International Football
BREAKING: SIR BOBBY CHARLTON BECOMES 5TH 1966 WORLD CUP HERO DIAGNOSED WITH DEMENTIA
One of England’s greatest footballers, Sir Bobby Charlton has been diagnosed with dementia- a disease characterized by loss of memory.
He featured for Manchester United and was a member of the 1966 World Cup winning team.
The news of the 83-year old legend’s condition was broken to The Telegraph newspaper by his wife, Lady Norma Charlton.
His diagnosis comes just days after the death of his former team-mate, Nobby Stiles, and three months after the passing of his older brother, Jack, at the age of 85.
Both were discovered to have been diagnosed with dementia in their later years.
The Telegraph report that Lady Norma hopes the news may now ‘help others’.
Sir Bobby featured in every minute of England’s World Cup glory campaign in 1966. The revered former midfielder also won the Ballon d’Or in the same year.
He is regarded as one of the finest footballers in history – and scored 49 goals in total on the international stage.
The icon netted 249 goals in 758 games for United, and was a crucial performer in the club’s first European Cup triumph in 1968.
Sir Bobby was a survivor of the tragic Munich Air Disaster in 1958, which saw 23 people killed on board.
Up until the end of last season, he was regularly spotted attending United games alongside Lady Norma.
His diagnosis will increase demands for football to do more to deal with dementia in professionals after the passing of Stiles on Friday.
Stiles, Martin Peters, Jack Charlton and Ray Wilson, all members of the 1966 group of heroes, have died in the last couple of years after living with dementia.
A Staffordshire corner concluded, when examining the death of former West Brom forward Jeff Astle, that heavy, rain-sodded footballs – coupled with the game’s physicality – might have been a cause of his neurodegeneration.
His daughter, Dawn, has spearheaded the campaign for research into the area.
She said: ‘Our hope back then was we might establish a real understanding of the link within perhaps 10 years at least.
That might mean we could help families, even though it was too late for people like my dad.’
However, it was only 12 months ago that analysis, funded by the PFA and the FA, firmly established the connection made all those years ago.
It was discovered there was a five-fold increase in the risk of Alzheimer’s, a four-fold increase in motor neurone disease and a two-fold increase in Parkinson’s among former players.
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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