OKLAHOMA CITY — Six-time NBA All-Star Luka Doncic has opened up about his unconventional hamstring injury recovery process, revealing Wednesday that he traveled to Spain to receive a series of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections in a bid to shorten his projected eight-week layoff. Doncic has been out of the Los Angeles Lakers lineup since suffering the hamstring injury on April 2.”I went to Spain to do PRP,” Doncic told assembled reporters ahead of Game 2 of the Lakers’ Western Conference Semifinals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. “Everybody knows that it’s one of the best countries to get this procedure done. We coordinated the entire plan with the Lakers’ medical staff, and everyone signed off on the trip.”Doncic explained that the treatment structure required an extended stay overseas, as each PRP injection called for four days of rest between sessions. He completed four total injections, leading to his prolonged time in Spain. “I know and trust a lot of people I’ve worked with before in Spain, so that made the decision even easier,” he added. As of his Wednesday update, the star guard said he has progressed to light running in his rehabilitation, but has not yet resumed any contact drills or full-court scrimmage work.Doncic’s absence was already felt in the series opener Tuesday, as the Thunder pulled away to a 108-90 win over the short-handed Lakers in Oklahoma City. For the All-Star, watching from the sidelines has been an emotionally draining experience, especially during the high-stakes postseason.”It’s very frustrating. I don’t think people understand how frustrating it is,” Doncic said. “All I want to do is play basketball, especially this time of year — this is the best time to play. It’s tough to watch my team compete from the stands, even though I’m so proud of how they’ve stepped up. It’s been really hard to sit out.”Despite his desperation to rejoin the lineup, Doncic emphasized he is prioritizing long-term caution over a rushed return. The forward noted he has experienced negative outcomes from rushing back from injuries earlier in his career, and this first-time hamstring injury requires extra care.”It’s a tough balance for me. I’ve come back from injuries too soon before, and it wasn’t the best result,” he said. “This is the first time I’ve had a hamstring injury, and it’s not like other injuries I’ve dealt with. You have to be very careful. I’m doing everything possible to get back on the court as soon as I’m safely able.”The series is set to continue Thursday night, with Game 2 tipping off at the Thunder’s home arena in Oklahoma City.
分类： sports
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Cardiff sign ex-Australia prop Sio from Exeter
Cardiff Rugby has moved quickly to fill its front-row vacancy left by Corey Domachowski’s departure to the Scarlets, announcing the signing of experienced 34-year-old prop Scott Sio, who will join the United Rugby Championship side this summer following four seasons with England’s Exeter Chiefs.
Sio’s decades-long elite rugby career has seen him compete at the very top of the international sport, with an unusual cross-national representative journey. After earning 74 caps for the Australian Wallabies, including a starting spot in the 2015 Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand and a place in the 2019 tournament squad, he switched his international allegiance to Samoa last year. He went on to play a key role in helping Samoa secure qualification for the 2026 Rugby World Cup, following in the footsteps of his father David, who represented Western Samoa at the 1991 World Cup.
Before his move to Exeter in 2022, Sio made 143 appearances for Australia’s Super Rugby side Brumbies. To date, he has notched up 80 caps for the Exeter Chiefs, with 13 starts coming in the current 2024/25 season. When he arrives at Cardiff Arms Park, he will compete for starting positions alongside existing props Danny Southworth and Rhys Barratt.
In a statement following the announcement of the signing, Sio said he is eager to bring his decades of elite experience to Cardiff’s young roster, both on and off the pitch. “With this new opportunity I am looking to continue growing as an individual and player, while contributing to the club’s aspirations,” he explained. “I am also hoping that I can bring my wealth of experience to this young squad, especially with props coming through, to help the club both on and off the field.”
Cardiff head coach Corniel van Zyl shared his enthusiasm for the signing, noting that Sio’s proven track record and professional attitude made him an ideal addition to the squad. “We had a really open and honest conversation with Scott when we met him and we were really impressed,” van Zyl said. “His career to date speaks for itself, 74 Tests for Australia, two for Samoa, over 100 games for Brumbies and 80 for Exeter. He is durable, has played at the highest level and is keen to test himself in a new environment and competition.”
