Barcelona to face Bayern Munich in Champions League group stage

Reigning champions Real Madrid will face Celtic as well as RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk in Group F.

The final will be played on June 10 next year at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul. (Reuters)

Bayern Munich have been placed in the same section as Robert Lewandowski's Barcelona in a draw for the UEFA Champions League group stage in Istanbul. Erling Haaland will face his former club as Manchester City, who were paired with Borussia Dortmund in Thursday's draw. Bayern and Barcelona will also come up against Inter Milan in Group C, which is completed by the Czech champions Viktoria Plzen. Bayern beat Barcelona 8-2 in a one-off quarter-final in Lisbon in 2020, while the Catalans also lost 3-0 twice to the Germans last season as they were eliminated in the group stage. Lewandowski, 34, signed for Barcelona during the close season for a fee that could reach 50 million euros ($49.9m) after scoring 344 goals in eight years at Bayern. Haaland left Dortmund for Premier League champions City in the close season. Those sides will also face Sevilla and Danish champions FC Copenhagen in Group G. City and Dortmund last met in the Champions League quarter-finals in 2021, with Pep Guardiola's side advancing 4-2 on aggregate. City also beat Sevilla twice in the group stage in 2015/16. READ MORE: Real Madrid beat Eintracht Frankfurt to clinch UEFA Super Cup

⭐️ 𝗚𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗣 𝗖 ⭐️

🇩🇪 Bayern
🇪🇸 Barcelona
🇮🇹 Inter
🇨🇿 Plzeň#UCLdraw

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 25, 2022

Liverpool face Rangers

Last season's beaten finalists Liverpool will play Ajax, Napoli and Rangers in Group A, while reigning champions Real Madrid will face Celtic as well as RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk in Group F. With fighting continuing to rage in Ukraine, Shakhtar will play their home games in the Polish capital Warsaw. Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain — who again start among the favourites to win a trophy that has continued to escape them since the Qatari takeover of more than a decade ago — will meet Juventus as well as Benfica and Israeli champions Maccabi Haifa in Group H. Chelsea, winners in 2021, will take on Serie A champions AC Milan as well as Red Bull Salzburg and Dinamo Zagreb in Group E, while Tottenham Hotspur will face last season's Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt along with Sporting Lisbon and Marseille in Group D. Porto and Atletico Madrid meet for the second season running in Group B, which also features Bayer Leverkusen and Belgian champions Club Brugge. This season's group stage will begin with the first round of games on September 6 and 7. The match calendar is expected to be released following the draws on Friday for the group stages of the Europa League and Europa Conference League. All six matchdays will be played in the space of nine weeks, finishing much earlier than usual on November 1 and 2, with UEFA needing to complete the group stage before the World Cup begins on November 20. The final will be played on June 10 next year at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul. READ MORE: Ronaldo receives warning from UK police after smashing fan's phone Source: AFP

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Africa Super League - Just How Super Is It?

The daring new project is expected to kick off in August 2023, promising to take the continent's football to the next level.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) recently formally launched a competition that the organisation says will propel Africa to the upper echelons of world football - the Africa Super League.

Announcement of the audacious project was made by CAF president Patrice Motsepe in Arusha, Tanzania, a fortnight ago following a general assembly of the guardian of African football.

What is the Super League? Why does CAF feel it is a necessary addition to the inter-club competitions in place?

One objective of the Super League, according to Motsepe, is to position the continent's football in the global upper echelons by ensuring Africa's best clubs can compete financially with the rest of the world.

"African clubs have never had a good foundation, financially, to be able to keep some of the best players in Africa, from an income perspective. Because they [the players] love the continent, they want to be in Africa," explained Motsepe at the launch.

"So, the financial part of club football is a critical issue and what we're hoping to do is improve the quality of football....

Source https://www.globalcourant.com/africa-super-league-just-how-super-is-it/?feed_id=14089&_unique_id=630322c747234

Bangladesh Premier League - In the clutter of T20 leagues, BPL has fallen behind in race to sign big names

The Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) is lagging behind in the race to sign overseas T20 stars for the January-February window. The BPL has a window from January 6 to February 15, the dates clashing with the UAE's ILT20, South Africa's yet-to-be-named T20 league and the Australian BBL. The BBL's draft for overseas players is scheduled for August 28. The UAE and South Africa leagues have been in the news practically every day, for the big-ticket players the franchises are signing on. There has been no buzz around the BPL.

