Chivas USA to Cease Operations;Ownership of a New Los Angeles MLS Team to be Announced Oct. 30

 

LOS ANGELES (October 27, 2014) – Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber announced today a new strategy for the Los Angeles market.  Effective immediately, Chivas USA will cease operations.  On Thursday, Oct. 30, the League will announce a new MLS Los Angeles club and ownership group.  The new club will begin play in 2017.

27 October 2014 – The South African Football Association (SAFA) has expressed shock and anger at the tragic and sudden passing on of Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates captain Senzo Robert Meyiwa.

 

The goalkeeper was shot and killed in what is reported to be a robbery in Vosloorus in the East Rand on Sunday, 26 October.

NEW YORK (Monday, October 27, 2014) – Seattle Sounders FC midfielder Marco Pappa was voted Major League Soccer Player of the Week by the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) for Week 33 of the 2014 MLS regular season.

 

Pappa scored both goals in the Sounders’ Supporters’ Shield clinching 2-0 win over the LA Galaxy in the final minutes of the game on Saturday. 

A league fixture between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs scheduled for Soweto this weekend has been postponed after South Africa and Pirates captain Senzo Meyiwa was shot dead.

"The match will not happen on Saturday out of respect for Senzo. That is the right thing to do," Premier Soccer League chief executive Brand de Villiers told a Johannesburg media conference.

The fixture between the two most successful and popular football clubs in the republic was guaranteed to attract a sell-out 90,000 crowd to the Soccer City stadium in Soweto.

Glasgow 2014’s record-breaking Ruby Sevens tournament has been named as the top Rugby Event of the Year by industry experts.

 

The award was announced last night (Wednesday 22 October) at Rugby Expo 2014, the sport’s premier gathering which is supported by leading bodies including Premiership Rugby, RFU, SRU, WRU, Pro12 and Championship.

 
Glasgow 2014’s Rugby Sevens tournament beat off competition from the Women’s Rugby World Cup in August, hosted by France and the Super League Magic Weekend in May which featured seven matches and 14 elite teams competing at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester.



Glasgow 2014’s two-day extravaganza at Ibrox stadium saw 16 of the world’s top Rugby Sevens sides battle it out for Commonwealth Gold in front of 171,000 people – a new global record tournament audience for the sport.

Around 192 athletes contested 45 matches over two days of fierce competition which saw South Africa clinch Gold for the first time in Commonwealth Games history, beating New Zealand, winners of every previous Commonwealth Games Rugby Sevens Gold medal since the sport was introduced to the Games in 1998.

Few countries in the world dominate continental football as much as Nigeria's women's national team. The Super Falcons have represented Africa at every FIFA Women’s World Cup and they have now won seven continental titles after beating Cameroon 2-0 in the final of the CAF African Women's Championship on Saturday. There was consolation for Les Lionnes Indomptables as they picked up Africa's second ticket for next year's Women's World Cup finals in Canada, with the final qualifying berth going to third-place Côte d’Ivoire, who, like Cameroon, will make their first appearance at the finals. FIFA.com rounds up the exciting tournament.

Smooth path
Drawn into Group A together with the hosts Namibia, Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria won all three group matches, scoring 12 goals in the process. In the semi-final, they got the better of South Africa – winning 2-1 and thereby securing their place in Canada. Cameroon coach Ngachu Enow said before the match that the final pitted the strongest attack against the strongest defence. And he was to be proven right, as the Super Eagles attacked from the first whistle. They achieved an early breakthrough when the tournament top-scorer Desire Oparanozie opened the scoring after just 13 minutes with a well-taken free-kick. Shortly before the break Asisat Oshoala added another to give the Super Falcons a two-goal cushion at half-time. Nigeria played with less purpose in the second half and Cameroon were twice denied by the crossbar.

The Kenyan Rugby Union has released a statement saying that all their players are clean. The Kenyan government has been challenged to state whether they had confidence in the qualification and integrity of members of a committee which has alleged that Kenyan sportsmen, among them national rugby team players used illegal food supplements.

