Scotland's World Cup hopes dented as Guernsey tie rained off
Scotland's T20 World Cup hopes suffered a blow as their opening match of the Europe Qualifier against Guernsey was rained off without a ball being bowled.Heavy rain delayed the toss at Voorburg Cricket Club in the Hague and with no break in the weather, the match was abandoned.With the Netherlands and Italy having beaten Jersey and Guernsey respectively on Saturday, Scotland will now have to play catch-up in the round-robin format.Doug Watson's side take on the Dutch on Tuesday before facing Italy on Wednesday. They wrap up the qualifier against Jersey on Friday.Scotland head coach Watson told BBC Scotland: "Not ideal, but it is what it is."It is disappointing. The players have worked hard and trained hard."We take nothing for granted. Ideally, we would have played and won, but we can only focus on what's ahead of us and our next game is the Dutch."
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The Independent
5 minutes ago
- The Independent
How the Championship's compelling and cruel nature delivers every time
After an indictment of the Championship, its advertisement came shortly after. Its last three escapees procured just 59 Premier League points between them and were swiftly cast back to the Football League. Yet Tommy Watson's injury-time play-off winner for Sunderland showed the Championship in its full glory: the drama and the dream, the £200m reward for promotion, but also the emotion. And, crucially, the unpredictability. Sunderland's promotion without the benefit of parachute payments offered hope for the Championship's upwardly mobile middle class; it was less good news for Chris Wilder, sacked by Sheffield United. Luton's relegation back to League One, with parachute payments, showed the Championship can be both compelling and cruel. Last year's division was both tight, with only 20 points separating demoted Luton from fifth-place Coventry, and subject to a rare level of domination, with Leeds and Burnley twinned on 100 points at the top. So to the 2025-26 Championship, to the familiar assortment of the ambitious and the expensive, the impatient and the impoverished. The division starts with the familiar expectation that, in footballing gravity, what has come down must go back up, but also the potential that those who have come up, in Birmingham City and Wrexham, may be expected to do the same. It also begins with 11 managerial changes. Two of them are among the outcasts from the Premier League. Marti Cifuentes has been tasked with emulating Enzo Maresca at Leicester, but becomes the club's sixth manager in under three years and starts with the handicap of a potential points deduction, after Leicester were charged with a PSR breach in 2023-24. While there have been a few arrivals and, aside from Jamie Vardy, few notable departures, the squad still boasts plenty of quality. Southampton hired the managerial wunderkind Will Still, in charge of a fifth club at just 32. It could be seen as a dramatic response to a calamitous season or the best appointment they could make in the circumstances. After getting just 12 points, it is a peculiarity that their last two managers, Russell Martin and Ivan Juric, could both manage in the Champions League this season. In the Championship, Saints will be without Aaron Ramsdale, Kyle Walker-Peters, Jan Bednarek, Adam Lallana, Kamaldeen Sulemana and Paul Onuachu, presumably with a couple more departures to follow. But some players who seemed to inhabit the no-man's land of being too good for the Championship and not good enough for the Premier League. Certainly, an attacking contingent of Adam Armstrong, Ben Brereton Diaz, Cameron Archer and Ross Stewart belong in that category; the young American Damion Downs, a £7m buy, could be another source of goals. Then there is Ipswich, with continuity in the dugout under Kieran McKenna, and much on the pitch. Liam Delap has left, and Omari Hutchinson may follow, but part of their recruitment last year was to sign the Championship all-stars, which should stand them in good stead. They look set to be joined by the 2022-23 Championship player of the year, Chuba Akpom, while