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Lionesses star Hannah Hampton has been named BBC Women's Footballer of the Year following her exceptional exploits for England and Chelsea. After helping the Blues to win an unbeaten domestic treble, the goalkeeper inspired the Lionesses to an incredible Euro 2025 triumph and the individual accolades have now followed, with this just the latest award to come the 25-year-old's way.

• Official: Hampton beats Russo, Bonmati and more to prestigious BBC award

  Hampton was unveiled as the 2025 recipient of the BBC Women's Footballer of the Year trophy on Tuesday, beating out competition from fellow Lioness Alessia Russo after the striker also played her part at Euro 2025 and helped Arsenal to win the Champions League. Mariona Caldentey, another member of the Gunners' squad, was also nominated, alongside fellow Spain internationals Patri Guijarro and Aitana Bonmati, the latter of whom just claimed her third successive Ballon d'Or. However, it was Hampton who prevailed here, announced as the winner on the BBC's programme on Tuesday morning.

  She is the ninth different recipient of the accolade, which was first awarded to Asisat Oshoala back in 2015, and the fourth England player to win it, after Earps, Beth Mead and Lucy Bronze, the latter of whom has won it twice. Ada Hegerberg, the Lyon striker, is the only other player to have multiple wins.

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  How Hampton starred to be named BBC Women's Footballer of the Year

  After winning the first-ever Women's Yashin Trophy at the Ballon d'Or ceremony back in September, this accolade is yet another well-deserved one for Hampton after a truly terrific year for club and country. The 25-year-old was superb for Chelsea in the 2024-25 season as the Blues won the Women's Super League, FA Cup and League Cup without losing a single game across the three domestic competitions, setting record after record along the way.

  Then, she went to Euro 2025 with England and, under an intense spotlight following Mary Earps' shock retirement, produced big moment after big moment. Her penalty-saving heroics helped the Lionesses defeat Sweden in a shootout in the quarter-finals, a fantastic late stop ensured England stayed in the semi-final clash with Italy before beating the Azzurre in extra time and she was again the shootout hero in the final, breaking Spain's hearts as the Lionesses retained their European title.

• Hampton's first words after recognition she didn't 'expect'

  Speaking after being surprised with the award by Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor, Hampton told : "I definitely didn't expect it. With all the other players nominated, I think they've all had unbelievable years. I don't think I did until the final moment when Sonia revealed the trophy."

  Asked about her stand-out moments from an outstanding past year, Hampton said: "Winning the Euros is special. Being able to put on an England badge is a special and proud moment. You never take it for granted. Even if it's just around the hotel and you're wearing the kit, it's always a lovely moment when you've got any sort of England badge on your chest. At club level, the season we had last year, the treble winning season, it's an unbelievable achievement from the club and nothing less than what they deserve."

  She also reflected on the criticism that women's goalkeepers have endured in the past and how that is changing, because of shot-stoppers past and present. "Obviously goalkeeping is a position that needs a lot of resilience," she noted. "It's a lonely position, but it's also very rewarding. You could be the hero at moments and you could also be the villain at moments. I want to achieve a lot more in the game and I can't dwell on people's thoughts – that's going to hinder me, not help me. The 'keepers before me from Carly [Telford], from Karen [Bardsley], from Mary [Earps], even before that, they've changed the perception of women's goalkeeping. It’s definitely taking off and we're trying to change the perception slowly but surely and make sure it's being seen in the right light."

  After breaking the news to Hampton, Bompastor added: "Hannah’s been incredible on and off the pitch since I joined Chelsea. She has been one of our leaders, performing really well. She has been the best goalkeeper in the world and it’s a pleasure to present her with the trophy."

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  Explained: Why Hampton may not play again in 2025

  This award will be a nice boost for Hampton at a difficult time, as she is currently sidelined with a quad injury that could rule her out until the New Year. It means she is set to miss England's final camp of 2025, which will see the Lionesses take on China and Ghana in friendlies over the course of the next week, and potentially some big games for Chelsea too, especially in the Champions League.

