International Football
ALGERIA STRETCH UNBEATEN RUN

Reigning African champions Algeria stretched their unbeaten run of matches to 20 after being held to a 2-2 draw by Concacaf Gold Cup holders Mexico despite playing almost half the game with 10 men.
Adlene Guedioura was handed his matching orders 10 minutes after the break after a second yellow card. Algeria had come from a goal down after Jesus Manuel Corona had given the Mexicans a 43rd minute lead.
The African champions however drew level two minutes later when midfielder Ismael Bennacer struck a low shot from the edge of the box after being teed up by Sofiane Feghouli.
After Guedioura’s r
ed card, Algeria were not turned back as they kept their attacking game and were rewarded in the 66th minute through captain Riyad Mahrez who was set up by Ramy Bensebaini.
However, Algeria saw victory snatched right infront of their eyes when the Mexicans drew level four minutes from the final whistle through Diego Lainez off a Raul Jimenez pass.
Japan 1-0 Côte d’Ivoire
In the Netherlands, Côte d’Ivoire lost 1-0 to Japan, conceding a last gasp winner against the Samurai Blue. Naomichi Ueda stepped off the bench to head in the winner in added time to aid the Japanese to victory.
Cote d’Ivoire had chances to score, with the best falling on the returning Gervinho who saw his point blank effort at the start of the second half saved by the keeper.
Centre-back Ueda however ensured Japan had the last laugh with his first international goal when he headed home Gaku Shibasaki’s long free kick at the back post in the third minute of added time, just after coming on.
Mozambique 0-3 Angola
After their previous friendly match against Guinea Bissau was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, Angola took to the pitch at the Municipal Stadium of Óbidos in Portugal, picking up a healthy 3-0 victory over Mozambique.
Mateus Galiano scored a goal in either half in the 45th and 69th minutes before Gelson Dala put the icing on the cake with the third with 12 minutes left to play.
The friendly match result is a booster for Angola who are preparing to face DR Congo in a double header qualifier of the Total Africa Cup of Nations, Cameroon 2021.
Morocco 1-1 DR Congo
Morocco’s Atlas Lions followed up their impressive 3-1 victory over Senegal with a 1-1 draw against DR Congo at the Mohammed VI Football Complex.
The home side broke the deadlock at the stroke of halftime when Noussair Mazraoui stretched his foot ahead of the keeper to tap in from close range off a Youssef El-Arabi cross from the left.
However, the DR Congo Les Leopards drew level in the 65th minute when Yoane Wissa’s left footed low shot from the edge of the box landed in the bottom right corner of the goal after being teed up by Jordan Rolly Botak
Nigeria 1-1 Tunisia
Nigeria’s hopes of bouncing back from last week’s loss against African champions Algeria didn’t go much to plan as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Tunisia, the side they beat to clinch the AFCON 2019 bronze in Cairo, Egypt last year.

They had the chances to win though, with Kelechi Iheanacho who scored the opener for Nigeria also missing a penalty.
Iheanacho quenched his three-year thirst for an international goal for the Super Eagles when he opened the scoring with a beautiful shot on the half turn inside the box after 20 minutes.
He had a chance to double his tally after 28 minutes when Ahmed Musa was cluttered down inside the box by Tunisian keeper Farouk Ben Mustapha. However, his tame penalty was well saved by the Tunisian goalie.
The Carthage Eagles then drew level at the stroke of halftime when Mohamed Drager struck the ball home from the edge of the six yard box after a good build up on the left, Rafia Hamza delivering the final cutback.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s opponents in next month’s AFCON qualifiers Sierra Leone suffered their second successive friendly match defeat after going down 1-0 away to Niger in Niamey.
Ghana 5-1 Qatar
Ghana’s new head coach CK Akonnor breathed a huge sigh of relief on Monday night as he saw his side bounce back from last week’s 3-0 beating at the hands of Mali to thrash Qatar 5-1 in their second friendly match in Turkey.
Making five changes from the team that lost to Mali, Akonnor was under pressure to ensure the Black Stars made a resounding statement and they did so with a superb performance.
Skipper Andre Ayew bagged a brace to add on to goals from Tarique Fosu, Samuel Owusu and Caleb Ekuban. Qatar’s consolation was scored by Ali Almoez.
Midfielder Thomas Partey starred in the match though, as he played a crucial role in the middle of the pack and started the build up for the opener. He laid the ball through for Jordan Ayew who in turn fed Fosu for the opener.
The Qataris found themselves back in contention just before the break when Almoez lobbed the ball over Razak Abalora.
But, Ghana were a different side in the second half, Ayew making it 2-1 before Partey fed Owusu for the third. It was a goal made in the Abedi Pele household for Ghana’s fourth as Jordan fed his brother Andre.
Substitute Ekuban wrapped up the tie with the fifth.
Tanzania 0-1 Burundi
Saidi Ntibazonkiza struck the lone goal in the 85th minute as Burundi came out 1-0 victorious over hosts Tanzania in a friendly match played at the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
Ntibazonkiza struck a belter from the edge of the box after some swift passing movement by the Burundians to pluck victory over a star-studded Tanzanian side.
So impressive was the Burundian winger in the match that Tanzanian giants Yanga wasted no time in enquiring for his services and ended up signing him a day after the friendly.
Togo 1-1 Sudan
Claude Le Roy’s Togo conceded a last gasp equalizer as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Sudan. The Togolese had gone ahead in the 70th minute courtesy of Gilles Sunu’s goal, but could not hold on to the lead as they conceded in the third minute of added time.
Mohamed Abdel Rahman scored the late equalizer for the Sudanese.
Burkina Faso 2-1 Madagascar
Burkina Faso’s Stallions were 2-1 victors over Madagascar’s Barea in another friendly match. Eric Traore scored the winner for the Burkinabes in the 65th minute.
Aston Villa’s new signing Bertrand Traore had opened the scores in the 33rd minute with a simple tap in inside the box after the Madagascar backline struggled to clear the ball.
Madagascar equalized from the penalty spot a minute to the break, through Marco Ilaimaharitra.
However, Eric ensured Burkina Faso earned victory with a goal in the 65th minute. The Madagascar backline again struggled to clear from a corner, with Eric picking the spills at the edge of the six yard box and slamming the ball home.
South Africa 1-2 Zambia
Zambia bounced back from their defeat to Kenya’s Harambee Stars with a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over South Africa at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg.
After a dull first half, the game sprung to life in the second period and the hosts broke the deadlock 20 minutes after the break when Keegan Dolly rounded the keeper off a Percy Tau pass before tapping into an empty net.
Just like he did against Kenya, Kevin Kampamba stepped off the bench to change the game and this time as a scorer when he slotted in with a low shot in the 78th minute.
Chaniza Zulu scored the winner four minutes later with a tap in unmarked at the backpost.
In other friendly matches, Comoros beat Libya 2-1, Benin won 2-0 away to Gabon while Malawi and Zimbabwe played to a 0-0 draw.
-CAF
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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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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International Football
Former England and Man Utd midfielder Ince charged with drink-driving

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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