UEFA Champions League
Heineken scores big in Owerri with ‘Cheers to All Fans’ campaign
There was real excitement in the air at the Chilis Bar, Owerri on Tuesday when Real Madrid sealed their place in the semi-final stage of the UEFA Champions League.
The Heartland State was agog with the Heineken ‘Cheers to All Fans’ Campaign’ as the Premium beer brand was on hand to make the Champions League night a memorable one for the scores of fans and loyal consumers that made it to the exquisite Chilis Bar, Owerri.
With Real Madrid coming into the second-leg tie with a two-goal advantage, the odds were readily stalked against Chelsea.
However, smart fans from all walks of life who found their way to the Chilis Bar were glad about their decision as they enjoyed an unforgettable viewing experience with the Premium beer brand from the stable of Nigerian Breweries PLC.
Chelsea fans and Real Madrid supporters as well as consumers of Heineken thronged the Chilis Bar where they soaked in the fun even after the 90 minutes of action was over at Stamford Bridge.
After a barren first half, Rodrygo’s brace in the 58th and 80th minutes ensured the reigning champions ease their way to the last four without much sweat.
Despite the fans’ mix of fulfilment and disappointment at the end of the regulation time, they had a night they would continue to relish courtesy of Heineken’s ‘Cheers to All Fans Campaign’
Top entertainer, DJ Bliss and hype man, Mr Barango, treated the fans to the best of trending Nigerian and international hit songs all night as fans who were on the edge of their seats while the game lasted soon switched into the party mood.
DJ Bliss the crowd controller kept the fans of both teams and consumers of Heineken’s mouth agape throughout with different tunes he made available before, at halftime and after the explosive tie.
Though Real Madrid fans went home happier with their resounding victory, Chelsea fans were consoled with the improved performance by Frank Lampard’s men.
In the end, everyone was a winner with plenty of Heineken merchandise freely given out to the fans and loyal consumers.
One of the winners, Ikenna Chilaka, a Chelsea fan who got the prediction of the half time and full-time results got a classic power bank, bag, T-shirt, and face cap among others thumbed up Heineken.
“It was a time filled with mixed feeling emotions for me but Heineken wiped that feeling of sadness with the gifts I won.
“I so much had fun and the fact that fans, friends, and families were able to come together to watch and support their clubs while sharing bottles of Heineken and still having fun while answering questions, winning branded gifts, and the DJ’s wonderful renditions gave us something to relish”.
Some of the other winners on the night were Ngozi Enwerem, Dayo Arowolo (water bottle), Anthony Nsofor, Ijeoma Ogbuibe, Chuks Henry (faze cap), Dica Divine (Speaker, T-Shirt, Water bottle) and many more.
After the explosive night in Owerri, Heineken’s Cheers to All Fans Campaign will be taking Warri and Abuja by storm when the attention shifts to the second-leg semi-final games.
Up next are mouth-watering semi-final pairings Milan derby between AC Milan and city rival, Inter Milan compete for a place in the final match and will meet the winner of Real Madrid and Manchester City which is a repeat of last season’s semi-final paring that saw ‘Whites’ went all the way to win the cup
The climax of the campaign, the Champions League final in Lagos, promises to be an unforgettable experience for fans.
UEFA Champions League
Osimhen and Aubameyang: Africa’s First Men of the Match in 2025/26 Champions League
The Champions League has barely started and already African fans have something to be proud of.
Two of the continent’s biggest names, Victor Osimhen from Nigeria and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Gabon, have become the first African players this season to be named Man of the Match.
For Osimhen, it was a night to remember in Istanbul. Galatasaray were up against Liverpool, a team with a European pedigree and needed someone to step up. Osimhen did just that.
His goal gave Galatasaray a 1-0 win but it was more than just the goal. His energy and how he kept Liverpool’s defenders on their toes all night made him the best player on the pitch.
So his winning of the UEFA Man of the Match award. Galatasaray fans had proof they have a striker who can change games at the highest level.
Meanwhile, on the same night in Marseille, Aubameyang was showing why he has been Africa’s most reliable goal scorer for over a decade.
At 36, some wondered if he still had it on nights like this. His answer was a thunderous “YES.”
Marseille tore Ajax apart in a 4–0 demolition that saw Aubameyang seal his stature as the orchestrator and heartbeat of the French club’s attack.
His movement, his composure and his leadership stood out. So much so that he too was rightfully awarded the Man of the Match.
The fact that these two happened on the same night made it even more special for African football fans.