The Kenyan Rugby Union chairman, Mwangi Muthee said his organisation was shocked to find press reports even alluding to “that, in the first place, it is illegal to use nutritional supplements.”

He said only one player had failed a doping test and that was way back in 2005. He also added that the Sevens players, who play up to nine months in a year around the world, are tested by standards set by the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) and the International Rugby Board and none had failed since 2005.

Muthee, said on Tuesday morning, there was no WADA approved Anti Doping Agency in Kenya and a recent local “Anti Doping Taskforce” committee assembled had cobbled together fallacious information from familiar players of local sport politics wishing to score points for their own agenda.

IPC Athletics, the international federation for para-athletics, and London Marathon Ltd announced today that the 2015 Virgin Money London Marathon will host the IPC Athletics World Championships marathon events on Sunday 26 April 2015.

 

Although the IPC World Championships, the qualifying event for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, will be held in Doha in October 2015, IPC Athletics decided to switch the marathon events to London as it better suits the race schedules of the leading marathon racers. 

 

Ryan Montgomery, Head of IPC Athletics, said: “Following the success of the IPC Athletics Marathon World Cup in London for the last two years, we are delighted that the British capital will stage the IPC Athletics Marathon World Championships next year.

 

“London has a superb track record for staging top class marathon events, as demonstrated each year and during the London 2012 Paralympic Games.  We are very excited about staging this event in the city in 2015.

A memorable Lema Mabidi goal salvaged a 2-2 home draw for Congo DR's AS Vita Club against Algerians ES Setif on Sunday in the CAF Champions League final first leg. Mabidi pounced on a loose ball outside the box, drifted past an opponent and unleashed an unstoppable shot that flew over goalkeeper Abderwahab Khedairia into the net.

The equaliser brought a capacity 35,000 Stade Tata Raphael crowd in Kinshasa to its feet after they had been stunned into silence when Setif regained the lead at a ground where Muhammad Ali fought 40 years ago. Ali defeated George Foreman in an iconic 1974 world heavyweight title fight known as the "Rumble in the Jungle".

AS Vita Club coach Florent Ibenge had given his team a pre-match warning about the counter-attacking menace of the north Africans. And his worst fears were realised on 57 minutes when Akram Djahnit combined with Abdelmalik Ziaya before rounding goalkeeper Nelson Lukong and tapping the ball into the net.

NEW YORK (October 23, 2014) – The MLS Disciplinary Committee has suspended Houston Dynamo Luis Garrido midfielder one game and fined him an undisclosed amount for endangering the safety of an opponent in the 25th minute of the game against the New England Revolution on October 16 (VIDEO).

Toronto FC midfielder Dwayne De Rosario has also been suspended one game and fined an undisclosed amount for endangering the safety of an opponent in the 94th minute of the match against the Montreal Impact on October 18 (VIDEO).

The Committee has suspended Sporting Kansas City defender Igor Juliao for one game and fined the player an undisclosed amount for endangering the safety of an opponent in the 55th minute of the game against the Philadelphia Union on October 18 (VIDEO).

NEW YORK (October 26, 2014) – With 27 goals, New York Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips has won the 2014 Budweiser Golden Boot, an award recognizing the League’s top goal scorer at the end of the regular season. Wright-Phillips’ tally ties him for the MLS all-time single-season goals scored record along with Roy Lassiter (1996) and Chris Wondolowski (2012). Wright-Phillips capped off his season by scoring two goals in tonight’s match against Sporting Kansas City at Sporting Park.

On the road to the top of the goal scoring charts, Wright-Phillips matched and surpassed a series of other club and league records. With three hat-tricks to his name, Wright-Phillips tied the single-season MLS record which has been set three times previously. The English forward broke the club’s single-season scoring record surpassing Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel who previously set the bar at 19 goals. This is also the first time in the club’s history that a player has received the Budweiser Golden Boot award.

The Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) agreed today on a set of 40 recommendations that will shape the future of the Olympic Movement. The recommendations will be presented, discussed and voted upon by the full IOC Membership at the 127th IOC session in Monaco on 8 and 9 December.

The EB spent two days fine-tuning each of the proposals during meetings in Montreux. The recommendations are centred on the three themes of sustainability, credibility and youth.

Some of the key areas addressed were possible changes to the bidding process, shaping it more as an invitation and to reduce costs. More flexibility with regard to the composition of the Olympic programme was also recommended, while respecting the limitations of athletes, coaches and other support personnel. The launch of an Olympic TV channel was proposed, along with measures to strengthen the governance of the IOC and Olympic Movement.

All the recommendations will be made public in mid-November after the IOC members have had the opportunity to study them.

The Proteas have all but sealed their One Day International series against New Zealand after Hashim Amla’s 16th ODI century gave them a much deserved 72 run victory over the Black Caps in their second ODI at Mount Maunganui on Friday.

The Proteas now have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three match series and could clinch a white wash against the seemingly struggling New Zealanders in their final match on Monday.

But it was Amla who stole the show on the day and his efforts were rewarded after he was crowned as the man of the match. Amla became the first batsman to score four ODI centuries in the current calendar year and became the fourth batsman after Kumar Sangakarra, Virat Kohli and Angelo Mathews to score 700 runs.

Medical equipment from the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games is set to play a winning role in improving the lives of some of Africa’s most vulnerable mums and their children.

 

A range of essential and unused health equipment including stethoscopes, blood pressure monitors and thermometers worth £10,000 has been gifted by Games organisers to a Scottish-based charity which provides free maternity care and surgery to help African women injured in childbirth.

 

The Freedom From Fistula Foundation works in a range of Commonwealth countries including Kenya, Malawi and Sierra Leone and has the capacity to help up to 10,000 women and their children each year. As well as repairing debilitating injuries caused by childbirth, the charity trains midwives and offers education and empowerment programmes which provide women with the skills and knowledge needed to help them run their own businesses or advance their education.

Who will be the FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year and the FIFA World Coach of the Year for Women’s Football for 2014?

FIFA and France Football have today announced the names of the players and coaches on the shortlists for these awards (see below). The final decisions will be made, as usual, by the captains and head coaches of the women’s national teams as well as by international media representatives selected by FIFA.

The shortlists for the FIFA Ballon d’Or (best male player) and the FIFA World Coach of the Year for Men’s Football awards will be revealed in four days’ time on 28 October 2014.

The winners of all of the awards will be revealed at the FIFA Ballon d’Or as part of a televised show at the Zurich Kongresshaus on 12 January 2015, during which the FIFA FIFPro World XI, the FIFA Puskás Award (for the most beautiful goal of the year), the FIFA Presidential Award and the FIFA Fair Play Award will also be presented.

Thursday 23rd October 2014:  CocoPro, the world’s first high protein coconut water, has launched. The drink combines 20 grams of whey protein (per 330ml serving) with the natural nutritional properties of coconut water to deliver muscle recovery and hydration in a delicious and refreshing post-workout drink.

CocoPro is made with 100% natural ingredients and no added sugar. It is available in two tasty variants, coconut and coconut with pineapple.

Fat and cholesterol free and with a low glycemic index, CocoPro is low in carbohydrates containing just 135.3 calories, making it a healthy and convenient option for fitness enthusiasts.

Coconut water is naturally packed with electrolytes which support rehydration. A serving (330ml) of CocoPro contains as much potassium as a banana.

Protein is the building block of the human body, essential for muscle growth and repair. The Gold Standard whey protein isolate included in CocoPro is a complete protein source, making it the perfect post-exercise drink.

Lausanne, Switzerland, October 26, 2014 - The SKK “Sever” in Russia’s Novosibirsk provided the floor today to a great performance of AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) Flyweights (52kg) in Week One of the Pre-Ranking stage of the competition. 

The Siberian boxing fans have been treated to unforgettable derbies between some of the best APB boxers.

The first fight brought together the best of the America’s APB Flyweights – Elias Emiglio from Mexico and Argentina’s Fernando Martínez. It was a tremendous start of the night as both boxers were constantly throwing back to back punches throughout all six rounds. The 21-years-old boxing technician Martínez, was using his well-planned, calculated attacks showing great combination and style. However the freshness and aggressive style of the Mexican boxer made the difference and brought him his first victory in the brand-new APB competition. Martínez and Emigdio, who are both WSB veterans came out of this battle exhausted, and made it clear that they had given it all in the opposite corner of the world to prove their worth to take part in APB ranks.

Lausanne, Switzerland, October 25, 2014 - Week One of the AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) Pre-Ranking Phase continued tonight with the performance of Welterweights (69kg) in the Sarhadchi Complex in Baku, Azerbaijan.

 

The first fight of the night was one of the biggest surprises of Week One as Kenya’s Rayton Nduku Okwiri knocked out the Austrian boxer with a glittering pro record of 18-1-1 Marcos Nader. The Kenyan boxer, considered as an outsider in his weight category, in particular in comparison to his Week One opponent, EBU European Union belt holder and Welterweights’ seed number one Nader. His right hand hook in Round 2 turned out to be a shock for his Austrian opponent. Nader, who is the only Austrian boxer in APB ranks now bears a tremendous responsibility in front of his home-country supporters and will be looking forward to get back on track on his way to APB glory. Okwiri, who enjoys phenomenal support from his fans in Kenya, gained tonight even more supporters from around the globe and will do now everything he can to make them feel proud and earn the chance to represent his nation’s colours in Rio 2016.

In the second contest of the night, Turkey’s Onur Sipal met Lithuania’s Eimantas Stanionis. The 2008 Beijing Olympian Sipal won a silver medal at the World University Boxing Championships in 2010 whilst campaigning as a lightweight and also a bronze three years later in the 2013 Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia. His young opponent from Lithuania entered APB after having won his second National Championship, and the silver medal in the European Union Championships.

23 October 2014 –Bafana Bafana have made huge strides on the latest FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings released on Thursday, 23 October jumping 10 places.

 

South Africa moved from 67 to 57 following impressive performances in the CAF Orange Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2015 qualifiers.

In four matches, Bafana Bafana amassed eight points after wins over Sudan and Congo, as well as draws against Nigeria and Congo to propel them to the 57th spot.

 

“This is good news. It shows we are doing something right especially in such a short space of time. It is still early days though, there is a lot of work to be done and hopefully we will get even higher on the rankings.

“But I am happy there are some huge improvements. Now the challenge is to maintain the position and even better it,” said Bafana Bafana head coach Ephraim Shakes Mashaba.

 

World Champions Germany lead the pack in the world, followed by Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup runners up Argentina. Colombia, Belgium and Netherlands make the top five. Completing the top 10 are Brazil, France, Uruguay, Portugal and former 2010 World Champions Spain.

The IOC was saddened to hear the news that South African Olympian and  former world 800-metre champion Mbulaeni Mulaudzi has died at the age of just 34.

"Our sympathies go to his family and friends, and to the whole sports family of the rainbow nation of South Africa. Mbulaeni Mulaudzi was a true Olympian and a fine athlete. A World Champion, he always showed huge commitment to his craft," said the President of the IOC, Thomas Bach. "He proudly represented his new nation around the world, and at home his successes inspired a new generation of young people to take up sport. He will be missed by the Olympic family."

Mulaudzi, who was killed in a car crash on his way to a Johannesburg athletics meeting, was South Africa's flag bearer at the opening ceremony at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where he won silver.

25 October 2014 – The South African women’s national team, Banyana Banyana failed to write their own history and book a place at the 2015 FIFA women’s World Cup when they lost 1–0 to Ivory Coast on Saturday afternoon, 25 October, in the 3rd/4th place playoffs of the African Women’s Championship.

Banyan Banyana failed to join Nigeria and Cameroon to be the third team to represent Africa in Canada next year.

A late goal by Guehai Ida, shattered the South African ladies’ hopes of competing at the world event.

