logo
‘We work hard and have a plan': meet the team who have won their league 23 times in a row

‘We work hard and have a plan': meet the team who have won their league 23 times in a row

Yahoo29-05-2025
There are many types of champions. Some win the league just as a one-off. There are those who enjoy periods of sustained success as well as the relentless winners who establish a long-term stranglehold on the silverware in their country. The next level up is the peerless teams who sustain it for a decade or so. Finally, in an entire category of their own, we have SFK 2000 Sarajevo.
The Bosnia and Herzegovina women's champions recently extended their own world record by lifting their 23rd (!) consecutive title, continuing a streak that began before nearly half of their current squad were even born.
Advertisement
On 21 May they added the Bosnian Cup, lifting it for 21st time this century, with a 1-0 victory over their nearest challengers Emina, and speaking to the Guardian before that cup success, trying to explain their dominance in the league, Sarajevo's secretary general, Azra Numanovic, said: 'I can't even describe it any more. We are changing the perspective towards women's football in Bosnia and in this region, because if you see our results, we're the most successful football club in Bosnia. Not women's football club, the most successful football club.
'I think the biggest question is, 'how do we do it psychologically, to motivate our players to do it from year to year?' Everyone says 'the league in Bosnia, the quality is not so high and so you do it easily' but actually no, that's not true, because we are human – we work so hard, we have our strategic plan, our tactics, our mentality, that we from year-to-year manage to be the best.
'The key point is we have our head coach, Samira Hurem, who is, at the same time, the president of this club. She formed this club in the year 2000 and she's the one who's been leading us since day one. Her vision, her energy is something that has been transferred to all of us younger ones.'
Hurem is, like Numanovic, a former player for both SFK 2000 Sarajevo and the Bosnia and Herzegovina women's national team. This year their team won the title by a 21-point margin, but spare a thought for second-place Emina, who have finished as the runners-up for a sixth consecutive campaign.
Advertisement
'We have really good matches with them,' Numanovic says, of their rivalry. 'They're trying hard and it's good for us to have teams like that so we play better games because the rest of the league is really not that good, and then you don't have those kind of quality matches and then when the Champions League comes you have to play more defensively and it's really hard to switch over, so we're actually very happy to have Emina.'
Naturally, amid such domestic dominance, it is in the Women's Champions League where Sarajevo face their toughest games each season. This season, they beat the Faroe Islands-based club KÍ Klaksvík Kvinnur in the first round of qualifying before being knocked out by Benfica. They have claimed some sizable scalps over the years, including beating Cardiff City 3-0 in 2013, but they have progressed through the qualifying rounds just four times, most recently in 2019, when they were eliminated by Chelsea in the round of 32, before the existing main-draw group-stage format was introduced.
'We try in our preparation period to have good friendly matches with the champions of Serbia and Montenegro who are pretty similar to us,' Numanovic says of the gap between domestic and European football. 'There was an idea to establish a regional league. The best teams from Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia would play each other, because all of us need to overcome this gap. All of us have the same problem.
'It [creating such a regional competition] is not easy because the biggest problem we have is how to finance it. We already had many meetings and everyone would be happy to do it, but we still cannot overcome the financial burden. What's interesting here is, for example, our men's colleagues in all of these countries could never organise that, because of security reasons. It is impossible. Imagine Sarajevo v Dinamo Zagreb? That would be a mess – but when we play each other it's a super happy, positive match, so we have overcome the political situation with women's football. It's a super beautiful atmosphere. Now we need a shift to more investment in women's football to see the potential in it, to make some of these projects come alive.'
