It's spring training for everyone across baseball, including the censors.

The Cincinnati Reds had the bats going during their Cactus League game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday, with Austin Hays leading the way in an 8–1 win. The 29-year-old outfielder, who totaled five home runs between the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies in 2024, went 3-for-3 with a pair of homers and six RBIs on the day.

His second big fly jumped off the bat, with a pop loud enough to make one fan sitting very close to a crowd microphone loudly exclaim something that doesn't usually make its way onto a family friendly broadcast.

Cincinnati fans hope that Hayes and the Reds can provide some more "oh s—" moments in the months to come.

Cincinnati finished a disappointing 77–85 in 2024, and hasn't made the playoffs since the abridged 2020 season. The Reds' last postseason trip in a full year was 2013, and they haven't won a playoff game since 2012 or series since 1995.

But that is the beauty of spring training—hope springs eternal for all 30 clubs.

Manchester City are now closely monitoring AC Milan forward Rafael Leao, with Pep Guardiola personally a fan, and the Italian club’s asking price has been revealed.

Man City made a real statement by defeating reigning Premier League champions Liverpool 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, and Guardiola was left particularly impressed by Jeremy Doku’s performance, describing the winger as “outstanding.”

Doku completed a remarkable seven dribbles throughout the match, six more than any other player, in what was a top performance, but the 23-year-old was not the only City forward that caught the eye.

Indeed, Erling Haaland once again found the back of the net, with the Norwegian putting his first-half penalty miss behind him and bagging his 14th Premier League goal of the season, which puts the 25-year-old six clear of nearest-rival Igor Thiago in the goalscoring charts.

Guardiola is clearly blessed with a number of top-quality attacking options, but the manager remains keen on strengthening his forward line even further…

Man City closely monitoring Rafael Leao

According to a report from Caught Offside, Man City are now closely monitoring AC Milan forward Leao, who has a €150m (£131m) release clause included in his contract, although the Serie A club have set a more affordable asking price of €80m – €85m (£70m – £75m).

Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal are also in the race for the Portugal international, with Mikel Arteta personally an admirer, but City could rival their Premier League title rivals for his signature, given that Guardiola is a fan.

Indeed, the Spaniard admires the 26-year-old’s versatility, given that he is capable of playing out wide, in attacking midfield or even at striker.

At the moment, Milan are hopeful they will be able to keep hold of their star forward, but a January exit could be on the cards if talks over a new deal do not progress.

There are signs the Portuguese forward could be capable of taking City’s attack to the next level, having been lauded as “world-class” by journalist Carlo Garganese, while also proving himself as a reliable goalscorer over a number of years at AC Milan.

The Milan star has amassed a whopping 75 goals and 63 assists in 268 games for the Serie A giants, scoring a brace in what was a fantastic display against Fiorentina earlier this season.

The former Lille man clearly has the ability to succeed at the Etihad Stadium, but Doku’s recent performances suggest the Belgian winger could now be entering his prime, with his all-round display against Liverpool particularly eye-catching.

As such, Leao would perhaps be a luxury signing, rather than a necessary addition to Guardiola’s squad.

Rafael Leao has been named as one of the best wingers in the world

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Shreyas Iyer will lead a 15-member India A side against Australia A in two multi-day matches later this month in Lucknow. Nitish Kumar Reddy, who suffered a knee injury on the recent England tour, has also been included.First-choice Test players KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj were named in the squad as well, but only for the second match.Iyer last played a Test for India in February 2024, against England in Visakhapatnam. This is an opportunity for him to present his case for the two-match Test series at home against West Indies, which starts on October 2. Reddy had played the second and the third Tests of the England series in July before being ruled out with the injury. On Saturday, he bowled a lengthy spell to Sai Sudharsan and Ishan Kishan at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.Related

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Prasidh Krishna, Sai Sudharsan and Abhimanyu Easwaran – all part of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, which India drew 2-2 – have also been named in the A team. N Jagadeesan, who was called to England for the final Test, also makes it. Wicketkeeper batter Dhruv Jurel, who was injured and unable to play the Duleep trophy quarter-final and semi-final, has been named vice-captain. He had an extended training session at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence on Friday.Ayush Badoni, who scored a double-hundred against East Zone in the ongoing Duleep Trophy, has been rewarded with a call-up. That was the second double-hundred of Badoni’s first-class career. Currently playing his 16th match in the format, he has 1370 runs at an average of 65.23.Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Thakur and Gurnoor Brar are among the seamers; Manav Suthar, Harsh Dubey and Tanush Kotian are the spin options. Among the notable absentees are Karun Nair, who is recovering from a finger injury, Shardul Thakur and Sarfaraz Khan.The first game starts on September 16 and the second on September 23. That will be followed by three one-dayers, all in Kanpur.

