Brain injuries in football players

Nicolo Barella and Lorenzo Insigne scored a goal each Friday to give Italy a 2-1 win over Belgium and a spot in the European Championship semifinals. Romelu Lukaku pulled one back from the penalty spot right before halftime but the Belgians missed further chances to equalize in the second half. Barella put Italy in the lead in the 31st minute after eluding two Belgium defenders and sending the ball in off the far post. Insigne got the second in the 44th when he put a curling shot inside the far top corner. Italy will next play Spain in the semifinals on Tuesday at Wembley Stadium in London. The Spanish defeated Switzerland on penalties in St. Petersburg. Belgium got the penalty when Giovanni Di Lorenzo pushed Jeremy Doku shortly before halftime. Lukaku then made it 2-1 by sending his shot down the middle. It was only the second goal Italy has conceded at the tournament. Kevin De Bruyne started the match for Belgium after recovering from a left ankle injury, but Eden Hazard … [Read more...] about Euro 2020: Italy Book Semi-finals Berth with 2-1 Win over Belgium

Italy international Lorenzo Insigne has signed a four-year deal to join Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC from Napoli on July 1, the Canadian club announced Saturday. The 30-year-old forward and Napoli captain will move in the middle of the MLS season after his contract expires with the Serie A side in June. Insigne helped Italy win last year’s European Championship title, the Azzurri winning 3-2 in a penalty shootout over England. “This is a historic and exciting day for our club,” Toronto FC president Bill Manning said. “Lorenzo is a world-class attacking player in the prime of his career. He was a European champion with Italy and has performed on the biggest stages during his club career. “Lorenzo has the talent to change games. He plays the game with joy and passion, and our fans and supporters are going to love watching him.” Toronto missed last year’s playoffs after three runs to the MLS Cup Final in the prior five seasons, lifting the trophy in 2017 with losses in 2016 and … [Read more...] about Italy Star Lorenzo Insigne Inks Four-year Major League Soccer Deal with Toronto

AC Milan lead Serie A by a single point after failing to get past mid-table Bologna on Monday, a goalless draw the latest twist in a thrilling title race which looks to be heading to the wire. After dropping two precious points Stefano Pioli’s side hold a slender lead over second-placed Napoli, who ran out impressive 3-1 winners at Atalanta on Sunday afternoon and are now snapping at Milan’s heels. Defending champions Inter Milan are four points back in third with a game in hand following their 1-0 triumph at fourth-placed Juventus, who are eight points off the pace with seven matches left. IPL FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE | RESULTS | ORANGE CAP | PURPLE CAP The draw was another disappointing result against one of the league’s lesser lights, their displays against teams they should beat a consistent problem as the season inches towards its climax. Milan took 33 shots over the course of the match but only seven were on target in an imprecise performance in front of goal … [Read more...] about AC Milan’s Lead Cut to a Point as Serie A Title Race Heads Towards Thrilling Climax

Kevin Harlan's call of the Super Bowl pitch invasion has gone viral as a clip of the incident has been viewed more than a million times on Twitter. Harlan, who was commentating on the game for Westwood One radio, has been widely praised for his humorous reaction to the fourth quarter invasion. The video, shared to Twitter by Timothy Burke via Ryan Lacey, has been viewed more than 1.5 million times, shared more than 15,000 times, and has amassed more than 37,000 likes at the time of writing. As the intruder ran across the field, Harlan narrated his journey to the goal line and said: "Someone is running on the field, some guy with a bra. And now he's [...] chased, he's running down the middle of the 40, arms in the air and the victory salute. "He's pulling down his pants. Pull up your pants, my man! Pull up those pants." The rest of his brief appearance on the pitch was narrated as if he were a football player, as Harlan said: "He's being chased to the 30, he breaks [...] … [Read more...] about Kevin Harlan’s streaker play-by-play viewed over 1.5 million times

An international soccer match in Chile took an unexpected turn over the weekend after a pitch invading dog halted play. On Saturday, the Chile women's national soccer team played host to South American rivals Venezuela at the Estadio La Granja, Curicó. A friendly match serving as a warm-up for the Copa América Femenina, the game wasn't exactly action-packed with Chile mustering just one shot on target and Venezuela ultimately triumphing 1-0 thanks to a brilliant Mariana Speckmaier goal eight minutes from time. However, by then, the match's main highlight had already been and gone. That came in the 37th minute when, for reasons still unknown, a dog decided to run onto the pitch. Pitch invaders are nothing new in the world of soccer, but dog interlopers are a little less common. There are myriad reasons why someone may want to enter the field of play. Some do it for attention , others to protest a particular issue. Then are those who simply get carried away by the … [Read more...] about Playful dog halts soccer game after invading pitch for strokes—”Red card”