Advertisement
There is at least a new competition that has been introduced by Uefa, but it is Europe-wide. Bosnia and Herzegovina are ranked 25th in Uefa women's coefficient list but now have an extra incentive to improve their standing – from 24th place upwards, countries start to receive a spot in the new Women's Europa Cup competition from the 2025-26 campaign, meaning Emina have narrowly missed out this time, but Numanovic is enthusiastically welcoming that new competition as a means to grow the women's game around the entire continent.
'This is a big step forward,' she says. 'It will help a lot of teams. More teams will get access to Uefa competitions to work on their development so this will help a lot. We are close to having two teams – it will be amazing if Emina also gets to play in Europe and develop themselves, and it will also push the other teams here to also develop.'
Numanovic, who started playing for Sarajevo at 14 in 2004, was a defensive midfielder who could also play at full-back, and although she hung up her boots three years ago, she has never been more active in the sport, having working in administration for the past 17 years, initially just to help the club out. She has spent 10 years working with the European Club Association, where she is now a board member, and she wants more women to have chances to get involved in running the sport. 'Another key reason why we [Sarajevo] are successful is most of our administration staff are former players of the club – we give everyone a chance to learn if they want to stay in the club. When you were a player and you remain to be a fighter on the administration field as well, you know what a player needs.'
They are already in the Guinness book of World Records but, with that ethos, they intend to remain on top in Bosnia and Herzegovina for many more years to come.
Talking points
Major blow: The Tottenham defender Ella Morris has sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in her right knee during training with England after she received her first senior international call-up. She wrote on the social media platform X: 'From the highest high to the lowest low. Devastated doesn't even come close. So grateful for the incredible people around me. ACL round 2 – let's go.'
Advertisement
Cutting it fine: The match venues for July's Women's Africa Cup of Nations, being hosted in Morocco a year later than originally planned, have finally been announced. The stadiums will include the Olympic Stadium in Rabat and Casablanca's Larbi Zaouli Stadium, among four other venues. An official fixture list is still yet to be released.
Recommended listening
Champions of Europe. Faye Carruthers is joined by Suzy Wrack, Tim Stillman and Sophie Downey to reflect on Arsenal's historic Champions League victory. There is also a chat with Adrian Jacob, head of football at World Sevens Football, about the inaugural tournament in Portugal. Listen here
Recommended viewing
You can watch SFK 2000 Sarajevo clinch their latest domestic double in the Cup final against Emina, with Lili Jones-Baidoe heading in the only goal in the 37th minute.
Quote of the day
'I had hoped that Mary would play an important role within the squad this summer, so of course I am disappointed. Mary has been clear on her reasons why she has made the decision and it is something we need to accept.' The England head coach, Sarina Wiegman, reacts to Mary Earps' decision to retire from international football.
Still want more?
What is your favourite Mary Earps moment? The dancing on the table? The swearing? Taking on Nike? Suzanne Wrack pays tribute to a player who elevated the game in England to another level.
Advertisement
The interim Matildas coach, Tom Sermanni, has hit out at the A-League Women for 'gross' underinvestment. 'We need a complete rethink,' he says.
Tom Garry tracks the steps – from Linköping to Lisbon – that made Stina Blackstenius an Arsenal icon. Her former coaches are not surprised.
The Guardian has exclusively revealed that the FA and the England players have agreed a bonus package that would see the squad receive up to £1.7m if they defend their Euro title this summer.
And yes, it is already that time of the year. Sarah Rendell has already inputted more than 150 transfers into our transfer interactive, and this year we have added the NWSL as well. Take a look here.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

