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Sport In 2023: Five Big Events To Watch

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World Cups in cricket, rugby union, and women’s football while world titles in swimming and athletics are up for grabs in 2023.

AFP Sport looks at the showpiece events:
CRICKET WORLD CUP
Where: India

When: October-November (dates to be decided)

— The 13th edition of the global 50-over showpiece will see England defend the title they won in thrilling fashion on home ground in 2019. Despite the event stretching over seven weeks and featuring 48 games, only 10 teams are taking part. The top seven countries from the Super League plus hosts India will make it through as well as two teams from a qualifying tournament to be held in Zimbabwe in June/July. There is, however, already controversy with former Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ramiz Raja having hinted his country could boycott the World Cup if India refuse to play the Asia Cup scheduled for Pakistan also in 2023.

RUGBY UNION WORLD CUP
Where: France

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When: September 8-October 28

— All eyes will be on Antoine Dupont as he leads strong favourites France into a home World Cup featuring 20 nations playing at nine venues. The opening game pitches France against New Zealand in what promises to be a thrilling start. Reigning champions South Africa are drawn in the same pool as Ireland, while Wales are in a pool alongside Australia, Georgia and Fiji, the first two of which they lost to in the Autumn Nations Series. England go into the tournament in a state of flux having axed coach Eddie Jones in favour of Steve Borthwick.

WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Where: Budapest

When: August 19-27

— World athletes of the year Armand Duplantis and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone will bid to recreate their world record-setting victories in the Hungarian capital. Coming a year after the Covid-delayed world champs in Eugene, Oregon, the biennial event will play host to a raft of up-and-coming track and field stars. All eyes will be on Jamaica’s five-time 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in the women’s sprints, at the age of 36. The US team will look to the likes of Fred Kerley, Noah Lyles, Michael Norman and Erriyon Knighton to light up the men’s short track, while Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Karsten Warholm will bid to extend their winning form.

WORLD SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Where: Fukuoka, Japan

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When: July 14-30

— As swimming tries to catch up after the pandemic, Fukuoka hosts the second of three World Championships in 19 months. The meet was originally scheduled for 2021 but was elbowed aside when the Tokyo Olympics were pushed back. Fukuoka says it has a ‘concept’: “Water Meets the Future”, expressing “the hope that all the participants will meet the future.” Yet, as established stars, with one eye on the 2024 Olympics, skipped major events swimming did meet its future in 2022. Romanian David Popovici, Australian Mollie O’Callaghan, Canadian Summer McIntosh, Italian Benadetta Pilato and American Torri Huske, can all arrive in Japan to defend world titles they won last June as teenagers.

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WOMEN’S FOOTBALL WORLD CUP
Where: Australia and New Zealand

When: July 20-August 20

— The all-conquering United States women’s national team face stiff competition from a series of emerging European contenders for the World Cup. The Americans have won four of the eight previous editions of the tournament, including the last two, but have been beaten by Germany, England and Spain this year. England are looking to back up their victory on home soil at Euro 2022, while co-hosts Australia will be hoping Chelsea star Sam Kerr can lead the Matildas beyond the quarter-finals for the first time. Ten venues across nine host cities in Australia and New Zealand will host the first 32-team women’s World Cup, which is set to smash records for attendance and viewing figures in a further indication of the growing popularity of the sport.
AFP

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PHOTOS: Nike Unveils Super Eagles 2024/25 Jersey

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The new Super Eagles jerseys for the 2024–2025 football season have been unveiled by clothing powerhouse, Nike.

Nike’s Instagram page published a post on Monday with a launch video of the new jerseys.

“The 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒌𝒊𝒕𝒔 disrupt convention with bold twists on icons.

“Featuring 𝑫𝒓𝒊-𝑭𝑰𝑻 𝑨𝑫𝑽 innovation, each kit is engineered for the needs of the modern footballer, from kick-off to the final whistle,” the post read.

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Green hoops at the ends of the sleeves and shorts adorn the white home jersey. In a striking combination of colours, the word “Naija” is written in green across the kit’s breast.

