CAIRO: On a perfectly manicured grass field in Cairo’s gated suburb of Madinaty, boys train in red football jerseys and dream of becoming the next Mohamed Salah.
At the Liverpool Academy, football players aged five to 18 train on the grounds of the British International School, nestled between brand new roads and development blocks.
“Here! Here!,” shouted Yehia Hammad to his teammates, waving his arms as they hurried around the field responding to directions given by coaches.
Yehia’s favorite player? “Mohamed Salah,” he answers with pride, sporting a thick mop of hair which resembles that of Liverpool’s high-scoring Egyptian international striker.
“I love football because it’s my favorite thing, my life, and my thoughts and everything,” said Hammad.
The young boy was accompanied by his father, Mostafa Hammad, a manager at a Danish pharmaceutical company, who also loves the sport.
Yehia Hammad’s dream is to be the next Salah, who rose to stardom in the English Premier League from humble beginnings in a village north of Cairo, in the Nile Delta.
“Even better than him,” said Hammad, cheekily.
To enrol him in the academy, Hammad’s parents pay a subscription fee of 8,000 Egyptian pounds (about $453) a year.
Counting in equipment, competition fees and sessions with a nutritionist, his parents spend more than 22,000 pounds per year, in a country where the average monthly salary is less than $250.
Mostafa Hammad said that previously there was a lack of international football academies in Egypt teaching children fundamental skills.
“With the presence of these academies, these values, this consistency, I think the coming period will produce excellent players in Egypt,” he said.
The Liverpool Academy is not focused on producing the next Salah, according to head coach David Ridler, a British former professional footballer who came to Cairo six years ago to run the Madinaty academy.
“Our program aims to bring Liverpool to a (different) country.”
The academies are directly managed by the Premier League club, with the goal being to “develop (players) as people as well as develop their football skills, and life skills as well.”
Most of the children attend one of the international private schools, where English is the main language.
Like most of his teammates, Hammad speaks in a mix of Egyptian Arabic and English.
Some parents at the academy even brag about how well their children have mastered the language.
Although many Egyptian support either Real Madrid or Barcelona, Liverpool have gained popularity since Salah joined the club this season.
As well as leading the Premier League scoring charts, Salah helped fire Egypt to a first World Cup appearance in 28 years, in Russia later this year.
His goals, speed and agility inspire Hammad and his teammates. But that’s not the only reason.
“He’s a good man,” said Hammad.
Salah is extremely respected in Egypt for his charity work.
Unlike Hammad, Salah never benefited from such upscale training facilities — nor, for that matter, did either of the world’s best two players, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Yet it is the talent of these football stars and their success that has led to the expansion of academies in Egypt, according to Mohamed ‘Beebo’ Khaled, the Liverpool academy’s technical director and coach.
“It will take the academy a long time to produce someone like Messi or Cristiano or Salah,” Khaled said.
But the core of the academy’s “values” is to encourage children’s “ambition” to become the next Salah, added Khaled.
Beyond Madinaty, Liverpool have other academy branches in Rehab and New Cairo that are also new and affluent communities on the outskirts of the capital.
And while the setting for these academies is a world away from the dirt roads of Salah’s modest home village of Nagrig, it is his rise to the player who cost Liverpool £44 million ($60.8 million) from Roma in June that inspires them.
Elite Cairo academy aiming to produce future Mohamed Salahs
Elite Cairo academy aiming to produce future Mohamed Salahs
- Liverpool seeking to unearth next Arab star
- Salah is a hero is his homeland after firing them to the World Cup
Moroccan kickboxer Ilias Ennahachi to star at ONE 171 in Qatar
- The former Flyweight kickboxing world champion will face Petchtanong Petchfergus on Feb. 20
DUBAI: Moroccan martial arts star and former ONE Flyweight Kickboxing world champion Ilias Ennahachi will face Petchtanong Petchfergus at ONE Championship's show ONE 171: Qatar on Feb. 20 at Lusail Sports Arena.
The winner of the matchup could be the next challenger for the ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing world title which will be on the line in the show's main event as Jonathan Haggerty defends his gold against Chinese veteran Wei Rui.
