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Friday December 14, 2018
Kaieteur News
Infantino says he has wide support 12 Days of Christmas 50% off for 48-team World Cup in Qatar England Tour of the West Indies 2019
Ticket Offer St. John’s, Antigua – Looking for a great gift to give to family, friend or foe this Christmas? Cricket West Indies announced the launch of its “12 Days of Christmas” ticket promotion for the England Tour of the West Indies 2019, giving fans in each of the Series’ host countries the chance to buy a pair of tickets at half price. ”The England Tour of the West Indies is a cricket series that the whole region looks forward to,” said CWI Commercial Director, Dominic Warne. “The excitement levels are building and so we want to give fans in the host countries a chance to buy an early Christmas present for a loved one or even themselves. We know it’s a time of year when people love giving presents, but also have to watch the dollars in their pockets.” Warne added: “We’re delighted WINDIES legend, Sir Curtly Ambrose, joined us to help spread this Christmas message, since he knows the difference it will make if West Indies fans are there to get behind the team. ”It’s a chance for all fans to get their tickets early and at a great price, using the special promo codes provided.” From yesterday, December 13, until mid-
night Christmas Eve, December 24, and while stocks last, residents in the host territories for the Tour, i.e. Barbados, Antigua, St. Lucia, Grenada and St. Kitts, get 50 per cent off a pair of tickets for any ticket category, when they make their purchase through the www.windiescricket.com website using the “Buy Tickets” button. This means Barbados residents can buy tickets for the Barbados matches only at the discounted price, St. Lucia residents can buy tickets for the St. Lucia matches only at the discounted price, and so on. Fans must use the specific promotional code for their country from the list below to activate the promotion. Ticket booths will open approximately two weeks ahead of each game for fans to buy their tickets in person, albeit with tickets reverting to standard prices. WINDIES are expected to name their Test squad following the third round of the ongoing West Indies Championship in January. England announced last Monday that their Test squad remains the same following their recent Tour of Sri Lanka; Tom Curran and David Willey have been included, but Sam Curran, Liam Dawson and Olly Stone miss out on One-day International selection; and the Twenty20 International squad will be named at a later date.
Anthony Joshua says he wants to fight Deontay Wilder in April
Doha (Reuters) - FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that a majority of national soccer federations were in favor of expanding the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams. Infantino said a decision would be made by March, although it was still not clear whether an enlarged tournament would be feasible as it would be “difficult” to stage in Qatar alone. Qatar has been locked in a bitter dispute with Gulf neighbors Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain that has complicated the prospect of sharing matches in an expanded tournament. Those countries, as well as Egypt, began a diplomatic and trade boycott of Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism. Qatar denies the claims. FIFA last year voted to increase the size of the tournament from 32 to 48 teams starting from 2026 but, since then, Infantino has been mulling the possibility of bringing the change forward to 2022. ”We gathered the opinions as well of our members, the federations,” he told reporters. “So far, of course, the
FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during a news conference in Doha, Qatar December 13, 2018. REUTERS/ Naseem Zeitoon majority are in favor because 16 more teams participating not only means that 16 more countries will have World Cup fever, but 50 or 60 countries will be able to dream of qualifying for the World Cup.” “Whether it is feasible or not is a different question.” Infantino said it was unlikely that Qatar, which has been planning for a 32-team tournament since it was awarded hosting rights in 2010, could manage 16 extra teams on its own. ”Is it feasible to do it only
in Qatar? Difficult probably,” he said, adding that he did not want to share details of discussions with Qatar with the media. ”Is it feasible to have a few games played in neighboring countries? Maybe this is an option.” ”Of course, I’m not naive enough to not know and read the news, and what’s going on, but we are in football not in politics and in football sometimes dreams come true.” Infantino said a decision needed to be made by March because the draw for the qualifying competition is in the summer. He said that, even with 16 additional teams, FIFA was committed to playing the tournament in the original 28-day period “because it was a difficult enough process to decide to move the World Cup to November or December.” He denied that it was too late to make the change. ”For those who think it’s late, I’ve been told that the decision to move the World Cup in 1998 to 32 teams from 24 in 1994 was also taken only four years in advance so there is already a precedent,” he said.
Reggae Girlz get highest FIFA ranking
Joshua’s last bout saw him produce a stunning seventh-round stoppage to beat Alexander Povetkin.(GettyImages) Britain’s Anthony Joshua says he wants to fight WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder in April and has told the American: “I’m running the game.” Joshua holds the IBF, WBO and WBA belts and any bout between the two would unify the heavyweight division. Earlier this week Wilder, who drew with Britain’s Tyson Fury in Los Angeles earlier this month, accused Joshua of “begging” for a fight. “I’m not interested in Tyson Fury - he’s not the champion,” Joshua said. The 29-year-old is yet to confirm an opponent for his
next fight on 13 April at Wembley Stadium, with his promoter Eddie Hearn saying “it comes down to what Wilder wants to do”. Joshua told ESPN: “I’m willing to fight Deontay Wilder on 13 April in London. I don’t know what more I need to do to get that message across. He’s more interested in fighting Tyson Fury. Fury holds no world titles. ”I’ve booked the date in advance, booked the venue in advance. I want to make my point clear in front of everyone - I’m willing to fight any one of these guys, especially the champion Deontay
Wilder. ”I’m the one leading the pack since I made my debut. Five years in, several title defences and I’m running the game. I mean business. I don’t know what more I need to do to get that message across to the world. I can handle my business and I’m willing to do that in the ring.” Following the draw between Wilder and Fury earlier this month the WBC sanctioned a direct rematch. Joshua’s promoter Hearn has previously engaged in failed negotiations with Wilder’s team.
Kingston, Jamaica, CMC – Fresh from their historic qualification for the 2019 FIFA World Cup in France, the Jamaica Reggae Girlz now have another reason to celebrate after receiving their highest ever FIFA ranking. They have moved up 11 places to the 53rd spot in the December edition. The team made the jump after scoring victories Costa Rica, Cuba and Panama in the CONCACAF women’s championship in October. They also moved from sixth to fifth place in CONCACAF and are now the highest ranked team from the Caribbean. Assistant coach of the senior Reggae Girlz, Andrew Price, said the new ranking is a major achievement for the team. “It’s no small
feat they’re ranked at number 53; it’s a major achievement coming from 87 in the prior CONCACAF championships. So it shows the big steps and gains that we have made and we want to continue in the same vein,” Price said. The top ten ranked teams in the world are: the United States, Germany, France, England, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Japan, Sweden and Brazil. Meanwhile the draw for the 2019 women’s world cup will be held tomorrow in Paris at 12 noon Jamaica time. Jamaica is grouped alongside Argentina, Chile, Cameroon and South Africa. President of the Jamaica Football Federation, Michael Ricketts will head the team’s delegation at the draw.
The Reggae Girlz at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup