Archive March 26, 2025

Wales vs. England at the Women’s Six Nations

Cardiff Principality Stadium Date: Saturday, March 29 Kickoff: 16:45 GMT

Georgia Evans, the eighth-ranked player in Wales, will not face England in the Women’s Six Nations in Cardiff on Saturday after receiving two sin-bin offenses against Scotland last weekend.

Evans received a yellow card for collapsing a maul for the first time in Wales’ defeat in Edinburgh. Evans’ high tackle soon after returning to the field resulted in a second yellow and a red card.

A disciplinary panel determined that the red card was insufficient for punishment and that “no further sanctions” were required.

Wales lost the contest 24-21, while hosts Scotland saw a player sent off, and Evie Gallagher received a one-game ban for an illegal challenge at a ruck.

Red Bull have delivered one of the most ruthless driver moves in F1 history after deciding to drop Liam Lawson after just two races.

The 23-year-old New Zealander will swap places with Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda and return to Red Bull’s second team, Racing Bulls, from the next race in Japan in a week’s time.

The decision was reached by Red Bull bosses, including team principal Christian Horner, at a meeting in Dubai on Monday, insiders have told BBC Sport.

It is expected to be formally confirmed later this week by Red Bull, who refused to comment.

Red Bull have long been renowned for the ruthlessness with which they handle their young driver programme.

Even in that context, the way they have dealt with Lawson has caused widespread disbelief in Formula 1.

The New Zealander qualified 18th at the opening race of the season in Australia, before crashing out of the race in the rain.

In China last weekend, he qualified last for both the sprint and the grand prix, and finished the two races 14th and 12th.

His average qualifying deficit to team-mate Verstappen has been 0.88 seconds. Verstappen finished second in Australia, third in the sprint in Shanghai and fourth in the Chinese Grand Prix.

Japanese driver Tsunoda was asked at the Chinese Grand Prix whether he would accept the promotion to Red Bull if it was offered.

He said: “Yeah, why not? Always. In Japan? Yeah, 100%. I mean, the car is faster.”

When the scenario was put to Lawson, he responded: “I’ve raced him for years, raced him in junior categories and beat him – and I did in F1 as well, so he can say whatever he wants.”

Lawson was promoted to Red Bull this season following the team’s decision to pay off Sergio Perez, despite the Mexican having two years remaining on his contract.

That decision was made after a difficult 2024 for Perez, who failed to finish on the podium after the fifth race of the season.

Perez’s performances contributed to the team finishing third in the constructors’ championship last year, behind McLaren and Ferrari.

As Perez’s slump in 2024 had mirrored a similar pattern of performance in 2023, Red Bull decided the time had come to get rid of him.

The decision to promote Lawson to Red Bull, alongside Max Verstappen, after just 11 grands prix spread across two seasons was already questionable.

To demote him back to second team Racing Bulls after just two races in a swap with Tsunoda – who was passed over only three months ago – is, quite simply, extraordinary.

It raises serious questions about Red Bull’s management, primarily team principal Horner.

It was Horner’s decision to offer a new two-year contract to Sergio Perez last May even though the Mexican was starting to struggle in the second Red Bull – just as he had through the second half of 2023.

He did that despite Carlos Sainz being available following Ferrari’s signing of Lewis Hamilton for 2025.

After Perez’s performances slumped through the remainder of 2024, the decision was made to terminate his contract. That resulted in a pay-off of many millions of dollars.

And rather than pick Tsunoda, who had four years’ experience and had edged Lawson as a team-mate, they picked the New Zealander, apparently because of his mental fortitude.

Now they have to find a way to justify this series of decisions – and the almost unprecedented one to dump Lawson after so little time to bed himself in.

Lawson took part in six races in 2023 as a substitute for Daniel Ricciardo when the Australian broke his hand in a crash, scoring points with a ninth-place finish in Singapore.

And last year he competed in five races after Ricciardo was dropped following the Singapore Grand Prix, taking points for ninth-place finishes in the US and Sao Paulo Grands Prix.

Tsunoda out-qualified Lawson by a ratio of four times to two in 2023 and seven times to two in 2024. In races, Tsunoda has been ahead six times against four when both have finished.

Red Bull chose Lawson on the basis they believed the Japanese lacked the mental toughness to survive at Red Bull alongside Verstappen, while his fellow driver had more potential to improve.

They had been planning to wait until at least the Japanese Grand Prix before making a call because it is the first track on this year’s calendar at which Lawson has previous experience.

But in the end Lawson’s poor performances have led to his downfall after just two races.

Verstappen is said by insiders to believe the decision is an error, on the basis that the problem is Red Bull’s car – not the second driver.

