Latest news with #Ivankovic
RTHK
14 hours ago
- Sport
- RTHK
Coach Ivankovic fired following World Cup elimination
Coach Ivankovic fired following World Cup elimination Branko Ivankovic was appointed China's coach in February 2024. NurPhoto via AFP Branko Ivankovic has been fired as the national team coach following the squad's elimination from the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup this month, the Chinese Football Association has announced. The 71-year-old Croatian coach was removed from the post as a result of China finishing fifth in Group C of the continent's preliminaries for next year's 48-team finals, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada. "The Chinese Football Association expresses gratitude to Mr Branko Ivankovic and his coaching staff for their dedicated efforts during their tenure with the men's national team and their contributions to Chinese football," a CFA statement said on Friday. "We wish Mr. Ivankovic all the best in his future work and life." Ivankovic, who led Iran at the World Cup finals in Germany in 2006, was appointed China's coach in February 2024, replacing Aleksandar Jankovic. He steered the country into the third phase of Asia's World Cup qualifying. His team recovered from a poor start to maintain their hopes of a place at their first World Cup since the nation's debut appearance at the finals in 2002. Wins over Indonesia and Bahrain kept the national team in contention for a berth in the fourth round of qualifying, but losses to Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia were followed by a defeat against Indonesia on June 5 that ended any prospect of progressing. The Chinese association said Dejan Djurdjevic, who led China to the quarter-finals of the Under 20 Asian Cup in Shenzhen in February, will take over on a caretaker basis for next month's East Asian Championship in South Korea. (Reuters)
Straits Times
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Coach Ivankovic fired by Chinese following World Cup elimination
HONG KONG - Branko Ivankovic has been fired as China's national team coach following his side's elimination from the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup this month, the Chinese Football Association announced on Friday. The 71-year-old Croatian coach was removed from the post as a result of China finishing fifth in Group C of the continent's preliminaries for next year's 48-team finals, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada. "The Chinese Football Association expresses gratitude to Mr. Branko Ivankovic and his coaching staff for their dedicated efforts during their tenure with the men's national team and their contributions to Chinese football," a CFA statement said. "We wish Mr. Ivankovic all the best in his future work and life." Ivankovic, who led Iran at the World Cup finals in Germany in 2006, was appointed China's coach in February 2024, replacing Aleksandar Jankovic. He steered the country into the third phase of Asia's World Cup qualifying. His team recovered from a poor start, which included a 7-0 thrashing at the hands of Japan, to maintain their hopes of a place at their first World Cup since the nation's debut appearance at the finals in 2002. Wins over Indonesia and Bahrain kept China in contention for a berth in the fourth round of qualifying, but losses to Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia were followed by a defeat against Indonesia on June 5 that ended any prospect of progressing. The Chinese association said Dejan Djurdjevic, who led China to the quarter-finals of the Under 20 Asian Cup in Shenzhen in February, will take over on a caretaker basis for next month's East Asian Championship in South Korea. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Sun
16 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
China sacks football coach Branko Ivankovic after World Cup failure
CHINA'S football association has terminated the contract of national team coach Branko Ivankovic after the country's failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. The decision came following a disappointing qualifying campaign, including a crucial 1-0 loss to Indonesia earlier this month. China finished second-last in their Asian qualifying group, suffering seven defeats in 10 matches. The Chinese Football Association (CFA) confirmed the dismissal in a statement, saying, 'As the Chinese men's national team failed to qualify for the play-off stage, the contract of the coach and his staff has been automatically terminated, in accordance with the stipulated terms.' Ivankovic, a Croatian who previously managed Dinamo Zagreb and Iran, was thanked for his 'hard work.' The CFA named Dejan Djurdjevic, current coach of China's U-19 team, as interim national coach. China's football team, ranked 94th globally, has faced persistent criticism from fans due to poor performances and corruption scandals. Despite President Xi Jinping's ambition for China to win the World Cup, the team has only qualified once, in 2002, failing to score or earn a point.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Men's Mental Health Awareness Month aims to stop stigma of seeking professional health