India A squad for Australia series

Shreyas Iyer (capt), Abhimanyu Easwaran, N Jagadeesan (wk), Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel (vice-capt, wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Ayush Badoni, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tanush Kotian, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Manav Suthar, Yash Thakur, KL Rahul*, Mohammed Siraj*

Dropping points away to Sunderland was far from ideal, but even so, Arsenal are flying this season.

Unlike last season, Mikel Arteta’s side aren’t finding it hard to score goals, and thanks to their unreal defence, they rarely concede any.

This combination sees them sit atop the Premier League table, four points ahead of Manchester City and eight points clear of reigning champions Liverpool.

While there are several candidates, it would be fair to say that, so far, Gabriel Magalhães has been Arsenal’s player of the season, and Andrea Berta has already signed another version of the Brazilian.

Gabriel's development at Arsenal

Gabriel joined Arsenal from LOSC Lille for around £27m in the summer of 2020, and since then has developed significantly in practically every way imaginable.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Now, the Brazilian wasn’t a bad player in his first season for the Gunners, but he wasn’t one of the first names on the teamsheet.

For example, he made just 32 appearances across all competitions for Arteta, of which 23 were in the league, averaging 1.57 points per game.

He would become more of an ever-present member of the backline over the following seasons, but even during the early stages of the 22/23 season, he was seen as someone who could be a liability.

In fact, following a game away to Leeds United, in which he had a penalty incident overturned, Rio Ferdinand pointed out that “every week he’s in the headlines or he’s in underneath with a little bullet point next to his name and a bad incident.”

Fortunately, towards the end of that year and in the campaigns since, the former Lille star has become increasingly dependable, to the point that he occasionally wears the captain’s armband and has been the club’s standout performer this year.

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.06

0.21

Shots

0.64

0.93

Passing Accuracy

85.3%

88.6%

Key Passes

0.11

0.34

Shot-Creating Actions

0.53

1.23

Goal-Creating Actions

0.04

0.27

Tackles Won

0.51

0.53

Shots Blocked

0.82

1.30

Passes Blocked

0.32

0.48

Dispossessed

0.32

0.00

Aerial Duels Won

2.59

3.22

Another way to see his growth is to compare his underlying numbers from his first season to those of today.

Doing this shows that the 27-year-old now wins more tackles, blocks more shots and passes, makes more clearances, wins more aerial duels, completes more of his passes, is a greater goal threat, and is far better at creating chances for his teammates.

In all, Gabriel has been able to channel his natural passion over the years and is now arguably the club’s most important defender, so it’s excellent news that Berta signed someone who could develop just like him.

Arsenal's new Gabriel

Arsenal are blessed with an abundance of extremely talented defenders, but when it comes to the one most likely to develop down a Gabriel-esque path, it’s impossible to ignore Cristhian Mosquera.

Andrea Berta signed the Spanish centre-back from Valencia in the summer, for a fee of just £13m, which one content creator fairly described as “a steal.”

Now, the 21-year-old certainly has some of the elegance of a William Saliba, and could certainly be that ball-playing passing machine at the back, but it still feels like he is going to evolve to be more like the Brazilian.

One of the main reasons is that, despite being so young and having only just joined the team, he already appears mature beyond his years, as exemplified by his unfazed performance against Liverpool at Anfield earlier in the season.

More crucially, though, the 6 foot 3 “monster,” as club insider Hand of Arsenal dubbed him, seems to relish the more physical side of the game.

Sure, he can play it safe, but as respected analyst Ben Mattinson points out, he very clearly “loves to battle with physical attackers” and “thrives in ground duels due.”

Further described as an “absolute cheat code of a player” by Arsenal content creator Harold Hickman, he has already proven himself to be something of a leader.

For example, in his recent games for Spain’s U21 side, he has had the responsibility of wearing the captain’s armband.

Ultimately, it’s still early in his career, but thanks to his composure, ability to compete in physical duels, and passion for doing so, it looks like Arsenal have themselves another Gabriel in Mosquera.

The new Alexis: Arsenal ready to spend £80m to sign "world-class superstar"

Arsenal could spend £80m to sign their new version of Alexis Sanchez.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Nov 13, 2025

INEOS are now reportedly prepared to spend more than £100m to sign Raphinha from Barcelona under one circumstance at Manchester United in 2026.

