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The Sun
08-07-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Big-hearted Tottenham star Pape Sarr paying for electricity for his hometown as he transforms island community
BIG-hearted Tottenham star Pape Matar Sarr is paying for an entire village to have electricity. The Spurs ace has forked out thousands of pounds to provide electricity for his hometown of Fayako in Senegal. 7 7 7 7 Fresh from his Europa League triumph with Spurs, the midfielder reaffirmed his deep connection to his roots and pledged to bring electricity to the isolated island community. He said, when he visited Fayako, a small island located around 100 miles from Senegal's capital Dakar: 'The process is already underway with regards to electricity. "I hope that soon, Fayako will shine as brightly as its people do. I love this village, and I'm proud of its people.' In addition to helping with electricity, Sarr also donated educational materials such as a laptop, printer and solar-powered panels to a local school. He also supplied construction materials for the expansion of the village's health centre. Sarr is following in the footsteps of his idol, former Liverpool star Sadio Mane, who donated £500,000 towards building a hospital in his hometown of Bambali. The entire community of Fayako, including local leaders, gathered to show their gratitude for the Spurs star they proudly call a son of the village. Tottenham hit gold when they signed then 18-year-old Sarr from Metz in 2021. Spurs Ready to STEAL Mohammed Kudus from Chelsea in Stunning Move! | Transfers Exposed They then showed incredible foresight by leaving him at the French club for the remainder of the 2021-2022 season to continue his development. The Senegal star joined Spurs a year later and made his Premier League debut in a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa on January 1st 2023. Since then, he has played 81 league games for the Lilywhites and helped the North London club win the Europa League final against Manchester United last season. Sarr will be back at Hotspur Way for pre-season under new manager Thomas Frank, who replaced Ange Postecoglou this summer. 7 7 7
News24
03-07-2025
- Business
- News24
Cristiano Ronaldo breaks records with his staggering R4 billion-a-year contract
Cristiano Ronaldo is rolling in the money. His new contract with Al-Nassr makes Lionel Messi's R60 million per week salary look like pocket change. The Portuguese star has played for the Saudi-based team since 2023 and has been handsomely rewarded for his loyalty to the club. Firstly, just for extending his contract with the team until 2027, he was paid £24.5m (R588 million). If he activates the second year of his contract, this figure will increase to £38m (R912 million). As for his actual salary, the 40-year-old will earn £178m a year (a little more than R4 billion), which equates to just over R82 million a week. Every time he scores a goal, he will get an £80 000 (R1.92 million) bonus. This will increase by 20% in the second year. When he provides an assist to a teammate, that's another £40 000 (R968 000) in the bank. This too will increase by 20% in the second year. He will also receive a bonus if he wins the Saudi Pro League Golden Boot, if his team wins the Saudi Pro League title, and if Al-Nassr qualify for the Asian Champions League and win it. The Saudi club has also given him 15% ownership of Al-Nassr, estimated to be worth £33m (R792 million). View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cristiano Ronaldo (@cristiano) READ MORE | Why Rassie and the Boks have got their eye on winger Ntokozo Makhaza The club was keen to retain Cristiano, as his presence has boosted the Saudi League's profile over the years, helping attract stars like Neymar, Jhon Durán and Sadio Mané. A source close to the club's owners says Cristiano is aware of how much they need him. 'They had to 'cover him in gold' to keep him, giving him even more money, perks, and bonuses than in his first deal, as he is the face of the league and, in their opinion, the best player ever in the history of the game. 'If he left, that would have been a huge blow for us and for the whole league. He's our treasure now, and we have to keep him and protect him at all costs, even if he has to be paid more than ever.' Off the pitch, Cristiano, his partner Georgina Rodríguez and their five children will have 16 people working for them full-time, paid for by the club. This includes three drivers, four housekeepers, two chefs, three gardeners and four security personnel. PHOTO:READ MORE | A knee injury laid her low but SuperSport presenter Motshidisi Mohono is back on the box If the famous family wants to travel, Al-Nassr will cover R96 million worth of private jet expenses. The team has also promised Cristiano £60m (R1.4 billion) in sponsorship deals with Saudi companies. And how does Cristiano's new contract compare to other players in the Saudi league? Well, there's no comparison. 'He's probably getting paid as much as the entire league is generating in revenue,' says Victor Matheson, a US-based economist who specialises in sports. The only other contract that can be compared to Cristiano's is David Beckham's 2007 deal with LA Galaxy. 'When he was signed, he was making more personally than any other team, and making as much as the bottom eight teams combined in payroll with just his salary. And part of that deal included rights to have his own franchise in the future, which turned into Inter Miami.' Cristiano's soccer contract is just one of the ways in which he's making money. He's used his fame and success to build a business empire that could rival any CEO, with ventures spanning a hotel chain in his native Portugal, his CR7 clothing brand, gyms, a movie production company and a hair transplant clinic. He's also the most followed soccer player on Instagram, with 659 million followers, and is the highest-paid influencer on the platform, earning approximately R69 million per sponsored post.