Vera Pauw started with the team that beat Algeria 5–1 in the last group match, and Thoko Mndaweni starting in goals ahead of Roxanne Barker.

Banyana Banyana knew the significance of the match as they took-off on attack mode, putting Ivory Coast under pressure. The South Africans enjoyed most of the possession in the opening stanza.

Sanah Mollo’s shot inside the box went over the cross-bar before Amanda Dlamini forced the Ivorian keeper to parry her long range shot out for a corner in the opening five minutes of the game.

NEW YORK (October 26, 2014) – The 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs presented by AT&T begin on Wednesday, Oct. 29, when FC Dallas host Vancouver Whitecaps FC in a single-game Knockout Match. On Thursday, Oct. 30, New York Red Bulls host Sporting Kansas City in the other Knockout Match.

 

Each Knockout Round winner will face its respective conference leader – D.C. United in the Eastern Conference and Seattle Sounders FC in the Western Conference – in a two-leg, aggregate goals Conference Semifinal series. The second- and third-place teams in each conference also will square off in the Conference Semifinals – Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake and New England Revolution vs. Columbus Crew.

 

The Conference Championships also will be decided by two-leg aggregate goals series, with the winners advancing to MLS Cup 2014 on December 7 at the home venue of the finalist with the most points in the regular season.

 

Below is the MLS Cup Playoffs schedule with live national television broadcasts (subject to change).

NEW YORK (October 25, 2014) – In front of a jam-packed crowd of 57,673 at CenturyLink Field, Seattle Sounders FC topped the Los Angeles Galaxy by a score of 2-0 to claim the 2014 Supporters’ Shield. The Supporters’ Shield, introduced by organized fan groups, is awarded annually to the supporters of the team with the best regular-season record in MLS.

 

This is Seattle’s first Supporters’ Shield in club history and the second major trophy this season after winning the 2014 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in September.

 

As the winner of the Supporters’ Shield, the Sounders claim home-field advantage throughout the 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs presented by AT&T. The Sounders have already qualified for the 2015-2016 CONCACAF Champions League by virtue of winning the U.S. Open Cup. 

 

Of 18 clubs to hoist the Supporters’ Shield trophy, six have gone on to win MLS Cup, one has lost in the final, five have been eliminated in the Conference Championships, and the remaining six fell in the Conference Semifinals.

 

The Supporters’ Shield represents a history unlike many others in sport. The trophy was conceptualized by fans in the early years of Major League Soccer and unveiled at the inaugural Supporters’ Summit prior to MLS Cup in 1998.

 

The Sierra Leone Athletic Association (SLAA) has joyfully and wholeheartedly welcomed news that Olympic gold medalist, Jeneba Tarmoh is considering competing for the country at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in Brazil.

 

Tarmoh who was born in San Jose, California, United States of America by Sierra Leonean parents recently told Yahoo Sports that there’s a chance she could represent Sierra Leone at the Rio 2016 Olympics and she is definitely considering that option.

 

The SLAA general secretary, Dauda Sundufu Sowa was the first to welcome the news saying they will immediately find ways to contact the sprinter to see how far they can go in the discussion.

 

He said: “This is welcome news for us (the association) and the country. One of our plans is to convince the Diaspora athletes who have Sierra Leonean root to compete for us in international events that was why we had three foreign based athletes during the last Commonwealth games in Scotland.”

The Sierra Leone Minister of sports, Paul Kamara on Friday October 24th 2014 levied an indefinite ban on the Sierra Leone Football Association’s (SLFA) newly appointed technical staff with three other officials from the Football Association (FA).

In a press statement signed by the Minister, the national team coach, John Ajina Sesay together with his Assistant, Abdulai Kaloga and goalkeeper Coach-Tamba Moses were all banned from entering the Siaka Stevens Stadium with immediate effect.

The ban also includes the SLFA technical director, John Jebboh Sherrington, SLFA executive committee member-Badara Tarawallie and one Abdul Rahman Labay.