  The Blues, who sit two places off automatic qualification in the UWCL league phase, take on Roma on December 10 and Wolfsburg, who just beat Manchester United 5-2, on December 17, but could have to do so with young Switzerland international Livia Peng in between the sticks, rather than the more established Hampton.

Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl has had an incredible impact in a short time at Ibrox, winning his first three Scottish Premiership matches in the dugout.

The Light Blues had only won one of their first eight matches in the division, under Russell Martin and Stevie Smith, which meant that the German tactician took over the club in a difficult position.

His tactical flexibility has been particularly impressive across his first six matches in the dugout for the Gers, as he has been willing to change systems, formations, and the style of play to suit each game.

For example, he utilised a 3-4-2-1 formation to grind out a 1-0 win away at Hibernian, but then switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation to dominate and thrash Dundee 3-0 in their most recent outing.

On top of improving the results in the short-term, Rohl has also helped some of the players in the squad to show more quality than they did under the previous coaching team.

Youssef Chermiti has been under the microscope since Kevin Thelwell decided to splash £8m to sign the striker from Everton, making him the club’s most expensive signing since Tore Andre Flo for £12m in 2000, but he has shown signs of life under the new boss.

Why Rangers should not give up on Youssef Chermiti

Football Insider recently claimed that pressure was mounting from some fans pushing the club to immediately cash in on the Portugal U21 international when the January transfer window opens for business.

However, the report added that there are no plans in place for the Light Blues to do that, six months on from their £8m deal to sign him, as they hope he can turn his fortunes around at Ibrox.

The 21-year-old centre-forward did not manage a single goal or assist in seven appearances under Martin and Smith before Rohl’s arrival at Ibrox, which is why it is understandable that some supporters have not been pleased with his start to life at the club.

However, Chermiti has delivered one goal and one assist in three league games under the former Sheffield Wednesday head coach, which is more like what supporters should expect from a player signed for £8m.

As you can see in the table above, the Portuguese marksman has been fairly effective with the minutes that he has been given under Rohl, with productivity in front of goal and strength in aerial duels on the whole.

This shows why the Light Blues should not give up on Chermiti, yet, because the 21-year-old talent is still learning and developing as a player, and should be given time under the new manager to prove his worth, given his age and inexperience.

Whilst the former Everton centre-forward has shown signs of life under Rohl and has time on his side to improve as a player, there is another summer signing who has been an even bigger waste of money.

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

Rangers have spent a lot of money on attacking signings in recent seasons and Sam Lammers has arguably been one of their worst, as the Dutchman was signed for £3m from Atalanta in 2023 and scored two goals in 31 matches before leaving the following summer.

Now, Bojan Miovski looks to be on course to be the club’s biggest waste of money since the signing of Lammers, because of his struggles this season.

Why Bojan Miovski looks like a waste of money for Rangers

The Light Blues signed the striker from Girona in the summer for a fee worth up to £4.2m, which means that he could cost more than the Dutchman did, and it appeared to be a sensible signing at the time.

Miovski’s form for Aberdeen, as shown in the graphic above, suggested that Rangers were onto a winner with the Macedonia international, as he had proven himself as a goalscorer in the Premiership in the past.

However, the left-footed forward had also just come off the back of scoring four goals in 24 appearances in all competitions for Girona, per Sofascore, which shows that the Light Blues brought in a striker who had been struggling in front of goal last season.

Given the money that was spent on him and his impressive record at Aberdeen in the past, it was fair to expect that Miovski would hit the ground running as an instant impact signing for the Gers, but that has not been the case.

As you can see in the table above, the Macedonia international is the club’s third-most expensive signing since the summer of 2023, with only Chermiti and Danilo, who has scored two goals in his last three league games, above him.

Miovski has only scored two goals in 15 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants so far, per Sofascore, with one against Hibernian in the League Cup and one against Falkirk in the Premiership.

On top of his lack of goals, the 26-year-old marksman has lost 68% of his ground duels and 70% of his aerial duels across eight appearances in the league for Rangers this season, per Sofascore, which shows that opposition defenders have found it far too easy to get the better of him.

Miovski has no goals and no assists in six appearances under Rohl so far, whilst Chermiti has a goal and an assist and Danilo has scored twice, which shows that he has been the worst-performing striker out of the manager’s three options.

