Yaya Toure is backing former Ivory Coast team-mate Didier Drogba’s bid to become president of the Ivorian Football Association (FIF). “It’s time for change in our football. It needs modernity,” said Toure. “When I say I support Drogba, it’s also for the good of the country, to have a former player of his kind investing himself in Africa.” Drogba represented his country 105 times and announced his intention to run for the post back in September.
Germany’s all-time leading scorer Miroslav Klose has been appointed Bayern Munich assistant coach for next season. The 41-year-old has been a youth coach at the club for the past two years after retiring as a player in 2016. He spent four seasons as a player with Bayern from 2007, winning league and cup honours.
Three Fiorentina players and three members of the club’s support staff have tested positive for coronavirus. Serie A clubs have been given permission by the Italian government to resume training, although players can only train individually.
The rivalry between ‘Real Deal’ Evander Holyfield and ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson always felt as if it merited a trilogy of fights. The pair have made us wait more than two decades since Holyfield claimed wins over ‘the baddest man on the planet’ in 1996 and 1997 but suddenly there is hope of a third hard-hitting and probably controversial affair. Tyson, 53, wants to box again in charity matches and Holyfield, 57, has announced he will make a similar move.
Formula 1 chairman Chase Carey has admitted that the sport’s owners are preparing for “the remote possibility of no racing in 2020”. He said they discussed with lenders how to handle the loss of income involved in not being able to run a season. But he emphasised: “We are increasingly confident – although there are no guarantees – that we will have a 2020 championship season.”
The Bundesliga will resume behind closed doors on 16 May, becoming the first European league to restart following the coronavirus shutdown. One of the games on the day of relaunch will be the derby between Schalke and Borussia Dortmund. Champions Bayern Munich, who are four points clear at the top of the table, travel to Union Berlin on Sunday. Most teams have nine games to play, with the final weekend of the season rescheduled for 27-28 June.
Tennis’ governing bodies have confirmed the creation of a Player Relief programme to support players affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The fund, which is already worth at least $6m, will target around 800 singles and doubles players from the ATP and WTA Tours. The figure is likely to rise as donations from players, including Briton Andy Murray, will also be added.
The German Bundesliga season can resume this month, Chancellor Angela Merkel has confirmed. It will become the first major league in Europe to return to competition, with a date for resumption to be confirmed by the German Football League (DFL) on Thursday. All matches will be played behind closed doors. With nine games remaining, Bayern Munich are top of the table, four points above Borussia Dortmund.
The Football Association of Zambia has confirmed to the Confederation of African Football that they intend to resume their domestic football season next month, subject to approval by health authorities in the country. CAF had set Tuesday as the date by when countries should confirm whether they will continue or stop their domestic seasons suspended to curb the spread of the covid-19.
Gernot Rohr, coach of the Nigeria men’s national team, has said months-long talks between himself and the Nigeria Football Federation over the renewal of his contract have not been finalised. The German told BBC Sport Africa “we have still not taken a decision”, two weeks after a proposed contract was sent the way of the France-based coach.
Liberia have followed Ethiopia in declaring their football season over following the coronavirus outbreak. The 2019/20 Liberia Premier League season, which started in November, was declared null and void following an emergency executive committee meeting. “There is no champion, no promotion, no relegation. We start a new league and determine a new champion for the 2020/2021 league season,” Mustapha Raji, President of the Liberia Football Federation.
The Ethiopian Football Federation has announced that all league competitions in the country are cancelled due to Coronavirus pandemic. The decision was arrived at following a discussion in person and via video conference with all respective parties, including the Ethiopian Premier League.
USA Women co-captains Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe said they will appeal against their defeat in a lawsuit for equal pay with the men’s national team. A California judge threw out the players’ claims that they were underpaid in comparison with the men’s team.
Youssef Hossam has been banned for life by the Tennis Integrity Unit after being found guilty of multiple match-fixing and other corruption offences. The TIU found that the Egyptian, 21, had committed 21 breaches of anti-corruption rules between 2015 and 2019.
Former Chelsea forward Salomon Kalou has been suspended by his club Hertha Berlin after filming himself flouting social distancing rules on his return to training. Kalou appeared to make light of the coronavirus pandemic live on social media as the Bundesliga attempts to return to action later this month. The Ivorian also filmed himself interrupting a team-mate’s test while screening it live on Facebook – an act that was branded “absolutely unacceptable” by the German league.
Clubs in the top two German divisions have returned 10 positive results from 1,724 coronavirus tests, says the German football league. Clubs have been training in groups, with the tests taken before a planned return to training as teams. Measures including “the isolation of the affected person” have been taken, said the DFL. Top-flight side Cologne have had no further Covid-19 infections after three people tested positive last week.
Former Canada goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc has spoken of the emotions she experienced when forced to stay away from her newborn daughter for two weeks. The 40-year-old was admitted to hospital with breathing difficulties a week after her daughter Paris was born. Doctors then told her she needed to self-isolate because of concerns she had contracted coronavirus while being treated.
Former England captain Sir Bill Beaumont has been re-elected as the chairman of World Rugby for another four years. The 68-year-old defeated his former deputy, ex-Argentina skipper Agustin Pichot, by 28 votes to 23. French Rugby president Bernard Laporte has been elected vice-chairman.
The United States women’s football team’s bid for equal pay has been dismissed by a court, with the judge rejecting the players’ claims they were underpaid compared to the men. The lawsuit was filed by 28 women’s national team players last year against the US Soccer Federation (USSF). They had been seeking $66m in damages under the Equal Pay Act.
Germany’s Bundesliga will have to wait another week to find out about a possible restart date as the government has delayed a decision over resumption. The league has been suspended since mid-March because of coronavirus. Chancellor Angela Merkel said that any decision on if and when sports activities could resume would now be taken on Wednesday, 6 May. “It is absolutely necessary that we remain disciplined and stick to health guidelines,” she said.
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