Sio’s arrival comes as Cardiff reshuffles its front-row roster: Domachowski has moved to the Scarlets, while fellow prop Ed Byrne departed earlier to return to Ireland’s Leinster on a short-term deal after two injury-plagued seasons in Cardiff. Sio is the club’s second confirmed new signing for the upcoming campaign, following last week’s announcement of a deal for Namibian centre Le Roux Malan from the Sharks. The Blue and Blacks have also locked down key talent for future seasons, agreeing new contract extensions with Welsh internationals Josh Adams, Alex Mann, James Botham, Mason Grady, Keiron Assiratti and Danny Southworth.
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Piqué gets 6-match suspension and 2-month ban for altercation with match officials in 2nd division
MADRID — In a disciplinary decision released this Wednesday, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has handed former Spanish national team and FC Barcelona icon Gerard Piqué a six-match ban, following controversial comments he directed at match officials during a recent Segunda División fixture. Piqué, who owns FC Andorra, has also been barred from carrying out his duties as the club’s majority owner for a two-month period, penalties stemming from incidents that unfolded during Andorra’s 1-0 home defeat to Albacete on 1 May.
The disciplinary body has additionally levied a €1,500 ($1,762) fine against FC Andorra itself, and ordered the partial closure of the club’s stadium for two upcoming league matches. According to the official RFEF report documenting the exchange, Piqué told a match official: “In another country, they would tear you apart, but here in Andorra we are a civilized country.”
Piqué first acquired FC Andorra back in 2018 alongside a consortium of fellow investors, at a time when the small club — based in the tiny Pyrenean microstate wedged between Spain and France — was competing in Spain’s fifth tier of domestic soccer. Founded in 1942, the side had spent the vast majority of its 81-year history competing in the lower divisions of the Spanish football pyramid before Piqué’s takeover.
Under Piqué’s ownership, FC Andorra has climbed rapidly through the league system, securing promotion to the Segunda División in 2022. At the current stage of the 2023-2024 campaign, the club holds 10th position in the 22-team second-tier standings, a solid mid-table performance for a side that reached the professional ranks just two seasons ago. The disciplinary sanctions mark a rare high-profile disciplinary action against a high-profile club owner in Spanish football, bringing renewed attention to standards of conduct for club officials toward match officials. -
NFL player Stefon Diggs found not guilty of attacking personal chef
NFL wide receiver Stefon Diggs has been cleared of all criminal charges stemming from allegations of assault by his former personal live-in chef, Jamila Adams, after a jury in Massachusetts reached a not guilty verdict following two days of deliberations. The 32-year-old veteran player, who became a free agent after being released by the New England Patriots in March 2024, had consistently denied the accusations of felony strangulation and misdemeanor assault, which were alleged to have occurred during a December 2, 2024 altercation. Adams accused Diggs of slapping and choking her during an argument, while prosecutors told jurors the dispute grew out of a romantic relationship between the two that had turned sour. Adams’ legal counsel ultimately acknowledged to the jury that his client had not been a completely reliable witness, though he still urged the panel to consider her testimony as valid, reporting from the Associated Press confirmed. Diggs’ defense team pushed back aggressively against the claims, framing the allegations as rooted in a non-violent financial disagreement rather than any physical attack. In post-verdict comments to media outlets, Diggs’ lead attorney Mitch Schuster highlighted what his team has argued is a common unfair trend facing high-profile professional athletes: opportunistic targeting for financial gain. “We were eager for the facts to come to light through the legal process,” Schuster stated in an official statement. “Professional athletes have a target on their back. When someone sees a uniform and a contract, they see leverage; they see a settlement. This case represents exactly the kind of opportunistic targeting that players can face the moment they step off the field.” The verdict closes a months-long legal process that has hung over Diggs’ professional future since he parted ways with the Patriots. The wide receiver joined New England in 2024 on a one-year deal worth up to $69 million, with $51 million guaranteed, but was released ahead of the 2025 offseason as he battled the legal claims. Now that the case has concluded, all attention has shifted to which NFL franchise will sign the free agent wide receiver, who has long been one of the league’s most productive offensive playmakers. A spokesperson for the NFL, Brian McCarthy, told ESPN that the league will continue reviewing the case under its official personal conduct policy, confirming that the organization had monitored the court proceedings throughout. It remains unclear whether the league will pursue any internal disciplinary action against Diggs following the acquittal, as the review process is still ongoing.