The Red Devils owners have not been afraid to spend big on transfer fees in the last six months, despite their cost-saving measures off the pitch. Sir Jim Ratcliffe continues to back Ruben Amorim, who has shown signs that he could yet turn things around at Old Trafford, and that could yet result in further much-needed reinforcements.

INEOS have already seen the majority of their summer signings settle into life at Old Trafford, with Bryan Mbeumo even picking up the Premier League’s Player of the Month award for October to match Amorim’s Manager of the Month achievement. The former Brentford forward scored three goals and assisted one other to earn the award.

After watching Mbeumo pick up the award and claiming the Manager of the Month prize himself, Amorim told reporters: “The credit is not mine, the credit is for my players. They did really well, and our goal is to win the next one because it means we win football matches.”

The former Sporting CP boss, more than anyone, will be well aware that there’s still a long way to go, however, and INEOS must still back the Red Devils in the transfer market.

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On that front, those at Old Trafford have already been linked with 2026 moves for the likes of Elliot Anderson and Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic. Anderson would be a particularly impressive signing, given how he’s starred in a struggling Nottingham Forest side as of late, whilst Vlahovic would undoubtedly add depth to Amorim’s frontline.

Neither of those players would be as impressive as Raphinha though, who has scored twice against Man United throughout his career.

Man Utd prepared to spend over £100m on Raphinha

According to reports in Spain, INEOS are now prepared to spend €120m (£105m) to sign Raphinha if Man United qualify for the Champions League this season. Qualification for the competition would hand the Red Devils further financial freedom and the ability to attract stars such as the Barcelona winger.

The Brazilian would instantly become Man United’s record signing at £105m, finally dethroning the £89m fee that they paid to sign eventual flop Paul Pogba in 2016.

Unlike the Frenchman, Raphinha may well prove to be worth every penny after becoming one of the best wingers in the world at Barcelona and finishing fifth in the 2025 Ballon d’Or.

Whether a club-record bid would be enough to lure Barcelona into a sale is the big question. Manager Hansi Flick should be desperate to keep hold of his winger, having told reporters last season: “He has good dynamics with the ball and he has had an extraordinary match. His offensive and defensive dynamics, and his good technique, are something special. I have never had a player like him and he helps us a lot.”

Forget Cunha & Mbeumo: "Explosive" Man Utd star is coded for the Fergie era

After a generally productive international break for many of Rangers’ stars, can they bring this form back to Glasgow?

John Souttar, Liam Kelly and Connor Barron were all part of the Scotland squad that remarkably qualified for a first World Cup in 28 years, while Nicolas Raskin started both of Belgium’s matches as they booked their spot in North America, thrashing Liechtenstein in the midfielder’s hometown of Liège.

On Tuesday, striker Bojan Miovski scored his ninth goal for North Macedonia, albeit there was little cause for celebration given that his team were demolished 7-1 by Wales in Cardiff, their heaviest defeat for two and a half years.

While Miovski being back among the goals is undoubtedly good news for Danny Röhl, he does need to improve his performances on the domestic stage.

Rangers' lack of attacking firepower

While many supporters would blame now-dismissed manager Russell Martin’s ineptitude, the club’s poor recruitment over the summer is surely the key factor behind their underwhelming form this season.

This is most abundantly clear in attacking areas where, despite being a goal machine during his two seasons at Aberdeen, Miovski has netted only twice since joining Rangers from Girona for £2.6m in August.

Meantime, Youssef Chermiti has scored only once for the club so far, despite arriving from Everton for £8m, potentially rising to £10m with add-ons, thereby making him the club’s most expensive signing of the post-liquidation era, surpassed only by Tore André Flo’s move in 2000.

This is in complete contrast to last season when Rangers’ top three scorers, namely Cyriel Dessers, Václav Černý and Hamza Igamane, bagged 63 goals between them across all competitions, which represented 55% of all goals the club netted.

With the trio having all departed, new manager Röhl requires the attacking players he has inherited to step up and start contributing, something one “huge talent” in particular is yet to do thus far.

Thelwell signing has been a bigger waste than Chermiti & Miovski

In the summer, Rangers spent around £30m on 13 new recruits, including splashing a reported £5m to sign Thelo Aasgaard from Luton Town.

Upon his arrival, Scottish football analyst Kai Watson labelled him a “technical dribbler” who “loves to take on opponents and get shots away”, while journalist Jamie Allen asserted that he was a “huge talent”.