UnitedHealth stock sinks 4.7% after company confirms DOJ investigation into Medicare billing practices
UnitedHealth stock sinks 4.7% after company confirms DOJ investigation into Medicare billing practices

Yahoo

time12 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

UnitedHealth stock sinks 4.7% after company confirms DOJ investigation into Medicare billing practices

UnitedHealth (UNH) stock fell 4.7% on Thursday after the insurance giant disclosed in a regulatory filing that it is facing an investigation from the Department of Justice into its Medicare billing practices. Following news reports from the Wall Street Journal about insurance billing techniques used by UnitedHealth and other large medical insurers, the Justice Department's healthcare fraud unit began making criminal and civil requests of the company, according to the filing. "The Company has full confidence in its practices and is committed to working cooperatively with the Department throughout this process," UnitedHealth said in its disclosure. "The Company has a long record of responsible conduct and effective compliance." The insurer also said it has "proactively launched its own initiative to conduct third party reviews of policies, practices, and associated processes and performance metrics for risk assessment coding, managed care practices, and pharmacy services." The Wall Street Journal's reporting, first published in December 2024, documented several ways in which United and other major insurers have received billions of dollars in extra payments from the federal Medicare Advantage system, which allows approved private companies to provide health benefits in lieu of the federally managed Medicare system. These include companies taking on extra, and sometimes incorrect, diagnoses to patient profiles when those rulings had not been made by the doctors actually treating the patients, allowing the insurers access to extra payouts from the Medicare program, among other tactics. The health insurance giant has been facing a probe from the Justice Department into possible Medicare fraud since at least the summer of 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal's reporting. UnitedHealth has been embroiled in a series of leadership controversies and financial setbacks over the last year, with its stock falling about 50% over that period. In May 2024, the company and several senior executives — including founder and group chairman Stephen Helmsley, and then-UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — were sued by a Hollywood-based pension fund for insider trading in a lawsuit alleging executives sold more than $100 million in stock after the company found out it was facing an antitrust probe by the Department of Justice but before the investigation was publicly disclosed. Seven months later, in December, Thompson was shot and killed in Manhattan the morning of the company's annual investor meeting. Reactions across the country centered on anger toward UnitedHealthcare over its treatment of people on its insurance, including denial of claims. When the company reported earnings a month later, the results showed revenue missed analyst estimates and the insurer's medical care ratio — which measures how much of collected premiums are spent by the insurer on medical care — spiked. The stock dropped around 5% after the release. Three months later, the company's first quarter earnings report saw it slash its adjusted earnings per share guidance and sent shares down over 22%, its worst single-day performance since 1998. The next month, UnitedHealth's CEO Andrew Witty abruptly stepped down while the company pulled its annual forecast. Helmsley, who had previously moved to a role as group chairman, was quickly appointed as CEO to replace Witty. He was granted a pay package that includes a $1 million salary and $60 million in stock options that will vest after three years. That same month, the company suspended its annual forecast entirely, sending shares tumbling by roughly 16%. And in a final blow, UnitedHealth accidentally leaked a memo to STAT News in June that listed internal talking points on topics including the use of AI models to deny claims. Jake Conley is a breaking news reporter covering US equities for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on X at @byjakeconley or email him at Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices

Epstein Birthday Book Could Be Released 'Immediately'
Epstein Birthday Book Could Be Released 'Immediately'

Newsweek

time15 minutes ago

  • Newsweek

Epstein Birthday Book Could Be Released 'Immediately'

