Man City And Liverpool Through But Everton Out Of League Cup

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September 22, 2021

Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez scored twice as the holders moved into the League Cup fourth round with a 6-1 home win over League One (third tier) Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday (Sept 21).

Liverpool also progressed without trouble by winning 3-0 at Norwich City in their all-Premier League tie with Japanese forward Takumi Minamino on target twice and Divock Origi also scoring.

But with most top flight teams making several changes from the first-choice line-ups, there were Premier League casualties with Everton and Watford knocked out by lower league opponents.

Brandon Hanlan gave Wycombe a shock lead at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium in the 22nd minute but the hosts took a 3-1 lead by halftime with goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Mahrez and Phil Foden before running away with the game in the second half.

City’s rout was completed when 19-year-old Cole Palmer scored their sixth, his first goal for the club on a night when manager Pep Guardiola gave debuts to five young products of the club’s academy.

“I am just going to say thank you very much to all the Academy… They have many good players, not just one or two. All of them are incredibly well-educated people. Thanks to their families. We have talented players. We can count on them absolutely,” said Guardiola.

Top flight Brentford’s Finnish forward Marcus Forss scored four as they crushed League Two (fourth tier) bottom side Oldham Athletic 7-0 in their third round tie.

Burnley’s Jay Rodriguez also claimed four goals in his Premier League team’s 4-1 victory over League Two Rochdale at Turf Moor.

Everton lost 8-7 in a penalty shootout at Queens Park Rangers after their game ended 2-2 following 90 minutes.

Charlie Austin had scored twice for QPR to put them 2-1 up before Andros Townsend’s 47th minute equaliser for Everton.

In the shootout, QPR keeper Seny Dieng pushed a Tom Davies spotkick onto the post and Rangers’ defender Jimmy Dunne converted the decisive penalty.

Premier League Watford were knocked out by Championship (second-tier) Stoke City, losing 3-1 at Vicarage Road.

Top flight Southampton needed penalties to beat Championship side Sheffield United 4-2 after that game ended 2-2 and Leeds United also cut it fine, surviving a shootout at Fulham to triumph 6-5 following a goalless draw.

There is no extra time in the League Cup with ties going straight to penalties if they are drawn after 90 minutes.

The remainder of the third-round ties will be played on Wednesday.

Top 10: Ronaldo Overtakes Messi As Highest Paid Footballer, Salah Fifth

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Emenike Agu

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September 22, 2021

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Cristiano Ronaldo has been been rated as the highest paid footballer in 2021 with Egypt and Liverpool’s attacker Mo Salah emerging fifth.

Ronaldo knock outed Lionel Messi from the number one spot after the 34-year-old left Barcelona to join Paris Saint-Germain.

To get the official pay of the footballer, Forbes said, “To compile our list, we spoke with clubs, players’ agents, commercial sponsors, and worldwide soccer experts. All figures are converted to U.S. dollars using the current exchange rate and include salaries (pretax) for the 2021-22 season, bonuses, and endorsements. Transfer fees are excluded.”

Ronaldo will earn $125 million before taxes in the 2021-22 season, with $70 million coming from salary and bonus for his return to Manchester United.

The rest comes from personal endorsements and partnerships with brands including Nike, Herbalife, Clear and his ever-expanding CR7-branded portfolio that includes perfume, underwear, eyewear, hotels, gyms, and more. Only three other active athletes make more commercially: Roger Federer ($90 million), LeBron James ($65 million) and Tiger Woods ($60 million).

Lionel Messi will be paid $75 million this season, helping put him at No. 2 on the list with $110 million.

This is as he’ll pad his PSG paycheck with an estimated $35 million in endorsements from the likes of Adidas, Pepsi, watchmaker Jacobs & Co. and Budweiser, which he just picked up last year under a three-year deal.

“In total, the ten highest-paid soccer players are expected to collect pretax earnings of $585 million this season, up from last year’s $570 million. Salary and bonus make up the bulk of the total—$415 million—and are up a modest 2.6% from last year as most clubs continue to be cautious in the face of uncertainty around emerging Covid-19 strains,” Forbes added.