Ennahachi has won both his two bouts since moving to bantamweight, most recently defeating second-ranked Hiroki Akimoto via unanimous decision at ONE Friday Fights 81 on September 27, taking his ONE record to 5-0 and his overall professional record to 40-3.
The 28-year-old Moroccan is one of the promotion's most established stars and the only fighter to beat current two-sports champion Superlek Kiatmoo.
Meanwhile, 39-year-old veteran Petchtanong most recently picked up a knockout win against former divisional champion Alaverdi Ramazanov in June after returning to action for the first time in two years.
The experienced Thai owns an incredible 359-56 overall professional record.
PFL opens 2025 with stacked card in Dubai
- Undefeated Russian champion Usman Nurmagomedov will take on Ireland’s Paul Hughes at Coca-Cola Arena on Jan. 25
DUBAI: The Professional Fighters League has its first major event of 2025 with the Road To Dubai Champions Series at the Coca-Cola Arena on Jan. 25.
Headlining the PFL card is a highly-anticipated matchup between undefeated Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov and Ireland’s surging contender Paul “Big News” Hughes.
Nurmagomedov, the cousin of mixed martial arts great Khabib Nurmagomedov, comes into the fight with a pristine 19-0 record and two successful title defenses.
Hughes, meanwhile, is riding a seven-fight win streak, including a victory over former Bellator champion AJ McKee.
To add more fuel to the fire, Hughes said he is drawing inspiration for the fight from Khabib’s recent criticism of Ireland’s MMA fighters.
Meanwhile former Bellator light-heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov takes on seasoned knockout artist Tim Johnson.
Nemkov, who was dominant at light-heavyweight and set a league record for title defenses, moved up to heavyweight in 2024 with a victory over former PFL champion Bruno Cappelozza.
A PFL and Bellator veteran, Johnson has 18 career victories, with 10 knockouts.
The Road to Dubai Champions Series will also feature MMA fighters from nations including the US, UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Philippines and Brazil.
MAIN CARD
Bellator Lightweight World Championship: Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Paul Hughes
Heavyweight: Vadim Nemkov vs. Tim Johnson
Featherweight: Akhmed Magomedov vs. Nathan Kelly
Featherweight: Ibragim Ibragimov vs. Kenny Mokhonoana
Bantamweight: Renat Khavalov vs. Cleiver Fernandes
PRELIMINARY CARD
Middleweight: Tarek Suleiman vs. Ahmed Samy
Middleweight: Yakus Sulimanov vs. Jarrah Al-Selawe
Lightweight: Hadi Omar Al-Hussaini vs. Ruel Panales
Lightweight: John Mitchell vs. Souhil Tairi
Middleweight: Mostafa Nada vs. Haider Khan
Great Britain & Ireland complete emphatic victory at the 2025 Team Cup
- Tommy Fleetwood the only player undefeated over 3 days after 17–8 victory over Continental Europe at Abu Dhabi Golf Resort
ABU DHABI: Great Britain & Ireland recorded an emphatic 17-8 victory over Continental Europe at the 2025 Team Cup on Sunday at Abu Dhabi Golf Resort.
The GB&I side, led by Justin Rose, held a commanding seven-point lead at the start of play, needing just two points to complete their triumph ahead of Sunday’s singles session.
Rose said it was a “huge honor” to lead the team. “Loved the challenge of it. Loved the experience of it, and the lads have made me look incredibly good at it.”
“The way they played was first class,” he added. “We had one clear message, which was to get on the front foot to try to be relentless to play wave after wave.
“Playing on a big lead, everybody felt like we could get the job done, but just to focus on individual and personal pride, kind of continue the message of the week.”
Englishman Laurie Canter earned the first point of the afternoon as he beat the previously undefeated Romain Langasque 5&4, and Tommy Fleetwood claimed the crucial winning point for his side, just as the Ryder Cup stalwart did at Marco Simone in 2023, defeating Matthieu Pavon 3&1.
Fleetwood’s victory over the Frenchman gave him a perfect record as he ended the event as the only player to win all four of his matches across the three days.
The GB&I team threatened a rout as they led in nine of the 10 matches at one stage during the afternoon.
