Zamalek Eye Pablo Franco as Motamed Gamal Faces Exit

Zamalek have expressed interest in Spanish coach Pablo Franco, but his agent says the Egyptian champions have not submitted an offer. liveiplscore.homes

Zamalek have reportedly shown interest in appointing Spanish coach Pablo Franco, but contact has taken place only through intermediaries and no official offer has been submitted, his agent said.

Hamid Bouzidi said that Zamalek are among three clubs interested in Franco. The other clubs are Moroccan sides Wydad Casablanca and RS Berkane.

الأخبارمنتخبنا للقفز المظلي يشارك في مونديال «السيزم»يخوض منتخبنا للقفز المظلي التابع للجنة قطر للرياضات الجوية بالقوات الخاصة المشتركة بطولة العالم العسكرية (السيزم) التي تنطلق غدا الجمعة وتستمر حتى الثالث والعشرين من الشهر نفسه ...فتح →

“Zamalek have only contacted us through intermediaries, and we have not received any official offer so far,” Bouzidi said.

Franco left Maghreb de Fes after leading the club to the 2025-26 Moroccan league title. The championship ended a 41-year wait for the club’s fifth domestic league crown.

The White Knights are considering appointing a foreign coach to replace Motamed Gamal, although the club has not formally announced Gamal’s departure or named a successor.

Gamal’s position has remained uncertain since the end of the season. He had been waiting for the board to decide whether he would continue as head coach or join the staff of a foreign replacement.

The Egyptian coach received offers from clubs outside Egypt but delayed a decision while awaiting clarification from Zamalek, according to local reports.

Gamal led Zamalek to the 2025-26 Egyptian Premier League title, the club’s 15th championship and its first in three seasons.

He also took Zamalek to the CAF Confederation Cup final. The Cairo side lost to USM Alger in a penalty shootout after the two legs finished 1-1 on aggregate.

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أكد فهد عبدالله الملا، نائب رئيس الاتحاد العربي للمبارزة، أن رحيل المغفور له بإذن الله تعالى صاحب السمو الأمير الوالد الشيخ حمد بن خليفة آل ثاني شكّل خسارة كبيرة لدولة قطر وللأمتين العربية والإسلامية، مشيراً إلى أن الوطن فقد برحيله قائداً استثنائياً ورجل دولة ترك إرثاً وطنياً وإنسانياً سيظل حاضراً في ذاكرة الأجيال، بما حققه من إنجازات تاريخية أسهمت في بناء قطر الحديثة وترسيخ مكانتها على المستويين الإقليمي والدولي.
وقال الملا إن الأمير الوالد امتلك رؤية استثنائية سبقت عصرها، واستطاع أن يقود مسيرة تحول شاملة نقلت دولة قطر إلى مرحلة جديدة من التنمية والازدهار، حيث أسس لدولة المؤسسات، وعمل على تعزيز الاقتصاد الوطني، ودعم التعليم والصحة والبنية التحتية، إلى جانب ترسيخ مكانة قطر كدولة فاعلة ومؤثرة في محيطها العربي والإسلامي وعلى الساحة الدولية.
وأضاف أن ما تحقق من إنجازات في مختلف القطاعات لم يكن وليد الصدفة، بل جاء ثمرة تخطيط بعيد المدى وإيمان عميق بقدرة الإنسان القطري على صناعة المستقبل، وهو ما جعل تجربة قطر التنموية محل تقدير وإعجاب العالم.
وأشار نائب رئيس الاتحاد العربي للمبارزة إلى أن الأمير الوالد عُرف بمواقفه الثابتة تجاه القضايا العربية والإسلامية، حيث كان نصيراً للحق، وداعماً للشعوب، وحاضراً في كل المواقف الإنسانية، الأمر الذي أكسبه محبة الشعوب واحترام القادة، مؤكداً أن تلك المكانة لم تأتِ من فراغ، وإنما كانت نتيجة سنوات طويلة من العمل المخلص والعطاء الصادق. وأوضح أن الأمير الوالد لم يكن قائداً لقطر فحسب، بل كان شخصية عربية وإسلامية ذات تأثير كبير، حمل هموم أمته بإخلاص، وسعى دائماً إلى دعم الأمن والاستقرار والحوار والتعاون بين الدول. واختتم فهد عبدالله الملا تصريحه برفع أصدق مشاعر العزاء وصادق المواساة إلى حضرة صاحب السمو الشيخ تميم بن حمد آل ثاني أمير البلاد المفدى، وإلى أصحاب السمو والمعالي والسعادة أفراد الأسرة الكريمة آل ثاني، وإلى الشعب القطري الكريم، سائلاً الله سبحانه وتعالى أن يتغمد الأمير الوالد الشيخ حمد بن خليفة آل ثاني بواسع رحمته، وأن يسكنه الفردوس الأعلى من الجنة، وأن يجزيه خير الجزاء على ما قدمه لوطنه وأمته، وأن يلهم الجميع جميل الصبر وحسن العزاء، وأن يحفظ دولة قطر، ويديم عليها نعمة الأمن والاستقرار، ويواصل الوطن مسيرة النهضة والازدهار التي أرسى الأمير الوالد دعائمها، والتي يواصلها حضرة صاحب السمو أمير البلاد المفدى بكل اقتدار وحكمة.