PSG now claims three of the world’s five highest-paid players, including the 29-year-old Neymar, who lands at No. 3 once again with $95 million, and the 22-year-old Kylian Mbappe, who is No. 4 with $43 million.

Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, 29, rounds out the top five with $41 million.

This year, the 37-year-old Andres Iniesta returns as the only player from a non-European team, landing at No. 7 with $35 million after signing a two-year contract extension with Vissel Kobe in Japan, his club since he left Barcelona in 2018.

TOP TEN HIGHEST EARNERS IN FOOTBALL 2021-22
1. Cristiano Ronaldo – £91.5m ($125m)

2. Lionel Messi – £80.5m ($110m)

3. Neymar – £69.5m ($95m)

4. Kylian Mbappe – £31.5m ($43m)

5. Mohamed Salah – £30m ($41m)

6. Robert Lewandowski – £26m ($35m)

7. Andres Iniesta – £26m ($35m)

8. Paul Pogba – £25m ($34m)

9. Gareth Bale – £23.5m ($32m)

10. Eden Hazard – £21m ($29m)

Ronaldo Overtakes Messi As Highest Paid Footballer

By

Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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Cristiano Ronaldo has emerged as the highest-paid footballer in the world on Forbes list of highest-paid footballers 2021, with Egyptian attacker Mo Salah emerging fifth.

Ronaldo knocked out Lionel Messi from the number one spot after the 34-year-old left Barcelona to join Paris Saint-Germain.

To get the official pay of the footballer, Forbes said, “To compile our list, we spoke with clubs, players’ agents, commercial sponsors, and worldwide soccer experts. All figures are converted to U.S. dollars using the current exchange rate and include salaries (pretax) for the 2021-22 season, bonuses, and endorsements. Transfer fees are excluded.”

Ronaldo will earn $125 million before taxes in the 2021-22 season, with $70 million coming from salary and bonus for his return to Manchester United.

The rest comes from personal endorsements and partnerships with brands including Nike, Herbalife, Clear and his ever-expanding CR7-branded portfolio that includes perfume, underwear, eyewear, hotels, gyms, and more. Only three other active athletes make more commercially: Roger Federer ($90 million), LeBron James ($65 million) and Tiger Woods ($60 million).

Lionel Messi will be paid $75 million this season, helping put him at No. 2 on the list with $110 million.

This is as he’ll pad his PSG paycheck with an estimated $35 million in endorsements.

“In total, the ten highest-paid soccer players are expected to collect pretax earnings of $585 million this season, up from last year’s $570 million. Salary and bonus make up the bulk of the total—$415 million—and are up a modest 2.6% from last year,” Forbes added.

PSG now claims three of the world’s five highest-paid players, including the 29-year-old Neymar, who lands at No. 3 once again with $95 million, and the 22-year-old Kylian Mbappe, who is No. 4 with $43 million.

Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, 29, rounds out the top five with $41 million.

This year, the 37-year-old Andres Iniesta returns as the only player from a non-European team, landing at No. 7 with $35 million after signing a two-year contract extension with Vissel Kobe in Japan, his club since he left Barcelona in 2018.

FORBES TOP TEN HIGHEST EARNERS IN FOOTBALL 2021-22

Cristiano Ronaldo – £91.5m ($125m)

Lionel Messi – £80.5m ($110m)

Neymar – £69.5m ($95m)

Kylian Mbappe – £31.5m ($43m)

Mohamed Salah – £30m ($41m)

Robert Lewandowski – £26m ($35m)

Andres Iniesta – £26m ($35m)

Paul Pogba – £25m ($34m)

Gareth Bale – £23.5m ($32m)

Eden Hazard – £21m ($29m)

Reps Summon Dare Over Doping Crisis At Tokyo Olympics

By

Emenike Agu

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September 22, 2021

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The House of Representatives has begun investigation of the disqualification of Nigerian athletes at the 2020 Olympics over alleged doping, asking the Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, to come and explain the preparedness of the Nigerian contingent for the sports festival.