The BCB has set August 31 as the deadline for potential franchise owners' "expression of Interest" (EOI). Nizamuddin Chowdhury, the BCB chief executive, had earlier said that the board was hoping most of the previous franchise owners would return, with the BPL providing three-year contracts for them. Earlier, the franchise contracts were for just a year.

"We will try to finalise everything soon, so that the owners can start their preparation," Chowdhury had said. "They will be in a better position since it is for three years. Franchise owners usually want everything to be organised, so this time it will be quite good since we are giving the teams a longer period."

The BCB is also hoping that the BPL will not be without its share of overseas names, while all Bangladeshi cricketers would be expected to participate.

"We have to keep in mind that the member countries are looking for a window to hold domestic T20 leagues. There's going to be conflict (in scheduling) if other members' windows fall at the same time. Everyone is going to suffer, not just us," Chowdhury said. "Two or three of our most important players will be playing in our domestic league. I don't want to mention any names but those who usually play overseas will be missed in those leagues. But we are expecting foreign players to play in our league.

"There's the matter of the NOC [no-objection certificate]. There is also an understanding among member countries. Everyone abides by this rule. I don't personally think anyone will play anything other than their own competition."

There is bound to be a demand for established stars, but the franchise owners, whoever they are, will be in a race against time.

Among the ILT20's signings are Dwayne Bravo and Andre Fletcher, respectively the second-highest wicket-taker and the second-highest run-getter in the last edition of the BPL. Faf du Plessis, Moeen Ali and Sunil Narine, who formed the core of the Comilla Victorians side that won the title the last time, are all unavailable. Du Plessis will play for the CSK-owned franchise in South Africa, while the ILT20 has announced the names of Moeen and Narine. Andre Russell, who played for Minister Group Dhaka, is also on the ILT20's list of signings, while Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who represented Fortune Barishal, will be playing in South Africa.

The top local players will, in all likelihood, play the BPL, but will there be enough overseas stars?•AFP/Getty Images

For the BPL, if the EOI list is revealed on August 31, and roughly another month is required to get through the official procedures for the franchises to sign up, the players' draft or auction can't be held till October. With several T20 leagues running at the same time, and player demand being at an unprecedented high, the BPL would have benefitted from having a more settled appearance about it.

Historically, the BPL franchises have been known to pay well, but there is another niggle. As several player agents told us, because of the laws of the land in Bangladesh, the players end up paying higher taxes than they do elsewhere. It might sound like a trifle, but the lack of nightlife options in most cities in Bangladesh is something that has bothered overseas players in the past.

So what does the BPL do? If the big stars don't come, the tournament will lose its sheen. The ILT20 and the South African leagues have appeared as gamechangers, and with the windows almost set in stone for the next few years, the BPL will have to up its game, somehow, to remain relevant.

Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo's Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84

Source https://www.globalcourant.com/bangladesh-premier-league-in-the-clutter-of-t20-leagues-bpl-has-fallen-behind-in-race-to-sign-big-names/?feed_id=10979&_unique_id=62f9acf861524

Sourav Ganguly and Eoin Morgan to captain star-studded teams in Legends League curtain-raiser

Former India captain and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly will lead India Maharajas in an exhibition match against a World Giants team, which will be led by former England captain Eoin Morgan, on September 16.

The game, set to be held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, is part of Legends League Cricket (LLC), a private tournament organised by Absolute Legends Sports. It is a curtain-raiser for the league's second edition, which also commemorates India's 75th year of independence.

"This is a proud moment for us that we are celebrating the 75th year of our independence," Ravi Shastri, the LLC commissioner, said in a statement. "As a proud Indian, it gives me immense satisfaction to share that we have decided to dedicate this year's league to the 75th year of Independence celebration."

Ganguly apart, the match is set to feature former India players such as Virender Sehwag, Mohammad Kaif, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan and Parthiv Patel - all of whom played under Ganguly's captaincy - among others.

The Maharajas squad also includes S Sreesanth, the former India fast bowler who announced his retirement from domestic cricket earlier this year after making a brief return to top-flight cricket following the lifting of his seven-year ban relating to the IPL spot-fixing case

Apart from Morgan, a World Cup winner with England in 2019, the Giants also have former South Africa stars Jacques Kallis, Jonty Rhodes, Dale Steyn and Herschelle Gibbs in their ranks. Sanath Jayasuriya and Muthiah Muralidaran make up the Sri Lankan representation, while Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson are the two Australians in the 17-member squad.