However, supporters have not seen very much of that thus far, with Aasgaard’s most noteworthy contribution being that red card he received during the League Cup semi-final defeat to Celtic at Hampden.

The table below underlines the fact that Aasgaard has not performed as expected to date. Aasgaard’s statistics are not terrible when compared to his Rangers teammates, ranked second for shots, first in terms of shots on target as well as in the top four when it comes to successful dribbles per 90.

Minutes

1,041

9th

Goals

1

7th

Assists

1

8th

Shots per 90

1.7

2nd

Shots on target per 90

1

1st

Big chances missed

2

2nd

Accurate passes per 90

19.2

12th

Key passes per 90

0.8

8th

Successful dribbles per 90

1.4

4th

Average rating

6.76

8th

Ultimately, however, he has scored only one for the club to date, on target against Dundee United last month, registering his first assist at Dens last time out, albeit scorer Djeidi Gassama did do most of the work.

This lack of end-product has seen his estimated market value, as recorded by Football Transfers, drop to around £3.4m, well below the fee Rangers paid to sign him.

Meantime, the Merseyside-born winger has been on fire for Norway, scoring four times in 24 minutes as his national team demolished Moldova 11-1 at the Ullevål in September, having marked his international debut with a goal in the reverse fixture in Chișinău back in March.

Thus, with Norway back at the World Cup for the first time since France ’98, Aasgaard will certainly be included in Ståle Solbakken’s squad that travels to North America next summer, but he’ll be desperate to improve his club form before then.

In Glasgow, Aasgaard has started three of Danny Röhl’s six matches in charge, but was introduced off the bench during the last two against Roma and Dundee.

With Röhl having switched to a 3-4-2-1 formation, there is one fewer attacking position up for grabs, and Aasgaard so far is not doing enough to suggest he should be ahead of Gassama, Miovski, Chermiti, Danilo or Mikey Moore in the pecking order.

Considering he cost £5m, surely Sporting Director Kevin Thelwell envisaged that the Norwegian would be a guaranteed starter, but this is certainly not the case. Considering he was a player that Martin pushed to sign, it isn’t ideal when the manager is sacked after just 15 matches in charge.

Thus, while Chermiti and Miovski have established themselves as key figures in Röhl’s team, one could certainly argue that Aasgaard has been the biggest waste of money from last summer.

Rangers star looks set to become Ibrox's new Hamza Igamane under Rohl

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ByBen Gray Nov 16, 2025

وافقت أندية الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، أليوم الجمعة، على تطبيق حد الرواتب وقانون الاستدامة قصيرة وطويلة الأجل، وذلك بدءًا من موسم 2026-2027، لكنها رفضت حد الإنفاق، حسب بيان رسمي اليوم.

وأوضحت الرابطة أن حد الرواتب يعني أن الفرق لا يمكنها إنفاق أكثر من 85% من إيراداتها على الرواتب ورسوم الوكلاء، بينما يقيس قانون الاستدامة والمرونة قدرة الأندية على الوفاء بالتزاماتها المالية قصيرة وطويلة الأجل.

وأشارت إلى إنه في ضوء ذلك، لم يحظ حد الإنفاق بدعم كاف لإقراره، وكان سيقيد إنفاق الأندية بخمسة أضعاف ما يكسبه الفريق صاحب المركز الأخير من حقوق البث التلفزيوني وجوائز مالية على فرقه.

وأفادت أنه بناءً على موسم 2023-2024 (آخر موسم تتوفر عنه أرقام دقيقة)، كان هذا يعني أن الأندية لا يمكنها إنفاق سوى 550 مليون جنيه إسترليني (630 مليون يورو).

اقرأ أيضًا | إعلان موعد انطلاق الدوري الإنجليزي 2026/27.. وتأثير كأس العالم

وأكدت الرابطة في بيانها: “يهدف الحد الأقصى الجديد للرواتب إلى تعزيز تكافؤ الفرص للأندية الطموحة، ويقرب النظام المالي للدوري الإنجليزي من الحد الأقصى الحالي للرواتب في الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم، والذي يعمل بنسبة 70%”.

وحظى قانوني حد الرواتب وقانون الاستدامة قصيرة وطويلة الأجل بدعم إجماعي من الأندية، ولكن لم يحظ حد الإنفاق إلا على 7 أصوات مؤيدة، في حين هناك ضرورة إلى الحصول على 14 صوت من الأندية من أصل 20.