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Victorian government overturns World Cup venue ban
For nearly two decades, Melbourne’s iconic Federation Square has stood as the beating heart of Australian World Cup fandom, drawing thousands of passionate supporters together to cheer on the national team under open skies. But earlier this year, the venue’s manager, Melbourne Arts Precinct, ended that long-running tradition, announcing a full ban on public screenings for the 2026 FIFA World Cup – a decision that has now been reversed by the top level of the Victorian state government.
The original ban stemmed from repeated incidents of unruly, damaging behavior by a small subset of fans at past major tournament screenings. During Australia’s historic round-of-16 run at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, viral videos of jubilant crowd celebrations hid underlying trouble: multiple people were injured by illegally deployed flares and thrown projectiles. Tensions boiled over again at the 2023 Women’s World Cup, when fans charged barricades during Australia’s semi-final clash with England. The chaos forced organizers to cancel the planned public screening of the Matildas’ third-place playoff match at the venue, leaving thousands of supporters disappointed.
Citing these past disruptions, Melbourne Arts Precinct CEO and director Katrina Sedgwick announced the full ban in early March, arguing that the behavior of a small minority had been “unacceptable and damaging to Fed Square” and could not be tolerated for the upcoming 2026 tournament. The decision marked the first time in more than 20 years that the venue would not open its big screen to the public for World Cup matches, a tradition stretching back to the Socceroos’ legendary 2006 World Cup campaign.
But the announcement sparked immediate backlash from Australia’s peak football governing body Football Australia, fan groups, and the general public, who pushed for state leaders to intervene. Football Australia CEO Martin Kugeler argued the ban ran counter to Melbourne’s identity as Australia’s sporting and multicultural capital, pointing to the decades of shared iconic memories created at Federation Square screenings. Patrick Clancy, chair of the Football Supporters Association Australia, added that the viral global reach of 2022 Fed Square celebrations had turned the venue into a global symbol of Australian football passion, and fans were eager to recreate that collective energy for the 2026 tournament. The governing body also noted that a ban would harm local businesses that rely on the influx of tens of thousands of fans for tournament screenings.
Heeding that call, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan overturned the ban in an official statement, making clear that she believed the community deserved the chance to gather for free, shared entertainment. “I disagree with that decision – and I am overturning it,” Allan said. “There’s always a risk of bad behaviour from a few at every public gathering, but police and security will be on site, and there’ll be zero tolerance for it. Now more than ever, people deserve more free stuff to do together in the city.”
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, kicks off on June 11, with the final scheduled for July 19. Australia’s national team has been drawn into a group with Turkey, Paraguay, and co-host the United States, and will now have their matches broadcast for free on Federation Square’s big screen for fans across the state to attend.
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DeChambeau to focus on YouTube if LIV Golf fails
The future of the controversial breakaway golf circuit LIV Golf hangs in the balance after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) confirmed it will end its multi-billion-dollar financial backing by the close of 2024, leaving one of the league’s biggest stars, two-time U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, mapping out an alternative path centered on digital content creation. The 32-year-old American, who claimed the 2020 and 2024 U.S. Open titles, recently pushed back on recent speculation that he planned to exit LIV before his current contract expires at the end of the season, dismissing those reports as “completely untrue.”
Speaking to ESPN ahead of this week’s LIV Golf tournament hosted at Trump National Golf Club, DeChambeau opened up about his backup plan if the league fails to secure new funding to survive beyond 2024. He revealed that he intends to prioritize scaling up his popular YouTube channel, with ambitious goals to grow its audience threefold or even more by adding multi-language dubbing to make his content accessible to a global audience. Beyond digital expansion, the golfer said he would only continue competing in professional tournaments that actively invite his participation.
DeChambeau’s current contract with LIV is set to expire at the end of the 2024 season. Prior to PIF’s bombshell announcement that it would withdraw funding, he was in talks to sign a highly lucrative new extension, with industry reports indicating he was seeking a $500 million deal to remain with the breakaway league. The two-time major winner admitted that the PIF’s decision came as a complete surprise; he had been under the impression the fund would back LIV Golf through to 2032. To date, he says he has received no direct communication from PIF leadership addressing the funding pullout, noting simply that “things are moving on in a different direction.”