But Continental Europe orchestrated a brave fightback, first with Niklas Norgaard winning 3&2 against Matthew Jordan, followed by Antoine Rozer and Matteo Manassero, who each won their matches 1Up.
“The leaderboard early in the round was astonishing, really,” Rose added. “Every credit to Continental Europe and Francesco himself and the team as a whole.
“The whole matches were played in great spirit but yeah, my team definitely holed the right putts at the right time and won most of those key matches.”
“You can’t simulate the intensity of a Ryder Cup with the crowd and the energy,” the GB&I captain added. “But at the end of the day, as soon as you put a crest here and you have 10 mates right behind you, you want to win.
“Even practice rounds playing with our mates on tour, you never like to lose. So the intensity is there. The competitiveness is there. Just the environment is hard to simulate.
Continental Europe’s Captain Francesco Molinari came back from two down with seven holes to play to earn half a point against Jordan Smith.
And Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard staged an equally impressive comeback as he battled a three-hole deficit with five to play, halving against Aaron Rai.
“I think I probably could have done a slightly better job with the boys,” Molinari said.
“They gave it all they had. Our side was maybe more inexperienced players in this kind of event but they are great guys and they did their best. The GB&I team was just too hard for us this week.”
Afghanistan name Champions Trophy squad amid boycott calls
- Afghanistan have recalled fit-again Ibrahim Zadran in their 15-man Champions Trophy squad
- There are calls to boycott Afghanistan matches due to Taliban crackdown on women’s rights
Afghanistan have recalled fit-again Ibrahim Zadran in their 15-man Champions Trophy squad, amid ongoing calls for teams to boycott matches against them due to the Taliban government’s crackdown on women’s rights since returning to power in 2021.
Afghan opener Zadran has recovered from ankle surgery to make the squad but team management decided against rushing Mujeeb Ur Rehman back into 50-overs cricket after the spinner sprained his hand last year.
Fellow spinner AM Ghaznafar has been drafted in as a like-for-like replacement for Mujeeb.
Afghanistan have brought in former Pakistan captain Younis Khan to mentor the side in what will mark their first appearance in the tournament featuring the top eight One-Day International teams in the world.
“Afghanistan have performed exceptionally well in the past two ICC events,” chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board Mirwais Ashraf said in a statement on Sunday.
“Their impressive performances in these two event coupled with their ODI series victories last year will undoubtedly boost their morale and help them deliver an even better campaign this time.”
The Hashmatullah Shahidi-led side may be faced with some off-field distractions in Pakistan with Group B rivals England and South Africa being urged to boycott their matches.
Both the ECB and Cricket South Africa have ruled out boycotts against Afghanistan in multi-team competitions organized by the governing International Cricket Council (ICC).
They would rather follow a unified and collective approach from all ICC members, the boards said.
Afghanistan begin their campaign against South Africa in Karachi on Feb. 21.
Afghanistan squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wicketkeeper), Ikram Alikhil (wicketkeeper), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Naveed Zadran, Farid Ahmad Malik
Cummins, Hazlewood return to Australia squad for Champions Trophy in Pakistan
- Pat Cummins opted out of Sri Lanka series starting this month for the birth of his second child
- Opener Jake Fraser-McGurk was dropped from squad after his poor recent form against Pakistan
MELBOURNE: Pat Cummins returns for Australia’s ICC Champions Trophy campaign in Pakistan next month after skipping their Sri Lanka Test tour, with injured paceman Josh Hazlewood also in the squad announced Monday.
Australian captain Cummins opted out of the Sri Lanka series starting later this month for the birth of his second child. He is also reportedly carrying a knee injury.
Hazlewood was included in the two-time tournament winners’ preliminary 15-man line-up after calf and side strains restricted him to just two Tests against India over the summer.
While they return, opener Jake Fraser-McGurk was dumped, paying the price for his poor recent form after opening for Australia during their most-recent one-day series against Pakistan.
“This is a balanced and experienced squad with the core having been involved in the previous one-day World Cup, the West Indies series, last year’s successful tour of the UK and the more recent Pakistan home series,” said chief selector George Bailey.
“It offers a variety of options for touring management depending on opposition and the conditions that may present in Pakistan.”
The eight-nation Champions Trophy, between February 19 and March 9, will be played in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (capt), Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa