Midday Sports News for 30 May 2025
There's more posturing between syndicates ahead of the next America's Cup.
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RNZ News
6 hours ago
- RNZ News
Auckland City's Club World Cup campaign includes football giants
Auckland City striker Angus Kilkolly and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane will play in the same group at the Club World Cup. Photo: Photosport/AFP A "bunch of amateurs from New Zealand" will live out their football dreams at the Club World Cup. Auckland City are the only amateur side to qualify for the expanded 32-team tournament in the USA, starting on 15 June. Auckland have represented Oceania 11 times at the Club World Cup with a best result of a third place in 2014. But this year is different. This year Auckland City have been drawn in the same group as six-time European champions Bayern Munich, Portuguese heavyweights Benfica and Argentina's Boca Juniors. Auckland's high profile opponents have brought a lot of attention to what the club are trying to accomplish, striker Angus Kilkolly said. "But at the same time, we're still a bunch of amateurs from New Zealand who dream of playing football on the world stage, and then go there and do the best we can." Auckland City, a club established just 21 years ago, may lack the history of some clubs at the tournament and operate with a smaller budget without the same state-of-the-art facilities of powerhouse professional sides, but the Club World Cup could be the "peak" of some players' careers and is an opportunity for the club to reach new audiences. When the draw for the tournament was made in late 2024 Auckland City general manager Gordon Watson said the club's story "resonates not just with football fans but with people from all walks of life". "Representing Mount Roskill, Mount Albert, Sandringham, and all corners of our domestic football pyramid-including the wider Pacific region-is both a privilege and a responsibility," Watson said. Angus Kilkolly of Auckland City FC celebrates his goal with Nathan Lobo. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/ This tournament will be the fifth time that Kilkolly has played a Club World Cup, once previously with Team Wellington and the rest with Auckland. To be drawn in Group C "was probably what we all kind of dreamed about", Kilkolly said. "No matter who we got drawn against we would have been underdogs regardless. So I'd rather be an underdog against some of the powerhouses of European football and South American football. "For us to be drawn against some household names and playing against some household sort of players, in a sense, I don't think we could have wanted anything different, really." Kilkolly has nothing but good memories from playing football in different parts of the world with Auckland City since he joined the club in 2020, and he recognised what this type of tournament could do for his team mates and him. "We've got some young boys who are obviously hoping to go and have careers in pro football so this is a great opportunity for them to test themselves and see if they're at that level, or how far away they are from that level. "We've got other players, probably the bracket I'm more in, who have been to a few Club World Cups this is probably the peak of our careers. "I think we're going there a little bit naive and going there for dream and a bit of a hope that we can come back with our own special story." By expanding the Club World Cup, FIFA has changed the way it is run. The format mirrors a 32-team international World Cup. Eight groups of four teams in each. The top two teams from each group will make it through the last 16, while the bottom two teams in each group will be eliminated. Cross over games will happen with the last 16, with the winners of those games moving on to the quarterfinals, semifinals and final. "Normally would go to a tournament that has seven teams" Kikolly said, "Would play a one off game. If we win, we play another one. If we lose, we come back. "The difference with this one is we get a group stage. We know we've got guaranteed of three games in the tournament. "A big positive for us is sometimes these previous Club World Cup games, we maybe took 30 minutes to get up to the speed, because the speed is a completely different level to what we used to. So to have three games, it gives us an opportunity to really get to our peak and show what we are capable of." More games also meant more opportunities for playing minutes for the wider squad. "Normally it's a one off game you might only have the starting 11 and three or four subs, so there definitely is spots up for grabs in every game, and with tournament football I don't know if anyone's really fit enough to play back to back 90s the whole way through." When Auckland City arrive in USA they will have a training camp, play some friendly games against Philadelphia Union before facing UAE giants Al Ain FC, and then a week later go into the FIFA bubble. "We're giving ourselves the best opportunity to get over there early, get climatised, play against some good opposition, so when that first game does come around, it's not as big of a jump as it would be going straight from New Zealand to there." Bayern Munich's Harry Kane. Photo: INA FASSBENDER Several European players and coaches have raised concerns over player welfare with the revamped Club World Cup meaning less time off between seasons. Bayern Munich's striker and England captain Harry Kane was vocal about the increased games and shorter rest periods. "I don't think the players are listened to that much, if I'm totally honest. But also everyone wants their piece, their tournament, their prize, and the players are kind of the people who have to get on with it," Kane said. "But it is what it is. I love playing football, so I'm never going to complain about playing football. I think if you manage it well, with your coaches and your manager and your clubs, there are ways of getting more rest in certain moments. "But it's not an easy question, it's not an easy situation. I think there could be a balance from both sides, but we'd have to see how that pans out." The Professional