New York Times
25-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Stefano Pioli leaves position as Al Nassr head coach
Stefano Pioli has left his role as head coach of Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr. Former AC Milan manager Pioli joined the club three matches into the 2024-25 SPL campaign, succeeding Luis Castro who had guided the team to one win and two draws in the season's opening weeks. The move came just less than four months after Pioli had stepped down from his role as Milan's head coach, following a near-five year spell which saw him guide the club to a first Scudetto in 11 years in 2022. He also led Milan to the Champions League semi-final in 2022-23, where they eventually suffered a 3-0 aggregate defeat to city rivals Inter. Al Nassr, who boast the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Jhon Duran, Sadio Mane and Aymeric Laporte in their squad, finished third in the Saudi Arabian top-flight last season with 70 points from 34 matches — 13 points behind champions Al Ittihad. The club also confirmed the departure of Pioli's backroom staff: 'We would like to thank Mr Pioli and his staff for their dedicated work during the past season,' said an Al Nassr statement. Pioli has vast experience in coaching Italian clubs with stints at Fiorentina, Inter, Lazio and Bologna in the past 14 years. Advertisement Since his departure from Milan, the club have dismissed their two subsequent appointments, Paulo Fonseca and Sergio Conceicao. The Serie A giants finished eighth in the Italian top-flight last season and will not play European football next season. Massimiliano Allegri will lead Milan into the 2025-26 season.
The Sun
24-06-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Tottenham signing Kota Takai is 6ft 4in centre-back who shut down Cristiano Ronaldo and will go straight into first team
AS references go, keeping Cristiano Ronaldo quiet is not a bad one. That is exactly what Kota Takai, the exciting Japanese centre-back set to be Tottenham's second signing of the Thomas Frank era, managed in April. 6 6 Towering defender Takai was lining up for J-League outfit Kawasaki Frontale against Ronaldo's Al-Nassr in the semi-final of the AFC Champions League elite. It is Asia's version of the Champions League and the most prestigious competition in that part of the world. Having seen off Didier Drogba's old Chinese team Shanghai Shenhua in the last 16 and Qatari side Al-Sadd, via extra-time, in the quarters, it was Al Nassr's formidable front three of Ronaldo, Sadio Mane and Jhon Duran up next in the last four. But 20-year-old Takai handled the task well, with only Mane of the trio netting as Kawasaki came through 3-2 in Jeddah. It was not how the script was supposed to go. This was meant to be the triumphant pay-off from Al-Nassr's massive expenditure in recent years and their first final appearance in 30 years. But instead it was Takai and Co who went through to the showpiece three days later, with Ronaldo looking visibly shocked at full-time having missed a late chance. Kawasaki went on to lose the final three days later to Ivan Toney's Al-Ahli, Saudi Pro League rivals to Al-Nassr. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS Yet Takai's exploits had been enough to capture the attention of Spurs technical director Johan Lange and his staff. Standing at 6ft 4ins tall, the aggressive young centre-back who can play on the right or left side in the middle of defence is due to join Spurs next month. Daniel Levy reveals he wants Tottenham to win Champions League AND Premier League under 'super' Thomas Frank 6 6 A £5million fee has been agreed with Kawasaki which is a record fee for a Japanese player from the J-League. Most Spurs fans will understandably never have heard of Takai, but the expectation at this point is that he is coming to be part of the first-team squad this term rather than be loaned out. Frank and his coaching staff will, of course, assess him over the summer and make a final judgment call on that. Spurs are stacked at centre-back, after all - with six already at the club and Croatian teen sensation Luka Vuskovic joining this summer too - even though there is Champions League football to come this term. But Takai's relative experience at such a tender age has given Spurs confidence he can be involved from the off. The Yokohama-born defender already has four appearances for Japan, all coming in World Cup qualifiers, and has 78 senior matches under his belt already. Takai, who turns 21 in September, was pivotal to Kawasaki clinching the Japanese Super Cup last year and was named the league's Young Player of the Year. 6 6 Those feats have convinced the Spurs hierarchy that Takai can join the club 's burgeoning group of young talent that includes Lucas Bergvall, Archie Gray and the first signing of the summer, Mathys Tel. Takai's favoured shirt number is said to be No2 which Spurs have had available ever since Irish full-back Matt Doherty left the club two years ago. If and when the youngster makes his Premier League bow, he will become the 16th Japanese player to do so, following in the footsteps of Kaoru Mitoma, Shinji Kagawa and Junichi Inamoto. His capture continues Spurs' recruitment from the Far East of late, following last year's signing of South Korean starlet Yang Min-Hyeok, who went on loan to QPR in the second half of the season. Of course, Spurs have had the most famous Asian player in recent times starring for them over the last decade in Son Heung-min, though he could leave the club this summer. If Takai can have even a fifth of the impact skipper Son has had at Spurs, then the North Londoners will consider him one hell of a bargain.
The National
18-06-2025
- Sport
- The National
Al Ain relishing big stage at Club World Cup: 'This will go down in history'
Khalid Essa, the Al Ain captain, believes his side will raise their game when facing internationally renowned stars at the Club World Cup. The club from the Garden City have the chance to fly the flag for the UAE in the United States, having won the AFC Champions League in 2024. During their run to that title they beat some star-studded sides. Their quarter-final success came against the Al Nassr of Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane. In the next game, they downed an Al Hilal side who were on a record-breaking run of success at the time, led by the likes of Ruben Neves and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. The final triumph came against a Yokohama F Marinos side coach by Harry Kewell, who had been a Uefa Champions League winner in his playing days. That was all achieved amid inconsistent form in the league. They finished third in the UAE Pro League in the season they won the Champions League. Al Ain's patchy results persisted the following season, when an early exit from the defence of their Asian title was paired with a fifth-place finish in the league. Despite an off-key build up to the Club World Cup, Essa is confident his side can make positive memories when they face Juventus, Manchester City and Wydad. 'I believe they're going to be some of the best matches that will go down in history and live long in our memories for decades to come,' Essa, Al Ain's goalkeeper, said. 'I'll be able to tell stories about these matches to my family and everyone I know. In the dressing room, I always tell my teammates that it's games like these that show who you are as a player and as a person. 'They show your character when you are up against an opponent who is superior to you on so many levels. It shows your mettle as a man and as a player until all your abilities and energy are brought to bear in those 90 minutes. 'It's an unforgettable moment and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that's handed to you and you need to make the best of it.' Essa, who is now aged 35, remains a central figure for both club and country. He flew to the US for the Club World Cup straight from national team duty in Kyrgyzstan, where he sat on the bench in the final match of UAE's latest round of World Cup qualifiers. He is hoping for a return trip to North America with the UAE next year. For now, he is focused on raising the country's profile in football via his club side. 'All these clubs are champions,' Essa said. 'They're all used to playing in these major tournaments, playing difficult matches which, for me, are a bit daunting. They're all big teams and all the matches are difficult. 'I don't think there is any team that'll be easy to face in this tournament. Like I said, we need to go there and give everything we have and more. 'Sometimes 100 percent isn't enough, and we need to give 200 percent to keep raising the club's profile on the world stage.' While he suggested the matches might be 'daunting', Essa says their Asian success can be a template for them at the Club World Cup. 'The last AFC Champions League was like a series for me and each step we took was harder than the one before,' he said. 'Sometimes you say that the steps or stages get easier as you progress, but in the AFC Champions League, that wasn't the case for us. 'The steps we took got tougher and tougher as we progressed. We had to support each other in this tournament, at certain stages or in the latter stages of the tournament when we were struggling. It showed the true mettle of our boys. 'In all honesty, their solidarity showed the true character of the management, the coaching and medical staff. 'Everyone stuck together, especially at a time when the team was suffering from injuries, or even just suffering at certain moments on the pitch. It was the championship that still means a lot to me. 'Every detail, from the group stage to playing Yokohama in the final, means a lot to me. I ask God for these moments to be repeated, and for us all to celebrate together.' The fact Al Ain struggled to match the success of 2024 led to a variety of personnel changes last season. Hernan Crespo, the manager who oversaw the Champions League win, was dismissed shortly after the start of the following campaign. His replacement, Leonardo Jardim, did not last the season, either. Now the club have Vladimir Ivic at the helm, a Serbian whose coaching career took him to Greece, the UK, Israel and Russia before he arrived in the UAE. His profile might be some way short of his counterparts, like Igor Tudor for Juventus and Pep Guardiola for Manchester City, but Ivic is hopeful he and his side can make a name for themselves. 'These teams are huge teams, the biggest teams, the best teams in the world,' Ivic said. 'If we speak about Juventus, about Manchester City, they are teams that we don't need words to describe their quality, their history. 'Of course, it will be interesting for us to play against these teams to see where we are, how we can compete against them, and to be competitive in these games. Time will tell. 'We will prepare ourselves, we will give our best and we will see what will happen.'
