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Barcelona's Spotify Camp Nou return thrown into doubt again

Barcelona's Spotify Camp Nou return thrown into doubt again

Yahoo09-07-2025
La Liga champions Barcelona's scheduled return to the Spotify Camp Nou has this week been thrown up in the air once more.
That's according to RAC1, who have on Wednesday provided an insight into the situation.
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The news which all of a Barcelona persuasion had been so eagerly awaiting was of course finally forthcoming last month.
This came in the form of an announcement, confirming the club's planned return date to the renovated Spotify Camp Nou.
The intention, it was revealed, was to play the annual Joan Gamper Trophy match at the ground on August 10th.
As alluded to above, though, this week, as much has been thrown into serious doubt.
As per a report from RAC1:
'Barcelona City Council considers it very unlikely that Barça can return to the Camp Nou on August 10 for the Gamper.
'It was surprising that the return campaign was launched without having the permits approved.'
Conor Laird – GSFN
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Fox evolved its approach to women's soccer with Euros broadcast. Were the changes enough or too late?
Fox evolved its approach to women's soccer with Euros broadcast. Were the changes enough or too late?

Yahoo

time27 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Fox evolved its approach to women's soccer with Euros broadcast. Were the changes enough or too late?

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Fox has certainly improved on this front, but has yet to shed its worst impulses. This article originally appeared in The Athletic. International Football, Sports Business, Women's Soccer, Women's Euros 2025 The Athletic Media Company

Déjà vu: England and Spain meet again in a final, this time at the Women's European Championship
Déjà vu: England and Spain meet again in a final, this time at the Women's European Championship

Associated Press

time27 minutes ago

  • Associated Press

Déjà vu: England and Spain meet again in a final, this time at the Women's European Championship

ZURICH (AP) — Here we go again. There's a sense of déjà vu about the Women's European Championship final that pits defending champion England against World Cup winner Spain. The two nations faced off in the World Cup final two years ago with Spain edging an open match 1-0. 'I think obviously that was a massive disappointment and I feel like from a collective we probably feel like we didn't have our best performance that day, but I think … if you're trying to pull on that too much then you're going to be too emotional with too many things going on,' England midfielder Keira Walsh said on Thursday. 'Obviously you think about it a little bit but I think for us, put it to the side and focus on the game on Sunday. We've got so many new players in this team who are really confident and bring so many things to this team, so it's exciting and we can just focus on the positives.' Both teams needed 120 minutes to get through their gruelling semifinals. England's super-subs had their part to play again on Tuesday with late goals first taking the match to extra time and then securing a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Italy. Spain needed a moment of magic from two-time Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmati to get past a resilient German side 1-0 on Wednesday. It will be a first Euros final for Spain but even before the tournament it had been the favorite to add the European title to its collection after winning the World Cup and Nations League in the past two years. Spain's triumph at the World Cup was marred by the Luis Rubiales scandal, after the-then head of the Spanish soccer federation kissed player Jenni Hermoso during the awards ceremony. Rubiales was subsequently charged with sexual assault and convicted a few months before the start of Euro 2025, bringing an end to one of the worst chapters in the history of Spanish soccer. Walsh, who made 100 appearances for Barcelona over two-and-a-half seasons, was playing in Spain at the time and witnessed the fallout first hand. 'I think the most important thing for them is that they can enjoy this final, there's not the controversy surrounding it,' she said. 'I think just for the girls this time and as a friend and another football player, for them just to go and enjoy it. 'They play incredible football and they deserve to be there, so as a human being I just want them to go out and enjoy the game of football.' Walsh doesn't feel Spain's star-packed squad received enough credit after the World Cup triumph. 'Obviously after the game there was a lot of controversy and I don't think for them there was enough spotlight on how incredible they played and how incredible some of their players were, it was all about the other stuff that had gone on,' she said. 'I think as a professional that was disappointing to see. Obviously I have a lot of friends in that team and I think they probably deserved a little bit more than what they got.' ___ AP soccer:

The pattern across 13 years of men's and women's semi-finals that gives England hope
The pattern across 13 years of men's and women's semi-finals that gives England hope

New York Times

time30 minutes ago

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The pattern across 13 years of men's and women's semi-finals that gives England hope

