FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Congo officials over financial misconduct
FIFA's ethics committee launched disciplinary proceedings against three senior Congolese Football Federation (FECOFOOT) officials on Wednesday, including president Jean-Guy Mayolas, over allegations of financial misconduct, Reuters reported.
Mayolas, his wife and his son were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month after a criminal court in Congolese capital Brazzaville convicted them of embezzling $1.1 million in FIFA funds. Media reports said their whereabouts were not known and they were tried in absentia.
FECOFOOT general secretary Wantete Badji and treasurer Raoul Kanda are also subject to the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA said. Badji and Kanda were sentenced to five years each in prison by the court in Brazzaville for related charges, according to Reuters.
Final World Cup ticketing phase is first-come, first-served
Fans looking for one last opportunity to get tickets to this summer's FIFA World Cup in North America will get their chance on April 1.
And that's no joke.
FIFA announced Wednesday that a fourth and final phase of ticket sales will take place starting at 11 a.m. ET on April 1 and will remain open through the end of the tournament, Reuters reported.
Tickets in the "Last-Minute Sales Phase" will be available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis through FIFA's official ticketing website, where fans will be able to select specific seats for various available matches or use a "book the best seat" feature.
Samba successfully undergoes knee surgery
Nepali national women’s football team captain Sabitra Bhandari has undergone successful right knee surgery in Auckland, New Zealand on Wednesday morning.
Taking to social media, she said that Dr Simon and his team performed her surgery.
A few weeks ago, the striker widely known as "Samba" had sought financial support through social media, stating that she needed to undergo a knee surgery in Aspetar, Qatar. But due to ongoing tensions in the Middle East, the plan had to be changed. Later, she decided to undergo surgery in New Zealand.
Samba suffered a knee injury last December in the Australian League.
Lukaku drops out of Belgium’s World Cup warm-ups
Belgium’s top scorer Romelu Lukaku has withdrawn from their trip to the U.S. this week and will miss World Cup warm-up matches in Atlanta and Chicago, Reuters reported .
The 32-year-old Lukaku, who has netted a record 89 goals in 124 internationals, has elected to work on his fitness and will skip Saturday’s clash against the U.S. and another friendly against Mexico.
“Romelu prefers to train in the coming period with the aim of further optimising his physical readiness,” the Belgian Football Association said in a statement on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