Launched in 2022, LIV Golf sent shockwaves through the professional golf world when it lured dozens of top-ranked players away from the established PGA Tour with the promise of enormous appearance fees and prize purses, creating a bitter divide that has defined men’s professional golf for the past two years. DeChambeau was one of the most high-profile golfers to make the jump to LIV in 2022, and earlier this year he rejected an opportunity to rejoin the PGA Tour through the circuit’s returning member program.
DeChambeau argued that the ongoing rift in professional golf could be resolved if all parties set aside their personal interests and egos to work toward growing the sport on a global scale. “Everybody needs to come in with a level-headed playing field, with an opportunistic mindset to grow the game of golf. That’s why I came over here. That’s why I do what I do on YouTube,” he explained. LIV Golf’s current leadership is now actively searching for alternative private investment to keep the league operating, as it transitions to governance under a newly established independent board.
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Amputee football players in Rwanda find healing and a sense of community
Against the backdrop of Kigali, Rwanda’s rolling hills, a revolutionary form of athletic competition is transforming lives and stitching together the fabric of a nation still healing from deep historical trauma. On grassy community pitches, athletes balance on crutches, striking them against one another in playful competition as they chase a football — and a shared, ambitious dream of competing on the world’s biggest stage for their sport. In the stands, young children scream with delight as a one-armed goalkeeper dives full-stretch to block a shot with her only functional hand, a moment that captures both the grit and joy that define this growing movement.
Amputee football, a modified seven-a-side variant where outfield players maneuver across the pitch on crutches and goalkeepers are restricted to one functional arm, has expanded steadily across Rwanda over the past 10 years. For athletes who once assumed competitive sport was forever out of reach after limb loss, the pitch has become more than a place to play: it is a community, a path to physical rehabilitation, and a space to reclaim a sense of belonging after life-altering injury or trauma.
Much of the sport’s growth in Rwanda is rooted in the country’s long road to recovery from its darkest chapter: the 1994 genocide, where an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in a 100-day campaign of violence, leaving thousands of survivors living with amputations and other permanent disabilities. Today, amputee football brings together people from all backgrounds — genocide survivors, accident survivors, and people who have lost limbs to illness — to build connection across divides.
For Nyiraneza Solange, the sport has been life-changing. Born two years after the genocide, Solange lost her leg at age 5 following a fall that developed into a severe infection. She was drawn to the sport after witnessing the extraordinary resilience of genocide survivors who had limb loss, and was encouraged by the coach of Rwanda’s first-ever amputee football team, who told her she could adapt her crutches to compete. She quickly cast aside her fears, and now says she rarely thinks about her amputation while playing. “I don’t even think about I don’t have a leg,” she explained. On the pitch, she feels completely free, and has overcome the deep social stigma that once surrounded her status as an amputee.
Official estimates place the number of lower-limb amputees in Rwanda at more than 3,000, a population encompassing genocide survivors, road accident victims, and people affected by chronic illness. Louise Kwizera, vice president of the Rwanda Amputee Football Federation, says the sport does more than build physical fitness: it helps people learn to trust one another again, rebuilding unity in a society that was once torn apart by division. “In communities affected by conflict or trauma, the playing field becomes a place of peace,” Kwizera told the Associated Press. “People who may have different pasts come together as teammates.”
Today, that growing community has its sights set on a major global milestone: Rwanda is preparing to field a full national women’s team for the second women’s amputee football World Cup, scheduled to take place in 2025 in either Poland or Brazil. The 2024 inaugural edition of the tournament only included one Rwandan competitor, making next year’s event a historic step forward for the country’s program. Amputee football, overseen globally by the World Amputee Football Federation, is now played in more than 50 countries, and Rwanda has built a robust domestic structure: five professional women’s teams and 10 men’s teams across the country.
Fred Sorrels, manager of the Haitian women’s amputee football team, recently traveled to Rwanda to support the development of the local program, and has thrown his support behind a potential future Rwandan bid to host the World Cup. While Rwandan sports authorities have not yet submitted a formal bid, Sorrels says he has seen firsthand the life-changing impact the sport has on participants. “It’s a win psychologically and mentally for these ladies to have an opportunity to experience wholeness and wellness again,” he said.