Ashley Young won promotion from the division in 2006 and is older than his manager. Ipswich may look the likeliest bet for promotion. Their journey from League One to the Premier League in successive seasons in 2022-23 and 2023-24 may offer encouragement to Birmingham and Wrexham. The Blues come fresh from earning 111 points last season and a manager in Chris Davies, who has a similar career path to McKenna, as a highly-rated coach at a top club. Birmingham have bought the former Celtic forward Kyogo Furuhashi, and alongside Jay Stansfield, gives them considerable firepower. While bringing back Demarai Gray, at 29, shows an immediate determination to get promotion. Wrexham, meanwhile, have the Hollywood owners and the least Hollywood of managers, in Phil Parkinson. Their income is boosted by their commercial appeal, and some of it is being spent on a series of signings. Conor Coady may be both the most high-profile and the loudest but it is worth remembering this is just the second spell in the second tier in their history and that, three years ago, they were in non-league. In clashes of clubs who have travelled in opposite directions, it scarcely feels a coincidence that the first games of the season are Birmingham against Ipswich and Wrexham's trip to Southampton. Yet the 18 clubs that went neither up nor down may look at Sunderland, and their influence might be seen across the division. Some of the managerial newcomers look like attempts to find their own Regis Le Bris. QPR went for Julien Stephan, another Rennes alumnus, to take over from Cifuentes. Sergey Jakirovic has become the latest in an eclectic line of Hull appointments. Paulo Pezzolano, deemed a promotion specialist, was hired by Watford, which tends to be a precursor to being fired by Watford. Sheffield United replaced Wilder with Ruben Selles, looking for more AI-led recruitment; artificial intelligence led them to the Bulgarian market. The Spaniard may have traded up in the division, but there was intrigue in Liam Manning leaving play-off finishers Bristol City, for Norwich, who came in the bottom half despite having two of the four top scorers. It spoke to the untapped potential at Carrow Road. It is a boost, though perhaps only a temporary one, that Josh Sargent has stayed while the Canaries are looking for new signing Mathias Kvistgarden to replace Borja Sainz. Among last season's other underachievers, Ryan Mason gets his first managerial job at West Bromwich Albion. Middlesbrough have brought in Rob Edwards, who played a part in Luton's exit from the division in each direction, for Michael Carrick. Carrick may have underperformed last season, but not as much as an old teammate. Thus far, however, no one has made the mistake of appointing Wayne Rooney. Frank Lampard has been lazily lumped in with some of England's golden generation as they stumbled in various dugouts, but he had a transformative impact at Coventry last season. In a division where the majority of teams are evenly matched, the right choice, coupled with momentum, can make a difference. Lampard's predecessor, Mark Robins, might end Stoke's status as the division's annual disappointments. Millwall's club-record buy of Josh Coburn shows their goals too. There were, though, too few goals last season, with just 2.45 per game, down from 2.68 per game in 2023-24. And it was not just because of Burnley's astonishing total of 30 clean sheets. Parsimony paid off for them. Others are forced into frugality. Hull have a transfer embargo, meaning they cannot buy. Sheffield Wednesday are in more desperate straits as owner Dejphon Chansiri's reign unravels. Their transfer embargo is compounded by the exits of unpaid players and the manager, Danny Rohl, leaving his replacement Henrik Pedersen with a horribly thin squad, despite the admirable loyalty of Barry Bannan. The enforced closure of the North Stand at Hillsborough on safety grounds has not helped matters. A club is in crisis. While others imagine going up, the season begins with the probability that an increasingly beleaguered Wednesday will go down.
BBC News
6 minutes ago
- BBC News
When do top European leagues start - and who will star?
