COPA AMERICA
Hawk-Eye introduced
Hawk-Eye will be installed for next month’s Copa America Centenario, marking the first use of goal-line technology by soccer’s governing bodies for South, Central and North America and the Caribbean. The 16-nation tournament will be played at 10 US sites from Friday next week to June 26. Organizers also announced the match officials on Wednesday. Three of the 18 referees are from the US: Mark Geiger, Jair Marrufo and Armando Villarreal. Geiger officiated three games at the 2014 World Cup, including a second-round matchup between France and Nigeria in which he became the first American to referee a knockout stage match at soccer’s top tournament.
CLUB RICH LIST
United, Real lead pack
Accountancy firm KPMG says Manchester United and Real Madrid are soccer’s most valuable clubs, worth 2.9 billion euros (US$3.24 billion) each. The study finds Europe’s leading 32 clubs have a combined value exceeding 26 billion euros. KPMG’s report was published as the European season reaches its climax with tomorrow’s Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, valued at 592 billion euros — five times less than their crosstown rival. United remain strong financially, despite not winning the Premier League in three years.
FRIENDLY
Serbia down Cyprus
Serbia beat Cyprus 2-1 in a friendly on Wednesday between two teams that failed to qualify for the European Championship. Serbia took the lead when Aleksandar Mitrovic scored from close range in the second minute after being set up by Dusan Tadic, who then doubled his side’s lead in the 10th with a long-range shot. Cyprus scored in the 32nd with an own-goal by Serbia defender Nikola Maksimovic, whose back-pass eluded goalkeeper Damir Kahriman. The match played in Serbia’s central town of Uzice was the first for the Balkan country’s new coach Slavoljub Muslin, who took over after a disappointing qualifying campaign for Euro 2016 in France.
FRIENDLY
Romania concede late goal
Euro 2016 qualifiers Romania conceded a late goal to draw 1-1 with the Democratic Republic of the Congo in a friendly on Wednesday. Romania’s lively attacking midfielder Nicolae Stanciu opened the scoring in the 27th minute with his second goal in three internationals, capitalizing on a farcical defensive error to net with an easy finish. The 23-year-old Steaua Bucharest player almost doubled Romania’s lead nine minutes later when his curling free-kick forced an excellent save from ’keeper Nicaise Kudimbana. DR Congo levelled three minutes from fulltime when the Romanian defense failed to clear a cross from the right and substitute Jeremy Bokila scored from close range.
UNITED STATES
Union, Orlando City draw
Ken Tribbett scored a late equalizer, his first MLS goal, as Philadelphia Union came back for a 2-2 draw with Orlando City on Wednesday night. Tranquillo Barnetta gave the Union the lead in the 52nd minute before three goals in a seven-minute span opened up the game. Kevin Molino equalized for Orlando in the 68th — one minute after entering as a substitute. Cyle Larin collided with two defenders and the goalkeeper while vying for a long ball and Molino tapped in a rebound. Three minutes later, Larin gave Orlando City a lead after Kaka’s cross, before Tribbett secured the point with a goal in the 75th.
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but