England will go into Sunday's Euro 2025 final against Spain as clear underdogs. It's less about the fact Spain defeated them in the World Cup final two years ago, and much more about the quality of both sides' play throughout this tournament. England have won only two of their five games in 90 minutes, and have spent the majority of their knockout games against Sweden and Italy trailing. Spain, on the other hand, have won all five of their matches, often with scintillating passing football. Advertisement The one positive, from England's perspective, is an extra day of rest after their semi-final. At the end of an intense tournament, with matches played in serious heat and only three days of rest between group games — and with both semi-finals going into extra time — freshness could be crucial. Indeed, the pattern from the past 13 men's or women's World Cup and European Championship finals is quite striking, something The Guardian's Tom Garry spoke about before the tournament. In 12 of those matches, the side who played the semi-final a day earlier won the final. In the other game, the semis were played on the same day. Men's European Championship 2012 Spain had one extra day between semi-final and final (three to two) and defeated Italy comprehensively 4-0 in the final, with Italy being down to 10 men for the final half-hour due to injury. Women's European Championship 2013 Germany had an extra day (again, three to two) over Norway, who had also been forced to play extra time and penalties in their semi-final. Germany won 1-0. Men's World Cup 2014 Germany not only had an extra day of rest compared to Argentina (four to three), they had also only played at full intensity for half an hour of their semi-final, finding themselves 5-0 up against Brazil before eventually winning 7-1. Argentina played 120 minutes before winning against the Netherlands on penalties. Germany won 1-0 in extra time in the final. Women's World Cup 2015 The United States Women's National Team had four days of rest compared to holders Japan's three, and were 4-0 up within 16 minutes in the final, eventually winning 5-2. Men's European Championship 2016 France had home advantage in Paris — but Portugal had three days off compared to two, and won in extra time. Euro 2017 The exception that proves the rule. The Netherlands defeated Denmark 4-2, having won the second semi-final… but the two semis were played on the same day. Given Denmark's semi-final went to penalties, while hosts the Netherlands won in 90 minutes, there was only a two-hour difference between when the games ended. Men's World Cup 2018 France had four days off compared to Croatia's three, and scored four goals compared to Croatia's two. Women's World Cup 2019 Two second-half goals handed the United States victory over the Netherlands. They had four days off compared to three for the Dutch. Men's European Championship 2020 (played in 2021) Having recognised the problem, UEFA moved the semi-finals ahead of this tournament, meaning the semi-finalists had gaps of four and three days, compared to the old system of three and two. But for the second men's Euros running, the hosts lost in the final, with Italy defeating England on penalties. Clearly, home advantage is not as important as an extra day of rest. Advertisement Women's European Championship 2022 A year later, England's women had home advantage and an extra day to prepare. Sure enough, they beat Germany 2-1 in extra time. Men's World Cup 2022 Argentina had four days off compared to France's three. Not only was the World Cup in Qatar played at the 'wrong' time of the year, it was also condensed into a shorter-than-usual timeframe, so maybe rest ahead of the final was particularly vital. It took penalties for Argentina to eventually prevail over France, although they had dominated the majority of the game against an incredibly sluggish France side who suddenly burst into life in the final 10 minutes. Women's World Cup 2023 The same final as we will see on Sunday. Spain beat England 1-0 having had an extra day of rest — four to three — although it is worth pointing out Spain had been forced to make the four-hour plane journey over from New Zealand after their semi, whereas England played both semi and final in Sydney. Men's European Championship 2024 Spain versus England is becoming quite familiar in finals. Spain won this one, too — 1-0 — having had four days off compared to England's three. The pattern is very clear. Go back further, to the 2011 Women's World Cup final, and Japan defeated the United States on penalties having played the second semi-final — although, like in Euro 2017, those semis were played on the same day. Therefore, you have to go back to the men's World Cup in 2010, 15 finals ago, to find a side triumphing in the final having played their semi-final the day after their opponents. The pattern is not as strong when you go back further — perhaps because the level of physical intensity wasn't as demanding, and recovery days were less important. There are more tournaments when the semi-finals are played on the same day — at Euro 96, for example. Advertisement Playing both semis on the same day would largely solve this problem, of course. But that seems unlikely for practical reasons; the games would have to be staggered so it is possible for television viewers to watch both, and given the chance of extra time and penalties, this would result in some unusual kick-off times that broadcasters would be unhappy about. A less dramatic solution would be bringing the tournaments forward (again) and creating another day between semi-finals and final. There would still be one side with an extra day's rest, of course, but if the sides had five and four days between matches, rather than four and three, the effect would be less pronounced. For this weekend's final, England will need all the help they can get in defeating Spain. Tactically and technically, the world champions have looked light years ahead of the reigning European champions throughout this tournament. England's trump card is their ability to enforce late spells of pressure, having introduced substitutes, and that might be particularly effective against tired players whose recovery period has been much shorter.

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