Jessey Sneijder, son of Wesley Sneijder, signs first professional contract with FC Utrecht
The Dutch side said in a statement that the 18-year-old midfielder has been signed until June 2028, with an option to extend the deal for another year.
Wesley Sneijder won Serie A, the Champions League and the Italian Cup with Inter Milan in 2010. He was also part of the Netherlands team that made it to the 2010 World Cup final, losing to Spain.
'This is a dream come true,' said Jessey Sneijder.
His father posted on Instagram a picture of both men holding the Utrecht jersey.
'I am so very proud of you,' Wesley Sneijder wrote. 'Go to FC Utrecht at the age of 15 and sign your first contract after three years! Your perseverance and willpower have been rewarded.'
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Yahoo
2 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How women's cricket has developed in India
India's women have just won a T20 series on English soil for the first time. A 50-over World Cup on their home turf is imminent, which could take the sport to fever pitch in a country that already boasts the lucrative Women's Premier League, the second most valuable women's sports league in the world. For former captain Mithali Raj, the opportunities and financial rewards available to the country's top female cricketers in 2025 are a world away from when she broke into the India team in 1999, aged 16. "I was pretty much emptying my dad's pocket to play for India," she explains during a trip to England that saw her honoured by ringing the five-minute bell at Lord's during the third men's Test. "There was absolutely no payment. We had to buy our own equipment and try to organise our own training sessions. There were times when we'd train on matting wickets, and then we'd get a week to practice on the turf [before a match]." Cultural and socio-economic challenges were also prevalent among many families, who did not want their daughters playing cricket, either because it was deemed a men's game or they needed their daughter to be working and earning money. Raj debuted for India seven years before the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) took over the administration, following a merger with the Women's Cricket Association of India. She witnessed the start of a slow transformation, as the women's game began to be better resourced with match fees introduced and access to top facilities. "I got injured in 2005 just before the World Cup," she says. "It took me years to get through it. When we came under the BCCI, we had access to the National Cricket Academy, which had the best physios and trainers. You stayed there, it was residential and you got through your rehab. We were educated in what to do pre-season, how to do rehab, how to do strength work. So we got better." In order to earn a living, India's national players had to have jobs, most with Indian Railways, as they were "the only institution that gave jobs to women cricketers in India". The next game-changing moment for Raj and her compatriots was the announcement of BCCI retainer contracts for the top 11 players in 2015. Raj was nearly 33. "If you are from an affluent family, you can manage to play for however long, because you do not really have to think about how you are going to run your house," she says. "But if you are not, you would think, what next? Where am I going to earn money? "Contracts gave that safety for the national players. They know, 'OK, I can play and I can earn'. That was huge for us." The rise of women's cricket in India with Mithali Raj Sloppy England beaten by India in first ODI The impact of the 2017 World Cup final Raj identifies India's participation in the 2017 World Cup final against England at Lord's as a seminal moment. It was only the third World Cup staged under the auspices of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and the first time every match of a Women's World Cup was visible either via live streaming or on TV. The ICC's digital and social media channels received a record 100 million video views. "Until then, we really did not have that sort of coverage," says Raj. "Digital media was relatively new in 2017. It really doubled up the sort of coverage that women's cricket needed." India lost to the hosts but it was a ground-breaking match. It was sold out, and according to India's Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) the final generated 19.53 million impressions in India, making it the most watched female sports event in the country, beating the badminton final at the Rio Olympics between PV Sindhu and Carolina Marin. After that final, the pay for contracted top-tier international players rose from a reported 15 lakh to 50 lakh. By 2020, Star Sports were broadcasting India's matches at the Women's T20 World Cup in five different languages. India's defeat by Australia in the final was watched in India by a record live average audience of 9.02 million according