Despite the team’s continuing efforts to qualify automatically for the 2026 World Cup by defeating North Korea 2-1, the United Arab Emirates football association fired coach Paulo Bento on Wednesday.
The UAE Football Association announced that Paulo Bento, the national team’s head coach, and his coaching staff would be fired.
A replacement is anticipated to be named soon to lead the team in official competitions like Group A 2026, it continued.
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His replacement will lead the team in the World Cup qualifiers’ two matches against second-placed Kyrgyzstan on June 5 and second-placed Uzbekistan on June 10 in the final match.
Their hopes of making it to the finals would rekindle if they defeated Uzbekistan.
The Uzbeks, who are seeking their first-ever quadrennial showpiece appearance, are four points clear of them.
Bento, 55, was hired in July 2023, but he has overseen a number of inconsistent results in the qualifiers, including a 2-0 defeat to Iran on Thursday in Tehran.
After his team’s eighth-minute injury time victory over North Korea on Tuesday, the former Portugal and South Korea coach faced further criticism.
Iran qualified on Tuesday, ranking third overall with 13 points, while the UAE are third.
The top two teams advance to the next round of qualifying, with third and fourth places awarded to the top three Asian teams.
Alphonso Davies, a Munich, Bayern full-back, will need surgery to repair his cruciate ligament injury in his right knee for “several months.”
Davies was hurt on Sunday in Canada’s 2-1 Concacaf Nations League third-place play-off victory over the United States.
Dayot Upamecano, a Bayern defender, will also be sidelined for a number of weeks due to a knee problem that he picked up while on international duty with France.
Our squad is strong, and we will make up for these absences. We’ll work together even more closely now. We have the ability to carry on our lofty objectives.
Since joining Bayern from Vancouver Whitecaps at the age of 17, Davies has made 226 appearances.
To end rumors linking him to a move to Real Madrid, the 24-year-old signed a new five-year contract in February.
Since leaving RB Leipzig for a reported 42.5 million euros (£38 million) in 2021, Upamecano has made 147 Bayern appearances.
With eight games to go, Vincent Kompany’s team is six points clear of the top of the Bundesliga as they attempt to win the 34th German title.
In the Champions League quarter-finals, they also host Inter Milan, with the first leg taking place on April 8 in Munich.
In Nigeria and Uganda, MTN Group and Airtel Africa have come to a mutual agreement to share mobile network infrastructure.  ,
The agreement, according to the duo’s statements on Wednesday, aims to reduce investments while maintaining service coverage.
Although there is still a lot of demand for digital and financial services in Africa, network construction and maintenance is expensive, especially for fast 5G connections.
Additionally, the businesses stated that they would look into potential business opportunities in other nations, including Congo-Brazzaville, Rwanda, and Zambia.
The majority of the costs in network deployment and operation are covered by radio access network sharing, they continued, along with commercial and technical agreements for sharing of fibre infrastructure and, if necessary, fiber network construction.
The companies stated that “this engagement does not prevent the parties from collaborating with other operators in any particular market.”
According to MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita, “We are driven by the vision of delivering digital solutions that drive Africa’s progress,” in a statement.
“Across our markets, there is still a strong structural demand for digital and financial services. To provide our customers with high-quality connectivity, we continue to invest in coverage and capacity to meet this demand.
However, there are opportunities for sharing resources within regulatory frameworks to increase efficiency and increase returns.
Read more about African National Oil Companies’ Innovative Financing Strategies for Project Development.
Sunil Taldar, the CEO of Airtel Africa, claimed the agreement would prevent costly infrastructure from being duplicated.
The Nevada Athletic Commission has outlawed former UFC competitors Jeff Molina and Darrick Minner.
Minner, 34, was given a 29-month suspension for failing to report a “serious injury” prior to a UFC fight on November 5, 2022.
Molina, 27, has received a three-year suspension for backing his team-mate’s injury and placing a significant wager on Minner’s fight.
According to the Nevada Athletic Commission, Molina acknowledged the crime.
Minner was quickly completed by Shayilan Nuerdanbieke in round one despite missing out on a pre-fight medical questionnaire.
US Integrity identified the featherweight fight as a suspicious betting bet and launched an investigation into an illegal gambling arrangement involving UFC fighters and coaches.
Featherweight Molina’s suspension expires on November 5, 2025, while Minner can start fighting again on March 26, 2025.
Former UFC fighter turned coach James Krause served as Molina and Minner’s training partner.
Krause is being investigated for allegedly engaging in an illegal gambling ring, and the UFC has forbid cornerbacks from Krause’s gym sessions.
Oby Ezekwesili, the former minister of education, says she was pleased to meet Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi at a Senate Committee panel on Tuesday because it demonstrated the challenges women face in a patriarchal society.
Ezekwesili narrated her side of the drama on Wednesday on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily program, describing the allegations against suspended Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who had been a subject of sexual harassment allegations before the panel convened.
Relating to Senator’s Recall, Natasha’s lawyer claims Kogi government sponsored it.
The former minister said, “In this society, there is a historic attitude to voice, not just the voice of women, but also those who like me are persistent in demanding public accountability from those who lead an institution that belongs to the society.”
It is a more or less historical function. And so is the behavior of our lawmakers influenced by this attitude. Because of the fact that the rest of society may not be aware of what women endure in many cases but hasn’t given it much thought, I was actually very pleased with what transpired yesterday.
When Ezekwesili and Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, the Akpoti-Uduaghan attorney, contested the Kogi lawmaker before the Senate committee on Tuesday, tempers started to flare at the panel’s Abuja session.
The male lawmaker from Ebonyi North Senatorial District and Ezekwesili engaged in verbal altercation just as the sitting began. Unprintable name-calling and gender-shaming were used in the shouting match.
What Caused A Shouting Match At The Senate Committee – Nwebonyi [READ ALSO]
Ezekwesili described what transpired during the Senate session on Wednesday, describing what the committee prevented her from saying.
Senator Nedamwem Imasuen, the committee’s leader, should step down, the rights activist claimed, in order to promote justice and fairness, and that he should not do so.
Ezekwesili argued that no matter how strong they may be, no matter how powerful they may be, they should not allow any group or individual to silence the voices of accountability. She also urged the society to demand that the public be accountable for that historical event.
She claimed that Akpoti-Uduaghan, who also alleges sexual harassment against Akpabio, has abandoned the Senate. The Kogi lawmaker must receive justice, according to Ezekwesili.
Senator Natasha’s Request to Recall Does Not Meet Requirements — INEC
“Irresponsible Attitude”
The panel’s attorney, Akiyode-Afolabi, who was sitting alongside the ex-minister on Tuesday, also claimed that the panel’s attitude was inappropriate.
The Senate committee was accused of being hostile by Akiyode-Afolabi, who was also a guest on Wednesday’s Sunrise Daily program on Channels Television. The Senators already had a plan, and they wanted her team to join it, she claimed.
She continued, “The panel’s attitude was not what you would expect from any trustworthy chamber in the world.”
They lacked friendship. They already had a plan, and all they wanted us to do was abide by it. They had a strategy to forbid us from speaking at all.
They spoke to us as though they were speaking to some slaves they had brought with them, which was quite disrespectful.
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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.
