Ed Sheeran weaves Persian music into new song, Azizam    Rain expected in Makkah and Jeddah on Saturday    Al-Jadaan: Crown Prince's directives confirm government's ability to bring back balance to real estate market    China retaliates against Trump's trade war with 34% reciprocal tariffs on US goods    Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli escalation, targeting of civilians and Saudi warehouse in Gaza    Danish PM dismisses US desire to annex Greenland 'You cannot annex another country'    Macron lashes out against Trump's 'brutal' tariffs, calls for a pause in investment    Saudi Crown Prince, Iranian president discuss regional developments in Eid phone call    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    New Laws of Commercial Registration and Trade Names take effect on Thursday    New fleet of 76 public transport buses starts operation in Jeddah on Tuesday Environmentally friendly electric buses introduced for first time    Foreign investors are allowed to engage in real estate business outside Makkah and Madinah Commercial speculation should not be the purpose of real estate transaction    Aubameyang fires Al Qadsiah into King's Cup final with stoppage-time winner over Al Raed    Cristiano Ronaldo joins Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves    Musk's X is suing India, as Tesla and Starlink plan entry    Tesla sales plunge after backlash against Elon Musk    Swedish table tennis legend Jörgen Persson appointed head coach of Saudi national team    Danilo Pereira fires Al Ittihad into King's Cup final with dramatic stoppage-time double    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Mexico bans junk food in schools to fight childhood obesity epidemic    Sweet sales surge ahead of Eid as Saudi chocolate imports top 123 million kg in 2024    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    









Asian champ Jeonbuk banned from 2017 season
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 19 - 01 - 2017

Asian title-holder Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors has been banned from this year's AFC Champions League over a match-fixing scandal in South Korea's K-League, Asia's football governing body said Wednesday.
"The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) independent Entry Control Body today declared that Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (KOR) is ineligible to participate in AFC competitions for the 2017 season due to its indirect involvement in activities aimed at arranging or influencing the outcome of matches during the 2013 and 2014 K-League seasons," the confederation said in a statement.
"The Body subsequently ordered that Jeju United FC (KOR) shall be the third seed and Ulsan Hyundai (KOR) the fourth seed representing the Korea Football Association in the AFC Champions League 2017," it added.
The ban decision was based on a new document by the Entry Control Body setting out rules for eligibility.
Any clubs involved in "arranging or influencing the outcome of a match at national or international level" will be barred from the Asian competition for one season, according to the document.
Asia's football authorities have long struggled against match-fixing, with major scandals seen in countries including South Korea and China.
In September, K-League leader Jeonbuk was docked nine points and fined 100 million won ($83,000) after one of its scouts was convicted of bribing referees during the 2013 season.
As a result, Jeonbuk narrowly missed out on the Korean title.
But it beat UAE's Al Ain 3-2 on aggregate in the Champions League final to lift Asia's most prestigious club trophy.
At the 2017 AFC Champions League, Jeonbuk had been placed in Group H with Adelaide United of Australia, Jiangsu FC of China and a playoff-winning team to be determined later.
‘Xabi Alonso to retire in June'
Spanish World Cup winner and double European champion Xabi Alonso is set to retire at the end of the season when his Bayern Munich contract expires, a report in Germany said.
Leader Bayern kicks off the second half of the Bundesliga season at Freiburg Friday in its bid for a fifth straight German league title with the 35-year-old Alonso poised to end his playing career in June.
It would mean the German giant could lose significant experience for next season with club captain and ex-Germany skipper Philipp Lahm also reportedly considering retiring in June to take over as Bayern's team manager.
According to Sport Bild, Alonso has already told club bosses he does not want to sign a contract extension.
Having joined Bayern for the 2014-15 season, Alonso is bidding to finish with a third straight German league title with Munich currently three points clear in the table.
Alonso has won 16 titles for clubs and country, including the 2010 World Cup and the 2008 and 2012 European championships with Spain, making 114 international appearances.
He retired from international duty in August 2014.


Clic here to read the story from its source.