The resolutions followed the unanimous adoption of a motion at the plenary on Wednesday titled, ‘Need to Investigate Activities of the Federal Ministry of Sports and Youth Development on Failed Doping Test by Nigeria Athletes at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.’

Consequently, the House resolved to “invite the Minister of Sports and Youth Development (sic) to brief the Committee on Sports on the level of Nigeria’s compliance with extant regulations set by the International Association of Athletics Federations and the independent anti-doping arm, Athletics Integrity Unit.”

The House also urged the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development to put necessary measures in place to ensure compliance with extant regulations at both local and international competitions, while mandating the Committee on Sports to “investigate the immediate and remote cause of the failed doping test to forestall future occurrence.”

Moving the motion, Mr Babatunde Ayeni said the Nigerian delegation to the Olympic Games fared well in terms of performance, thereby raising the country’s rating the comity of nations.

Ayeni recalled the outstanding performance of the Nigerian Football Team which bagged the historic first soccer gold medal at the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta, United States of America.

The lawmaker lamented the incident of July 20, 2021, where the Athletics Integrity Unit of the International Association of Athletics Federations barred 10 Nigerian athletes, including the highly-rated Blessing Okagbare, from the Tokyo Olympics for failing to meet requirements for out-of-competition drug testing.

He recalled that the Athletics Integrity Unit alleged that Okagbare, who won the opening heat of the Women’s 100 meters, had tested positive for human growth hormone.

Ayeni added, “The House is also aware that the allegation further affirmed that the affected athletes failed to comply with the rules requiring those from countries deemed to be at high risk of doping to undergo three no-notice out-of-competition tests in a 10 months’ period leading up to a major event.

“The House is concerned that despite the huge funds being made available yearly for the regulatory agencies in the sports sector, adequate efforts have not been made to get Nigeria into the category where they would be deemed to have made significant improvements in anti-doping tests.”

University Of Southern Maine To Open New $10M Music School

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Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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The University of Southern Maine will be opening a new $10 million music school, thanks to a longtime supporter.

D. Suzi Osher gave the USM Foundation its largest-ever donation. The donation will serve to advance plans for a new Center for the Arts on the university’s Portland campus, according to a university news release.

The music school is one of USM’s most prominent programs, so the new school is a game changer that will provide faculty and students with a world-class facility, Director of Major Gifts Susan Palmer said.

The new school of music is expected to open in 2023. It also will be named for Osher and her late husband, Dr. Alfred Osher.

Costa Rica 2022 Race: Falconets Off To Douala For CAR Clash

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Emenike Agu

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September 22, 2021

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Africa’s most successful team at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup finals, the Falconets of Nigeria will on Saturday commence another race to qualify for the global tournament when they square up to their counterparts from the Central African Republic in the city of Douala, Cameroon.

Africa’s football-governing body, CAF has not approved any stadia facility in Central African Republic as being good enough to host an international match – this has forced the country’s national teams to adopt other nations as ‘home ground’. The country’s Men ‘A’ team played Cape Verde in Douala on Day 1 of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 series, which ended 1-1.

That country’s Men ‘A’ team will take on the Super Eagles in a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Day 3 clash also in Douala.

Falconets have played in every edition of the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup since the competition was launched as an U19 tournament in Canada in 2022, winning the silver medals in 2010 in Germany and in 2014 in Canada, and were semi finalists in 2012 in Japan.

Head Coach Christopher Danjuma has picked 23 players from the group that has been training in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja for several weeks now and the contingent will fly out of Abuja on Wednesday night.

The girls from Central African Republic reached this stage of the qualifiers after Equatorial Guinea’s U20 girls withdrew from their preliminary fixture scheduled for last month.

Saturday’s encounter is slated for the Stade Japoma de Douala from 3pm Cameroon time.

