Latest news with #IsabelInfantes
The Star
2 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Soccer-Leverkusen sign Dutch goalkeeper Flekken from Brentford
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - AFC Bournemouth v Brentford - Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, Britain - March 15, 2025 Brentford's Mark Flekken reacts REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo (Reuters) - Bayer Leverkusen have signed Dutch goalkeeper Mark Flekken from Premier League Brentford on a three-year contract, the Bundesliga club said on Tuesday. The 31-year-old will return to Germany after two seasons at Brentford, where he made 74 appearances in the Premier League. "Mark Flekken possesses a wide range of skills that a goalkeeper in modern top-flight football must possess," Leverkusen Sporting Director Simon Rolfes said. "Mark exudes an impressive physical presence; from a footballing perspective, he has certainly been one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League over the past two years." Flekken, who has played eight times for the Netherlands, has spent the majority of his career in Germany with clubs including Freiburg and Duisburg. Leverkusen appointed former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag as their head coach in May, replacing Xabi Alonso who left to join Real Madrid. (Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Belgium's Courtois doubtful for World Cup qualifiers due to back problem
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - LaLiga - Real Madrid v Real Sociedad - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - May 24, 2025 Real Madrid' Thibaut Courtois during the warm up before the match REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo Belgium's Real Madrid keeper Thibaut Courtois has been diagnosed with a back problem ahead of two World Cup qualifiers and the start of the Club World Cup, his LaLiga club said on Sunday. According to Spanish media, the 33-year-old requires a week of rest and treatment and will miss Belgium's opening Group J qualifiers away to North Macedonia on Friday and at home to Wales the following Monday. However, he should be available for Real Madrid's opening Club World Cup match against Al-Hilal in Miami on June 18. Courtois has been diagnosed with sacroiliitis, which is an inflammation of the joints connecting the lower spine to the pelvis, causing pain and stiffness in the back and hips. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Real Madrid most valuable soccer team for fourth straight year, say Forbes
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - LaLiga - Real Madrid v Real Sociedad - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - May 24, 2025 General view inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo LaLiga side Real Madrid topped the list of the most valuable soccer teams in the world for the fourth year in a row with a valuation of $6.6 billion, business magazine Forbes has said. Real became the first soccer club to bring in a billion dollars in a single year after they posted a record $1.13 billion in revenue for the 2023-24 season, the magazine added in a report published on Friday. The Spanish club, the second sports team in history to hit the 10-figure threshold after National Football League side Dallas Cowboys, are the first soccer team to register one billion euros in revenue in a single season, Deloitte had said earlier this year. England's Manchester United are second in Forbes' list with a $6.6 billion valuation after generating $834 million in revenue in the 2023-24 season despite a forgettable Premier League campaign where they finished eighth. Real's LaLiga rivals Barcelona are third, valued at $5.65 billion, while Liverpool and Manchester City are fourth and fifth. Forbes named six Premier League sides among the top 10 most valuable teams with Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea making the list after Bayern Munich and Paris St Germain. "Together, the 30 most valuable soccer teams are worth more than $72 billion, or an average of $2.4 billion, up 5% from 2024's record $2.26 billion," Forbes said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
5 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Soccer-Real Madrid most valuable soccer team for fourth straight year, say Forbes
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - LaLiga - Real Madrid v Real Sociedad - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - May 24, 2025 General view inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Isabel Infantes/File Photo (Reuters) -LaLiga side Real Madrid topped the list of the most valuable soccer teams in the world for the fourth year in a row with a valuation of $6.6 billion, business magazine Forbes has said. Real became the first soccer club to bring in a billion dollars in a single year after they posted a record $1.13 billion in revenue for the 2023-24 season, the magazine added in a report published on Friday. The Spanish club, the second sports team in history to hit the 10-figure threshold after National Football League side Dallas Cowboys, are the first soccer team to register one billion euros in revenue in a single season, Deloitte had said earlier this year. England's Manchester United are second in Forbes' list with a $6.6 billion valuation after generating $834 million in revenue in the 2023-24 season despite a forgettable Premier League campaign where they finished eighth. Real's LaLiga rivals Barcelona are third, valued at $5.65 billion, while Liverpool and Manchester City are fourth and fifth. Forbes named six Premier League sides among the top 10 most valuable teams with Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea making the list after Bayern Munich and Paris St Germain. "Together, the 30 most valuable soccer teams are worth more than $72 billion, or an average of $2.4 billion, up 5% from 2024's record $2.26 billion," Forbes said. (Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in BengaluruEditing by Christian Radnedge)