He is five years older than Chermiti, who the club have invested even more money in, which suggests that the Portuguese striker may be preferred as the first-choice option in the mid-to-long-term, because of that investment.

That means that all the pressure is on Miovski to deliver in the short-term and his performances show that he is not doing that, which is why he may be the club’s biggest waste of money since Lammers unless he can turn things around.

0 mins under Martin: Rohl must unleash Rangers' "left-footed Van Dijk"

Danny Rohl must unleash this forgotten Rangers star who could be their own Virgil van Dijk.

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By
Dan Emery

Nov 11, 2025

After failing to agree to terms on a contract extension before his self-imposed deadline of Monday night, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. made it clear how he feels about his future with the Toronto Blue Jays.

"I want to be here. I want to be a Blue Jay for the rest of my career," Guerrero on Tuesday told MLB.com through an interpreter. "But it’s free agency and it’s business. I’m going to have to listen to 29 other teams."

Guerrero's desire to remain with the Blue Jays is no secret. Just last July at Media Day prior to the All-Star Game, he told reporters he'd "love" to remain in Toronto, but added that he understood it's a "business." But Guerrero's loyalty does come at a price.

When asked if the Blue Jays were close to meeting the numbers that would have prompted him to sign, he responded simply, "No."

"They had their numbers, I had my numbers," he further explained.

The failure to come to terms means Guerrero will be ticketed for free agency after the conclusion of his age-26 season. And, if the respective markets of two-time American League MVP Aaron Judge, three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani and four-time All-Star Juan Soto are any indication, he'll be in line for a massive payday, particularly if he produces like he did in '24.

Guerrero posted a .323/.396/.544 slash line with 30 home runs, 103 RBI, 98 runs scored and 72 walks in 159 games played this past season. Along with his stellar '21 campaign, in which he finished second in the AL MVP voting, '24 was one of Guerrero's finest seasons as a pro.

But more than individual success and impending riches, Guerrero has a clear idea of what he'll look for in free agency.

"Winning team. That’s what I’ll be looking for in free agency," Guerrero said. "As you guys know, my dad played a lot of years. He never won a World Series. My personal goal is to win a World Series and give the ring to my dad. That’s all I’m looking for."

The Blue Jays, who have missed the postseason in three of the six seasons Guerrero has spent in Toronto and have failed to advance past the AL wild-card round in the other three campaigns, have work to do in that department if they want to impress their star slugger.

Any doubts about Newcastle United’s quality have been extinguished by a run of October form that has led to six wins from seven matches in all competitions.

Newcastle are making headway in the Champions League and have set themselves back on track in the Premier League with a last-minute winner against Fulham at the weekend. St. James’ Park roared, and then cheers in concert once again when Tottenham Hotspur were dumped from the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening.

Still, Eddie Howe’s side are hardly firing on all cylinders, and that especially applies to the final third. However, Nick Woltemade has been nothing but brilliant since completing his club-record £69m transfer over from Stuttgart in August, and the German striker is spearheading the fight for silverware and retention of this seat at the top European table.

Woltemade's prolific start at Newcastle

Woltemade’s crisp header to seal the victory over Tottenham marked his sixth of the campaign, just 11 matches into his Newcastle career.

Alexander Isak’s record-breaking transfer to Liverpool felt like it could have a detrimental effect on the Toon project, but Newcastle have kept on moving forward, with the rangy centre-forward dovetailing into the system.

He loves a header, the German does, but that’s hardly the full scope of his game. Lanky at 6 foot 6, Woltemade has no right to be as technically graceful and intuitive in the tight spaces as he is, ranking among the top 9% of positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for successful take-ons and the top 5% for shot-creating actions per 90.

And yet he is mesmerising when on the ball. BBC Sport analyst Raj Chohan has even said that “there’s no striker on the planet who moves the ball like Woltemade.”

With this in mind, the Tyneside frontline should be firing on all cylinders, but this isn’t the case. Anthony Gordon is seemingly saving his best displays for the continental front at the moment, while Harvey Barnes and Jacob Murphy make up solid, if unspectacular, parts of the unit.