Millions of men suffer from mental health issues each year, yet less than half seek help, highlighting the importance of Men's Mental Health Awareness Month in June. Despite the prevalence of mental health conditions among men, societal stigma often prevents them from seeking help or admitting to struggles. This stigma contributes to men being four times more likely to die by suicide than women. Edinboro Lantern Festival raises money for local non-profit 'When you're told constantly to hold it in and not talk about it, you have to hold it together for the family or whatever your situation might be, it can get very tough,' said Denana Ivankovic, Marketing and Communications Specialist at NAMI of Erie County. Men are generally encouraged to 'tough it out' or 'deal with it,' due to social pressures and gender norms that discourage vulnerability. This often leads to untreated mental health issues, which can result in risky behaviors and mood disturbances. Denana Ivankovic noted that substance misuse is a common coping mechanism for men struggling with mental health, which can exacerbate their problems instead of addressing the underlying issues. Symptoms of mental health struggles in men may include becoming more antisocial or angry, experiencing a loss of appetite, and having regular disruptions in sleep. These symptoms, if left unaddressed, can lead to worsening mental health conditions. Construction continues on Project NePTWNE water research lab at Blasco Library Ivankovic encourages open conversations about mental health, stating, 'If you think someone might be struggling, just have that conversation and openly ask them if they're doing ok. Also, a common misconception is that you don't want to ask someone if they're thinking about killing themselves. It's actually encouraged to do that just because if they are having that thought, you having that conversation could actually save their life.' Raising awareness and encouraging open dialogue about men's mental health can help reduce stigma and potentially save lives. For more information on how NAMI is working to stomp the stigma, click here. All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WJET/WFXP. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WJET/WFXP staff before being published. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Business Standard
06-06-2025
- Sport
- Business Standard
China crash out of qualifiers; Uzbekistan, Jordan seal FIFA WC berths
China slumped out of World Cup contention before Uzbekistan and Jordan qualified for the first time, taking advantage of Asia getting double the number of guaranteed entries at the first 48-team tournament in North America next year. Asian soccer power South Korea sealed an 11th straight appearance at the men's World Cup finals with a 2-0 win in Iraq. In a hectic night Thursday with a lot on the line, Australia scored late to edge already-qualified Japan 1-0 before China lost 1-0 in Indonesia. For Uzbekistan, a 0-0 draw against the United Arab Emirates was enough to take the second automatic qualification spot in Group A behind Iran. With Asia now having eight guaranteed qualifiers after just four for the 2022 edition in Qatar Uzbekistan was a likely contender to step up. While most of its team plays in the domestic league, it includes a few Europe-based stars like Roma forward Eldor Shomurodov and Manchester City defender Abdukodir Khusanov. In Group B, South Korea and Jordan secured their places at the 2026 tournament to be staged in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Ali Olwan scored three goals in Jordan's 3-0 win over Oman as the soon-to-be World Cup debutant built on reaching the final at the 2023 Asian Cup, where it lost to host Qatar. Jordan's highest-profile player is winger Mousa Tamari at French club Rennes. In Group C, a first-half penalty from Ole Romeny in Jakarta was enough to end China's chances of qualifying for the World Cup for the first time since 2002, when the tournament was staged in Asia for the first time and co-hosts South Korea and Japan didn't have to go through continental qualifying. China's strugglesIt's a mystery to many how a country of 1.4 billion people with such a pedigree in Olympic sports struggles so much to reach soccer's marquee event. Branko Ivankovic, a Croatian with international experience in Iran and Oman, was hired last year to guide the Chinese men's team and domestic news agency Xinhua said the head coach took some of the responsibility for another failed campaign. This team has been fighting for this goal for over 20 years. We believed that if we could reach the next stage from this tough group, we would have a strong chance of qualifying," Ivankovic said, according to Xinhua. "But we didn't succeed and, as head coach, I definitely bear significant responsibility. With one game remaining in this round of Asian qualifying, China has won only two of nine games and is bottom of the group that also contains Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Indonesia. We've brought in a younger generation of players who have injected energy into the team, Ivankovic said. Based on their performances, I believe this team has a promising future." World Cup pathwayIn Abu Dhabi, Uzbek fans celebrated together at the end and had goalkeeper Utkir Yusupov to thank for a number of important saves. As well as the six automatic qualifiers from Asia two from each of the three groups in this stage UAE and Qatar, which defeated the already-qualified Iran 1-0, will finish third and fourth and advance to the next stage in Asian qualifying. Six teams will compete in the next stage for two more places at the 2026 World Cup. South Korea clinched top spot in its group, helped by Ali Al-Hamadi's first-half red card for a high kick. Kim Jin-gyu put the Koreans ahead just after the hour, and the victory was sealed by Oh Hyeon-gyu eight minutes from the end. the result ensured Jordan could finish no worse than second. The Palestinian team stayed in contention for the top four with a 2-0 win over last-place Kuwait, one point behind fourth-place Oman. Australia moved to the cusp of qualifying for a sixth consecutive World Cup with a last-minute goal from Aziz Behich in Perth. In the 90th minute, Riley McGree broke free down the right and pulled back for Behich to curl home to bring Perth Stadium to its feet and give Australia its first win over Japan in 16 years. It hasn't sunk in just yet but when the final whistle went it was a great feeling, Behich said. It was a tough game and we had to grind it out. It's been a long campaign and we have worked so hard. To secure that spot Australia needs to avoid a heavy loss next week at third-place Saudi Arabia, which had a 2-0 win over Bahrain.