The Club World Cup in the United States only finished on 13 July, but Europe's top leagues are already set to kick off Dutch Eredivisie begins on 8 August, with the Portuguese Primeira Liga and Spain's La Liga starting soon after, before France's Ligue 1, Germany's Bundesliga and Italy's Serie A get under way later in Sport has taken a look at those six competitions, the fixtures to watch out for and a guide on what we can expect in 2025-26. France - Ligue 1 Starts: 15 AugustDefending champions: PSG (13 titles)Teams in Europe: PSG Marseille, Monaco (Champions League), Nice (Champions League third qualifying round), Lille, Lyon (Europa League), Strasbourg (Conference League play-off)Promoted and relegated: Lorient, Metz, Paris FC (promoted), Montpellier, Saint-Etienne, Reims (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Joaquin Panichelli (Alaves to Strasbourg, £14.3m), Jonathan Rowe (Norwich to Marseille, £12.5m), Pierre-Emile Hojberg (Tottenham to Marseille, £11.7m), Andrew Omobamidele (Nottingham Forest to Strasbourg, £9.1m), Eric Dier (Bayern Munich to Monaco, free), Olivier Giroud (Los Angeles FC to Lille, free), Angel Gomes (Lille to Marseille, free)Expert insight, from French football journalist Raphael Jucobin:"While PSG might look set for another inexorable march to the title, all signs point to the European champions facing sterner tests at home this season."The main threat will come from Roberto De Zerbi's Marseille, who have significantly strengthened with the additions of regular Ligue 1 standouts Angel Gomes and Facundo Medina."Monaco, meanwhile, will feature some more familiar faces to international fans in Paul Pogba, Eric Dier and Ansu Fati."The capital's first top-flight derby since the 1980s will be one of the main stories, although Paris FC's understated (albeit astute) business so far belies their billionaire backing."With Lyon and Lille emerging weakened from the summer, the race for the Champions League spots could see more credible challenges from Strasbourg and Lens." Germany - Bundesliga Starts: 22 AugustDefending champions: Bayern Munich (33 titles)Teams in Europe: Bayern, Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Borussia Dortmund (Champions League), Freiburg, Stuttgart (Europa League), Mainz (Conference League play-off)Promoted and relegated: Cologne, Hamburg (promoted), Bochum, Holsten Kiel (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Luis Diaz (Liverpool to Bayern Munich, £65.5m), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool to Leverkusen, £35m), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven to Leverkusen, £35m), Jobe Bellingham (Sunderland to Dortmund, £27m), Yan Couto (Manchester City to Dortmund, £25.3m), Vini Souza (Sheffield United to Wolfsburg, £13m), Mark Flekken (Brentford to Leverkusen, £8m)Expert insight, from German football writer Constantin Eckner:"Bayern Munich are once again the clear favourites to win the Bundesliga. Even though they have struggled to sign new attackers, their squad is still reasonably strong, even with Jamal Musiala missing the first couple of months of the season."Borussia Dortmund have the best shot at challenging Bayern and Jobe Bellingham might play a prominent role in their efforts to keep up with the defending champions. The former Sunderland midfielder has all the tools to be the Bundesliga's breakout star."Another name to keep in mind is Ibrahim Maza, a 19-year-old attacking midfielder who has just joined Bayer Leverkusen. While still inexperienced, he could turn out to be the rightful successor to Florian Wirtz." Italy - Serie A Starts: 23 AugustDefending champions: Napoli (four titles)Teams in Europe: Napoli, Inter Milan, Atalanta, Juventus (Champions League), Roma, Bologna (Europa League), Fiorentina (Conference League play-off)Promoted and relegated: Cremonese, Pisa, Sassuolo (promoted), Monza, Venezia Empoli (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Francisco Conceicao (Porto to Juventus, £27.7m), Sam Beukema (Bologna to Napoli, £26.9m), Nico Gonzalez (Fiorentina to Juventus, £24.4m) Noa Lang (PSV Eindhoven to Napoli, £21.6m), Ange-Yoan Bonny (Parma to Inter Milan, £20m), Luis Henrique (Marseille to Inter Milan, £20m), Lloyd Kelly (Newcastle to Juventus, £20m), Jonathan David (Lille to Juventus, free), Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City to Napoli, free), Ciro Immobile (Besiktas to Bologna, free), Luka Modric (Real Madrid to AC Milan, free)Expert insight, from Italian football journalist Daniele Verri: "The title race looks like it