Brazil forward Neymar has made his first appearance for Al-Hilal in over a year after recovering from surgery on a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee.

The 32-year-old came on in the 77th minute of his side’s 5-4 win over UAE Pro League side Al-Ain in the Asian Champions League.

Neymar sustained the injury on 17 October 2023 while playing for Brazil in their 2026 World Cup qualifier with Uruguay.

The forward, who is Brazil’s male all-time top goalscorer, underwent surgery the following month.

The substitute came close to marking his return with a goal following an Al-Hilal counter-attack, but it was Al-Ain who recovered possession to pull a goal back late on.

Neymar moved to Saudi Arabia from Paris St-Germain for a fee understood to be worth about 90m euros (£77.6m) plus add-ons in August 2023.

He was sidelined for multiple months during his last two seasons with PSG because of ankle injuries.

He made five appearances for Al-Hilal before rupturing his ACL.

ONE Championship prospect Idris Abdurashitov scored a vicious head kick knockout over the weekend but there was only one problem — he did it in a boxing match.

The unbelievable footage that surfaced from the weekend shows Abdurashitov engaged in a boxing match with Bagher Faraji, an Iranian boxer with a 1-3 record overall, when the head kick is delivered to end the fight.

It was a wild exchange with Abdurashitov uncorking the head kick at the end of the sequence and Faraji immediately crumbling to the canvas after.

Abdurashitov was disqualified for his actions, but that didn’t stop him from posting the clip on his Instagram page to highlight the knockout.

The abysmal decision to throw the head kick adds a rather significant black mark on what was starting out as a promising résumé in MMA for Abdurashitov after he went 4-0 to start his career, including a stoppage in in his ONE Championship debut in September.

Video Details

EVERY footballer dreams of helping their club win trophies – but lifting the Ballon d’Or is the one individual award that tops all.

Lionel Messi picked up his eighth gong last year after leading Argentina to their first World Cup title win since 1986 during the 2022 competition.

1

However, it was seen as a controversial decision due to Messi’s underwhelming season at club level compared to Erling Haaland who fired Manchester City to an incredible Treble.

Organisers are set to have an even tougher task in choosing the winners this time round with the likes of Real Madrid duo Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Jr having outstanding seasons for their club.

Also, there a massive shouts for Rodri to get his hands on the after playing a vital role in Spain’s Euro 2024 triumph.

Either way, SunSport has all the information on when the Ballon d’Or 2024 winner will be announced.

And you can keep scrolling to find out.

When is the Ballon d’Or 2024 winner announced?

• The Ballon d’Or 2024 winner will be announced on Monday, October 28.
• It is scheduled to get underway at 7pm GMT, 2pm ET and 8pm local time.
• Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, France is the allocated arena for this huge ceremony and it can host approximately 2,500 spectators.

Where can I watch the Ballon d’Or 2024 for FREE?

The Ballon d’Or 2024 awards ceremony will be streamed live for FREE on L’Equipe’s YouTube channel.

What are the Ballon d’Or 2024 nominees?

Below are the 30 players who have been nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or.

• Jude Bellingham (England and Real Madrid)
• Ruben Dias (Portugal and Manchester City)
• Phil Foden (England and Manchester City)
• Federico Valverde (Uruguay and Real Madrid)
• Emiliano Martinez (Argentina and Aston Villa)
• Erling Haaland (Norway and Manchester City)
• Nico Williams (Spain and Athletic Bilbao)
• Granit Xhaka (Switzerland and Bayer Leverkusen)
• Artem Dovbyk (Ukraine and Roma)
• Toni Kroos (former Germany and Real Madrid)
• Vinicius Jr (Brazil and Real Madrid)
• Dani Olmo (Spain and Barcelona)
• Florian Wirtz (Germany and Bayer Leverkusen)
• Martin Odegaard (Norway and Arsenal)
• Mats Hummels (Germany, free agent)
• Rodri (Spain and Manchester City)
• Harry Kane (England and Bayern Munich)
• Declan Rice (England and Arsenal)
• Vitinha (Portugal and Paris St-Germain)
• Cole Palmer (England and Chelsea)
• Dani Carvajal (Spain and Real Madrid)
• Lamine Yamal (Spain and Barcelona)
• Bukayo Saka (England and Arsenal)
• Hakan Calhanoglu (Turkey and Inter Milan)
• William Saliba (France and Arsenal)
• Kylian Mbappe (France and Real Madrid)
• Lautaro Martinez (Argentina and Inter Milan)
• Ademola Lookman (Nigeria and Atalanta)
• Antonio Rudiger (Germany and Real Madrid)
• Alejandro Grimaldo (Spain and Bayer Leverkusen)

What has been said?

