World Cup

GERMANY legend Franz Beckenbauer has revealed illness will stop him from flying to Qatar for the World Cup.Beckenbauer lifted the Jules Rimet Trophy as a player in 1974 and manager in 1990.
Franz Beckenbauer captained Germany to the 1974 World CupCredit: AP
Beckenbauer isn’t travelling to Qatar due to illnessCredit: Getty
However, the 77-year-old is suffering from health problems and therefore won’t be able to support the current stars in the Middle East.
But while the German won’t be travelling, he vowed to keep fighting on.
He told Bild: “I had a so-called infarction in one eye.
“Unfortunately I can’t see anything on the right.
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“I can handle that. And I have to be careful with my heart.
“But I will not travel to Qatar. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for our team in front of the TV.
“People probably think he never lives long. But I’ll try to stay with you for a while.”
Beckenbauer, widely regarded as one of the best to ever player the game, won 103 caps for Germany.
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And the ex-defender is no stranger to the World Cup.
He played at football’s greatest show on three occasions and lifted the famous trophy after beating the Netherlands in the final in 1974.
Beckenbauer then became the first man ever to win the World Cup as both a player and manager 16 years later. More

THE linesman for Germany’s game against Japan was forced to check whether captain Manuel Neuer was wearing the One Love armband.Hansi Flick’s side were one of the seven European nations who planned on wearing the One Love armband.
Zeegelaar checked Neuer’s armbandCredit: EPA
Germany staged their own protest by covering their mouthsCredit: Reuters
The armband has been used as a message of support and unity, especially for the LGBTQ+ community with England, Wales, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland and Denmark also set to join with Team DFB.
However, Fifa made a last-minute decision to ban the accessory – and threatened captains with yellow cards or even one-match suspensions prompting a U-turn from all seven countries.
It saw captain and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer walk out with the regular generic ‘No Discrimination’ version instead – but linesman Zachari Zeegelaar was forced to check nonetheless.
However, the armband ban didn’t stop Germany from staging a protest.
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The 11 stars, including Chelsea’s Kai Havertz and wonderkid Jamal Musiala, lined up and all covered their mouths with their right hand – as if to say they have been silenced by the tournament organisers.
That includes Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who was in the stadium to witness the silent stand first hand.
Germany’s official team Twitter account said: “It wasn’t about making a political statement – human rights are non-negotiable. That should be taken for granted, but it still isn’t the case.
“That’s why this message is so important to us.
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“Denying us the armband is the same as denying us a voice. We stand by our position.
“We wanted to use our captain’s armband to take a stand for values that we hold in the Germany national team: diversity and mutual respect.
“Together with other nations, we wanted our voice to be heard.” More

OUT of the 32 nations competing at the World Cup, 24 will be training within a six-mile radius of each other.England’s base is the luxury Souq Al-Wakra hotel, with the Three Lions training at the Al Wakrah Sports Complex.
24 out of the 32 World Cup teams are based within a six-mile radiusCredit: FIFA
Qatar, Australia and Ghana are all training at the Aspire AcademyCredit: Getty – Contributor
England are training at Al Wakrah Stadium on the outskirts of DohaCredit: Getty
A look inside England’s luxury Souq al-Wakra HotelCredit: AFP
Gareth Southgate’s side are staying on the outskirts of Doha, but the majority of teams at the tournament are training close together in the city.
Fast forward four years to the next World Cup, teams are likely to be staying in different time zones altogether to each other.
The 2026 edition will be held across USA, Mexico and Canada, which will see nations hundreds of miles apart.
Qatar on the other hand has three-quarters of the competing countries within a tiny radius.
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Some sides are separated by just a matter of feet, with hosts Qatar, Ghana and Australia ALL training at the incredible Aspire Academy.
The state-funded centre was founded in 2004 to develop and nurture talent from Qatar.
The three countries are staying at different hotels but all three nations training at the same centre could heighten fears of training ground ‘spies’.
Fortunately the three sides are all in different groups so treading on each other’s toes is unlikely to be a problem unless they reach the latter stages of the tournament.
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Elsewhere current holders France, Wales and Japan are all using facilities from Qatari side Al Sadd.
Tunisia and South Korea are using separate sites at the Al Egla training facility, while Uruguay and Croatia are using different Al Erssal sites.
But Brazil and Serbia, who are in Group G, have BOTH trained at the Al-Arabi Sports Club ahead of the game.
The Brazilians trained at the Grand Hamad Stadium, also known as the Al–Arabi Sports Club Stadium, while Serbia trained at the practice facilities nearby.
Five-time champions Brazil kick off their campaign against Serbia tomorrow.
Brazil have trained at Grand Hamad Stadium, which is also known as the Al–Arabi Sports Club StadiumCredit: AP
Serbia have also trained at the Al Arabi Sports ClubCredit: AFP More