In a stylistic nod to Nigeria’s national colours, the away uniform is patterned in a pastel version of the same colour, dark green.

For their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign, the Super Eagles are anticipated to wear the new jerseys.

The team’s third qualifying match is scheduled for June 3 at home against South Africa. Seven days later, they are scheduled to travel to Benin Republic.

Before that, the Eagles will visit Grand Stade de Marrakech in Morocco for friendly matches against Ghana and Mali on March 22 and 26, respectively.

See photos below;

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JUST IN: Chelsea To Face Man City, Man United Get Coventry In FA Cup Semi-final

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After a thrilling quarter-final round, the draw of the FA Cup semi-final round has been made with Chelsea to square off against Manchester City.

Man United who powered their way to a hard-fought 4-3 win over Liverpool will face surprise team Coventry United.

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5 Sports Competitions With The Biggest Prize Money

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Sport has grown from a simple pleasure to a legitimate way to a global money-spinning business. The global sporting industry is expected to be worth US$512.14 billion (AU$765.7 billion) by 2024.

As the globe tunes into these major athletic events, revenue increases. Ads, sponsorships, and the like.

While the organizers stand to profit massively, the competitors stand to lose a lot of money. But which sports events in the globe have the most money? What are the most expensive sports competitions?

Below are sports competitions and their million-dollar prize money:

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World Series (Baseball)

Despite its shifting popularity outside of America, America’s pastime continues to have a significant winning prize. The annual championship is known as the World Series, and the best-of-seven series produces one top team each year. The competition is one of America’s oldest, and since 1903, it has crowned a financially successful team. In 2023, the winning team is expected to get approximately $52 million.

Total purse: $160 million
Amount paid to winning team: $52 million

FIFA World Cup (Football)

The FIFA World Cup, football’s biggest international tournament, matches the world’s finest national teams against one another, ending in the final. The apex of world football draws over 3.3 billion spectators worldwide and pays the champions handsomely from FIFA. Argentina defeated France in dramatic manner in the most recent World Cup, not only leaving a legacy for captain Lionel Messi, but also raising over $66 million for the Argentine football association.

The majority of that money goes to the domestic football program, but the players and coaching staff are sure to get a large bonus as compensation for their efforts.

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Total purse: $658 million
Amount paid to winning team: $66 million

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The NBA Championship (Basketball)

Despite the NBA’s global popularity, teams in America are not as well compensated as clubs in other sports in Europe. That is not to suggest they receive nothing. Winning the NBA Finals gives the winning team a sizable percentage of the NBA Playoff Pool, which was slightly over $40 million at the end of the most recent season. This figure is divided across all postseason teams based on performance. It is projected that the Denver Nuggets, the most recent winners, earned $7.1 million.

Total purse: $40 million
Amount paid to winning team: varied based on performance.

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Tour Championship/FedEX Cup (Golf)

The golf business has always been heavily financed, as evidenced by the advent of the Saudi-backed LIV. With the new merger in the works, expect this prize pool to change dramatically. The Tour Championship is the PGA Tour’s last match, and while it is not officially classified as a Major, it does come with a sizable purse. Throughout the PGA season, golfers accumulate points to compete in the final championship, with the top 30 earners competing in the Tour Championship.

The golfer with the most points after the Tour Championship match (typically the winner) wins the FedEx Cup and a stunning $26.9 million from the $112.1 million prize pool. Otherwise, there will be other opportunities to win large over the season. The Players Championship has the tour’s largest prize money, with the winner receiving $6.7 million.

Total purse: $112 million
Amount paid to winner: $27 million

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UEFA Champions League (Football)

It is the world’s largest club event, regardless of sport. Winning the competition final earns the team around $33 million, but nearly three times that amount can be won along the road.

Money is awarded to teams based on group and knockout stage wins, with a maximum prize money of approximately $139 million possible if the club wins all of its games. With such a large amount of money on offer, it’s easy to see why it’s such an honor for teams to even qualify, let alone try to win.

Total purse: $3.3 billion
Amount paid to winning team: $33 million

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