FALCONETS FOR CAR CLASH IN DOUALA:

Ayomide Bakare, Monle Oyono, Inyene Etim, Oluwatosin Demehin, Omowunmi Oshobukola, Rofiat Imuran, Jumoke Alani, Angela Michael, Oluwabunmi Oladeji, Oluchi Ohaegbulem, Chidinma Ogbuchi, Rashidat Amoo, Deborah Abiodun, Philomena Yina, Anuoluwapo Salisu, Esther Onyenezide, Mercy Kalu, Joy Jerry, Chioma Sebastine, Taiwo Lawal, Mercy Idoko, Blessing Okpe, Precious Vincent

New Orleans: Flames Shoot Up Side Of Superdome Roof, Put Out

By

Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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Smoke and flames shot up the side of the Superdome’s roof on Tuesday after a pressure washer being used to clean the roof of the New Orleans sports and entertainment arena caught fire.

The New Orleans Fire Department confirmed firefighters responded to flames on the building’s roof shortly after 12:30 p.m. The fire appeared to be under control a short time later.

New Orleans Emergency Management Services said on social media that they were transporting one person to the hospital for “minor burns.” Emergency officials called on people to stay away from the area.

Crews were power washing the roof this week to prepare it to be painted, officials said.

“Upon further investigation it appears that a pressure washer being used to clean the roof caught fire. Damage is still being assessed,” said a statement from the Louisiana Stadium and Expedition District, which is a state board that governs the dome, and ASM Global, which manages the Superdome.

“The fire was contained to the exterior gutter system surrounding (the) Superdome, and only a small area of the roof suffered minimal damage. Pressure washing was underway to clean the roof before a planned re-coating of the entire roof itself. Any fire damage will be addressed during the re-coating process,” the management companies said.

“Initial assessments suggest that damage is superficial and there appears to be no structural damage or impact to the integrity of the roof’s exterior skin. The building’s outer skin and roof remain watertight.”

A photo posted on the city’s emergency management Twitter feed showed firefighters in the trench that separates the Superdome roof from an outer wall as they sprayed down the fire-blackened walls.

The NFL’s New Orleans Saints have regularly played home games at the venue, often drawing capacity crowds. The Superdome also has been the site of seven Super Bowls in recent decades, and is also used for concerts, college football and other events.

The next Saints home game at the Superdome is scheduled for Oct. 3 when the team faces the New York Giants.

Latinos Vastly Underrepresented In Media, New Report Finds

By

Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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Latinos are perpetually absent in major newsrooms, Hollywood films and other media industries where their portrayals or lack thereof could deeply impact how their fellow Americans view them, according to a government report released Tuesday.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus asked the U.S. Government Accountability Office to investigate last October.

U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, has made the inclusion of Latinos in media a principal issue, imploring Hollywood studio directors, journalism leaders and book publishers to include their perspectives.

Castro says the lack of accurate representation, especially in Hollywood, means at the very best that Americans don’t get a full understanding of Latinos and their contributions. At worst — especially when Latinos are solely portrayed as drug dealers or criminals — it invites politicians to exploit negative stereotypes for political gain, Castro said.

That could engender violence against Latinos, like the killing of 23 people in El Paso in 2019 by a gunman who was targeting Hispanics.

“None of this has been an effort to tell people exactly what to write, but to encourage that media institutions reflect the face of America. Because then we believe that the stories will be more accurate and more reflective of the truth and less stereotypical,” Castro said in an interview with The Associated Press. “American media, including print journalism, has relied on stereotypes of Latinos. If the goal is the truth, well that certainly has not served the truth.”

The report found that in 2019, the estimated percentage of Latinos working in newspaper, periodical, book and directory publishers was about 8%. An estimated 11% of news analysts, reporters and journalists were Latino, although the GAO used data that included Spanish-language networks, where virtually all contributors are Latino, and those employed in other sectors of news, not just necessarily news gatherers. That could inflate the figures significantly.

The report also found that the biggest growth among Hispanics in the media industry was in service jobs, while management jobs had the lowest representation.

