World Sports News in Brief

Sarajevo interested in hosting Formula E race

Sarajevo is hoping to host a Formula E race next year after a proposal by the Bosnian capital’s mayor was backed unanimously by the city council on Wednesday.

Formula E - Berlin E-Prix - Flughafen Tempelhof, Berlin, Germany, May 19, 2018. (Photo: Reuters)
Formula E - Berlin E-Prix - Flughafen Tempelhof, Berlin, Germany, May 19, 2018. (Photo: Reuters)

The council now needs to approve 100,000 euros (US$116,040) of funding for a feasibility study with organizers of the all-electric city-based series.

* FIFA held a last-minute meeting on Wednesday with the two candidates bidding to host the 2026 World Cup ahead of the publication of a report which could disqualify a bid rated not up to scratch. A joint United States, Canada and Mexico bid is being challenged by underdogs Morocco for the right to stage the 48-team tournament with the hosts to be decided by the FIFA Congress in Moscow on June 13.

* The World Cup referee given a life ban in his homeland Saudi Arabia earlier this month for a match-fixing attempt will not be replaced at the tournament in Russia, global soccer body FIFA said on Wednesday. The Saudi Arabia Football Federation said two weeks ago that it had barred referee Fahad Al Mirdasi after he confessed to offering to fix the final of his country's domestic cup competition.

* The English FA will go ahead with plans to implement a mid-season Premier League break "very soon", the governing body's chief executive Martin Glenn has said, with British media reporting confirmation should come in the next two weeks. British media on Wednesday reported that the break for Premier League teams would be staggered over two weekends, with ten teams playing one weekend and the other ten the next weekend, giving each club a two-week rest from the competition.

* Referees at the World Cup finals will be able to dish out red cards for off-the-ball incidents spotted by Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology, soccer's rule-making body IFAB has said. The VAR system will be rolled out for the first time at a World Cup at the Jun 14 to July 15 tournament in Russia.

* Former England captain John Terry has left Aston Villa after the club failed to gain promotion to the Premier League. Villa lost the Championship playoff final 1-0 to Fulham at Wembley on Sunday. The 37-year-old Terry joined Villa from Chelsea in July 2017 on a one-year deal, making 36 appearances for Villa in all competitions last season and scoring one goal.

* Serena Williams faces her first seeded opponent at the French Open on Thursday and will hope to use her booming serve to beat Australian Ashleigh Barty in the second round. Barty, the 17th seed, cruised past Natalia Vikhlyantseva in the first round, while Serena, back at one of her favourite venues after a two-year absence, overwhelmed Czech Kristyna Pliskova in straight sets.

Reuters