International Football
WADA WANTS FIFA SANCTION ON ODEMWINGIE’S FORMER CLUB, LOKOMOTIV MOSCOW OVER DOPE SCANDAL
BY LIAM MORGAN
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will ask FIFA to intervene after former Deputy Sports Minister Yuri Nagornykh, one of the masterminds of the Russian doping scandal, was appointed to the Board of Premier League club Lokomotiv Moscow.
Nigeria’s former international, Osaze Odemwingie in the seasons 2007 to 2010 featured for the club which is currently the Russian champion.
WADA President Sir Craig Reedie confirmed the organisation would approach world football’s governing body to see if it can take action against Nagornykh following his re-emergence on the sporting scene.
Sir Craig conceded WADA had no authority to sanction Nagornykh and any possible punishment or intervention would have to come from FIFA.
Nagornykh was identified by the McLaren Report as one of the main actors of the orchestrated doping scheme carried out by Russia at major events, including their home Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Sochi.
He was subsequently banned from the Olympic Games, along with former Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, by the International Olympic Committee for his role in the scandal.
This week, however, he was appointed to the board at Lokomotiv Moscow, the current Russian champions and one of the country’s biggest clubs.
His emergence back onto the sporting scene following his resignation as Deputy Sports Minister in 2016 has proved controversial owing to his involvement in the doping scheme.
Sir Craig said he was made aware of Nagornykh becoming a Board member at the club by whistleblower Vitaly Stepanov in a letter obtained by ARD.
He added that WADA was “clearly not overjoyed when someone who was clearly at the heart of all of this” is given a high-profile role in sport.
“Can we do anything? I don’t know but we will look at it,” Sir Craig told insidethegames following the WADA Annual Symposium here.
“I don’t know if we have any authority.
“We can ask Gianni Infantino and FIFA if their rules allow them to do something and certainly we are prepared to do that.”
The appointment of Nagornykh follows allegations that coaches involved in Russian athletics’ discredited old regime in the nation are still involved with current competitors.
ARD alleged that the former head coach of the country’s athletics team, Valentin Maslakov, who resigned at the height of the doping scandal four years ago, remains involved in the Russian system.
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Taskforce on Russia has requested an urgent meeting with the Russian Athletics Federation to discuss the allegations.
“We would be interested to speak with the IAAF to find out how active he is because we do have the prohibited association rule,” Sir Craig added.
insidethegames has contacted FIFA for comment.
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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International Football
Players’ union, FIFPRO, wants 20-minute halftimes, more cooling breaks amid extreme heat
Global players’ union FIFPRO is exploring whether extending halftime to 20 minutes and introducing more frequent cooling breaks could better protect players from extreme heat.
Nine of the 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup face conditions considered “extreme risk” for heat-related illness.
Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Guadalajara, Houston, Kansas City, Miami, Monterrey and Philadelphia are expected to face dangerous levels of heat and humidity, posing player safety concerns and fuelling calls for mandatory cooling aids or schedule changes.
FIFPRO’s heat risk assessments are based on wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), a measure combining temperature, humidity, solar radiation and wind speed to estimate how environmental conditions affect the body’s ability to cool itself.
Under FIFPRO guidelines, a WBGT reading above 28 degrees Celsius indicates conditions in which matches should be postponed or rescheduled to protect players’ health.
By comparison, world soccer governing body FIFA’s own guidelines set the extreme risk threshold higher, at 32 degrees Celsius WBGT – but even by that standard, six of the nine cities are still projected to exceed safe limits.
Major League Soccer in the U.S. has a threshold of 29 degrees Celsius WBGT.
“Cooling breaks at the 30th minute and 75th minutes are quite traditional, but from a physiological point of view it does not make sense,” said Vincent Gouttebarge, FIFPRO’s Medical Director.
“Even if you ingest more than 200 millilitres of fluid, you already cannot take it all. So I would definitely like to see some project where we look at the efficacy of perhaps more frequent but shorter cooling breaks – every 15 minutes, rather than only one during each half.”
LONGER HALFTIMES
Gouttebarge also questioned whether the traditional 15-minute halftime interval is sufficient when matches are played in extreme heat.
“You can imagine that halftime of 15 minutes might not be enough in order to decrease the core temperature,” he said.
“It could be a halftime of 20 minutes which would be significant. That has been shown in the laboratory and FIFPRO, together with the national union in Portugal in August, we are going to test this kind of mitigation strategy.”
The urgency of stronger heat protocols became clear at this month’s Club World Cup where two matches — Benfica-Bayern Munich in Charlotte and Chelsea-Esperance in Philadelphia exceeded the WBGT threshold FIFPRO considers unsafe.
“According to our position, those games should have been postponed later that day or rescheduled,” Gouttebarge said.
FIFPRO officials acknowledged that FIFA has responded constructively during the tournament by lowering thresholds for mandatory cooling breaks and improving pitch-side hydration, but stressed that proactive planning is critical.
“FIFA have been quite responsive once the tournament was under way,” said Alex Phillips, FIFPRO General Secretary.
“They have actually modified how they’ve been dealing with heat during the matches based on FIFPRO’s input, which is credit to the work of the team. Obviously, it would have been better if that happened in advance, but it’s better that they have adapted.”
FIFPRO warned that the risks highlighted at the Club World Cup are a preview of what players could face at the expanded 2026 World Cup.
“This is not just affecting the Club World Cup, but also future tournaments either in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world,” said Alexander Bielefeld, FIFPRO Director of Policy & Strategic Relations.
“We need a better balance between commercial interests and the health and safety of players,” he added, referring to earlier kick-off times to accommodate European television audiences.
-Reuters
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Former Manchester United and England midfielder Paul Ince has been charged with drink-driving, police said on Monday.
Ince, who earned 53 caps for England and won two Premier League titles during his six years at United, has been released on bail and will appear in court on July 18.
“The incident involved a black Range Rover which had collided with the central reservation barrier. Officers attended the scene and arrested a 57-year-old man,” the Cheshire police said in a statement.
“Paul Ince, of Quarry Road, Neston, has since been charged with drink-driving.”
Reuters has contacted Ince’s representative for comment.
After retiring as a player, Ince led Milton Keynes Dons to a League Two title in 2007-08. He most recently managed Reading during 2022-23.
-Reuters
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