Sport
Benzema, Ronaldo and Haaland nominated for Ballon d’Or, Messi misses out
Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema is among the 30 nominees on the shortlist for the prestigious men’s Ballon d’Or trophy, organizers France Football magazine announced on Friday.
The French international has had an incredible season for Real Madrid, scoring 44 goals in 46 games and helping them win the Champions League and LaLiga, Reuters reported.
Seven times reigning winner Lionel Messi was not nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or for the first time since 2005 and nor was his Paris Saint-Germain team mate Neymar.
Other nominees are Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester City striker Erling Haaland – who has just joined the club from Borussia Dortmund – and last season’s joint Premier League top scorer Mohamed Salah of Liverpool.
Among the 20 players on the shortlist for the women’s Ballon d’Or is Lyon’s Ada Hegerberg, who won the inaugural award in 2018, and Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas.
Arsenal striker Beth Mead, who won the European Championship with hosts England last month and was named the Player of the tournament, is also nominated.
The honour for the best player in the world will be presented on Oct. 17. The trophy will now be awarded based on a regular season from August to July rather than a calendar year.
Sport
Debutant Naseer Khan strikes four as Afghanistan fight back against Zimbabwe in second Test
Zimbabwe were well placed at 201 for one after nearly 58 overs, but Naseer triggered a middle-order collapse, taking three wickets in eight overs. Zimbabwe lost 3 for 12 during that period, and slipped from 201 for 1 to 250 for 5 at stumps.
Afghanistan fought back against Zimbabwe on the opening day of the second Test in Sharjah, with debutant left-arm spinner Naseer Khan Maroofkhil claiming four wickets to halt Zimbabwe’s strong start.
Zimbabwe were well placed at 201 for one after nearly 58 overs, but Naseer triggered a middle-order collapse, taking three wickets in eight overs. Zimbabwe lost 3 for 12 during that period, and slipped from 201 for 1 to 250 for 5 at stumps.
After winning the toss and opting to bat, Zimbabwe made a solid start through Innocent Kaia and Ben Curran, who put together a 98-run opening partnership. Naseer broke the stand with his first delivery after lunch, trapping Curran lbw for 44.
Kaia then combined with Brendan Taylor for another strong partnership, adding 102 runs for the second wicket. Both batters reached half-centuries before Naseer turned the game around.
Kaia, batting on 96, was trapped lbw while attempting a slog sweep. In his next over, Naseer dismissed Zimbabwe captain Brian Bennett for a duck before Ziaur Rahman took a tumbling catch to remove Wessly Madhevere, who was caught at long-off after attempting to loft a delivery that stayed low.
Zimbabwe lost further momentum as Taylor and Antum Naqvi adopted a cautious approach following the three quick wickets. The pair added just 21 runs in nine overs before Naqvi struck a six off Naseer.
Taylor moved into the 90s with a boundary off Naseer, but Ziaur Rahman ended Naqvi’s 44-ball stay on eight runs, having him caught at first slip.
Taylor remained unbeaten on 96 at stumps, while Tafadzwa Tsiga was not out as Zimbabwe closed the day at 250 for five, leaving the second Test finely poised.
Argentina claimed their first-ever men’s futsal gold medal at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games after securing a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Portugal in the final.
The closely contested match at Dakar Arena saw both teams enter the final with perfect records, having won all three of their group-stage matches. However, Argentina emerged victorious, with captain Lorenzo Sampedro scoring the decisive goal six minutes before the end of regular time.
Argentina’s triumph adds another chapter to the country’s Olympic football success, following the gold medals won by its men’s football team at the Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
Argentina head coach Mariano Alberto Gomez praised his players for their performance, saying they had represented their country with pride after a lengthy preparation and participation in several tournaments.
Portugal’s Joao Carvalho expressed disappointment at missing out on gold but praised his team’s journey, saying the final was decided by small mistakes.
Earlier, Morocco secured the bronze medal after defeating Afghanistan 2-1 in the third-place playoff.
Afghanistan came close to forcing a late comeback, scoring with just 13 seconds remaining, but Morocco held on to secure third place.
Morocco coach Zakaria Kairi said winning an Olympic medal was a significant achievement for his young players, despite the team falling short of its original target of reaching the final and winning gold.
The results confirmed Argentina as futsal champions, Portugal as runners-up and Morocco in third place at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games.
Afghanistan’s U18 national futsal team put up a determined fight but narrowly missed out on the bronze medal after suffering a 2–1 defeat against Morocco in the third-place match at the 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games on Thursday.
The young Afghan players showed great determination and fighting spirit throughout the contest. Morocco took the lead in the first half before doubling its advantage after the break.
Afghanistan refused to give up and fought back, pulling one goal back in the dying seconds of the match.
Despite a late push, the national side could not find an equalizer, as Morocco held on for a 2–1 victory to claim the bronze medal.
Afghanistan’s national youth futsal team competed in four matches at the tournament, making an impressive start with a commanding 5–0 victory over Panama in its opening group-stage fixture.
The young side then faced Argentina, losing 2–1, before suffering a 2–0 defeat against Portugal.
Despite missing out on a medal, Afghanistan’s young futsal players demonstrated determination, resilience and competitive spirit on the international stage.
Portugal and Argentina will face each other in the final to compete for the gold medal.
Debutant Naseer Khan strikes four as Afghanistan fight back against Zimbabwe in second Test
Russia calls UN report on Afghan opium ‘political propaganda’
Urgent climate finance pleas at COP31 face a non-urgent response
Respiratory illnesses rise in Gaza with worst to come as winter floods arrive, WHO says
Afghanistan and Uzbekistan agree on export of 100,000 tons of Bamyan potatoes
Afghanistan finish runners-up after 6-0 defeat to Brazil in futsal final
Trump says US may strike Iran’s ‘Pickaxe Mountain’ nuclear facility
Rubio heads to Central Asia while other US officials hit foreign policy hot spots
Violent protests spread across Europe as Albanian PM blames ‘foreign hand’
Governments take websites offline as critical cyber flaws trigger global alert
Tahawol: Russia’s special attention to situation in Afghanistan discussed
Saar: Discussion on US’s humiliating defeat in Afghanistan
Tahawol: High-level Russian delegation’s visit to Kabul discussed
Saar: Afghanistan’s situation in focus at CSTO discussed
Tahawol: Efforts to halt deportation of Afghan refugees from US discussed
-
Sport4 days agoPortugal beat Afghanistan 2-0 in Dakar Youth Olympics futsal semi-finals
-
World4 days agoFirst Muslim US senator-elect El-Sayed calls for review of aid to Pakistan
-
Regional4 days agoIran defends two-day proposal for peace talks after US rejects conditions
-
Business4 days agoAfghanistan approves new foreign investment policy in bid to attract international investors
-
Sport3 days agoOmar Zawak thrash Istiqlal Kabul 5-1 in ACL
-
World3 days agoTrump says further US attacks on Iran ‘highly unlikely’ as peace talks gain momentum
-
Sport4 days agoFirst Test between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe ends in a draw
-
Latest News5 days agoUN pledges to expand cooperation with Afghanistan as over 8 million migrants return home