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A book containing birthday messages from associates of Jeffrey Epstein could be obtained by lawmakers with little delay, an attorney for several of his victims has said. Bradley Edwards told MSNBC on Wednesday a commemorative book to mark the disgraced financier's 50th birthday in 2003 was in the possession of Epstein's estate, and that the law firms holding it would comply with a congressional subpoena to obtain it. President Donald Trump filed a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal last week after the newspaper reported that a sexually suggestive note in the birthday book featured Trump's signature. Trump has strenuously denied the report, and on Thursday his attorney's team referred Newsweek to a July 18 Truth Social post in which the president denounced it as "false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS." The Department of Justice said it had no comment on the issue, while attorneys for the Journal's publisher Dow Jones and the Florida-based law firm Troutman Pepper Locke, which has been managing Epstein's estate, have been emailed for comment. Why It Matters The reporting of the birthday book complicated the president's efforts to distance himself from Epstein. The convicted child sex offender died in jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019, but his relationships with powerful individuals continue to generate legal and political fallout. Access to the book and what it contains would be a major development in Trump's lawsuit against the Journal. It could also provide information about who Epstein's associates were - though any involvement would not be evidence of wrongdoing. What To Know Edwards told MSNBC that the book made for Epstein's birthday was currently held by his estate. "Congress could issue a subpoena to their attorneys at Patterson or at Troutman — those are the two law firms," he said. "I know those attorneys, they would turn the book over immediately. Nobody would have to guess, there wouldn't need to be a lawsuit." Now-President Donald Trump and his future wife Melania, financier (and future convicted sex offender) Jeffrey Epstein, and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at the Mar-a-Lago club, Palm Beach, Florida, February 12, 2000. Now-President Donald Trump and his future wife Melania, financier (and future convicted sex offender) Jeffrey Epstein, and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at the Mar-a-Lago club, Palm Beach, Florida, February 12, has previously represented Epstein's estate. Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, told MSNBC that the revelation by Edwards was a "bombshell." "We can easily move forward on this subpoena of that birthday book, which could really advance this case," Khanna said. Epstein and Trump, who have been photographed together, fell out in 2004, according to the president. Epstein was arrested in July 2006 after a grand jury indicted him on a single count of soliciting prostitution. In 2008, he avoided more severe federal charges by pleading guilty to state charges of procuring a person under the age of 18 for prostitution and solicitation of prostitution. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison and served 13 months. He was again arrested in July 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges, and was found dead in his cell at a federal jail in New York City about a month later. What People Are Saying President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on July 18: "We have just filed a POWERHOUSE Lawsuit against everyone involved in publishing the false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS 'article' in the useless 'rag' that is, The Wall Street Journal." Representative Ro Khanna told MSNBC: "That's a hard thing to do, to get the Department of Justice to cooperate in releasing [the Epstein] files. What's not hard to do is to subpoena private attorneys and a private estate and to get compliance." What Happens Next Khanna said he intended to invite Edwards to meet with the House Oversight Committee, with plans to move forward with a subpoena to obtain the book from Epstein's estate.

Justice Kagan stresses the need for government officials to obey court orders
Justice Kagan stresses the need for government officials to obey court orders

CNN

time31 minutes ago

  • CNN

Justice Kagan stresses the need for government officials to obey court orders

Supreme Court Associate Justice Elena Kagan said Thursday that one of the major challenges facing the federal judiciary today is the possibility of government officials defying court orders. The comments from Kagan, one of three liberal members on the high court, come as the Trump administration has been accused of flouting orders from lower courts. 'This idea that litigants, and most especially here I'm talking about government officials, needn't obey the dictates of courts. Needn't obey court orders. And you know that just is not the way our system works, not the way rule of law in this country works,' Kagan said during a wide-ranging conversation before an audience of judges and lawyers at the 9th US Circuit Judicial Conference as she discussed several things she thought presented a challenge to the nation's federal court system. She continued: 'And that's true for the Supreme Court, and it's also true for every district court, unless and until an appellate court or the Supreme Court says otherwise — that judicial orders are judicial orders and need to be respected.' Among the other issues Kagan said are facing her colleagues in the judiciary are threats to their personal safety and the way people talk about judges in the US. She pointed to a rare statement Chief Justice John Roberts issued earlier this year after President Donald Trump called for judges who ruled against him to be impeached. 'Judges are fair game for all kinds of criticism: strong criticism, pointed criticism. But vilifying judges in that way is a step beyond and ought to be understood as such,' Kagan said at the event in Monterey, California. The administration has been accused of skirting court orders in a range of cases, but judges have largely avoided pursuing contempt proceedings against officials. The issue reached new heights last month after a fired Justice Department lawyer who worked on immigration cases filed a whistleblower complaint that claimed a top DOJ official crudely told others in the department to ignore court orders before a controversial immigration enforcement situation in March. Emil Bove, the official accused of making the comments, has denied the allegations. The US Senate is currently considering whether to confirm him to a lifetime appointment on a Philadelphia-based federal appeals court.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store