分类： sports

World Rugby has handed Italy men’s national rugby union head coach Gonzalo Quesada a two-match suspension, marking one of the first high-profile sanctions under the governing body’s sweeping new policy aimed at cracking down on abuse toward match officials. The suspension, announced by World Rugby on Thursday, was triggered automatically by critical comments Quesada made in broadcast interviews following Italy’s 47-17 defeat to the All Blacks (New Zealand) in last Saturday’s Nations Championship fixture held in Wellington.

The controversial turning point of the match came roughly 30 minutes before full-time, when Italian lock Niccolò Cannone was first issued a yellow sin-bin card by referee Luc Ramos for a head-butting incident. The foul was later upgraded to a permanent red card following a video review by the match’s officiating team, forcing Italy to play the remainder of the test with 14 players. Cannone has already received his own separate four-match suspension for the incident.

Under the terms of Quesada’s ban, the coach is barred from all match-day activities and prohibited from entering the stadium for Italy’s next two scheduled Nations Championship matches. He will miss this Saturday’s test against Australia in Perth and a home fixture against South Africa scheduled for November 7 in Turin. Quesada retains the right to file an appeal against the automatic sanction.

In his public post-match comments aired after the loss, Quesada acknowledged that New Zealand earned its lopsided win, noting “the All Blacks absolutely deserved the win; they played an extraordinary game.” Even so, he argued that officiating mistakes contributed significantly to the final scoreline, saying “I think the refereeing team was partly to blame for the score. They made a lot of mistakes today.” He also pushed back against the red card decision for Cannone, calling the call overly harsh. “I think the decision against Niccolò was harsh. It obviously forced the team to play with 10 men for a very long time. Every minute against the All Blacks lasts more than 60 seconds; playing with 10 men against them is really tough.”

World Rugby’s new automatic sanction process for official abuse, rolled out across all international rugby competitions earlier this month, was first approved during the governing body’s annual Shape of the Game forum held in London last February. The policy is explicitly designed to target critical public comments about officials, which World Rugby says have become a foundational driver of a sharp rise in unacceptable harassment and direct threats toward match officials at all levels of the sport. The framework’s automatic suspension rule is intended to deter harmful rhetoric before it translates to offline harm for the sport’s referees and officiating teams.

LONDON – In the wake of Argentina’s dramatic 2-1 victory over England in a 2024 FIFA World Cup semifinal held in Atlanta, a fresh diplomatic and sporting controversy has erupted over a display of political messaging during Argentine players’ post-match celebrations, prompting the British government to call for a formal investigation from global soccer’s governing body FIFA.

During jubilant celebrations following Wednesday’s final whistle, members of the Argentine national squad unfurled a banner passed to them from fans in the spectator stands that read “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” – a phrase translating to “The Malvinas are Argentine.” Argentina has long claimed sovereignty over the South Atlantic archipelago, which it calls Islas Malvinas; the territory is administered as a British Overseas Territory under the name Falkland Islands.

The act puts the Argentine team at risk of formal disciplinary action from FIFA, as the organization enforces strict regulations that prohibit any form of political expression or messaging on the field of play during official international tournaments. U.K. Business Secretary Peter Kyle publicly condemned the players’ actions in comments to the BBC, labeling the banner display “entirely inappropriate.”

Kyle emphasized that a core foundational principle of global international soccer competitions, including the World Cup, is the separation of political discourse from athletic competition. “That is now a matter for FIFA,” Kyle stated. “I expect FIFA to do its investigation thoroughly.”

Long-simmering political tensions over the Falkland Islands have long amplified the already fierce sporting rivalry between the English and Argentine men’s national soccer teams. The remote archipelago is home to roughly 3,500 permanent residents, sitting approximately 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) off the coast of the United Kingdom and just 300 miles (480 kilometers) off the Argentine mainland.

The dispute over territorial sovereignty stretches back nearly two centuries. Argentina asserts that British forces illegally seized the islands from its control in 1833, after Argentine authorities moved to assert sovereignty over the territory. For its part, the United Kingdom maintains its territorial claim dates back to 1765, and that British forces reaffirmed control in 1833 by expelling Argentine personnel that had occupied the islands.