The Dutchman has said the 2025 Red Bull is the fourth quickest car – behind rival top teams McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari.

Lawson’s two races in his first full season at Red Bull will go down as one of the shortest ever driver stints for an F1 team.

While Lawson at least gets to stay on the grid, Japanese driver Yuji Ide had no such luck in 2006. The 31-year-old was dumped by Super Aguri after just four grands prix – and had his FIA super licence revoked – after struggling to adapt during his rookie season.

Dutchman Nyck de Vries impressed enough during a stand-in drive for Williams in 2022 to claim a full seat with the Red Bull’s second team, then called Alpha Tauri, a year later.

But his F1 career ended only 10 races in to the 2023 campaign when he was replaced mid-season by Ricciardo.

Indian driver Karun Chandhok managed one race more than De Vries in 2010, when he lost his place at the HRT team to Japan’s Sakon Yamamoto after just 11 grands prix.

There were some memorable substitute appearances, including Markus Winkelhock’s one-race deal – and retirement – with Spyker in 2007.

Andre Lotterer famously called it a day after two laps for Caterham in 2014, while Luca Badoer’s double cameo for Ferrari in 2009 – when the Italian finished at the back of the field on both occasions – caused much dismay for Scuderia fans.

A 19-year-old college basketball player launched a 16-foot winning shot with 15 seconds left before it would completely alter sports marketing.

Sonny Vaccaro, a marketing executive and grassroots promoter, was present that day. He would bet his job at Nike Sports on supporting this largely untested player because he was so impressed by what he saw.

Michael Jordan was that player.

not the current version of Jordan, though. Jordan was just a freshman when Vaccaro saw him score the shot that won the 1982 NCAA championship for the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Jordan was only 21 years old and had never competed in the NBA when Vaccaro urged his bosses to spend their entire annual basketball endorsement budget on him. No one even mentioned his footwear.

Vaccaro claims that the youngster’s conviction for his talent was forged when he witnessed him shoot at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.

According to the 85-year-old, “That shot changed the world because of what Michael Jordan became.”

“I was persuaded when he fired the shot that he would fire at any shot in the world,” he said.

However, Vaccaro had to strike first.

In his memoir, Legends and Soles, he describes how, in order to persuade his superiors to risk taking a chance on a rising star, Converse were supporting household names like Earvin “Magic” Johnson.

By that time, Vaccaro had gained a thorough understanding of young players and established himself as a basketball insider. The Dapper Dan Roundball Classic, the first all-star basketball game in a high school, was founded in 1964 at the age of 24.

Till 2007 the tournament featured a number of upcoming NBA stars, including Shaquille O’Neal, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love, Kobe Bryant, Patrick Ewing, and Moses Malone.

In 1984, he also founded the ABCD basketball summer camp, an invitational program that attracted the nation’s top-ranked high school athletes.

However, Vaccaro claimed that he had to wait until the last minute before deciding to change the Jordan proposal.

Their bet changed the direction of the business, altered how basketball was perceived globally, and left a lasting impression on sneaker culture. In the 2023 film Air, Matt Damon plays Vaccaro, the story became well-known.

In 1984, Nike made a guaranteed $250, 000 for five years as well as a stake in Jordan’s own line of merchandise. The 21-year-old would become one of the world’s wealthiest athletes if he were the third pick in the same year’s NBA draft.

Jordan won six championships, six Finals MVPs, five regular-season MVPs, and a record 10 championships before moving on to become arguably the greatest NBA player ever.

His partnership with Nike also led to the transformation of the running shoe business from a small, niche business with a market cap of just under $30 billion (£23 billion) to a global behemoth with a monopoly over the NBA.

You wouldn’t even be talking about a Nike shoe company, according to Vaccaro, who holds his personal opinion.

The only agreement that altered the way Americans view basketball players and endorsements was. He had a strong magnetic pull.

Other people would hold up a shoe and say, “We wear this, I wear this,” while others held up endorsements from businesses. Michael was free to raise the shoe. He first wore the shoe before taking the shot.

Peter Moore’s Air Jordan shoe was the first to go on sale in 1985. Air Jordan footwear and accessories had already been sold for $100 million by 1986.

Vaccaro signed for Adidas America in 1993. He and his former employer fought for the signatures of the nation’s hottest up-and-coming NBA stars for the following ten years.

In 1996, a month before he entered the NBA straight out of high school, one of the coups Vaccaro managed to orchestralize was the signing of 18-year-old Bryant to a $5 million, five-year deal.

The marketer first met the aspiring NBA champion in 1994 when Vaccaro was given the chance to play at one of his ABCD camps.