وعلى الرغم من أن تحديث لوائح الإنفاق الحالية ضروري لنمو الدوري، إلا أن العديد من الجهات المرتبطة بالدوري الإنجليزي هددت بالفعل باتخاذ إجراءات قانونية في حال تطبيق هذه الإجراءات.

وأكدت رابطة لاعبي كرة القدم المحترفين قبل أيام أنها ستلجأ إلى القضاء في حال لم يأخذ الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز بعين الاعتبار آراء اللاعبين عند تحديد أرباحهم المحتملة.

Returning quicks close out soggy win after Markram, Brevis and Ferreira cameos

Firdose Moonda10-Sep-2025

Don’t read too much into it, but South Africa took the lead in the three-match T20I series against England after winning a game initially reduced to nine overs a side by batting for 7.5 and then defending an adjusted five-over target.Wet conditions in Cardiff stalked the match throughout as play began two hours and 20 minutes after the scheduled 6.30pm start, and was then interrupted with seven balls remaining in South Africa’s innings.South Africa were on track for a total over 100 thanks to a top-score of 28 from captain Aiden Markram, who sold for R14 million (US$800,000 approx.) at Tuesday’s SA20 auction and hit two fours and two sixes in the 14 balls he faced. Markam shared in a 32-run second-wicket stand with Lhuan-dre Pretorius before Dewald Brevis and Donovan Ferreira put on 36 off 15 balls to form the spine of a competitive total.A heavy burst of rain ended South Africa’s innings prematurely and England were set a reduced target of 69 of 30 balls. With a required run rate of 13.8 an over, their task was always going to be tough but losing Phil Salt and Harry Brook for ducks made it even more difficult. Jos Buttler returned to the top of the order and scored 25 off 11 but needed support against South Africa’s top seamers to challenge for the result to go England’s way.Wood proves his worthEngland made a late change to include left-arm seamer Luke Wood in their XI in place of Jofra Archer, who was wrapped in cotton wool in wet conditions. Wood seized his opportunity: his second ball, and first to the left-handed Ryan Rickelton, swung away, Rickelton drove with no footwork and edged to Buttler for a golden duck.Luke Wood claimed Ryan Rickelton for a first-ball duck•AFP/Getty Images

Markram hit Wood over mid-off for the innings’ first boundary later in that over, then back over his head for six and over mid-on for four at the start of his second over but Wood came back well. Pretorius tried to hit over the leg side but miscued towards mid-off where Brook dived forward to take a stunning catch and Wood ended with 2 for 22.Brevis justifies the big bucksAfter breaking the SA20 pay record and selling for R16.5 million (approx US$944,000) a little over 24 hours ago, Brevis is expected to produce big things and he delivered. When Liam Dawson was brought on in the fifth over, Brevis played the no-look six first up and then smashed a low full toss into the sightscreen for six more. He is a strong player of spin and dispatched Adil Rashid too, over midwicket for his third six.But when Sam Curran was brought on, to bowl his first international spell of the year, he foxed Brevis with an ultra-slow slower ball that Brevis played too early and edged to third. Still, his cameo in partnership with Ferreira showed off his quality – and the reason Pretoria Capitals were willing to splash the cash.Dewald Brevis drills a six down the ground•AFP/Getty Images

Welcome back, South Africa’s strike bowlersThe wisdom of picking Kagiso Rabada, who sat out the ODIs in both England and Australia with ankle inflammation and will have a big role to play in upcoming tours to Pakistan and India, and Marco Jansen, who has not played for almost three months, could have been questioned but both seemed keen to be back.Rabada’s first ball back was full to Phil Salt, who picked out Kwena Maphaka at deep backward square with precision. Rabada barely had time to celebrate his early strike before Buttler hit his fourth and fifth balls, both pace-off, for four and then six to close out the over strongly.Jansen beat Jacob Bethell to start but was then dispatched over midwicket for six before he had him caught at cover. After Brook missed a coupe, Jansen then found extra bounce to beat his uppercut and ended with a slower ball. He bowled a second over, mixed up his pace well and ended with the wicket of Buttler, caught off the inside edge, to end the game as a contest.South Africa were without Lungi Ngidi, ruled out of the series with a hamstring strain sustained at training on Tuesday, and Keshav Maharaj, who tweaked his groin during the warm-ups. Nandre Burger will replace Ngidi – who is due to fly home on Thursday – and will join up with the squad ahead of Friday’s second T20I in Manchester.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Palmeiras aguarda o desfecho da negociação com o Zenit, da Rússia, para vender o atacante Artur. O clube alviverde está disposto a liberar o atleta pelos 15 milhões de euros (R$ 80,5 mi, na cotação) oferecidos pelos russos – além de outros 3 milhões de euros (R$ 16,11 mi, na cotação atual) por metas atingidas. O jogador, no entanto, não se vê convencido a mudar de ares e ainda não bateu o martelo.