But there’s another man who has left much to be desired, and must be frustrated with his tough start to life in black and white as Woltemade thrives beside him.

The Newcastle star being saved by Woltemade

How often have we seen a player struggle to impress after switching clubs in the Premier League? It’s not an uncommon experience, to be sure.

And for Anthony Elanga, this is the reality as he still searches for his first direct goal involvement as a Magpie, having joined Newcastle from Nottingham Forest for £55m in August, one year after Howe’s first bid to snatch him from Evangelos Marinakis.

It’s been an inauspicious start to life in Howe’s squad, it must be said. Elanga has played 14 times in all competitions and has yet to register a goal or an assist.

Still, the Sweden international is one of the fastest players in the Premier League, and while his playmaking success has dried up of late, he ranks among the top 8% of positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for assists per 90.

And there’s a good reason that the big bucks were spent on his signature. For Nottingham Forest, the 23-year-old was a menace, with his fleet-footedness and tendency to directly take on his man playing to the strengths of Howe’s counter-attacking system.

However, deeper statistical analysis would suggest that even across his two terms with the Tricky Trees, Elanga left something to be desired. He is not the most active in taking on his opponent, despite his pace, and does not dribble with the intensity of frequency that perhaps his physique suggests is within his capacity.

With just four Premier League starts in a Newcastle shirt this season, it’s perhaps premature to analyse the data on a wider scale, but we can observe that Elanga is currently averaging only 1.8 successful duels per game, completing just 18% of his dribbles besides.

With a nominal amount of shots unleashed each game and not a big chance yet created, it’s not difficult to see why he’s struggling.

But Elanga needs only take a leaf from Anthony Gordon’s book. After all, the Three Lions star flattered to deceive after completing a £45m transfer from Everton in January 2023, then clicking into gear in 2023/24, winning the Newcastle Player of the Year award after posting 11 goals and ten assists in the top flight.

Gordon has yet to fully spread his wings this season, but he’s tenacious and talented and undoubtedly the focal point out wide for Newcastle. Elanga will use him as inspiration.

Now, Gordon is one of the most prominent wingers in the Premier League, seemingly Thomas Tuchel’s preferred pick on the Three Lions’ left flank as the 2026 World Cup looms ever closer.

While Elanga’s sticky form continued with a 6/10 display against Tottenham, as noted by the Shields Gazette, there is a wide recognition of the winger’s talent, and he will improve as he continues to develop under Howe’s wing.

This is all to say that fans would be silly to give up on Elanga after only a few months at St. James’ Park. There’s a real player in there, a star who the club scouted extensively.

Perhaps he’s mimicking a former version of Gordon, but if that is the case, then the best is yet to come.

New Tonali: Newcastle's 8/10 ace has been an "incredible piece of business"

Newcastle have proved their skill in the transfer market once again this summer.

By
Angus Sinclair

Oct 30, 2025

Dave Roberts believes the interfering New York Yankees fans got what they deserved.

Before Game 5 of the 2024 World Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers manager had a pointed answer when asked what he thought of the incident of fan interference between two Yankees fans and Mookie Betts from Game 4.

The controversy stems from a play in which Mookie Betts was tracking a foul popup near the stands in right field. He reached up and caught the ball, but as he did so, a Yankees fan ripped the ball from his glove, while another grabbed his arm. Both fans were ejected and, eventually, banned from attending Game 5.

When asked about it, Roberts said, "It was just an unfortunate circumstance. I'm glad it was dealt with the right way. … As I understand it, they got booted, and we didn't need them to be here, so they refunded their tickets. So that's perfect, right?"

His take was certainly much different than Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo, who seemed to brush off the incident as just being a result of passionate fans.

The Dodgers will look to close out the Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday night.

The Minnesota Twins reportedly are moving on from a 2024 draft pick after just a few months in their organization.

ESPN's Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan reported Thursday that the Twins released minor league catcher Derek Bender after he told opposing batters the type of pitch that was coming to the plate during a game that eliminated his team from Florida State League contention.

