The Spanish midfield dynamo Xavi Hernandez (34), has announced his retirement from international football with immediate effect. He will now concentrate on club football with FC Barcelona. Xavi appeared 133 times for Spain and scored 13 goals. He said that he wanted to retire in 2012, after the European Championship, but coach Vicente Del Bosque, persuaded him to stay and participate in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. But he now thinks that the time is right for him to retire from the national team. ''I'm not 20 anymore, but I still have the motivation of a kid,'' he said in a press conference today. He won two European titles in 2008 and 2012 and he is also a World Cup champion in 2010. He had an amazing career with Spain, inspite of their disasterous performance in Brazil 2014.
The Formula 1 boss, Bernie Ecclestone's bribery trial in a Munich court in Germany, has ended with the English Billionaire agreeing, to settle the case with $100m. The German prosecutors agreed to the deal, because of the loophole that exists in the law, which allows for such. Ecclestone who denied any wrong-doing, was charged in April with paying a German banker, Gerhard Gribkowsky, who is now in jail, €33m to make sure that a company, he Ecclestone favoured, would buy stakes in F1. Gribkowsky was sentenced 8 years for the offence in 2012 and is now in jail. Prosecutors said that part of the reason they accepted the settlement, was because of Ecclestone's advanced age. He is 83 years.
Patrice Beaumelle, the national football coach of Zambia, has resigned his post, just after being in charge for 9 months. He replaced Herve Renard, who led Zambia to win the 2012 African Cup of Nations. Beaumelle was Renard assistant at the time, but became the chief coach when Renard resigned in 2013, to take up job as the coach of French Ligue 1 clubside FC Sochaux. But unfortunately Sochaux was relegated to Ligue 2, and now Renard is back in Africa, as the new coach of Ivory Coast. Beaumelle was Renard's assistant not only in Zambia, but also in Angola and at the Algerian clubside USM Algers. There is now speculations, that he resigned in order to join his friend and former boss at the star filled Ivory Coast team.
The European football governing body (Uefa), has punished 4 football clubs
for the racist actions, exhibited by their fans in football games. The clubs punished with the partial closing of their stadiums, are the Romanian giants Steaua Bucharest, Hungary's Debrecen, Georgia's Chikhura Sachkhere and the Slovenian's NK Maribor. A spokesman for Uefa said, when announcing the punishment, ''The fight against racism is a high priority for Uefa.'' All the incidents happened, during last month's Champion League and Europa League matches.
The Kenyan Football Federation, has moved swiftly and appointed Bobby Williamson, the former coach of Uganda as their new coach to replace Adel Amrouche, who they sacked yesterday. Kenya was eliminated on Sunday by Lesotho in the 2015 African Cup of Nations qualifier, on an aggregate of 0 - 1 after playing 0 - 0 in Nairobi. The football federation chairman, Sam Nyamweya told the media, ''We are very satisfied with Bobby Williamson.
He took Uganda to where they are now. Let us give him a chance.'' The sacked former coach Amrouche, was given a one year suspension by CAF for spitting on a fourth official. He is appealing the ban and denied any wrong-doing.
The English Premier League is set to introduce new rules on head injuries, as from next season of 2014/15. Any player that suffers head injury, must leave the pitch and must be exmined by the club doctor, who will determine whether the player is fit to continue the match or not. The club management are no longer allowed to make that decision. Also the home team must have a third ''tunnel'' doctor on match days. Kevin Philips a former striker who now works as a coach with the newly promoted Leicester City, thinks that the new rules are good and sensible ones. ''It may frustrate quite a few managers, but the health and safety of the players comes first.''
Serena Williams, the Women world number tennis player, has defeated Angelique Kerber of Germany 7 - 6 (7 - 1), 6 - 3 in the final of the bank of the West tournamnet in Stanford California. Beginning of last month, she dropped out of the Wimbledon doubles with her sister Venus, as a result of virus infection. This was her first tournament since her recovery. The title was her third of the tournament and fourth of the year. In the Men's all Canadian final of the Citi Open in Washington, Milos Raonic beat Vasek Pospisil 6 - 1, 6 - 4. It was the first time in the history of the ATP tour that there was an all Canadian final.
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