World Soccer – August 2019

ATHLETIC BILBAO, REAL SOCIEDAD,

EIBAR, OSASUNA & ALAVES

La Liga’s Basque region clubs agreed to fix

away fan ticket prices at €25.

DAVID MANSELL

The father of Partick Thistle’s Lewis Mansell

gave “life-saving” help to a fan during his son’s

Scottish League Cup tie at Hamilton Academical.

He provided CPR before emergency services

arrived after a supporter fell in the stands.

SADIO MANE

The Liverpool striker has built a school in his

local village in Senegal at a cost of €270,000.

He previously paid for the cost of building a

hospital and financed a stadium for the people.

FORT WILLIAM

The team from the Scottish Highlands had not

won a match for 840 days, but within hours of

the BBC airing a film on their plight they won

a game, beating Nairn County 5-2 in the North

of Scotland Cup.

JORIS GNAGNON

The Sevilla defender apologised for an

“odious” foul on Liverpool teenager Yasser

Larouci in a pre-season friendly.

MOOKETSI KGOTLELE

The former Botswana FA general-secretary

has been banned for life and fined $51,

by FIFA for “accepting bribes”.

MUSA BILITY

The former Liberia FA president and CAF ExCo

member was handed a 10-year ban by FIFA

and fined him $500,000.

NABIL DIRAR

The Fenerbahce wing-back tried to walk off

the pitch during a friendly against Bayern

Munich when his own fans jeered him but

was forced to stay on by coach Ersun Yanal.

The Women’s World Cup will increase from

24 to 32 teams for the next finals in 2023.

FIFA says it made the decision following the

“astounding success” of this summer’s World

Cup in France. According to president Gianni

Infantino, the aim is to “keep the momentum

going and take concrete steps to foster

the growth of women’s football”.

Infantino added: “The expansion

reaches far beyond the eight additional

participating teams: it means that,^

from now on, dozens more member

associations will organise their women’s

football programme knowing they have

a realistic chance of qualifying.

“The Women’s World Cup is

the most powerful trigger for the

professionalisation of the women’s

game, but it comes just once every

four years and is only the top of a

much greater pyramid.

“In the meantime, we all have a duty

to do the groundwork and strengthen

women’s football development

infrastructure across all confederations.”

HEROES VILLAINS

No charge...Cristiano Ronaldo

GLOBAL FOOTBALL INTELLIGENCE

Former Juventus Women defender Petronella Ekroth on the

club’s attitude to allegations about their star male player

“Juventus made us go quiet, we were not allowed

to say a single word about Ronaldo and his rape

accusations out loud. It felt a bit like I was in prison”

Fair...Athletic Bilbao (in

red) and Real Sociedad

Charitable...Sadio Mane

Jeered...Nabil Dirar tried to walk off the pitch