DUBAI // There will no additional assistant referees at next summer's World Cup in South Africa, after Fifa yesterday abandoned the notion of enlisting two goal-line officials.
The use of additional match officials, to assist the referee and two referee's assistants, has been experimented with in this season's Europa League with mixed feedback from managers and players .
But Fifa's decision, made during an emergency meeting of their executive committee in Cape Town, vetoed the introduction of extra bodies or video technology to bolster the under-fire system.
It is one which seems certain to raise eyebrows considering the game's climate. It is only two weeks since French striker Thierry Henry's infamous handball against Ireland, when match officials failed to spot an offence which, wrongly, secured France's place in South Africa.
The fall-out continues to rumble on and, after seeing their request to be the 33rd entrant in next summer's showpiece publicly aired by Fifa president Sepp Blatter, before he later rejected it, the Irish football federation have questioned the Swiss's handling of the saga.
"The disciplinary will open a case on the behaviour of the player Thierry Henry," said Blatter. "This is a matter for the disciplinary committee ... it was blatant unfair playing and was shown all around the world."
Meanwhile, Fifa have confirmed England, ninth in the world rankings, will be one of eight seeded teams when the World Cup draw takes place tomorrow.
Fabio Capello's side will avoid favourites Spain and Brazil in the group stage, while Argentina, Germany, Holland, holders Italy and hosts South Africa make up the remaining seeded nations.
The eight seeds comprise pot one, with the remaining three pots drawn on regional boundaries. The seedings system means that Portugal, currently ranked fifth, and seventh-ranked France, both victors in last month's two-leg play-offs, will go into pot four along with the other six European qualifiers.
Fifa general secretary Jerome Valcke revealed October's rankings had determined the seeding process. "In the past the seedings have been determined by a mixture of world rankings and performances in past World Cups, but this time the feeling was the October rankings most closely represented the best teams in the tournament," said Valcke.
Come the draw, each seeded nation will face one team in pot two, a side from Asia, north or central America, or Oceania, one from pot three, which has five African and three South American sides, and one from the exclusively European fourth pot.
It means a "Group of Death" scenario is likely for one of the seeded nations. England, for example, could be drawn against France, Ivory Coast and the United States. On the flip side, Capello's side could draw Slovenia, Algeria and New Zealand.
In other news, Fifa have written to the Argentine Football Federation to ensure coach Diego Maradona stays away from tomorrow's draw. Maradona is serving a two-month suspension for an expletive-filled rant aimed at national media who criticised Argentina's recent results under his tenure at a post-match news conference.
There are rumours Maradona might try to attend the draw by working as a media pundit commentating on the proceedings. But his ban extends beyond international matches and also includes formal Fifa activities.
"Maradona has been officially banned from all football activities," said Valcke. "It is not just a ban for friendly matches or official matches. It is for all football activities. If he is asking for an accreditation, I can tell you - no way."
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court
Starting at 2pm:
Elina Svitolina (UKR) [3] v Jennifer Brady (USA)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v Belinda Bencic (SUI [4]
Not before 7pm:
Sofia Kenin (USA) [5] v Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
Maria Sakkari (GRE) v Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) [7]
Court One
Starting at midday:
Karolina Muchova (CZE) v Katerina Siniakova (CZE)
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) v Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR)
Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) v Dayana Yastermska (UKR)
Petra Martic (CRO) [8] v Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) v Anett Kontaveit (EST)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
LIVERPOOL SQUAD
Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk, Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Naby Keita, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Joe Gomez, Adrian, Jordan Henderson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana, Andy Lonergan, Xherdan Shaqiri, Andy Robertson, Divock Origi, Curtis Jones, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Neco Williams
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 1
Kane (50')
Newcastle United 0
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
'Hocus%20Pocus%202'
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Crazy Rich Asians
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeon, Gemma Chan
Four stars
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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