union secured their top-flight status for next year.

Union host powerhouse Bayern Munich on Wednesday and the club expect over 10,000 spectators, having opened up additional stands in their 22,000-capacity Stadion an der Alten Foersterei.

- 'It's about football' -

A major reason for the support is the club's integration into the community in the eastern Berlin suburb of Koepenick

The club is a core part of Koepenick's identity, giving rise to the saying: “We don't go to the football, we go to Union.”

Current women's coach Ailien Poese has had a two-decade association with Union and has guided the women's side through the ranks to the top flight.

Poese, who will return to the club's academy when Eta takes over, said fans went to both the men's and the women's games "because ultimately it's about football.

"I hope it gets established at many clubs, that it's their favorite club and there might be a home game every weekend, one week the women's and the next the men's," Poese told AFP.

"I'm absolutely delighted with the extra attention and the identification with the women's team."

Union forward Hannah Eurlings agreed. "It says a lot about the fans, that they're just in love with the club. And that's so nice to see."

Eurlings, a Belgian international, signed with Union in the summer and said the club's focus on women's football was a key pull factor.

"For me it was a bit scary to sign for a second Bundesliga team... But the talks I had with the club and with the women's manager, they were all positive.

"They want to make the women's team equal to the men's team and also in financial things and also in the facilities we get. I think you don't find that that often in women's football, so I think that's a very big plus for me."

- 'Not a bit of a surprise' -

Eurlings said Eta's appointment is a reflection of Union's values of hard work and merit, while also thinking outside the box.

"It's not a bit of a surprise here in the club or in Koepenick... It doesn't matter what your gender is, do you know a lot about football? You're the right person for the job."

Poese said the appointment was "a completely logical decision."

"She is highly competent, very good technically and very clear in her work and her footballing ideas."

Union are heavy underdogs on Wednesday but even taking on the German giants is an achievement in itself.

Bayern need just a point to claim the women's Bundesliga title but Poese said her side would relish their role as "party crashers".

Eurlings agreed, saying "of course it's an extra motivation. They think they can become champions on our pitch? Nobody signed up for that.

"They're the best team in the league. But of course, in football, you have 90 minutes and if we have a good day, we want to be the party crashers."

Sports

Ex-Spurs Star Davids Condemns ‘Lack of Quality, Lack of Management’

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - April 18, 2026 Tottenham Hotspur's Pedro Porro looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - April 18, 2026 Tottenham Hotspur's Pedro Porro looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
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Ex-Spurs Star Davids Condemns ‘Lack of Quality, Lack of Management’

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - April 18, 2026 Tottenham Hotspur's Pedro Porro looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - April 18, 2026 Tottenham Hotspur's Pedro Porro looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)

Former Tottenham star Edgar Davids on Tuesday told AFP that the fallen London giants will find it hard to avoid relegation and condemned "a lack of quality and a lack of management".

Tottenham are on their third manager of a disastrous season and sit in the Premier League relegation zone, two points adrift of safety with five matches left.

Former Netherlands international midfielder Davids said the appointment of Italian coach Roberto De Zerbi three weeks ago was a good move, but fears for Spurs' Premier League future.

Asked by AFP how Tottenham had ended up in such a predicament, Davids said: "It's very obvious, if you pay peanuts, you get...

"It's a lack of quality and a lack of management. Everything."

Davids, who played for Spurs in 2005-2006 after starring for Ajax, AC Milan, Juventus, Barcelona and Inter Milan, said Spurs should have strengthened an injury-hit squad in the winter transfer window.

"I hope they stay up, I think it's a very good thing they got in De Zerbi," said the 53-year-old, speaking at the announcement of the "Hong Kong Football Festival" featuring Manchester City, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Juventus in August.

"But it's hard. They should have done big things in the winter period to get some players in. It was obvious."

Tottenham, who have not won in the league since late December, travel to already relegated Wolves on Saturday.

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Sources: New Allocation Gives Saudi Arabia, Japan Six slots in AFC Champions League Elite, AFC Champions League 2

توزيع مرتقب للمقاعد الآسيوية يوم الجمعة المقبل (الاتحاد الآسيوي)
توزيع مرتقب للمقاعد الآسيوية يوم الجمعة المقبل (الاتحاد الآسيوي)
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Sources: New Allocation Gives Saudi Arabia, Japan Six slots in AFC Champions League Elite, AFC Champions League 2

توزيع مرتقب للمقاعد الآسيوية يوم الجمعة المقبل (الاتحاد الآسيوي)
توزيع مرتقب للمقاعد الآسيوية يوم الجمعة المقبل (الاتحاد الآسيوي)

Informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Professional Football Committee at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is moving to adopt a new slot allocation for the AFC Champions League Elite and AFC Champions League 2, in a decision expected to reshape the continent’s club representation. Saudi Arabia and Japan would lead with six slots each across the two competitions.

Under a proposal circulated within the AFC, Saudi Arabia and Japan would each receive three direct berths in the Elite competition, along with two additional slots through the playoffs, in addition to one direct berth in AFC Champions League 2. The distribution underscores the strength of domestic competitions in both countries and their growing influence at the continental level.

The United Arab Emirates and South Korea would follow with five slots each, divided into three direct berths in the Elite competition, one playoff slot, and one direct berth in AFC Champions League 2, reflecting sustained competitive stability in both football landscapes in recent years.

Qatar and Thailand would each be allocated four slots, comprising three direct berths in the Elite competition and one direct berth in AFC Champions League 2. Iran and China would receive three slots each, including two direct berths in the Elite competition and one direct berth in the second-tier competition.

In the next tier, Uzbekistan and Australia would each be granted three slots, distributed as one direct berth in the Elite competition, one playoff slot, and one direct berth in AFC Champions League 2. Iraq and Malaysia would each receive two slots, one direct berth in the Elite competition and one direct berth in the second-tier competition.

The allocation also includes Jordan and Vietnam, with each set to receive two slots: one through the playoffs for the Elite competition and one direct berth in AFC Champions League 2, offering their clubs an additional pathway to continental participation under the new structure.

The same sources said the allocation is expected to be formally approved next Friday, in a pivotal regulatory step that will shape Asian club participation in the coming seasons and establish new criteria for slot distribution based on cumulative performance and continental results, amid sweeping changes to AFC club competitions.