International Football
FIFA’S INJURY COMPENSATION SCHEME FOR CLUBS WILL COVER TOKYO 2020 FOOTBALL TOURNAMENTS
BY DAVID OWEN
FIFA’s Club Protection Programme (CPP), an insurance scheme that compensates football clubs when players they employ are injured on international duty, will apply at the Tokyo 2020 men’s and women’s Olympic football tournaments.
The information is provided in an annexe to a technical document recently circulated by the world governing body to national associations.
The tournaments are scheduled to take place across a total of seven stadia from Sapporo in the north to Yokohama, the most southerly venue, between July 22 and August 8 in 2020.
The men’s competition is under-23, but with a maximum of three overage players per team permitted; the women’s tournament has no age restriction.
Under the terms of the scheme, the temporary total disablement of a player accidentally hurt in an international match can trigger payments capped at €7.5 million (£6.4 million/$8.4 million) per claim
The amount insured is the player’s annual fixed salary, with a maximum daily amount of €20,548 (£17,608/$23,088) for a maximum period of 365 days.
Compensation is designed to cover relatively serious injuries resulting in temporary total disablement for at least 28 consecutive days.
It does not cover permanent total disablement or death, or the cost of medical treatment.
The maximum capacity of the new CPP is set at €80 million (£68.5 million/$90 million) per annum.
The reigning men’s Olympic champions are Brazil, for whom Neymar netted the winning penalty in one of the iconic moments of the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.
The women’s tournament was won by Germany.Inside the Games
International Football
Guinea names Portugal’s Duarte as new national coach

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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International Football
Veteran coach Van Gaal says he is cured of cancer

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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International Football
Like father like son, Davide Ancelotti becomes Brazil’s Botafogo manager

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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