Saudi Arabia’s top clubs face potential contractual disputes due to budget cuts, raising concerns about meeting player wage commitments.

Saudi football clubs are preparing for a wave of legal claims from players after the Public Investment Fund reduced their budgets for the 2026-27 season, according to reports.

The reductions affect Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, and Al Ahli, the four clubs brought under PIF control in 2023. The clubs face combined cuts estimated at between $200 million and $400 million.

Club boards have begun assembling legal teams ahead of possible disputes over unpaid or reduced salaries. Law firms in London and New York are also preparing to represent players.

The clubs are expected to prioritise payments to their highest-profile players, including Cristiano Ronaldo. Lower profile players, injured squad members, and those deemed surplus to requirements may face greater risks of delayed or incomplete payments.

The anticipated cases follow a wider reduction in Saudi football spending after the league attracted leading players with transfer fees and salaries that European clubs struggled to match.

Saudi Pro League clubs spent more than $1.5 billion following the start of the recruitment programme in 2023.

The league began introducing tighter financial controls in 2025. Oversight of club finances was transferred from the Sports Ministry to a Financial Oversight Committee within the Saudi Pro League.

The league has also changed the way recruitment funds are distributed for the 2026-27 season. Commercial performance and television audiences each account for 28% of allocations, sporting results account for 22%, and the remaining 22% is divided equally among clubs.

PIF has also begun reducing its direct ownership of football assets. In April of this year, it agreed to sell a 70% controlling stake in Al Hilal to Kingdom Holding Company, valuing the club at 1.4 billion Saudi riyals, or about $373 million.

Saudi clubs already face several financial disputes. FIFA’s registration-ban list included eight clubs from the country in May because of unpaid obligations to former players, coaches, or other creditors.

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Al Ahly have reportedly reached an agreement with Dinamo Zagreb to sign Algerian forward Monsef Bakrar in a deal worth €3 million.

According to Croatian reports, Dinamo Zagreb have completed the agreement for Bakrar’s move to the Cairo giants.

The Croatian champions will receive a fixed €3 million fee, while performance-related bonuses could increase the total value of the transfer to €4 million.

Dinamo have also secured a 10% sell-on clause, which would entitle them to a share of any future transfer fee received by Al Ahly.

However, Bakrar is not expected to leave Zagreb immediately. Dinamo negotiated for the 25-year-old to remain available for both legs of their UEFA Champions League second qualifying-round tie against Swiss champions Thun.

The first leg will take place in Switzerland on July 21, before Dinamo host the return fixture on July 28.

Dinamo had previously rejected two Al Ahly offers before negotiations entered their final stages. But the clubs seem to have reached an agreement, although neither club has issued an official statement.

Bakrar joined Dinamo from New York City FC in August 2025 and signed a multi-year contract with the Croatian club. He scored 10 goals and provided four assists in 29 Croatian league appearances during the 2025/26 season.

The Algeria international previously represented ES Setif and Istra 1961 before moving to Major League Soccer in 2023.

He made 70 appearances across all competitions for New York City, scoring 10 goals.

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London: The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Wednesday a revamped format for the men's 2027 one-day international World Cup that could lead to an additional fixture between arch-rivals India and Pakistan.

While next year's edition in southern Africa remains a 14-team competition, the three lowest-ranked qualifiers will now take part in a preliminary round with just one of them progressing to a 12-strong main group stage.

That will now feature just two pools of six, with a new 'super seven' stage replacing the previous 'super six' round-robin.

Significantly, there will be no quarter-finals with the tournament denied the further jeopardy and interest that comes with an extra round of clear-cut knockout matches.

An additional team in the round-robin phase, however, increases the prospects of an extra match between India and Pakistan.

The passion for cricket in the sub-continent, which in turn generates huge broadcast rights and commercial revenues for the ICC, makes a match between India and Pakistan the most lucrative in the sport.

But India and Pakistan no longer meet outside of ICC events, with political tensions between the bordering nations meaning they are effectively barred by their own governments from facing each other.

The last bilateral series India played in Pakistan was in 2006 (Test and ODI series).

In a statement, the ICC insisted the new World Cup structure "creates greater context, competitiveness and consequence during the event."

Another change approved at the ICC's recent board meeting in Edinburgh will see the next men's T20 World Cup in 2028 remain a 20-team competition, but with 10 sides qualifying from the group stage rather than eight.

The two best performing teams in the 'Super 10' will automatically secure a semi-final spot, with a new eliminator stage to decide their opponents.