Watford have cancelled a friendly match against the Qatar national team, the English club said on Monday after two supporters’ groups voiced concerns about the country’s human rights record. The two groups – Women of Watford (WOW) and Proud Hornets – had urged the club to display its support for “all human rights, the LGBT+ community and women’s rights” at the game but the fixture will no longer take place. “The game was never finalised and it became abundantly clear this was a game not to play; as such, the…

Penang finally notched their first win of the season by edging Terengganu 2-1 at the City Stadium in Georgetown today. The Panthers were expected to struggle against the Turtles in the absence of Brazilian striker Casagrande, who is recovering from a cheekbone fracture. However, Penang, under new coach Zainal Abidin Hassan, showed they were made of sterner stuff as they took the lead through Hilal El Helwe in the 23rd minute. Terengganu bounced back three minutes into the second half with an equaliser through Faisal Halim. The east coast side’s…

FORGET about Lin Dan, this is the “Viktor Axelsen era”, this is what the fans around the world are saying. And few would disagree. He has dominated world badminton in the last three years. The statistics is imposing. The world No 1 captured 13 titles from 17 finals since 2020, including the Tokyo Olympics gold. And the 28-year-old has already won three tournaments this year, two of which came in Jakarta, the Indonesia Open and Indonesia Masters in the past two weeks after his All England triumph in March. The…

France international Kylian Mbappe on Sunday accused the president of the French Football Federation (FFF) of ignoring racist abuse after his penalty miss at Euro 2020. The Paris Saint-Germain star’s decisive spot-kick against Switzerland was saved in the last-16 shootout, resulting in the world champions exiting the tournament. The 23-year-old was vilified on social media by furious fans, and even considered quitting the national team as a result. In an interview with a Sunday newspaper, FFF president Noel Le Graet spoke of the lack of support Mbappe had felt after…

Barcelona right back Dani Alves will leave the LaLiga club when his contract expires at the end of this month, bringing the curtain down on his second stint with the Catalan giants a little more than six months after his arrival as a free agent. The 39-year-old Brazilian won six LaLiga titles and three Champions League crowns in his first spell with Barca from 2008-16. “After more than eight years dedicated to these colours, the time has come to say goodbye,” Alves wrote on Instagram on Wednesday. “Many more years…