Gilbert Muvunyi Manier, director general of sports development at Rwanda’s Ministry of Sports, echoed that sentiment, describing amputee football as a “powerful tool” for national healing, intergroup reconciliation, and building social cohesion across the country.
Athletes acknowledge that the sport comes with unique challenges. Goalkeeper Nikuze Angelique, for example, notes that defending shots that bounce toward the side of her missing arm presents a constant technical hurdle. But like Solange, she emphasizes that the community she has found on the pitch far outweighs any challenges. As players posed for selfies after a recent training match, Angelique shared her hope that the team will qualify for next year’s World Cup — a milestone that would mark the fulfillment of a decades-long dream for Rwandan amputee athletes. “It will be a dream come true,” she said.
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Where do Bayern’s prolific trio rank in greatest front threes ever?
When Harry Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Diaz surge toward the opponent’s goal, opposition defenses rarely come away unscathed. From top-flight German sides to Champions League giants like Real Madrid and Atalanta, every team that has faced this Bayern Munich trio has seen firsthand just how lethal this attacking unit can be.
Since the three forwards first linked up at the Allianz Arena in August 2024, they have racked up more than 100 goals across all club competitions this season, making them only the fifth European front three to hit the century mark since the turn of the 21st century. This historic milestone is one of the core reasons the Bavarian giants are on the cusp of a historic treble, having already secured the Bundesliga title last month and now competing for the DFB Pokal and Champions League trophies. With the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain kicking off Wednesday — after a chaotic nine-goal first leg left Bayern trailing 5-4 — BBC Sport journalists Keifer MacDonald and Charlotte Coates break down how this dynamic trio stacks up against the greatest forward threes in modern football.
Three-man forward lines have been a foundational tactical setup across football history, but the system has seen a major mainstream resurgence over the past 15 years. This revival can be traced directly to Pep Guardiola’s dominant Barcelona side between 2008 and 2012, where Guardiola built a trophy-winning dynasty around a fluid possession-based system centered on a mobile front three. Though Lionel Messi, a nine-time Ballon d’Or winner, was typically positioned as the nominal central attacker, he frequently dropped deep to pull opposing defenders out of shape, create gaps for his attacking teammates, or add a numerical advantage in midfield. This flexible, unstoppable style delivered 14 major trophies for Barcelona during Guardiola’s first tenure, cementing the three-front system as a go-to for elite clubs across the continent.
In the years following Barcelona’s breakthrough, teams from Real Madrid to PSG began adopting similar tactical setups. In the Premier League, the closest parallel to Guardiola’s legendary front three came from Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, where Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah fired the club to both a Premier League title and a Champions League crown across five seasons together. Mirroring Messi’s role at Barcelona, Firmino served as the central forward, dropping between opposition lines to link play with midfield and open up attacking channels for Mane and Salah to exploit. The trio is widely considered one of the greatest attacking units in English football history, having claimed a full haul of major domestic and European honors.
Today, that mantle has passed to Bayern Munich, who have carefully constructed this dominant attacking unit through three consecutive summer transfer windows starting in 2023. After all three forwards got on the scoresheet in last week’s thriller against PSG, the club made German football history: no Bayern front three had ever hit the 100-goal mark in a single season before, with the previous high of 99 goals set by Gerd Muller, Uli Hoeness and Willi Hoffman back in 1972-73.
Century-goal front threes remain an extraordinary rarity in modern European football. Since the 2013-14 season, only five different attacking trios have broken the 100-goal barrier, and three of those came from the same legendary Barcelona unit: Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar. Across three consecutive seasons from 2014-15 to 2016-17, the iconic Barcelona trio hit 122, 131 and 111 goals respectively, setting a benchmark that has yet to be matched. Real Madrid’s iconic trio of Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema also hit the 100-goal mark in the 2014-15 season, while Liverpool’s Salah-Firmino-Mane unit came close in 2017-18, finishing with a total of 91 strikes.
