
PSG falls short in Club World Cup final after an 'exceptional' season
The European champions were unrecognizable as they collapsed against a formidable London side. The London team dominated from the outset and led 3-0 at halftime. Cole Palmer scored twice (in the 22 nd and 30 th minutes) and assisted João Pedro (in the 43 rd minute) on a goal. Palmer capitalized on rare lapses in the PSG's defense. It was a match to forget for PSG, especially PSG's head coach Luis Enrique, who clashed with Pedro after the final whistle amid post-match tensions on the pitch.
Against Chelsea, the Parisians looked tired after a seemingly endless season, in which they played 65 matches, including 17 in the Champions League. On Sunday night, the contrast was stark between PSG's lack of freshness and the energy the Blues expended to press the Parisian players and prevent them from building their play. It was as if Chelsea had turned PSG's own game against them, suffocating them with relentless activity, a tactic PSG had so often used themselves.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
Paris 2024 volunteers recall the thrill of being part of history 'from the inside'
If you thought that being a volunteer for the Paris 2024 Games ended with the Paralympic closing ceremony on September 8, think again. "It stays with us for the rest of our lives," said Amandine Guillaume, 36, a team member assisting athletes in judo and wrestling, who has carefully kept her volunteer gear. One year later, it is impossible not to notice an Olympic-ring-branded bag in a supermarket, a dark blue and turquoise striped shirt on a running trail or a colorful bucket hat on the beach. In the streets of the capital, in Bordeaux, Lille and even outside France, volunteers are instantly recognizable. "– Which division? – Champ de Mars, logistics team." Much like war veterans, volunteers greet each other with a nod or a smile. On their chests, a collection of pins bears witness to their service: "Field hockey, Australia vs. South Africa, I was there." This protocol flair is not just for show. The event left a lasting impression on these unsung heroes at the heart of the action. "It felt like we were living sports history from the inside. The atmosphere was incredible," said Guillaume. As a physical education teacher, she especially recalled a long conversation with the father of judoka Teddy Riner, who was anxious before his son's individual final. The discreet yet joyful presence of these 45,000 volunteers – one third of whom are members of sports clubs – quickly made them favorites among the public and athletes alike. "A year after the Olympics, I really want to thank the volunteers. They took such good care of us," said Riner, a five-time Olympic judo gold medalist. Stationed at competition venues, the athletes' village, media center, training sites and even at train stations and airports, volunteers played an essential role in the event's success. A giant picnic at La Villette Just like the athletes, some volunteers felt a letdown once the flame was extinguished. "We call it JO-stalgia [a pun on 'nostalgia' and 'JO,' the initials in French for the Olympic Games]," said Amandine Guillaume, who hopes to volunteer again "for Los Angeles [in 2028] or even sooner, for the Winter Games [in Milan-Cortina in 2026]." To fill the void left by Paris 2024 and to keep the magic alive, some volunteers even formed associations. Anne Barthaux, who worked in protocol at Roissy airport during the Olympics and then as a press team leader at the Stade de France during the Paralympics, helped develop a volunteer group in Bordeaux. "Every month, we get together. We talk about the Games, we go out to restaurants in our uniforms and little by little, real friendships are formed." A similar energy inspired Katy Grignon, 52, a sales professional in the food industry, who helped create the Paris 2024 Volunteers Association. "Today, we've completed 60 volunteer missions. In March, for example, I worked at the French boxing championships!" Positive momentum for sport This positive momentum benefits sports in France, whose model relies heavily on volunteering, a resource that has been declining for several years. "I continued volunteering, even in sports, which wasn't my area before," said Yvette Gilbert, 70, a former media library director. To celebrate the first anniversary of the Paris Games, nearly 400 volunteers planned to gather "wearing their uniform" on Saturday, July 26, at La Villette for a giant picnic. "I'm bringing pins to trade, just like in the good old days," said Thierry Goulet on the Facebook group Volontaires Paris 2024. This is a way to keep the Olympic spirit alive, but also to continue wearing the outfits designed by sporting goods manufacturer Decathlon as part of its partnership with Paris 2024. "The pants are practical and they make my students smile during PE class, so I still wear them regularly," said Guillaume, who gave the rest of her kit to her daughters. The Paris 2024 flame looks set to shine on for a long time to come.


Local France
13 hours ago
- Local France
French word of the Day: Domestique
Why do I need to know un domestique ? Because it will help you understand the Tour de France coverage. What does it mean? Un Domestique - pronounced dom-es-teek - literally translates as servant or household staff. But these days its more common use is in the world of cycling. If you're watching the Tour de France, you might hear the commentators refer to some riders as ' Les domestiques ' - these are the junior members of each team whose job is to help pace and protect the lead rider and get them into the best position possible for a stage win. They are normally younger riders gaining experience and their junior status within the team is made explicit is the slightly demeaning use of 'servant' - they might help out with tasks such as passing water bottles but they're not actually expected to do domestic tasks like cleaning the team bus. Advertisement Otherwise the term domestique is most commonly heard in historical novels or period TV shows, unless you're mingling with the super wealthy. A cleaner or a hotel maid is more likely to be referred to as the femme de ménage (or homme de ménage ). In fact menage or ménagères is the general translation for 'domestic' in the sense of a domestic setting or domestic chores. In French 'domestic' is not commonly used as an opposite to international, you would likely use the word ' national ' or ' intérieur '. Use it like this Il est un domestique dans l'équipe Ineos, mais je pense qu'il est un futur vainqueur du Tour de France - He's a 'domestique' in the Ineos team, but I think he's a future Tour de France champion Pas devant les domestiques, ma chère - Not in front of the servants, my dear Il se vend bien tant sur le marché national qu'international - It sells well in both the domestic and international markets

LeMonde
15 hours ago
- LeMonde
One year later, the contested legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympics
It was Friday, July 26, 2024, at dawn. Just hours before the opening of the Paris Olympic Games, panic spread among organizers. Trains were paralyzed by a "massive attack" on the TGV high-speed rail network, and torrents of rain were forecast for the capital. The Games had not even begun, and were already turning into a nightmare. But by midnight that same day, France was rubbing its eyes in disbelief, dazzled by the opening ceremony imagined by Thomas Jolly along the Seine. Soon after, the first gold medals for the French team poured in before sold-out arenas. France quickly plunged into a fervor that, for a fortnight, restored a sense of national pride to a country divided by the snap elections earlier that summer. One year later, what remains of that "enchanted interlude," apart from memories of shared jubilation in transformed venues? The Games' organizers promised a physical legacy. The Olympic Aquatics Center opened to the public on June 2, 2025, in Saint-Denis, north of Paris. The seven other swimming pools built or renovated in Seine-Saint-Denis for the Games helped address the underpriviliged Paris suburbs' shortage of sports facilities, and the athletes' and media villages gave rise to 4,000 new homes.