The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, the Twins' Low-A affiliate, were battling the Lakeland Flying Tigers on Sept. 6 in the second game of a doubleheader when Bender told multiple opposing hitters the exact pitch that was coming. The Flying Tigers scored four runs in the second inning and won the game 6–0 to eliminate the Mighty Mussels from playoff contention.

Fort Myers coaches were informed of Bender's self-inflicting pitch tipping by Lakeland coaches after the game.

ESPN also reported that Bender "had told teammates he wanted the season to be over."

Bender, selected by Minnesota in the sixth round (No. 188) out of Coastal Carolina, batted .200/.273/.333 in 19 games for Fort Myers this season. He hit .320/.422/.520 with 11 homers and 63 RBIs in 60 games for the Chanticleers in his final collegiate season.

Erling Haaland gave yet another reminder of his monstrous goalscoring powers as he scored twice in Manchester City's 3-1 win over Bournemouth, and afterwards the Cherries' boss Andoni Iraola and captain David Brooks admitted there was almost nothing they could do to stop him. Haaland drew a rare blank in last week's 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa but responded in a typically ruthless fashion.

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  Bournemouth are Haaland's latest victims

  The City striker produced a lung-bursting run from behind the halfway-line after latching on to a Rayan Cherki header to slot the hosts in front and combined with the French playmaker again to restore their lead after Tyler Adams had equalised. Haaland has 13 Premier League goals in 10 matches this season, with 17 in 13 games in all competitions. Including his goals for Norway since the season began, he is on 26 strikes.

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• Haaland 'always going to be a threat'

  Bournemouth captain Brooks told : "We look to press but Manchester City are extremely comfortable on the ball. In the first half we created a lot of opportunities for ourselves through the press. But the big man up top for them – Haaland – is always going to be a threat. It's almost impossible [to prepare to face Haaland]. He's 6ft 5in, strong, a massive threat when the ball is falling to him. He took his chances well.

  "It was always going to be a tough game against Manchester City. It's probably the hardest week to prepare for. We knew we had to come here and be the best version of ourselves. A few minor details cost us today."

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Iraola: 'You're not recovering from Haaland'

  Head coach Iraola added: "In the first half they punished us with Haaland behind our defensive line, probably the coordination between the centre-backs was not spot on. The first goal we were in a good moment before the goal, we were playing in their half but in our attacks we lose the ball, we jump, we don’t cover in behind and he punishes us. You make the smallest mistakes and they punish you. 

  "The timing the speed was top class. You sit deeper and maybe Haaland scores two headers at the second post because maybe they have 25 crosses. You lose one metre against Haaland, you are not recovering. It is going to be three metres at the end of the play."

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• Guardiola puts Haaland on same level as Messi & Ronaldo

  Pep Guardiola put Haaland on the same pedestal as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and said the Norwegian was so dominant that it didn't matter that City's other forwards were not contributing many goals this season. No City player aside from Haaland has scored more than one Premier League goal this season.

  "It's a little like when you play with Messi or Cristiano," Guardiola said. "The influence is so big. Of course we need the goals from Phil [Foden] and Tijjani [Reijnders] and the other ones." 

  Asked whether Haaland was truly on the same level as Messi and Ronaldo, Guardiola had no doubts at all. "Has he reached that level? You see the numbers of that guy? Oh my God, yeah, of course he's at their level. So the numbers from Cristiano and Messi have been for 15 years. You see Messi still in MLS, he scores two or three goals every day. Cristiano in Saudi is the same. But he [Haaland] is at that level.  

  "The first goal, the way he shoots the ball, going down on the grass [saying] 'I am going to score this'. I have said many times, he is incredibly coachable and I am tough with him sometimes. I always try to be open minded with him and there are players who say, ‘What are you talking about?' He is completely down to earth, he wants to do it and he lives for the goals. Without him, it would be tough to be honest."

Yet another day and yet another disappointing draw for Rangers in the Scottish Premiership.

On Sunday afternoon, Russell Martin’s Gers failed to leave their away clash with all three points, taking the lead on the cusp of half-time through Bojan Miovski, only for Henry Cartwright’s long-range strike to pinch a deserved point for lowly Falkirk.