The first season of the league was held in January this year in Oman, with three teams - Maharajas, Giants and Asia Lions - taking part. Giants won the tournament following a high-scoring final against Lions.

The second season will feature four teams, and 15 matches in total.

India Maharajas: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Virender Sehwag, Mohammad Kaif, Yusuf Pathan, S Badrinath, Irfan Pathan, Parthiv Patel (wk), Stuart Binny, Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Naman Ojha (wk), Ashok Dinda, Pragyan Ojha, Ajay Jadeja, RP Singh, Joginder Sharma, Reetinder Singh Sodhi

World Giants: Eoin Morgan (capt), Lendl Simmons, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Sanath Jayasuriya, Matt Prior (wk), Nathan McCullum, Jonty Rhodes, Muthiah Muralidaran, Dale Steyn, Hamilton Masakadza, Mashrafe Mortaza, Asghar Afghan, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Kevin O'Brien, Denesh Ramdin (wk)

GMT 0831 The story earlier said the match would be played on September 15. The error has been fixed.

Source https://www.globalcourant.com/sourav-ganguly-and-eoin-morgan-to-captain-star-studded-teams-in-legends-league-curtain-raiser/?feed_id=10069&_unique_id=62f69504db143

'DC League of Super-Pets' debuts in first place

The summer box office showed signs of slowing down this weekend as the animated “DC League of Super-Pets” opened in theatres across North America.

Though slightly less than expected, it was still enough to capture the first-place spot and knock Jordan Peele’s “Nope” into second place in its second weekend. (Reuters)

"DC League of Super-Pets" an animated adventure about the four-legged friends of superheroes, has opened in first place at the domestic box office with $23 million from 4,313 theatres. 

Though the Warner Bros. movie sold enough tickets to dethrone Jordan Peele's "Nope" on North American charts, it's a mediocre start given the film's $90 million price tag.

Sure, the Legion of Super-Pets aren't as recognizable as Superman or Aquaman, but "DC League of Super-Pets" could have resonated with audiences a little more given its affiliation with DC Comics and its high-wattage voice cast in Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart. 

In pandemic times, "DC League of Super-Pets" is yet another kid-friendly film that has struggled to wow in its box office debut. 

Movies aimed at family audiences have been a mixed bag as of late, which is concerning because it's a demographic that has always been a reliable source of revenue. 

In terms of opening weekend revenues, "DC League of Super-Pets" arrived behind Pixar's "Lightyear," which debuted to $51 million, and Universal's "Minions: The Rise of Gru," which opened to $107 million. But its start falls in line with other pandemic-era family films like "The Bad Guys" ($23.9 million), "Sing 2" ($22.3 million) and Disney's "Encanto" ($27 million). 

However, "DC League of Super-Pets" doesn't have much competition on the horizon, which could work to its advantage. It helps that audiences liked the film, which landed an "A-" CinemaScore. 

READ MORE: Amazon unveils a different Middle-earth in 'Lord of the Rings' series

This weekend's other new nationwide release, B.J. Novak's true-crime inspired dark comedy "Vengeance," barely cracked the top 10. 

The R-rated film opened in line with expectations, pulling in a lackluster $1.75 million from 998 theaters. Novak, who also wrote the screenplay, portrays a New York City-based journalist and podcaster who travels to Texas to investigate the death of a girl he was only casually dating. 

The well-reviewed "Vengeance" appealed to mostly male audiences (men accounted for 55 percent of ticket buyers), who gave the film a "B+" CinemaScore. 

With "DC League of Super-Pets" easily winning the weekend, "Nope" slid to second place with $18.5 million from 3,807 venues. So far, the UFO thriller – starring Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer – has generated $80.5 million in North America. "Nope" hasn't opened yet at the international box office. 

READ MORE: 'Thor: Love and Thunder' makes best franchise debut

Disney's "Thor: Love and Thunder" took the No. 3 spot with $13.1 million from 3,650 locations in its fourth weekend in theaters. 

"Minions: The Rise of Gru" landed in fourth place, bringing in $10.8 million from 3,578 cinemas in its fifth outing. 

Paramount's "Top Gun: Maverick" rounded out the top five with $8.2 million in its 10th weekend of release. 

Source: Reuters

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Full schedule of Iran Premier League matches

Tehran- IRNA- The full program of the 22nd season of the Iranian Premier League was determined after the lottery ceremony. Read this important information in the following infographic.
Source https://www.globalcourant.com/full-schedule-of-iran-premier-league-matches/?feed_id=2702&_unique_id=62e0d5fdbed48