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O próprio Zenit também não trata a negociação como prioridade e tirou o pé há alguns dias. A equipe de São Petersburgo foca em outras tratativas que serão desenroladas durante a janela de transferências.

➡️ Tudo sobre o Verdão agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso novo canal Lance! Palmeiras

O Verdão e o antigo estafe de Artur foram as partes que mais se mostraram empolgadas com o fechamento do negócio. O clube alviverde, no início, até foi relutante, já que firmou o retorno do atacante recentemente, em março de 2023, mas considerou o valor oferecido pelos russos, já que os números, contando as bonificações, representam o dobro do que foi investido em menos de um ano.

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Outro motivo que faz a direção palmeirense considerar negociar o camisa 14 é o desempenho em campo. Importante no seu retorno ao Palmeiras, o jogador terminou a temporada perdendo espaço na equipe titular e fora da espinha dorsal da equipe montada pelo técnico Abel Ferreira.

➡️ Chapéu! Como Abel Ferreira atuou na negociação de Caio Paulista com o Palmeiras

Ainda que não esteja dando muita atenção para a negociação, o Zenit mantém o interesse em ter Artur. Assim, a decisão sobre a evolução das tratativas passa diretamente pelo atleta.

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Como trocou recentemente de agente, o atacante tem vivido menos “pressão” para definir o futuro profissional e reflete sobre a situação enquanto passa férias no Ceará.

Curacao have become the smallest nation ever to reach the World Cup after a 0-0 draw with Jamaica in their final qualifying game. Curacao finished the third round qualifying stage at the top of Group B with 12 points from six games, one more than Jamaica. Ex-England boss Steve McClaren resigned from his post with Jamaica immediately after the final whistle. The other teams that sealed direct qualification from CONCACAF are Haiti and Panama.

Curacao break Iceland's record

With a goalless draw against Jamaica in their final qualifying match, Curacao became the smallest nation ever to book a berth in the World Cup finals. The record was previously held by Iceland, who made it to the World Cup in Russia in 2018. However, in terms of size and population, the European nation is much bigger than the Central American country, who have a population of just over 150,000 and a land area of 171 square miles. 

Curacao will be the fourth country to make their debut at the 2026 World Cup alongside Cape Verde, Jordan and Uzbekistan. It is an incredible achievement for a nation that only became a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 2010, following the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles. Only 10 years ago, their FIFA ranking was 150th, but they now sit at 82nd. 

AdvertisementGettyMcClaren resigns after draw against Curacao

Former Manchester United assistant coach McClaren, who initially took charge of the Jamaica national team in 2024, has resigned from his post following the draw against Curacao.

McClaren said: "Over the last 18 months, I have given everything I have to this job. Leading this team has been one of the greatest honours of my career. But football is a results business and tonight we have fallen short of our goal, which was to qualify from this group. It is the responsibility of the leader to step forward, take accountability and make decisions in the best interests of the team. 

"After deep reflection and an honest assessment of where we are and where we need to go, I have decided to step down as head coach of the Jamaican national team. Sometimes the best thing a leader can do is to recognise when a fresh voice, new energy and a different perspective is required to move this team forward."

'It's incredible and amazing'

Curacao midfielder Juninho Bacuna, formerly of Rangers and Birmingham, was excited ahead of the clash as he told BBC Radio 5 Live: "It's crazy and would be one of the biggest things that will happen to Curacao. It's incredible and amazing. Even a few years ago, you would not have even thought about it. To be personally part of it and to make that dream come true would be incredible."

Curacao boss Dick Advocaat, who has previously coached the Netherlands and Belgium, will become the oldest manager at the World Cup at 78. This record was previously held by Otto Rehhagel when he managed Greece in 2010 at 71. 

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AFPCan Jamaica still qualify for the 2026 World Cup?

Despite the disappointing draw, Jamaica still have a shot at qualification. They will take part in a six-team mini-tournament in Mexico next March, where they will have to win two games. It will end in a final against DR Congo or Iraq. It remains to be seen who will succeed McClaren in the Reggae Boyz hot seat as preparations for the playoffs get underway.