will be a battle between Napoli and Inter. "The holders are a better side with the arrivals of Kevin De Bruyne, Noa Lang, Lorenzo Lucca, Sam Beukema and Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, who will allow Antonio Conte to rotate without losing quality."Keeping Conte in the dugout was the real deal for Napoli, though it won't be easy to compete in both Serie A and the Champions League."Inter are still very strong. Hakan Calhanoglu is going to stay and Nigeria forward Ademola Lookman could join too."Massimiliano Allegri - and Igli Tare's - AC Milan have left a positive impression this summer. The potential arrivals of Ardon Jashari from Club Brugge and Dusan Vlahovic from Juventus would complete a very competitive squad. "The same applies for Roma under new boss Gian Piero Gasperini, who have been active in the market, and Juventus, who will be hoping to line up with a deadly attack of Randal Kolo Muani and Jonathan David. "Meanwhile, Cesc Fabregas' Como have spent 200m euros since last summer after a strong return to Serie A - they are aiming big."The players to watch are Napoli's De Bruyne and Milan's Luka Modric - they promise to bring leadership, experience and quality to Serie A. It will be a treat." Netherlands - Eredivisie Starts: 8 AugustDefending champions: PSV Eindhoven (26 titles)Teams in Europe: PSV, Ajax (Champions League), Feyenoord (Champions League third qualifying round), Go Ahead Eagles (Europa League), Utrecht (Europa League second qualifying round), AZ Alkmaar (Conference League second qualifying round)Promoted and relegated: Excelsior, Telstar, Volendam (promoted), Almere City, RKC Waalwijk, Willem II (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Ruben van Bommel (AZ Alkmaar to PSV, £13.7m), Raul Moro (Real Vallecano to Ajax, £9.5m), Sem Steijn (Twente to Feyenoord, £8.7m), Yarek Gasiorowski (Valencia to PSV, £8.5m), Luciano Valente (Groningen to Feyenoord, £6.8m).Expert insight, from Dutch football journalist Arthur Renard: "PSV are favourites for the title, building on a strong squad by adding talent like Ruben van Bommel, son of ex-international Mark. They looked strong in a 2–1 pre-season win over Athletic Bilbao."Eyes will be on Ajax as well with John Heitinga now in charge. The former Liverpool assistant brought keeper Vitezslav Jaros with him, but might want to add experience after Jordan Henderson's departure."It will also be interesting to see how Robin van Persie does in his first full season at Feyenoord, as he has to deal with key departures like Igor Paixao and Antoni Milambo. FC Utrecht could surprise again after finishing fourth last term, while AZ and Twente aim to push into the top three."The player to watch is Kees Smit. The AZ midfielder starred at the U19 Euros – named best player and joint-top scorer. A Youth League winner in 2023, Smit stands out for his technical skills and game-reading ability." Portugal - Primeira Liga Starts: 8 AugustDefending champions: Sporting (21 titles)Teams in Europe: Sporting (Champions League), Benfica (Champions League third qualifying round), Porto (Europa League), Braga (Europa League second qualifying round), Santa Clara (Conference League second qualifying round)Promoted and relegated: Alverca, Tondela (promoted), Boavista, Farense (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Richard Rios (Palmeiras to Benfica, £23.4m), Luis Suarez (Almeria to Sporting, £19.2m), Victor Froholdt (Copenhagen to Porto, £17.3m), Borja Sainz (Norwich to Porto, £14.3m), Gabriela Veiga (Al-Alhi to Porto, £13m), Nehuen Perez (Udinese to Porto, £11.5m), Amar Dedic (RB Salzburg to Benfica, £10.4m), Mario Dorgeles (Nordsjaelland to Braga, £9.5m)Expert insight, from Portuguese football journalist Diogo Pombo:"It would be easy to say Sporting are the front-runners - they won the last two championships."But they sold Viktor Gyokeres, whose goalscoring exploits and physical abilities solved a lot of problems for the team. And the players don't seem a natural fit for the 4-2-3-1 system coach Rui Borges prefers - a shift away from Ruben Amorim's back three, which gave the team its foundation for success."Benfica struggled during pre-season to find a creative spark and desperately need a midfielder who can add 'out of the box' ideas to its attacking play."So, despite the horrible sensations left last season, FC Porto seems to be the 'grande' that shaped the best plan for this season. In Francisco Farioli they have a sharp up-and-coming coach, ambitious, full of fresh ideas and the one who was able to assemble a team