Straits Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Trans women find safe space in London soccer club after UK gender ruling
Sammy Rees, a trans woman player for Goal Diggers FC, a trans-inclusive club for women, non-binary and gender non-conforming players, and teammates gather ahead of the London Women's Saturday Football League (LWSFL) final at Tooting & Mitcham Sports centre, in London, Britain, May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes Goal Diggers FC team poses for a photograph ahead of the London Women's Saturday Football League (LWSFL) final at Tooting & Mitcham Sports centre, in London, Britain, May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes Sammy Rees, a trans woman player for Goal Diggers FC, a trans-inclusive club for women, non-binary and gender non-conforming players, watches a video showing support with teammates ahead of the London Women's Saturday Football League (LWSFL) final at Tooting & Mitcham Sports centre, in London, Britain, May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes Teammate Gaia shows support to Sammy Rees, a trans woman player for Goal Diggers FC, a trans-inclusive club for women, non-binary and gender non-conforming players, ahead of the London Women's Saturday Football League (LWSFL) final at Tooting & Mitcham Sports centre, in London, Britain, May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes Sammy Rees, a trans woman player for Goal Diggers FC, a trans-inclusive club for women, non-binary and gender non-conforming players, and teammates gather ahead of the London Women's Saturday Football League (LWSFL) final at Tooting & Mitcham Sports centre, in London, Britain, May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes LONDON - For the transgender players at London's Goal Diggers FC, the landmark UK court ruling that the legal definition of a woman should be based on biological sex has left the soccer team questioning who they can play against, and where. Last month's Supreme Court statement that only biological and not trans women met the definition of a woman under equality laws has implications for workplaces, hospitals, prisons, schools, associations, and sports teams. The country's equality watchdog will issue new guidelines shortly, but its interim guidance has stated that transgender people should be banned from using facilities, including toilets and changing rooms, of the gender they live as. Goal Diggers was founded in 2015 with the aim of making football more accessible to all women and non-binary people, regardless of experience or ability. It says it has already quit one league that is aligned with the English Football Association, which will ban transgender women from women's soccer from June 1, and says it will quit any other league that follows the rules. "They can stand by the FA but we will stand by our trans members," club founder Fleur Cousens told Reuters. "We'll work towards creating more (inclusive) spaces as a result." The FA said on May 1 it was contacting registered transgender women playing soccer to explain the changes and how they could continue to stay involved in the game, without giving details. Transgender rights have become a highly political issue in Britain and elsewhere. Some critics say the conservative right has weaponised identity politics to attack minority groups, while others argue that liberal support for transgender people has infringed on the rights of biological women. Different countries have taken different approaches when it comes to sport - U.S. President Donald Trump has sought to exclude transgender girls and women from female sports - and lawyers and campaigners disagree over the UK ruling. Jane Sullivan, sports coordinator at the Women's Rights Network lobby group, welcomed the ruling. She argues that transgender women could have a physical advantage having been born male, and that single sex spaces should be observed. She said her organisation would be watching those which did not comply with the new rules. Seema Patel, a sports law expert at Nottingham Law School, said the FA ban had been "premature" in acting before the equalities watchdog issued its full guidance, and said there should be distinct approaches to amateur and elite sport. Sammy Rees, a 26-year-old transgender woman who plays for the inclusive London club along with other LGBTQ+ people, said the intense focus brought on transgender people by the ruling had been difficult. "I've been more judgmental of myself, more critical ... thinking (more) about how other people would view me in a negative light," Rees said. "It definitely takes its toll," she said, adding that she still hoped it was all "just a bad dream". REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