to the ICC. After reaching, and losing, another final, this time in front of a record crowd of 86,174 at the MCG, the BCCI raised women's international match fees to be equal with men's in 2022. Advent of the Women's Premier League The women's cricket world had long been waiting for the women's version of the Indian Premier League (IPL). When it finally arrived in 2023 it exploded onto the scene with five teams bought for £465m and Viacom buying the media rights for £96m over five years. Smriti Mandhana was the most expensive player, bought for a jaw-dropping £340,000 by Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The competition turned a profit and contributed around 3.9% of the BCCI's revenue in the 2023-24 financial year. That is over-shadowed by the IPL's contribution of 59.10%, but it is vindication of the BCCI waiting until the market was right. The WPL offers potentially life-changing sums for up to 90 players (up to 30 of which could be overseas). Outside of the WPL however, there are no contracts for domestic cricketers in India, only match fees. One BCCI official has said players who don't have a WPL deal "fend for themselves". If they are lucky, they may have a personal sponsor, mentor or advocate who supports them financially. Some players may have jobs in the same way that Raj was employed by Railways. This is the same structure that exists in the men's domestic game across India, with no contracts at state level. The number of women's retainers has increased marginally, with 16 women awarded in 2024-25. These contracts require annual renewal, and don't offer maternity clauses. There are 34 BCCI retainers available to men. In a country of 1.4 billion, where the BCCI's Under-15s girls' competition alone sees 36 teams and potentially 540 players competing (numbers replicated at U19 and U23 level), WPL pay packets reach the few rather than the many. But the money to be chased has changed attitudes around girls' cricket. "Now it is not looked down upon," says a smiling Raj. "Cricket is a profession, it's a sport, and everybody is keen to get their girls to play cricket. That's a huge, huge shift." The crowds and media attention on the WPL has helped to accustom domestic players to big-stage cricket before they play for the national side. The tournament also helps enormously with talent scouting. "India is a very big country, so the selectors cannot go to every state and identify players," says Raj. "The franchises have scouts they send to every part of the country. They pick players who are raw, who have been not seen before, and they get an opportunity." What of the future? A clear pathway exists to the women's national team, through club, district, state, zone, India A then India. However, barriers still remain. "There is a lot of raw talent in the districts and in the villages," says Raj. "It's just that they don't have the facilities if a young girl in the interiors wants to start playing cricket. "The society in the villages - it still needs to progress. And the financial barrier is huge. I'm associated with Andhra Cricket Association and I went into these districts and there were a few girls who did not have money for three meals in a day. The associations have to make an effort to get into these places and give them basic facilities. "But otherwise, to play cricket in India now, it's far more open and easier than before. She concludes: "The next step is to add a couple more teams to WPL, because there are many good players who get left out with just five teams. "And of course winning the World Cup." However, as Raj sees it, the prize that would propel the Indian game forward exponentially would be Olympic gold, with cricket in LA 2028. "It's a chance to get a medal for the country. I know we have the World Cups, but the medal in the Olympics is a huge thing back at home. "The Olympics is the ultimate." Get cricket news sent straight to your phone
San Francisco Chronicle
4 minutes ago
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Dubois says he's 'the man' and vows to take Usyk's belts in rematch at Wembley
LONDON (AP) — Daniel Dubois said he's "going to be the man' when he fights Oleksandr Usyk with all of the major world heavyweight belts on the line Saturday. The boxers met Thursday for what was a tame final press conference ahead of their rematch at Wembley Stadium. Dubois, who holds the IBF belt, turned away criticism from Usyk's camp that the Briton hasn't evolved since their first fight nearly two years ago. Usyk won in a ninth-round stoppage. 'Right now, I just want to get it on. I'm going to write my own script. I'm going to win these belts,' Dubois said. 'I'm going to be the man.' Usyk, the WBA, WBC and WBO champion, thumbed rosary beads as he listened to responses from both camps. The undefeated Ukrainian can become a three-time undisputed world champion. He did so as a cruiserweight, and at heavyweight for the first time by beating Tyson Fury in May 2024. He later relinquished his IBF title — which Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) inherited — to focus on a Fury rematch. 'I respect this guy, this young guy,' said Usyk, who was 11 years older than Dubois. 'I'm not old guy, 38 is not old. We will see Saturday.' Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) also seemed pleased to pepper his responses with the phrase, 'Don't push the horses.' Dubois' trainer, Don Charles replied: 'I need a translator.' ___