Ana-Christina Ramón is one half of a team that has been collecting data on diversity in Hollywood for a decade, and began publishing annual reports in 2014. Ramón is the director of research and civic engagement at the UCLA College of Letters and Science.

Latinos account for only about 5% to 6% of main cast members in TV and film, despite being roughly 18% of the U.S. population, her research has found.

“It’s a bit of a ceiling. It doesn’t go over that percentage,” Ramón said, although she added that TV has made much bigger strides in significant roles for Latinos than movies have.

For years, Hollywood executives argued that films with diverse leads don’t make money. Ramón found that they do.

“There’s this idea that Hollywood has that ‘Oh, we can’t do too much diversity, it will scare off the white people.’ Well, it has not scared off the white people,” Ramón said.

Cristina Mislán, an associate professor of journalism at the University of Missouri, Columbia, was not surprised by the figures the GAO found, and noted that much of the growth in Latinos in media professions stems from the service industry.

“It’s important because the more representation we have of diverse cultures and peoples does allow for more opportunities to have richer, more complicated stories being told,” Mislán said.

Nigeria-Born Designer Joy Meribe Opens Milan Fashion Week

By

Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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Nigeria-born designer Joy Meribe opened Milan Fashion Week on Wednesday with her debut runway collection, a concrete success for a movement to promote diversity in Italian fashion just a year after launching.

The Italian National Fashion Chamber tapped Meribe to open six days of womenswear previews for Spring-Summer 2022 after her inaugural collection for the “We are Made in Italy” initiative last year found commercial success.

“Beyond whatever video, proclamation or manifesto that we make, the real test is whether clients buy your products. Joy passed that exam,” said Italian-Haitian designer Stella Jean.

Meribe broke down in tears after the show as she thanked the fashion chamber and the movement’s founders for getting her to the runway.

The collection featured tiered and ruffled skirts and jackets with built-in capes that were both regal, as seen in an off-shoulder dress sweeping the ground, and hip, including a mini day-dresses and shoulder-baring tunic. Textiles were an explosion of bright yellow against sky blue, with tropic prints featuring thatched cottages against flourishing banana trees, which Meribe said was meant to celebrate a return to more normality.

“We have passed from a dark moment, and I wanted to create something full of hope and light, the joy of restarting,” she said backstage.

German Auto Giants Place Bets On Hydrogen Cars

By

Koko Lawrence

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September 22, 2021

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Battery power may be the frontrunner to become the car technology of the future, but don’t rule out the underdog hydrogen.

That’s the view of some major automakers, including BMW and Audi, which are developing hydrogen fuel-cell passenger vehicle prototypes alongside their fleets of battery cars as part of preparations to abandon fossil fuels.

They are hedging their bets, calculating that a change in political winds could shift the balance towards hydrogen in an industry shaped by early-mover Tesla’s decision to take the battery-powered road to clean cars.

Global auto hub Germany is in sharp focus. It is already betting billions on hydrogen fuel in sectors like steel and chemicals to meet climate targets, and closely-fought elections this month could see the Greens enter the coalition government and further push the technology.

BMW is hydrogen’s biggest proponent among Germany’s carmakers, charting a path to a mass-market model around 2030. The company also has one eye on shifting hydrogen policies in Europe and in China, the world’s largest car market.

The Munich-based premium player has developed a hydrogen prototype car based on its X5 SUV, in a project already partly funded by the German government.

Jürgen Guldner, the BMW vice president who heads up the hydrogen fuel-cell car programme, said the carmaker would build a test fleet of close to 100 cars in 2022.

“Whether this (technology) is driven by politics or demand, we will be ready with a product,” he said, adding that his team is already working to develop the next generation vehicles.

“We’re on the verge of getting there and we’re really convinced we’ll see a breakthrough in this decade,” he said.

VW’s premium Audi brand said it had assembled a team of more than 100 mechanics and engineers who were researching hydrogen fuel cells on behalf of the whole Volkswagen group, and had built a few prototype cars.