Category: 6. Sports

Real Madrid head coach Xabi Alonso has received the backing of Paris Saint-Germain counterpart Luis Enrique, following the clash between the two tacticians at the Club World Cup.

Real and PSG, of course, locked horns on Wednesday night, with a place in the newly-formatted Club World Cup final on the line.

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When all was said and done, it was the latter who emerged on the right side of the result, to book a showcase meeting with Chelsea.

The Champions League holders made alarmingly short work of their Spanish opponents, to the tune of a 4-0 triumph in New Jersey.

After watching his side torn apart in every sense at MetLife Stadium, new Real Madrid head coach Xabi Alonso, in turn, was singled out for heavy criticism by fans and neutrals alike.

As alluded to above, though, quick to throw his backing behind the under-fire Spanish tactician post-match was compatriot Luis Enrique.

Drawn on the Alonso backlash during a press conference in the early hours of Thursday, PSG’s headmaster assured:

“Xabi Alonso doesn’t need to prove anything. He needs a pre-season. His project just started. I have been working on this project for more than two years now, you can’t compare.”

Conor Laird – GSFN

The world’s top golfers are in Evian-les-Bains, France, this week for the 2025 Evian Championship, the fourth of five women’s major championships that will be contested on the LPGA Tour this season.

World No.1 Nelly Korda and defending champion Ayaka Furue of Japan lead the contingent of over 130 players from 32 nations competing at this year’s championship.

The deep field also includes all three major champions from 2025 so far – Japan’s Mao Saigo (Chevron Championship), Sweden’s Maja Stark (U.S. Women’s Open), and Australia’s Minjee Lee (Women’s PGA Championship).

The fourth Major championship of the year takes place from July 10-13 at Evian Resort Golf Club.

Iga Świątek has well and truly found her confidence on grass.

The Paris 2024 tennis bronze medallist is into the Wimbledon women’s singles final for the first time, where she will aim for the sixth Grand Slam title of her career.

Świątek came through to beat unseeded Swiss Belinda Bencic 6-2, 6-0 in the 2025 semi-finals on Thursday (10 July), completing a dominant victory in one hour and 12 minutes on Centre Court.

After the former world number one failed to reach a final for 12 months, she will follow up her Bad Homburg WTA Tour final appearance with a debut in the championship match at the All England Lawn Tennis Club.

Świątek will take on another first-time Wimbledon finalist, USA’s Amanda Anisimova, after the 13^th seed produced a seismic performance to overcome world no. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

More to follow.

Iga Swiatek’s career-best grass-court season has reached new heights: a trip to the Wimbledon final for the first time.

Wimbledon: Scores | Order of play | Draws

No. 8 seed Swiatek of Poland breezed past 35th-ranked Belinda Bencic of Switzerland 6-2, 6-0 in their final-four meeting on Centre Court on Thursday. In a clash between two first-time Wimbledon semifinalists, Swiatek needed just 1 hour and 12 minutes to triumph.

Former World No. 1 Swiatek has not won a title since 2024 Roland Garros over a year ago, but she is now a victory away from returning to the winner’s circle here on the grass of Wimbledon — her least successful Grand Slam before this year.

Suddenly, five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek is posting outstanding results on turf this season. She made her first grass-court final at Bad Homburg two weeks ago, and is now into her second final on the surface — at the grass-court major, no less.

Despite her previous misgivings on grass at tour level, Swiatek has to feel confident in a Grand Slam final on any surface. She is a perfect 5-0 in Grand Slam singles finals — leading to four titles at Roland Garros (2020, 2022-24) and one at the 2022 US Open.

Swiatek will now face No. 13 seed Amanda Anisimova of the United States for the Wimbledon ladies’ singles title on Saturday. Stunningly, they have never faced each other on the pro tour. They met once as juniors in 2016, and Swiatek won.

More to come…

Olivia Smith is set to become the first player in the women’s game to command a transfer fee of £1 million ($1.4m) as Arsenal seek to secure her signature from Liverpool, a source has confirmed to ESPN.

The news was first reported by The Guardian and the move is set to establish Canada international Smith, 20, as the new world-record transfer.

It is understood the fee exceeds the previous world record amount which Chelsea set when they signed United States defender Naomi Girma for $1.1m.

The deal is subject to personal terms being agreed but Arsenal look to have won the race for the much-admired forward.

Sources have told ESPN that Liverpool had previously rejected offers from Chelsea and Lyon before accepting Arsenal’s record bid.

Sources added that it is part of Arsenal’s aim to strengthen their squad after their Champions League triumph, and also to lower the overall age profile of the squad.

Information from ESPN’s Tom Hamilton contributed to this report.