This means the Ibrox side have still won only one of seven Premiership fixtures, this coming at Livingston last Sunday, drawing five, including a quartet of 1-1s, thereby leaving them 8th, a whopping 11 points adrift league leaders Hearts.

Amazingly, Rangers are now without a clean sheet in 23 away games across all competitions, breaking the unwanted club record set in 1897.

Thus, ahead of an international break, the spotlight will once again be pointed in Martin’s direction, but could he save his job by dropping a player labelled “one of the worst players to ever play” for the club?

Joe Rothwell: Yet to make much of an impression

The surprise team news ahead of Sunday’s clash with Falkirk was the return to midfield of Joe Rothwell, having begun the last six matches among the substitutes.

Well, his return didn’t last too long, hooked after 70 minutes, replaced by Mohamed Diomandé, having made little discernible impact on the game.

The Englishman touched the ball only 32 times, that’s five fewer than goalkeeper Jack Butland, while losing possession on five occasions, neither of which is ideal for a player at the base of midfield, supposedly there to control the tempo and dictate play.

Chalkboard

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

However, he was not the summer signing who caught the eye for the wrong reasons most in Falkirk.

Rangers forward was as bad as Rothwell

When Mikey Moore arrived at Rangers in the summer on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, he did so with sky-high expectations.

The 18-year-old is incredibly highly rated by Spurs supporters, with David Hytner of the Guardian outlining his ‘many qualities’, including dribbling and finishing, labelling him a ‘rare talent’ who is ready to make a massive impact on the Tottenham first team.

By scoring against Elfsborg in a Europa League tie back in January, Moore became Spurs’ youngest scorer in a European competition, breaking Jimmy Greaves’ record that had stood since 1957.

Well, so far, Rangers supporters have seen none of this.

To date, in ten appearances for the Gers, Moore is yet to score a goal, while his only assist came against third-tier Alloa Athletic in a League Cup clash in August and, as you can see, scorer Nedim Bajrami did do most of the work!

Having been on the bench against Sturm Graz on Thursday, Moore did come into the starting lineup on Sunday, but was replaced by Oliver Antman on the hour mark, and his statistics make for grim reading.

As the table documents, Moore registered zero shots and zero key passes, ranked lowly for passing, chance creation, duels and touches too, being generally anonymous throughout.

This led to the teenager being described as “one of the worst players to ever play for” the club by one Gers content creator on X, representative of the general sentiment from those in Govan.

Thus, when Martin is leaving out Oliver Antman, who has shown flashes of brilliance at times since arriving from Go Ahead Eagles, fans are very much not on board with Moore’s inclusion.

If he remains in charge for the visit of Dundee United in a fortnight, then perhaps leaving the Spurs loanee on the bench may be the way to go.

"To be honest" – Miovski explains why Rangers have better players than people realise

The Gers are still seeking their first away clean sheet of the season.

By
Ben Goodwin

Oct 4, 2025

Saudi Arabia's efforts to make waves in the sporting world look set to continue when the wealthy Gulf nation hosts the 2034 World Cup. But a football stadium 350 metres off the ground seems ambitious even for them following the viral emergence of concept designs for a brand new venue dubbed the NEOM Stadium. A list of 15 host stadia complete with concept art was first revealed in the summer of 2024.

• 'Most unique stadium in the world'

  It's certainly out there to want to construct a football stadium in the sky, but fans on social media can't get enough of the idea. The so-called NEOM Stadium could, one of 11 new venues planned for construction over the next eight years to complement four existing stadiums that will be renovated already has a big reputation to live up to.

  Saudi Arabia's bid book submitted to FIFA stated: "Neom Stadium will be the most unique stadium in the world. With a pitch situated more than 350m above ground, stunning vistas and a roof created from the city itself, the stadium will be an experience like no other.

  "Within The Line, mass transport and personal transport will be enabled by a network of tram-like Autonomous Rapid Transit vehicles and Personal Rapid Transit, operating on five primary horizontal transport corridors."