Now, Bayern’s Kane-Olise-Diaz trio has joined that exclusive 100-goal club, leading to inevitable comparisons with the treble-chasing PSG side they face in this year’s Champions League semi-finals. PSG itself once boasted a star-studded front three of Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, and currently fields a dynamic attacking unit led by Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. While Luis Enrique’s current PSG trio is not as prolific as Bayern’s century-mark unit, they overwhelm defenses with constant positional rotation and creative flair. Even so, the numbers don’t lie: this season, Dembele, Doue and Kvaratskhelia have combined for 48 goals, less than half of Bayern’s 101. Last campaign, PSG’s highest-scoring attacking trio (Dembele, Goncalo Ramos and Bradley Barcola) managed 72 goals in total, still far behind Bayern’s historic mark.
Beyond the raw goal count, the two sides’ front threes differ sharply in tactical approach. Bayern operates with a fixed, predictable structure that delivers consistent output week in and week out: Diaz lines up on the left flank, Olise on the right, and Kane leads the line as the out-and-out central striker. PSG, by contrast, leans fully into the fluid approach that popularized the modern three-front system, with forwards constantly swapping positions and stepping up to deliver in high-stakes matches. As the two sides prepare for a decisive second leg to decide who advances to the 2025 Champions League final, football fans will get to see whether Bayern’s historic, record-breaking attacking unit can overturn PSG’s first-leg lead and secure their place in the final — and cement their spot among the all-time great front threes.
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AFL 2026: Coaches hopeful for clarity and funding for full-time psychs
The Australian Football League’s recent mandate requiring all AFL and AFLW clubs to employ full-time in-house psychologists has sparked mixed reaction from two veteran senior coaches, who have raised practical and financial concerns over the new rule.
The regulation was introduced as a key disciplinary sanction against Carlton Football Club, stemming from the controversial Elijah Hollands incident that brought club mental health support protocols under intense scrutiny. AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon and executive Laura Kane formally announced the policy change earlier this week, with additional implementation details promised for release in the coming weeks.
Western Bulldogs head coach Luke Beveridge has publicly questioned the logic behind the strict full-time requirement, noting that his club’s existing psychologist already works a near-full-time schedule dedicated to player welfare. In comments to reporters, Beveridge said he remains confused by the wording of the new mandate, pointing to the disjointed, travel-heavy nature of the AFL competition that makes a rigid full-time role structure difficult to implement. “What happens in an AFL environment is we all take care of the players’ welfare,” Beveridge explained. “I think the empowerment of staff and the playing group to support each other is absolutely critical, and a skilled practitioner like our club psychologist Andrew Waterson is absolutely critical to any organisation. But it’s also your senior high performance management that needs to continue to oversee that and make sure everyone’s empowered to look after each other.”
Beyond the full-time psychologist rule, Beveridge also hit out at the AFL’s updated illicit drug policy, which bars club coaching staff from being informed when a player returns a positive drug test. He argued that this restriction directly undermines the quality of care clubs can provide to at-risk athletes, as coaches are left unable to address underlying mental health struggles that may be tied to substance use.For his part, Essendon senior coach Brad Scott centered his criticism on the financial burden the new mandate places on already cash-strapped clubs. Scott called on the AFL to either fully fund the new full-time psychology positions or exempt their salaries from the existing club soft salary cap, arguing the league’s inconsistent financial rules create unnecessary strain for club management.
“There’s this complex formula of exemptions that the AFL deem are more important than others. Whether that be setting a minimum spend for medical, setting a minimum spend for mental health and wellbeing,” Scott said. “Personally, it gets very frustrating when the AFL are reactive to something and decide you must spend on this after cutting the soft cap and dictating what we can and can’t do with our money. Clubs get held responsible, as Carlton have been in this case, and then the AFL come over the top and mandate things. It’s been a constant challenge that soft caps have been cut and clubs are forced to decide where to allocate money, then the AFL have an incident and respond like this.”The new mandate marks the AFL’s latest attempt to strengthen player mental health support across both the men’s and women’s competitions, but the pushback from two high-profile senior coaches signals ongoing debate over how best to structure welfare resources while balancing the operational constraints of individual clubs.
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Strasbourg on verge of European final amid fan displeasure at owners BlueCo
As RC Strasbourg Alsace prepares to write what could be the most iconic chapter in its 118-year history this Thursday, the historic French club finds itself caught between the thrill of a once-in-a-generation European achievement and simmering discontent over the ownership structure that got it here.