The conflict boiled over into open war in 1982, when Argentine military forces invaded the archipelago. The resulting 10-week conflict ended in a British victory, but left a heavy human toll: 649 Argentine troops, 255 British service members, and three civilian islanders died in the fighting. The sovereignty dispute remains unresolved to this day, with the people of the Falkland Islands overwhelmingly affirming their desire to remain a British territory in multiple public referendums.

SOUTHPORT, England — The opening round of the British Open at Royal Birkdale delivered one of golf’s most unexpected early-storylines, as 26-year-old American rookie Jackson Suber claimed the first-day lead with a blistering 5-under-par 65, capping a stunning debut on traditional links golf just three days after stepping onto European soil for the first time.

A day of warm, swirling breezes stretched first-round play across 15 hours, packed with dramatic swings, surprising breakout performances from debutants and a high-profile rebuttal of a legendary critic from one of the game’s most controversial stars. Half of the top 12 players on the opening-day leaderboard are first-time British Open competitors, proving links golf can be as kind to newcomers as it is to seasoned veterans.

Few could have predicted Suber’s dream start. A former Ole Miss player who has yet to claim a professional win anywhere in the world and is playing just his third major championship, Suber entered the week with zero experience on a championship links course as demanding as Royal Birkdale. He shrugged off the steep learning curve with a clutch par save on the newly redesigned par-3 15th, where severe sloping on both sides of the green makes holding position notoriously difficult. He followed that up with a birdie on the par-4 16th, then produced a masterclass on the 17th: choking up on a 4-iron from 233 yards out, he landed his approach 6 feet from the pin to sink an eagle that catapulted him to the top of the leaderboard.

“Just kind of kept the ball in good spots and didn’t put much pressure on my game to make pars,” Suber said of his steady performance, which marked just his seventh round of play across any major championship.

Suber holds a one-stroke lead over South Korea’s Sungjae Im and England’s home hopeful Dan Brown, with nine players tied at 4-under 67. That group includes four more British Open debutants: Alex Smalley, Ryan Gerard, M.J. Daffue and Pierceson Coody.

One of the most talked-about performances of the day came from Bryson DeChambeau, who silenced three-time Open champion Nick Faldo’s recent criticism of his links strategy. DeChambeau, who has missed the cut in all three majors this year and largely avoided mainstream media since the Masters, fired a 4-under 67 that left him just two shots off Suber’s lead, defying Faldo’s claim earlier this week that “DeChambeau has zero clue of strategy.”

Faldo, speaking on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast, had argued that traditional links golf rewards controlled placement, not brute force: “You thread it, don’t you? You feed it down the fairway. … You don’t think, ‘Oh, I’ll just blast it down there.’” But DeChambeau turned that criticism on its head, using his signature long-drive strategy to carry Royal Birkdale’s fearsome fairway bunkers entirely, landing on 15 of 18 greens despite only hitting four fairways and rarely finding himself in serious trouble. He carded birdies on both the par-4 second and par-4 10th, blasting blind tee shots over hazards to land within striking distance of the green both times. Only a weak chip and missed putt on the 18th kept him from matching Suber’s score.

“I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic and focused super hard on placing it in the right places,” DeChambeau told reporters from the R&A after his round. “Besides 18, I placed the ball in some good areas. I just need to hit more fairways. Other than that, I feel like my strategy was nice today.”

The day also brought dramatic ups and downs for some of the game’s top-ranked players. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffer got off to a blistering start, birdying four of his first six holes to jump to 4-under, but failed to card another birdie over his final 12 holes, finishing with a 2-under 68. Scheffler, who played alongside DeChambeau, shrugged off the late cold streak, noting that the Open is a 72-hole tournament.

“If I continue to strike the ball the way I did today and just keep giving myself looks, that’s part of it,” Scheffler said. “Golf is played over 72 holes, and I definitely liked what I saw today.”

Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy suffered a far tougher opening, struggling with a sudden putting slump that saw him miss three 4-foot putts across a four-hole stretch on his way to a 1-over 72, six shots off the lead. One of the day’s unluckiest breaks hit debutant Alex Smalley, who held a share of the lead late until a wild bounce off a spectator fence sent his 18th tee shot out of bounds, resulting in a double bogey that dropped him back into the tie at 67.

“Got up to where the ball was supposed to be and was told it hit a spectator fence and kicked another 15 yards right out of bounds,” Smalley said. “All three of us in our group actually hit it over there, and mine just got an unlucky break. Poor tee shot, poor break. Sometimes that’s how it goes.”

Other notable players in the tie at 67 include 2018 Open champion Francesco Molinari, Cameron Young, Robert MacIntyre and Thomas Detry, all still well within striking distance of the lead heading into Friday’s second round.

PERTH, Australia – As outgoing head coach Joe Schmidt prepares to take charge of the Australian Wallabies for the final time this Saturday, the national rugby side has announced three key starting lineup changes for their upcoming Nations Championship clash with Italy, headlined by a hometown start for back-rower Carlo Tizzano. Tizzano will step into the starting scrum side in place of Fraser McReight, who turned in a standout performance as Australia’s best player in last week’s 42-26 defeat to Six Nations titleholders France in Brisbane. The shift of McReight from the starting XV to the reserve bench is widely viewed as a planned rotation move for the third consecutive weekend of tournament play.

Of the three starting lineup adjustments, two are forced by injury. Brandon Paenga-Amosa has been promoted to the starting hooker position after playing nearly the full match against France last week, when starting hooker Josh Nasser suffered a head injury in the opening minutes of the contest. On the wing, Harry Potter will step into the starting spot after Dylan Pietsch sustained a calf injury that rules him out of Saturday’s fixture.

Flyhalf Declan Meredith, who made his senior international debut against France last week, has been retained in the starting group. Ben Donaldson has recovered from injury to earn a spot on the reserves bench as backline cover, pushing out Jock Campbell for the match.

Schmidt, who first announced his departure from the head coaching role last year, has stayed in the position through the tournament to allow incoming coach Les Kiss time to wrap up his existing commitments with the Queensland Reds. Kiss will officially take over the Wallabies ahead of next month’s test series against Japan, and Schmidt is eager to end his tenure on a high note by snapping the team’s current six-match losing skid.

In his pre-match comments released Thursday, Schmidt acknowledged his side has shown flashes of strong form in recent fixtures but emphasized the need for sustained quality across 80 minutes. “We’ve shown some encouraging signs but we need to sustain our accuracy and effort throughout the match,” Schmidt said. “The challenge for us this week is to perform at a consistently high standard against a dangerous Italian side, who were hugely competitive in the Six Nations, beating both Scotland and England as well as running other teams close.”

Australia’s recent tournament results have been defined by collapsed second-half leads: after holding a 21-12 halftime advantage over France last week, the side conceded 30 consecutive unanswered points to drop the match, and in the tournament’s opening round in Sydney, Australia surrendered a 12-point lead to fall 33-31 to Ireland.

Italy enters Saturday’s matchup with its own challenges, having dropped both of its opening Nations Championship fixtures. Italy lost its tournament opener to Japan, followed by a 47-17 defeat to New Zealand last weekend. Lock Niccolo Cannone will miss the clash against the Wallabies, serving a four-week suspension after receiving a red card for a head-butt in the second half of the All Blacks match.

Australia’s full starting lineup for Saturday is: Tom Wright, Max Jorgensen, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Len Ikitau, Harry Potter, Declan Meredith, Ryan Lonergan; with captain Harry Wilson, Carlo Tizzano, Rob Valetini, Jeremy Williams, Josh Canham, Allan Alaalatoa, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, and Angus Bell. The reserves are: Billy Pollard, James Slipper, Zane Nonggorr, Miles Amatosero, Fraser McReight, Tate McDermott, Ben Donaldson, and Filipo Daugunu.