San Francisco Chronicle
4 minutes ago
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Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood lead surprising days of the 'older gentlemen' at British Open
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (AP) — Phil Mickelson delivered more magic Thursday in the British Open, leaving one shot in a bunker and holing the next one from 75 feet away for an unlikely par. He tipped his cap. He gave a thumbs-up to the crowd. It looked like the Mickelson of old, especially with all that gray stubble in his beard. Mickelson, who opened with a 1-under 70 at Royal Portrush, already holds the major championship record for oldest winner, capturing the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island when he was 50. Now he's at the oldest championship in golf, the one that least discriminates against age. The Open is where 53-year-old Greg Norman had the lead going into the final round at Royal Birkdale in 2008, and more famously where 59-year-old Tom Watson was an 8-foot putt away from winning at Turnberry in 2009. 'The Open gives the older gentlemen a chance to win more than any other tournament,' 52-year-old Lee Westwood said after a day in which he was tied for the lead early in the round until a few bogeys dropped him back to a 69. Westwood is playing the British Open for the first time since he joined Saudi-funded LIV Golf in 2022, going through final regional qualifying three weeks ago to earn a spot in the field. He has yet to win in LIV Golf and his results would suggest he is riding out the rest of his career. And then he showed up at the major he first played in 1995 — Scottie Scheffler was not even born then — and found some form. 'There's not the premium on carrying traps. They don't make it unplayable for us older guys with length,' Westwood said. 'You can use your experience, guile and cunning on them.' Westwood tripped over his words on the Sky Sports interview and then added, 'Not easy to say, but easy to use at our age.' Mickelson, who has not won since that historic day at Kiawah Island, had missed the cut in all three majors this year. At age 55, he still has six more years playing the British Open as a champion at Muirfield in 2013. He started strong with a deft touch with his wedge to easy birdie range on the par-5 second, but the real Lefty showed up on the next hole when he put his tee shot into a bunker, plugged and not far from the steep lip. The first attempt barely got out, rolling on the edge of grass before tumbling back into the bunker. It looked like a bogey at best. But then he splashed out, carrying it some 25 yards and about 10 feet to the left, and the shot had enough side spin to drop into the cup. He raised both arms. Mickelson loves moments like these, and he's had plenty of them. 'That was a crazy one,' Mickelson said. 'It was really one of maybe two poor shots I hit, that bunker shot that buried in the lip. And then to make it was obviously a lot of luck. I was just trying to save bogey, and I got lucky it went in.' And then his name stayed on the leaderboard the rest of the morning — a birdie on the par-5 seventh, a couple of bogeys on the back nine, a 20-foot birdie on the 17th hole. Mickelson had gone 21 consecutive rounds in a major without breaking par until Thursday in the British Open. Sure, he had the advantage of missing the rain for all but the last couple of holes. But it was good golf. It's still there. 'I played really well, and I had an opportunity,' he said. 'I really enjoy playing these conditions and playing this tournament. It's just a lot of fun.' Not all of the 50-and-older gang had the best of times. Padraig Harrington, coming off his win in the U.S. Senior Open, had the honor and thrill of hitting the opening tee shot. He made birdie on the first hole. That was the highlight on his card when he signed for a 74. 'I got a little emotional when I was clapped on, and then I calmed down, and I was kind of fine when I was hitting it,' Harrington said. He three-putted two straight holes and had a lost ball on No. 10. It was an otherwise forgettable day, except for the unforgettable start of hitting the first shot. 'Yeah, it was a tough day on the greens, and it just ate into my game,' he said. 'Might have been a little bit of the fact that I was hyped up for the first tee box. Who knows? Certainly felt like I played better, could have played better, should have played better.' ___