Strasbourg, which shares its BlueCo consortium ownership with English Premier League giant Chelsea, hosts La Liga side Rayo Vallecano at its recently upgraded Stade de la Meinau for the second leg of the UEFA Conference League semi-finals. Needing to overturn a narrow 1-0 deficit from the opening fixture in Madrid, Patrick Vieira’s side? No, Gary O’Neil, the English manager appointed earlier this year, will lead the squad out for the biggest match the club has ever contested on the continental stage. The winner of the tie will advance to the May 27 final in Leipzig, where they will face either England’s Crystal Palace or Ukraine’s Shakhtar Donetsk — neither of which have secured a European final spot before this tournament either.
For long-time supporters of the Strasbourg-based club, located on France’s eastern border with Germany and home to the European Parliament, even the prospect of reaching a continental final would have been unthinkable not long ago. The club has only ever claimed one Ligue 1 title, back in 1979, and its prior best European run came a year later, when it bowed out to Ajax in the European Cup quarter-finals. A memorable 1997 upset over Liverpool in the UEFA Cup remains the only other high-profile continental win in the club’s history, putting Thursday’s opportunity in stark context.
The road to this semi-final has not been an easy one. Just 15 years ago, Strasbourg was on the brink of extinction, forced into liquidation after catastrophic financial mismanagement that sent it tumbling down to the amateur regional fourth and fifth tiers of French football. After a painstaking rebuild led by club president and former Strasbourg player Marc Keller, the club fought its way back to Ligue 1 in 2017, nearly a decade after its relegation, and cemented its place as a steady top-flight outfit. But competing at a continental semi-final level remained out of reach with the club’s small, fan-aligned operating model — which is what led Keller’s board to approve BlueCo’s takeover in June 2023, one year after the American consortium purchased Chelsea.
“We were conscious that we had gone as far as we could with our existing model,” Keller explained to French broadcaster RMC after Strasbourg knocked out German side Mainz 05 in the quarter-finals. Since the takeover, significant investment has poured into the first team, allowing the club to bring in talented young players, many loaned in from Chelsea, and qualify for the Conference League on the back of a strong 2023-24 league campaign under former manager Liam Rosenior.
But that investment has come with a steep cost that has alienated the club’s core supporter base. Fans have grown increasingly frustrated by a clear pattern emerging under BlueCo: any player or coach that posts strong results at Strasbourg is quickly poached by the consortium’s flagship club, Chelsea, turning the French side into little more than a development feeder team. The anger boiled over in September 2024, when starting striker and fan favorite Emmanuel Emegha confirmed he would move to Stamford Bridge at the end of the season. Then, in January 2025, Chelsea poached Rosenior himself to take over as their first-team manager, a move that left supporters furious. Rosenior did little to defuse tensions, telling reporters he hoped Strasbourg fans would be proud that his work at the club earned him a job at a Champions League-winning side.
Rosenior was replaced by O’Neil, who has already guided Strasbourg to a French Cup semi-final defeat this season. Ahead of Thursday’s make-or-break tie, O’Neil has called for the full-throated support of the home crowd, saying: “Thursday’s game is the biggest in the club’s history. We will need the same support and energy that we got against Mainz.”
Yet the club’s most passionate and vocal supporters have no plans to set aside their grievances, even for a historic European night. Since the start of last season, leading supporters group Ultra Boys 90 has organized a silent protest for the first 15 minutes of every home match, holding their cheers to demonstrate their opposition to BlueCo’s ownership model. In an open letter published earlier this year, the group warned that Strasbourg’s current situation is a warning sign for football globally: “What is happening at Strasbourg is what the future could look like for the vast majority of clubs. They will be relegated to the role of feeder teams, without their own resources, with no soul and no link to where they come from.”
While the group is urging fans to gather outside the stadium ahead of kick-off to welcome the team bus, the 15-minute silent protest will go ahead as planned on Thursday. Despite the discontent, the recently renovated Stade de la Meinau — which expanded its capacity to 32,000 after the construction of a new main stand — is sold out once again for the semi-final. For many fans in the stands, the day will bring a complicated mix of emotion: the chance to cheer their club to a historic first European final, but a growing unease about whether the club they have supported for generations will retain its identity under its new American owners, even if it lifts a trophy that was won by BlueCo’s Chelsea just 12 months ago.