When I think of a sit-up, my mind flashes immediately to the (carpeted, for some reason) floor of my elementary-school gym. Twice a week, our teachers marched us there for ritual humiliation and light calisthenics, and under the watchful gaze of a former football coach with a whistle perpetually dangling from his lips, we’d warm up with the moves we’d been told were the building blocks of physical fitness—jumping jacks, push-ups, toe touches, and, of course, sit-ups. With rare exception, we were bad at sit-ups. We’d try our best, taking turns leaning on our partners’ toes as they threw their torsos up and forward for a count of 10. But kids are floppy creatures, and sit-ups are an especially floppy exercise. In gym class, our lower backs hunched, our necks strained, and our arms flew away from their cross-chest Dracula pose. Once a year, beginning in elementary school, the Presidential Fitness Test required us to do as many sit-ups in a minute as our little bodies could stand. … [Read more...] about The Sit-Up Is Over

Former Italian international midfielder Damiano Tommasi has been elected mayor of Verona after heading a centre-left coalition to see off the city’s right-wing incumbent. Tommasi, who collected 25 caps for his country and won the Serie A title with Roma in 2001, beat Federico Sboarina in Sunday’s run-off to claim a surprise victory in the northern Italian city. The former Italian footballers’ association president won as an independent candidate against Sboarina, who represented the far-right Brothers of Italy party. Jerome Valcke to Appeal Bribery Conviction Sboarina suffered from divisions among the right-wing parties and he failed to get support from Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia. Tommasi was supported by the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) and other leftist groups and will now lead a city with a long tradition of right-wing politics. His victory stood out on a night in which the centre-left also won in other important towns like Parma and Piacenza. Tommasi, 48, … [Read more...] about Former Italy International Damiano Tommasi Elected Mayor of Verona

My childhood sporting memories are crystal clear. No, I don’t mean winning the bean bag race in primary school or scoring my first 50 on the cricket pitch. I’m talking about those captivating, inspiring and majestic moments that I watched on free-to-air television. The ones that were mesmerising and still live on in the deep recesses of my brain, etched there, like some kind of beautiful slow motion sporting montage. I remember World Cup USA ’94. Diana Ross missing a penalty in the opening ceremony, Baggio missing the deciding one in the final, Romario, Bebeto, et al – and the little sticker book I had to write all of the results in (and still have tucked away in a box in my spare room). I remember the Grand National in 1996. The excitement of heading home to watch it after I’d been to see Toy Story at the cinema for a friend’s birthday party. Mum and dad had recorded it on VHS so we could all watch it together – and the horse we’d picked won. I remember Atlanta … [Read more...] about As a TV presenter, I know the secret to Wimbledon

Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi said he was pleased with the spirit at the club in the aftermath of their surprise defeat at Bologna in midweek, with the Serie A title race set for further twists this weekend. IPL 2022 – FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE | RESULTS | ORANGE CAP | PURPLE CAP | POINTS TABLE Champions Inter had the title in their sights going into Wednesday’s game in hand on leaders AC Milan, where victory would have seen them go top of the table. However, a goalkeeping howler from stand-in stopper Ionut Radu saw Inter lose 2-1 in Bologna to leave Milan two points clear with four games to go. ”The mood after the Bologna game wasn’t the best, but I’ve seen a strong team spirit over the last few days,” Inzaghi told a news conference on Saturday ahead of Inter’s trip to Udinese. ”Every game is difficult. This side will try until the end. We’ll take it one game at a time, in Serie A and the Coppa Italia Final (against Juventus), and hope to give the fans more … [Read more...] about Serie A: Simone Inzaghi Pleased With How Inter Have Dealt with Bologna Shock

LONDON — Serena Williams is back at Wimbledon for what could be the American tennis icon’s farewell to the sport’s most iconic championship. Williams is set to appear on Tuesday in her first Grand Slam match in a year after an extended break that has generated rampant speculation about what the future may hold for her already illustrious career. Williams, 40, was forced to bow out in tears from last year’s Wimbledon after an injury. She did not compete until last week, when she returned to the court at a tournament in the British seaside town of Eastbourne after delighting fans earlier this month with the surprise announcement of her return to Wimbledon. The former world No. 1, now ranked No. 1,204 after her long break, will face French player Harmony Tan in the first round after being given a special invitation wild card to play since she wouldn't otherwise qualify with her current ranking. Serena Williams to return to Wimbledon … [Read more...] about Tennis legend Serena Williams is back on court at Wimbledon. Will it be her last?