Footballers' Association has also taken legal action against FIFA, calling the football calendar "overloaded and unmanageable." According to FIFPRO, the global union for professional players, Club World Cup-bound players are among the most overworked for the 2024/25 season already, with Benfica's Kerem Akturkoglu making the most appearances (55) followed by the likes of Real Madrid's Luka Modric (54); Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez and Real's Federico Valverde are among players on 53 appearances up until 1 April. It is estimated that Uruguayan Valverde, who has made 43 back-to-back appearances up until 1 April with less than five days of recovery time prior to these matches, could potentially reach 65 back-to-back appearances for club and country come the end of the season, racking up close to 7000 minutes and 78 games. Auckland City play in the New Zealand domestic football competition (Northern League, National League Championship and Chatham Cup) and Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) Champions League. Auckland City FC captain Mario Ilich celebrates with trophy and team. Birkenhead United FC v Auckland City FC, Men's National League Football final at North Harbour Stadium, Auckland. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/ The build-up to the Club World Cup has included 19 matches across three competitions since March. "Our schedules are hectic for an amateur team that everyone works sort of 40 hours a week to be playing 45 games. That definitely takes its toll and it is a big sacrifice being made by everyone to keep giving the club success," Kilkolly said. Auckland will take a squad of up to 27 players to the USA. Before they left for the tournament on 2 June, they played a Northern League game against West Coast Rangers on the May 30 and a Chatham Cup game against Onehunga Mangere United the following day. Kilkolly could see the benefit of two games in three days before travelling across the world. "When there is a lot of games in a short period of time, it does make it easier to make sure everyone is match fit, because everyone wants to be going to America fully fit, fully ready to play and contribute as much as they can to the team." Auckland City captain and defender Mario Ilich made his debut in 2012 and has been a stalwart of the defence ever since, playing 161 matches and even scoring 13 goals. A typical day in his life reflects the balance Auckland players need to find to keep playing. "Wake up at 5am, gym, breakfast, then off to work by 7.30, finish by 5, straight to training for two hours, home by 8.30 or 9, dinner, and then do it all again." Similar to Kane, Auckland players also give up time off (annual leave) to attend to the Club World Cup. "For a lot of us our workplaces understand the enormity of what we're going to do. My manager loves football, so he understands it's an awesome experience for me," Kilkolly said. "On the downside of it, I won't have any annual leave left when I get back. There won't be any other trips coming up anytime soon." Bayern Munich - The most successful club in German football history celebrated the first of their 34 league titles in 1932. Bayern won 11 consecutive league titles between 2013 and 2023 and won the latest season 2024/25. The club has also had success outside Germany with six UEFA Champions League titles (previously the European Cup), two Intercontinental Cups and two FIFA Club World Cup trophies. Bayern won the Club World Cup for the first time in 2013 and again in 2021. Notable players include England captain centre forward Harry Kane, German midfielders Jamal Musiala and Joshua Kimmich, French winger Michael Olise and Canadian left back Alphonso Davies who is currently injured. German forward Leroy Sané could be gone by the time the Club World Cup starts and former German international striker and club legend Thomas Müller is leaving at season's end which might mean he doesn't play in the Club World Cup. SL Benfica players Photo: VALTER GOUVEIA Benfica - The club from Lisbon has more than 120 years of history and has spent 91 years in Portugal's top flight competition. The club is celebrated for historic European Cup victories and a world-class academy. Benfica won the Portuguese League Cup for the eighth time in the 2024/25 season and finished second in the premier competition. Notable players include Spanish midfielder Álvaro Carreras, Portugal centre back António Silva and Greek centre forward Vangelis Pavlidis. Boca Juniors' midfielder #22 Kevin Zenon Photo: ALEJANDRO PAGNI Boca Juniors - One of South America's most decorated clubs was formed in 1905 and has gone on to be one of the most successful clubs in the world. The Argentinian powerhouse has 18 international titles and 52 domestic crowns including six Copa Libertadores title. Often associated with Diego Maradona and a fervent fanbase. Notable players include winger Kevin Zenón, Uruguay forward Miguel Merentiel and left back Lautaro Blanco Europe: Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, Inter Milan, FC Porto, FC Salzburg. South America: Palmeiras, Flamengo, Fluminense, River Plate, Botafogo. North and Central America and the Caribbean: Pachuca, Monterrey, Seattle Sounders, Inter Miami, Los Angeles FC Africa: Al Ahly, Wydad, Esperance de Tunis, Mamelodi Sundowns Asia: Al Hilal, Al-Ain, Urawa Red Diamonds, Ulsan HD Paris Saint-Germain players Desire Doue (L) and Marquinhos celebrate after their Champions League quarter-final second-leg match against Aston Villa. Photo: AFP The winners of this year's tournament will earn up to $218 million, FIFA said, from a total prize pot of $1.74 billion. About half of the total prize money will be divided between all 32 clubs, with the amount per club based on sporting and commercial criteria, meaning clubs such as Manchester City and Real Madrid will receive a greater percentage than smaller clubs. A further $827 million will be awarded on a performance-related basis. Auckland City are set to receive $6.25 million for participating, as well as a potential $2.5 million for any win. The tournament will be held in 12 stadiums around the USA from 16 June -14 July.