Osimhen represents the new generation: quick, hungry and with still a few years ahead to make history.
Aubameyang is the veteran still out there to prove – even though he really has nothing to prove anymore – that experience and class don’t fade easily.
Together, they gave African football fans a double reason to smile.
For Nigeria and Gabon, these awards are more than individual trophies. They are ultimately a reminder of how much African players contribute to the Champions League season in, season out.
And the tournament is still in its early stages. So there’s every chance more players from the continent will follow in their footsteps before the Budapest finale in 2026. Only good omens for the 2025 AFCON that starts in a few months.
-Morocco World News
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In his glory days, Jose Mourinho celebrated dramatic goals from his teams by sprinting down the touchline, sometimes sliding on his knees for extra euphoric effect.
On Tuesday, back at his former club Chelsea as the new coach of Benfica, Mourinho’s most eye-catching intervention was down the touchline again, but this time his run was to urge his team’s fans to stop hurling objects onto the pitch.
Benfica under Mourinho, in his fourth game in charge, were defeated 1-0 by an under-strength Chelsea side in the Champions League after a fist-half Richard Rios own goal.
The self-declared “Special One” was lauded by the home fans with a few choruses of “Jose Mou-rin-ho” in recognition of his successes – three Premier League titles and four other trophies – which no other Chelsea manager has come close to matching.
Mourinho, 62, acknowledged the chants with a gentle wave, got a cheer when he ventured onto the pitch to clear a spare ball and quickly vanished down the tunnel at the final whistle after shaking the hand of Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca.
It was all a far cry from the fervour of 20 years ago when Mourinho – having led Porto to an unlikely Champions League triumph – turned Chelsea into English champions for the first time in 50 years in 2005 and won the title again a year later.
After a collapse of form, Mourinho departed in 2007 but he won the Champions League again, this time with Inter Milan in 2010, knocking out the Londoners on the way to the final.
He went on to manage Real Madrid before returning to Chelsea where he claimed a third English title and then had spells at Manchester United, London side Tottenham Hotspur – an unforgivable move for many Chelsea fans at the time – and Roma.
As the big offers dried up, Mourinho went on to coach Fenerbahce in Turkey where he lasted little more than a year before his return to Portuguese football with Benfica.
Asked after Tuesday’s defeat by Chelsea if he still had the drive of the early days of his career, Mourinho insisted he felt more motivated.
“If I am in a job it’s because I like to put myself on the line every day,” he told reporters. “I am desperate to win the next match.”
Mourinho said he thought Benfica had deserved more from the game. “We started well, we controlled well. I don’t know if I can say big chances but we had chances for sure.”
Chelsea’s Maresca said he was relieved to secure a win – albeit a scrappy one – after two consecutive defeats in the Premier League and a 3-1 loss at Bayern Munich in the his side’s Champions League opener.
“Sometimes you need to learn to win in another way,” he said of Chelsea’s improved defensive performance. “At least we learned how to win a game with a red card.”
Striker Joao Pedro was dismissed for a second yellow card after coming on as a substitute, the third time in four matches that Chelsea have finished with 10 men
-Reuters
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Hosts Eintracht Frankfurt scored four times in 29 minutes to bounce back from a goal down and hammer Galatasaray 5-1 in their Champions League opener on Thursday.
The Turkish sides are without their talismanic striker, Victor Osimhen who was injured while on international duty with Nigeria.
The Turks had hit Frankfurt on the break with Yunus Akgun completing the move from a Leroy Sane assist in the eighth minute. Germany international Sane, who joined from Bayern Munich this season, became the only player in Champions League history to play for four or more clubs and score or assist on his debut for each of them.
Frankfurt, competing for only the second time in the Champions League main round, struggled to break through Galatasaray’s defence until a defensive error from Akgun in the 37th. Ritsu Doan pounced, charged into the box and Davinson Sanchez deflected the Japanese winger’s shot in for an own goal.
The hosts took the lead in first-half stoppage time when 19-year-old Turkey international Can Uzun scored a superb goal on his Champions League debut after fine control and a quick turn in the box. The hosts netted again before halftime with Jonathan Burkardt’s well-timed glancing header putting them 3-1 up.
With the visitors forced to take more risks after the break, Frankfurt found space and Burkardt completed his dream Champions League debut with another header in the 66th for his second goal of the evening. Ansgar Knauff completed the rout in the 75th.
Frankfurt next travel to Atletico Madrid on September 30 when Galatasaray host Liverpool.
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