Arsenal, Tottenham to Play Pre-season North London Derby in Hong Kong

This photo shows a general view from inside the Kai Tak Sports stadium, a multi-purpose sports venue at the site of the former Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, on the first day of the 2025 Rugby Sevens Hong Kong tournament on March 28, 2025. (Photo by Peter PARKS / AFP)
This photo shows a general view from inside the Kai Tak Sports stadium, a multi-purpose sports venue at the site of the former Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, on the first day of the 2025 Rugby Sevens Hong Kong tournament on March 28, 2025. (Photo by Peter PARKS / AFP)
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Arsenal, Tottenham to Play Pre-season North London Derby in Hong Kong

This photo shows a general view from inside the Kai Tak Sports stadium, a multi-purpose sports venue at the site of the former Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, on the first day of the 2025 Rugby Sevens Hong Kong tournament on March 28, 2025. (Photo by Peter PARKS / AFP)
This photo shows a general view from inside the Kai Tak Sports stadium, a multi-purpose sports venue at the site of the former Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon, on the first day of the 2025 Rugby Sevens Hong Kong tournament on March 28, 2025. (Photo by Peter PARKS / AFP)

Arsenal will play Tottenham in a pre-season friendly in Hong Kong, the first North London derby to be held outside the United Kingdom, the clubs said Monday, while Liverpool will meet AC Milan.

The London rivals will play at the southern Chinese city's new 50,000-capacity Kai Tak Stadium on July 31.

"Playing against Tottenham Hotspur in the magnificent new Kai Tak Stadium will be a great experience for both teams and supporters, and will be a very important part of our pre-season preparations ahead of the new season," AFP quoted Arsenal's managing director Richard Garlick as saying.

Liverpool will play Serie A giants Milan on July 26 at the same stadium.

It will be a replay of the classic 2005 Champions League final, which the Reds won on penalties after being 3-0 down at half-time.

Arne Slot's Liverpool are likely to head to Hong Kong as Premier League champions -- they are currently 12 points clear with nine games left.

Liverpool will also travel to Japan for the first time during pre-season, the club said, without giving dates.

Hong Kong this month officially opened a major $3.85 billion sports park with futuristic Kai Tak Stadium the centerpiece of it.

The stadium saw its first major event at the weekend when it hosted the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens with more than 110,000 spectators attending over three days.

It is all part of efforts to restore the city's image, which took a battering after political protests and a Beijing-imposed national security law.

Visitor numbers to Hong Kong also plummeted during almost three years of strict Covid curbs and have only recently begun to recover.



Sinner Does Not Expect Easy Road on Return from Doping Ban

Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 21, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning his fourth round match against Russia's Karen Khachanov. (Reuters)
Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 21, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning his fourth round match against Russia's Karen Khachanov. (Reuters)
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Sinner Does Not Expect Easy Road on Return from Doping Ban

Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 21, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning his fourth round match against Russia's Karen Khachanov. (Reuters)
Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 21, 2024 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning his fourth round match against Russia's Karen Khachanov. (Reuters)

Jannik Sinner held onto his world number one ranking ahead of his return from a three-month doping ban, but the Italian does not expect his comeback to be as smooth when he takes to the court again at the Rome Masters next month.

Sinner has not played since winning the Australian Open at the start of the season and accepted a ban in February following a deal with the World Anti-Doping Agency, which had challenged a tribunal's decision to clear him after two positive tests.

The 23-year-old was allowed to return to training on April 13, and his suspension will end on May 4, before his competitive return at the Italian Open, which gets underway three days later.

Sinner, who spent time building fitness mindful of the French Open starting on May 25, was assured of retaining the top ranking for his home tournament after his closest challenger Alexander Zverev crashed to an early defeat in Monte Carlo.

"We're training very hard. Hopefully we'll get some momentum going again ahead of the clay season. It certainly won't be easy for me," Sinner told broadcaster ORF Sudtirol.

"The first games will be really difficult. But hopefully I'll be able to get back into the rhythm and then we'll see how it goes."

Sinner, who trained with Britain's world number six Jack Draper at the Tennis Club de Beaulieu in France recently, said there were plenty of positives from his enforced absence from the tour.

"I think at the beginning of the three months, it was quite nice," Sinner added.

"A bit of time away from all the grind, I spent time with family, with friends. I was doing new things and getting to know myself better, finding out where I stand.

"I think it helped me a lot."