Kobe reportedly lasted for a full week before rising to the top of my “gifted” list, writes he. No one terrifies Kobe when he competes against the top 160 Americans and a select few prospects from nations like China, France, Australia, Canada, and Russia.

Bryant apologized to Vaccaro at the end of the week for not having won the MVP award despite only being 16; what left a lasting impression on him?

He told BBC Sport, “I knew that this kid had that hidden thing: self-assurance, ambition, and drive.” I’ve never been around him in my life, and he was the most confident and outward-looking.

McGrady was set to join the NBA draft in 1997 as the Toronto Raptors’ ninth overall pick.

At the 1996 ABCD camp, McGrady had made an impression on the sports marketer, who would later become a seven-time NBA All-Star. He was almost exempt, however, after his school coach told Vaccaro not to deal with the youngster and kicked him off the team.

Because of the negative feedback, Vaccaro said, “We invited Tracy.” The entire camp had a profound impact during those five days. He was chosen as the camp’s top player. No one was aware of his name.

Several of these unexpected events appear to influence the story of Vaccaro’s life.

Willie Kirk wants a second chance after admitting to being in a relationship with a player and being fired as Leicester City Women manager.

The Women’s Super League club fired the 46-year-old on March 28, 2024 because he broke the team’s code of conduct.

The Scot hasn’t worked since August, but he is aware that what he did was wrong and is content with his relationship with the player. They have been living together ever since.

Aside from Manchester City and Arsenal, Kirk told BBC Sport, “I have applied for every WSL and Championship vacancy since I lost my job.” I never received a single interview.

In terms of what transpired at Leicester, I let myself down. I understand why clubs haven’t gotten involved, and I can see why some people will be upset.

“But in the end, I haven’t committed a serious crime,” I said. Although there is no jail term, it appears to have already been done.

Former manager of Everton, Bristol City, and Hibernian, Kirk has spent 14 years in the women’s game. For six months, he served Casey Stoney as Casey Stoney’s assistant at Manchester United.

He was the club’s director of football before taking over Leicester, and he is currently pursuing a master’s degree in the field. He feels like he has unfinished business on the touchline.

Kirk expressed his desire to return to the game. “In whatever capacity, whether it be for the women’s game or the men’s game, I’m open to that.”

“I have not crossed all the boxes that I wanted to do to be a head coach and accomplish what I want to do.

Before being fired after the conclusion of an investigation, he missed three games.

In women’s soccer, personal relationships between players and coaches have been criticized as having the potential to cause a power imbalance in a team.

As long as there are no minors involved, they are legal, but they can still violate codes of conduct.

Every WSL club has its own code of conduct, and each club is required to employ a safeguarding officer.

“I signed the code of conduct like everyone else,” Kirk said. You are a role model for first-team managers, and that is why I have never claimed I shouldn’t have been fired.

“Five minutes before training, I was questioned about entering a meeting on Friday.

“Sometimes, I believe I should have denied it and put it to the grave,” he said. “I don’t believe that would have worked.” I made it known, and that was it.

When the relationship broke off with Kirk’s ex, the player injured himself. The club was informed shortly after the pair’s two international trips to Italy came together in February.

Kirk acknowledges that a distinction had been drawn, and claims that things would have changed if he had taken his time once more.

We had already called it off at the time of the investigation, Kirk recalls. We said, “We have taken this far, this is too close for comfort, we need to put this on hold until the end of the season, and then one of us leaves the club.” We can change this if we still feel this way.”

Kirk was terminated on a permanent contract, but the club found him guilty of gross misconduct and refused to pay any compensation.

He regrets how he left after only attending two games at Leicester.

Kirk hopes to be the last women’s football managers to establish a relationship with a player.

He claimed his dismissal was quite public. I hope that people will realize that this is impossible.

You never want to go through a year like I have been through, because I have learned a lot. Your personal life, your finances, your emotional well-being, and everything in between are affected by it.

Kirk has applied for roles abroad that would allow him to continue raising his four-year-old son with his ex-wife.

He would drop lower in the rankings for the right project if he hadn’t rejected international management. Although he knows the women’s game is where he wants to go, his chances for a fresh start may lie elsewhere.

I just want to continue to be a part of the game’s evolution, he said.

It gives the impression that if I enter the men’s game, I will be allowed to go on my job, I won’t be discriminated against, and it will be a clean break.

Kirk is disappointed, but he is optimistic that a club will soon offer him another chance.

When will it be accepted, he said, “It will never be acceptable, but it will never be? ” Although it’s obvious that I’m trying to find a job, the statistics indicate that no good manager is working.