  'The Line', announced in 2021, is a proposed smart city in a single long building measuring 170km by 200 metres and up to 500 metres high, designed to have no cars, streets or carbon emissions, and be big enough to house nine millione people, a quarter of Saudi Arabia's existing population. Although already under construction, full completion of the city itself is not actually expected until 2045, 11 years after the World Cup.

  What isn't clear is if the new concept images doing the rounds are part of any official plans, as the stadium doesn't appear to be incorporated into what 'The Line' would look like.

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  350m in the air

  NEOM Stadium proposes to accomodate 46,000 fans from is vantage point 350 metres above the ground. The other proposed venues for the World Cup will be spread across four existing cities: Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar and Abha. But all are set to incorporate unique architecture and themes, including one dazzling with colour, another made up of crystal-like shards and another built specifically from locally-sourced materials.

• Saudi Arabia stood unopposed in bidding process

  Saudi Arabia was confirmed as host nation for the 2034 World Cup during an Extraordinary FIFA Congress on December 11, 2024. Despite FIFA lowering the existing stadium capacity requirements from seven with 40,000+ to just four, there were no other bidders. FIFA's rotation policy, which ensures that World Cup tournaments are spread evenly around the planet, meant that only bids from Asia or Oceania would be accepted anyway. Potential hosts were also given just 25 days to express an intent to host, which only Saudi Arabia did.

  It will be the third World Cup in Asia in the 21st century, following from South Korea and Japan's joint effort in 2002, and Gulf neighbour Qatar in 2022. Saudi Arabia will actually end up being the first single host nation since Qatar by the time 2034 rolls around, due to 2026 being jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, and 2030 being the shared responsibility of Spain, Portugal and Morocco, with games also being staged in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay as part of FIFA's World Cup centenary celebrations.

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  World Cup plans between now and 2034

  Saudi Arabia still has the best part of a decade to plan and build and/or renovate its venues for the World Cup. But the eyes of the world are unlikely to pay too much attention until much nearer the time. For now, the 2026 World Cup in North America is just over seven month away from its opening match on June 11. As many as 48 countries will compete for the first time following the tournament's expansion, including debutants Jordan, Uzbekistan and Cape Verde, but fans will need to wait another five weeks until December 5 for the group stage to take place and the fixture list be revealed.

  2026 could very likely be the last dance at the World Cup for both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

One Aston Villa gem has signed a Villa Park contract which the club seemingly decided against posting on social media.

Unai Emery linked with surprise Aston Villa exit

It has been an unusual start to the Premier League season for Villa and Unai Emery, who finally picked up their first three points of the season at the sixth time of asking on the weekend.

After falling behind to Fulham, Villa scored their first home league goals of the campaign to win 3-1 and move out of the relegation zone.

Former transfer chief Monchi has also left the Midlands, and now, Emery is being linked with a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, who are on the search for a new manager after parting ways with Laurent Blanc.

Following Monchi’s exit, Emery was asked last week if he is more committed than ever to Villa, to which he said: “More speculation? I know it’s a different speculation. The reality is we drew and in the league we are not performing well.

“We have to work and work hard. With the players I have meetings after the game and talk about how we want to be, tactically and with the demands we have.”

Emery added: “We are starting the season with the problems we had, the problems before, with the transfer window. Some players joined us late. We are trying to recover our performance.

“Now we are a different team, our emotions and our emotional moments are becoming better. I will want to show how we’ve improved in everything.”

Aston Villa now racing Tottenham and Man Utd to sign £70m Premier League star

The Villans have joined the race for a new forward, who has made a very impressive start to the season.

By
Dominic Lund

Sep 30, 2025

Away from the speculation, though, Aston Villa have moved quietly to secure the services of a potential future star.

Aston Villa teenager pens first professional contract

It was announced on Aston Villa’s website on Tuesday that young defender Finlay Barnard has signed his first professional contract.

The club said they are pleased the U18 ace has committed his future at Villa Park after agreeing scholarship terms having signed over the summer Tottenham.

The update wasn’t posted on Villa’s X social media, so it is news that may have gone under the radar.

A versatile defender, Barnard will be looking to breakthrough into the first-team setup over the coming years, and continuing to impress Harrison will only help his case.