International Football
LAMPTEY TRIED TO FIX WORLD CUP MATCH, SAYS FIFA
FIFA has explained why Ghanaian referee Joseph Lamptey was banned for life, saying he tried “to make certain bets successful” in a World Cup qualifier.
Lamptey aroused suspicion during South Africa’s 2-1 win over Senegal in 2016, a qualifying match for Russia 2018.
“He [took] intentional decisions with the sole purpose of facilitating a minimum number of goals to make certain bets successful,” FIFA said.
FIFA believes the bets related to the game featuring at least two goals. Football’s world governing body has never given extensive details of the case before, but said it had decided to do so now because of “its complex nature and various misconceptions”.
The game in Polokwane, South Africa, featured a contentious penalty converted by the home side after 43 minutes, when a Senegalese defender was adjudged to have handled the ball, despite replays showing it had hit Kalidou Koulibaly’s knee.
Fifa also concluded that Lamptey was at fault for South Africa’s second goal just two minutes later, stating that the Ghanaian “clearly took two wrong decisions, which led to two goals being scored by South Africa”.
The Zurich-based organisation added in a statement: “Suspicious betting activities reached their climax precisely when Lamptey took the incorrect refereeing decision between the 40th minute and the end of the first half.”
Fifa said it was alerted to possible match manipulation by five different betting monitoring companies who “independently and simultaneously reported” that irregular betting activities had taken place.
“All five betting operators deemed the betting activities witnessed during the match to be highly irregular and indicative of match manipulation,” FIFA affirmed.
No details were given of who may have placed the bets. Neither South Africa nor Senegal were found to have been involved in the “match manipulation”.
In September, FIFA took the unusual step of ordering the game – which was Senegal’s first competitive defeat in 22 months at the time – to be replayed.
Two months later, the West Africans won the replay 2-0 and so qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 16 years.
Lamptey appealed against his ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled that FIFA’s sanction was appropriate.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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