Watching a Muay Thai player inside the ring, sweat dripping over their focused eyes as they anticipate their opponent’s next kick and simultaneously scan the perfect hitting spot that guarantees a win, one cannot think of anything related to his origin or age. The only question surrounds his qualifications and whether he will take over the other.

The newly-elected president of the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) Ahmed of Madagascar has thanked Egypt for its “important role” in the elections, saying he was sure that Egypt would vote for him despite the secret ballot process.

The NHL will not adjust its season next year, meaning a host of top ice hockey players will miss the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. The sport’s top league could not reach a deal with the IOC.The National Hockey League (NHL) announced their decision on Monday, meaning that players from the league are unlikely to compete in the winter Games for the first time since 1998.

Barcelona midfielder Rafinha Alcantara will miss between three and four weeks with a knee injury, according to reports in Spain, a crucial period that includes the Champions League quarter-finals and the Clasico. He was substituted after 16 minutes against Granada during the Catalans’ 4-1 win on Sunday night in Andalusia, with tests revealing he has a small meniscus injury in his right knee.

German broadcaster ARD claims small amounts of banned substance clenbuterol have been found in the samples of Jamaican sprinters from the 2008 Olympics. Usain Bolt was among the Jamaicans who claimed gold in Beijing.A report aired in Germany on Saturday stated that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) learnt of the discovery late last year, but no action has been taken as the levels detected by testing using updated techniques are so small. The broadcaster did not say which athletes’ samples from the Beijing Games, where superstar Usain Bolt won three gold medals, are affected but said other athletes from other countries have also failed retroactive testing.

It seems that Bayern Munich’s search for a new sporting director must continue. Rumored candidate Max Eberl is staying with Borussia Mönchengladbach, and will reportedly extend his contract early to end the speculation.Regional newspaper “Express,” football magazine “Kicker” and Germany’s Sky Sports on Friday all reported that the rumored Max Eberl move to Bayern Munich was definitively off the table. According to the reports, Eberl would even sign an early contract extention with his current club in a bid to silence the reports. Borussia Mönchengladbach’s sporting director had emerged in recent weeks as the supposed front runner to replace Matthias Sammer on Säbener Strasse. Sammer retired in July 2016, and the position is currently vacant. Uli Hoeness, back in the saddle as club president after his stint in jail for tax evasion, is broadly seen to be pulling the strategic strings while the position is empty.

FIFA announced its proposed slot allocation for the expanded 48-team World Cup on Thursday, including an automatic place for Oceania, 16 places for Europe - up from 13 - and a six-team inter-zonal playoff tournament for two more spots.

Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will miss the club's next two league matches due a training ground injury that required minor surgery, the German champions said on Thursday. Neuer underwent surgery on a foot injury late on Wednesday, ruling him out of their Bundesliga matches against Augsburg on Saturday and Hoffenheim on Tuesday, Bayern said.

Despite finding himself in the last place at the start, Arrogate somehow surged to the front on the final stretch. With a crowd of some 50,000 cheering, the horse ran home for a convincing win this past Saturday at the Dubai World Cup. With the win in the 2017 Dubai World Cup, Arrogate became the most valuable horse of all time. The horse has now earned $17m, more than any horse before him. Arrogate was followed by two other American horses: Gun Runner and Neolithic.

Lionel Messi has been banned from Argentina's next four World Cup qualifiers, starting with Tuesday's game in Bolivia. Messi was banned for "having directed insulting words at an assistant referee" during a home qualifier against Chile on Thursday, FIFA said hours before kickoff in La Paz.

The decision-making process that led FIFA to increase the number of teams at the World Cup to 48 starting with the tournament in 2026 is unacceptable, European Club Association chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on Tuesday.

Zamalek chairman Mortada Mansour announced Monday that he is close to concluding a deal with French tactician Alain Giresse to replace outgoing Zamalek coach Mohamed Helmy in leading the Whites.

Often criticzed and inconsistent, Andre Schürrle put in a timely performance for Germany against Azerbaijan. The BVB winger showed all of his qualities and must now aim to be more consistent.It seems a long time since Andre Schürrle crossed the ball for Mario Götze in the Maracana. The 26-year-old has since swapped London for Dortmund (via Wolfsburg), pushing up the total spent on his services to over 90 million euros. His inconsistency remains, as does his spot in the Germany team – but against Azerbaijan the winger showed why Joachim Löw won’t ever doubt him.

Outgoing Zamalek coach Mohamed Helmi said he will not be part of the new backroom staff after surprisingly handing in his resignation in the early hours of Saturday.

NBA All-Star Joakim Noah faces a 20-game unpaid suspension after failing a doping test. The New York Knicks center, son of French tennis legend Yannick Noah, tested positive for a substance similar to anabolic steroids.Noah’s suspension was announced on Saturday, when the NBA confirmed he’d tested positive for Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator LGD-4033, a substance intended to produce effects similar to those of anabolic steroids. The over-the-counter supplement is banned under the current league bargaining agreement with the players union.

The former midfielder has transformed Atletico's fortunes in his five years in charge. But in the aftermath of last season's penalty shoot-out defeat in the San Siro he hinted he was thinking about leaving. At the time, he told a news conference: "I'm thinking I have to start thinking about it."

Contract negotiations with Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez are on hold until the end of the season, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said on Wednesday.

Lukas Podolski was full of his usual charm at his final press conference on international duty ahead of Germany’s friendly against England. The striker will captain the national side on his 130th and last appearance.It was somewhat fitting that the day before Germany bid farewell to Lukas Podolski on the pitch, they did so in the German Football Museum in Dortmund.

Bayern Munich's chairman, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, was in Shanghai on Wednesday to attend the opening ceremony for the Bundesliga club's first office in Asia.

Egyptian clubs Masry and Smouha were drawn Tuesday to play with Uganda's Kampala City Council (KCCA FC) and South Africa's Bidvest respectively in the second round of the CAF Confederation Cup round of 32.

Currently second in the Bundesliga, RasenBallsport Leipzig are on course to qualify for next season’s Champions League. However, some experts say the Red Bull-backed club could be in breach of UEFA regulations.Article 5 of UEFA’s rules and regulations for the 2016-17 Champions League season, entitled “integrity of the competition,” states that “no individual or legal entity may have control or influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA club competition.”