Newsroom
8 hours ago
- Newsroom
Our sports queen honoured by the King
Suzanne McFadden has been made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the King's Birthday Honours for her services to sports journalism and women. In this Q&A, the founder of our LockerRoom section and passionate advocate for better participation, media coverage and recognition for women in sport, reflects on a 40-year labour of love. How hard was it starting out in the 80s as the only woman in the room in sports departments, press boxes and media conferences? Initially it was tough to get a foot in the door. I tried a couple of times, but naively I had no idea how difficult it was as a young female to get a start in sport, which was the only job I ever wanted. It wasn't until a defendant in a district court case I was covering threatened to kill me, that the Herald bosses finally agreed to transfer me from news to the sports department – just in time for the 1990 Commonwealth Games. I was there when gymnast Nikki Jenkins, then 14 years old, won gold on the vault, and her parents had been my PE teachers. I stayed working in sport for the Herald for 10 years – and I had incredible opportunities to cover events around the world, like the America's Cup. And even though I was the only woman in the department through that decade, it felt more like being part of a tight sports team. There was one time, though, at a sailing regatta, I was made to feel like the 'new girl' who'd only be there for 10 minutes… 30 years later… Did you get pigeon-holed into writing about women's sports? In my first job, at the Bay of Plenty Times, I was a general news reporter, but the sports editor, Kevin Savage, asked me to cover the local netball competition. I was not impressed – I'd only ever played 10 minutes of netball at school (fell over, grazed my knees on the asphalt, and never walked onto a netball court again). But he told me to write about the people more than the sport, and that's become my compass. Sir Terry McLean, who I was privileged to work alongside when I first started in sports journalism, once told me, 'The human story is the best story'. So even if I was assigned to women's sport, it was okay, because I was weaving the stories of interesting and often outstanding people into the match reports. Have you ever had a woman boss? Who are your female mentors? I've never had a female boss in sports reporting, but some of the best editors I've worked with in my freelancing career have been women. The wonderful Carroll du Chateau at Canvas taught me how to craft a feature story and was an incredible mentor. Michelle Crawshaw always trusted me with fascinating assignments. And my cousin Fiona Rotherham, then editor of Unlimited magazine, made business stories relatable and human. Among the women I look up to today is Shirley Hooper – vice president of World Netball and heavily involved in artistic swimming in New Zealand – and also a cousin. Storytelling runs in our McClean genes. Speaking of, my parents were both great mentors – Dad gave my sister and I our love of watching sport, and Mum taught me how to write. Ashley Stanley and Suzanne McFadden at Eden Park. Photo: Paul Enticott How much has it changed in sports journalism for young women? I honestly don't think the dial has moved enough. It's just as hard to get a job in a sports newsroom now as it was back in 1986. There are some excellent female sports reporters right now – Dana Johannsen at RNZ is a multiple-time sports journalist of the year; the TVNZ sports team has a strong female representation, including the super-talented Jordan Oppert. Yet we're still the minority, and the only way that's going to change is with more female sports editors. Something I've been really proud we've been able to do through LockerRoom is introducing more female voices to sports writing, and giving two women – Ashley Stanley and Merryn Anderson – scholarships to work at Newsroom. Through these wāhine, I discovered I love mentoring. What's your approach when setting out to interview someone? Great question! For a LockerRoom long read (you know all my stories are long!) I research, but not to the point where I think I know everything about the person. There needs to be that element of curiosity, where I want to learn more for the readers, so I can share something new. And I never call it an interview – it's always a chat. And there's no such thing as a stupid question. Suzanne McFadden first wrote about the late Sir Peter Blake's America's Cup red socks superstition. What stories do you look back on with most pride? What makes you happiest about stories you find and publish? During the 1995 America's Cup in San Diego, I wrote a story about Team New Zealand's superstitions on Black Magic – Sir Russell Coutts always the last man on the boat, and Sir Peter Blake wearing his lucky red socks. The rest is history. I've loved telling stories about women that show how resilient they are, and how much more they have to do to be successful. Sportswomen who've returned to the top as mums, especially in the 'From Here to Maternity' series in LockerRoom. What makes me happiest about publishing stories? When one person tells you they read it, and it helped them through something they were facing. Like the RED-S stories we've told over the years. If you can make a difference in one person's life, it's a win. Your RED-S stories opened a lot of people's eyes. How'd that story come about? American athlete Mary Cain broke her silence on the mistreatment she received while she was training under the all-male support team at the Nike Oregon Project, and how the win-at-all-costs mentality had made her ill. She had all the symptoms of RED-S, a syndrome I hadn't really heard of, but it turned out there were Kiwi athletes who weren't fuelling their bodies to match the energy they were expending. The more we wrote about RED-S, the more athletes came forward with their own health battles. Hopefully, we've helped some young women spot the signs in time. Are women in sport getting a fair crack now at representation, competition, professionalism, payment, crowd support, media? Look, the three World Cups hosted by New Zealand in 2022 and '23 were phenomenal for women's sport here – they opened so many eyes to just how entertaining and enthralling women's sport is. The media coverage of women's sport spiked to 28 percent – higher than I ever expected to see in my career. But things have slipped away since then – it's as though we need the big events, like the Olympics, to remind the public how talented our female athletes are. Covid hasn't helped the situation – if there's a funding cut, it's most likely the women's programme in a sport will be the first to feel it. Pay equity in some sports is still a pipe dream, and there aren't enough women's coaches at the top level of most sports. There's still so much work to do. But LockerRoom has had amazing readership, as recently as the past fortnight, which highlights that people still want to read interesting stories about women in sport. McFadden with the great Black Fern Portia Wickliffe Woodman. Photo: Supplied Who would you most want to spend time with, write about – for LockerRoom or for a book? That's a tough question! Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, Emma Twigg and Sophie Devine immediately come to mind. Writing a book is hard yakka though, and I don't think I'll be rushing back into one. But the two books I've written, Striking Gold and Honey, are two of my proudest achievements (alongside my two sons, and two grandsons, obviously). And, what was your first thought when Government House sent you word of your MNZM nomination? It was a Friday, I think, and I wasn't feeling 100 percent, so I'd just had a nap. I woke up to an email from Government House and I immediately panicked. I thought it must be a long weekend, and this email was the media list of honour recipients, and I'd quickly have to prepare a LockerRoom story for Monday! Then I opened it, read it, and read it again and bawled my eyes out. A recognition like this is 'ginormous', as my four-year-old grandson would say. I feel incredibly proud, humbled, and grateful to everyone who's guided me along this crazy path, and all who've come with me. And that includes you, Tim. Thank you.
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Basketball: For the first time in 25 years, the Indiana Pacers are off to the NBA finals
Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers celebrates with the trophy after the 125-108 win against the New York Knicks. Photo: AFP / GREGORY SHAMUS Pascal Siakam recorded 31 points and three blocked shots and the Indiana Pacers are headed to the NBA finals for the first time since 2000 after notching a 125-108 victory over the visiting New York Knicks in game six of the Eastern Conference finals in Indianapolis. Siakam was voted the Eastern Conference finals MVP. Tyrese Haliburton added 21 points, 13 assists and three steals for fourth-seeded Indiana. Obi Toppin added 18 points off the bench and Andrew Nembhard had 14 points and six steals for the Pacers. Indiana will face the Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA finals. Game one is Thursday (local time) in Oklahoma City. OG Anunoby scored 24 points and Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points and 14 rebounds for third-seeded New York. Jalen Brunson had 19 points and seven assists and Mikal Bridges had 15 points for the Knicks. Indiana had a 25-10 edge on fastbreak points to finish the series with a dominating 106-48 advantage in that category. The Pacers shot 54.1 percent from the field, including a solid 17 of 33 from 3-point range (51.5 percent). Myles Turner and reserve Thomas Bryant had 11 points apiece and Aaron Nesmith added 10 for the Pacers. New York made 47.7 percent of its shots and was 9 of 32 (28.1 percent) from behind the arc. Landry Shamet had 12 points on four treys off the bench. New York trailed by 15 entering the final quarter but a basket by Towns and two in a row by Anunoby pulled the Knicks within 92-83 with 10:15 remaining. Haliburton then took over as he scored 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the final stanza. The Pacers pushed the lead back to 14 on a basket by Nembhard with 8:26 left. Later, a basket by Haliburton and a 3-pointer by Nembhard made it 113-94 with 4:22 left. Siakam later made two free throws to make it 120-99 with 1:52 left as New York waved the white flag. Indiana led by four at the break but started the third quarter with 3-pointers by Siakam and Nesmith and a three-point play by Siakam to take a 67-54 lead. The Knicks were within 69-61 after Brunson's basket with 8:53 left in the period before Bryant (two) and Nembhard (one) combined for three treys in 86 seconds as the Pacers grabbed a 78-63 advantage with 6:44 remaining in the quarter. Haliburton later ended the third with a dunk as the Pacers had a 34-23 edge over the 12 minutes to expand their lead to 92-77. Siakam scored 16 first-half points to help the Pacers hold a 58-54 lead at the break. Anunoby scored 14 in the half for New York. - Field Level Media