that already shows the most oiled-up dynamics on the pitch."The midfield trio of Alan Varela, Victor Froholdt and Gabri Veiga looks the most complementary and sharp among the three main title contenders." Spain - La Liga Starts: 15 AugustDefending champions: Barcelona (28 titles)Teams in Europe: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Athletic Bilbao, Villarreal (Champions League), Real Betis, Celta Vigo (Europa League), Rayo Vallecano (Conference League play-off)Promoted and relegated: Elche, Levante, Real Oviedo (promoted), Valladolid, Las Palmas, Leganes (relegated)Biggest summer signings: Dean Huijsen (Bournemouth to Real Madrid, £50m), Alvaro Carreras (Benfica to Real Madrid, £43.2m), Franco Mastantuono (River Plate to Real Madrid, £38.9m), Alex Baena (Villarreal to Atletico Madrid, £36.3m), Joan Garcia (Espanyol to Barcelona, £21.6m), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis to Atletico Madrid, £20.8m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool to Real Madrid, £8.4m), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United to Barcelona, loan).Expert insight, from European football journalist Guillem Balague: "Barring a dramatic changing of the guard, the 2025-26 La Liga trophy will probably be lifted by either Barcelona, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid - just as it has been for the past 21 campaigns. In that time Barcelona have won 12 titles, Real Madrid seven and Atletico two."Real Madrid start as many people's favourites, but did last season as well. Defence has been the main focus with the additions of Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool, central defender Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth and and left back Alvaro Carreras from Benfica."Their most important signing, however, is probably Xabi Alonso who will be hoping to take the club back to the glory days after his huge success at Bayer Leverkusen."Aided and abetted by a prodigiously talented academy, Hansi Flick goes for his second title in a row at Barcelona."They have been prudent in the transfer market, bringing in goalkeeper Joan Garcia from Espanyol and Marcus Rashford on loan from Manchester United without having to put their hands into their - these days - shallow pockets."Barca need to improve defensively but there will be plenty of goals."Last but not least, Atletico - Real Madrid's very noisy neighbour - have made their intentions clear with a very busy transfer window. "In come midfielder Alex Baena from Villarreal, Slovakia central defender David Hancko from Feyenoord, American midfielder Johnny Cardoso from Real Betis, and Argentine midfielder/winger Thiago Almada from Botafogo."If Diego Simeone does not compete for the league and the Champions League until the last few weeks of the season, it will be considered a failure."This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. What is Ask Me Anything? Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you team will find out everything you need to know and be able to call upon a network of contacts including our experts and will be answering your questions from the heart of the BBC Sport newsroom, and going behind the scenes at some of the world's biggest sporting coverage will span the BBC Sport website, app, social media and YouTube accounts, plus BBC TV and radio. More questions answered... How are Manchester United able to afford Sesko?Why Alexander-Arnold is not allowed to wear number 66 for Real MadridHow is the Ballon d'Or winner decided?
BBC News
6 minutes ago
- BBC News
Transfer news: Son joins LAFC, Sesko latest & Gyokeres plays in Arsenal defeat
Update: Date: 08:06 BST Title: Premier League deals done so far this summer Content: Initial fee with add-ons in brackets Arsenal Aston Villa Bournemouth Brentford Brighton Burnley Chelsea Crystal Palace Everton Fulham Leeds Liverpool Manchester City Manchester United Newcastle Nottingham Forest Sunderland Tottenham West Ham Wolves *City sources say deal worth £27m, Burnley say £31m Update: Date: 08:00 BST Title: Hello! Content: Joe RindlBBC Sport I've still not recovered from yesterday. It was all happening! Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall joined Everton, Benjamin Sesko reportedly chose Manchester United over Newcastle, Darwin Nunez became linked to Al-Hilal, Yoane Wissa returned to Brentford training. And, overnight, LAFC announced the signing of Son Heung-min and then Manchester United enquired about Brighton's Carlos Baleba. Who knows what'll be in store today. Should be a fun one.