Real Madrid star Rodrygo is not happy with the nominations despite seeing his teammates selected to potentially win the Ballon d’Or.

Rodrygo told ESPN regarding his snub: “I was upset, I think I deserved it. I don’t want to belittle the players who are there, but I think I had a place in the 30. It was a surprise… But there’s not much I can do, I’m not the one who decides these things.”

Who has won the most Ballon d’Ors?

Here is a list of all the multiple-time Ballon d’Or winners:

• Lionel Messi – 8 (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023)
• Cristiano Ronaldo – 5 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017)
• Michel Platini – 3 (1983, 1984, 1985)
• Johan Cruyff – 3 (1971, 1971, 1974)
• Marco van Basten – 3 (1988, 1989, 1992)
• Franz Beckenbauer – 2 (1972, 1976)
• Ronaldo – 2 (1997, 2002)
• Alfredo Di Stefano – 2 (1957, 1959)
• Kevin Keegan – 2 (1978, 1979)
• Karl-Heinz Rummenigge – 2 (1980, 1981)

LAS VEGAS – Jean Matsumoto beat Brad Katona with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 245 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Matsumoto, who stayed unbeaten with a win over a two-time “Ultimate Fighter” winner.

Jean Matsumoto def. Brad Katona

Jean Matsumoto

Result: Jean Matsumoto def. Brad Katona via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Updated records: Matsumoto (16-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC), Katona (16-4 MMA, 4-4 UFC)
Key stats: Katona landed more total strikes, landed at a higher percentage, had more total control time, had three takedowns – but lost on all three judges’ scorecards.

Matsumoto on the fight’s key moment

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Jean Matsumoto of Brazil kicks Brad Katona of Canada in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on October 19, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“Regardless of the result, I’m going to go for it and I’m going to be always looking to finish. … That’s the style of fighting I give. I’m going to give my all. I’m going to leave everything out there. If my opponent is prepared, that’s the fight they’re going to get. If my opponent is not prepared, it’s going to end soon.”

Matsumoto on hopes to get his father to one of his U.S. fights

Jean Matsumoto def. Brad Katona, UFC Fight Night 245 (via UFC)

“My dad is actually one of my coaches. He tried to get his visa for the fourth time, even with the letter from the UFC, but unfortunately he wasn’t able to make it. For me to be in the UFC is already one of his dreams come true. But for him to be here would be another dream coming true. It would be great. The first thing I do is actually call my dad and my mom. They’re so happy to see me win. He hasn’t done any (post-fight) coaching yet. I haven’t heard any bad things that I did today. But I’m sure he’s going to say something.”

Matsumoto on what he wants next

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – JUNE 08: Raul Rosas Jr. reacts after his victory against Ricky Turcios in a bantamweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at KFC YUM! Center on June 08, 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

“I don’t choose opponents. I prepare myself all the time to actually face whoever it is that they put in front of me. Listen, I’ve asked for Raul Rosas Jr. a couple of times. They didn’t give it to me. But whoever they give me, it doesn’t matter: I’ll be prepared to take on the world.”

To hear more from Matsumoto, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 245.

Joey Logano was having a solid day even before his fuel gamble, but it was never supposed to end in victory. Entering the Round of 8, thanks to Alex Bowman’s shocking disqualification the week prior, Logano looked like a real long shot to make the Championship 4. 

But he’s done it — locking himself in before title favorites Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell. Logano credits it as a total team effort. Crew chief Paul Wolfe, spotter Coleman Pressley, engineers Brandon ‘Shaggy’ Pope and Joseph Bisson, even fueler Nick Hensley — he needed all of them to be able to pull this off.

“I don’t think there’s a team out there that works better together than Team Penske,” declared Logano in his winner’s press conference. “That is just in our DNA all the way through. That started years and years and years ago. I can’t even take credit for being part of that.”

What makes it even more impressive is that Logano only has six top-fives this year, and three of those are race wins.

The path to victory

Logano went into Sunday’s race in tenth and steadily moved forward, ending Stage 1 in eighth place, and Stage 2 in fifth. When the pivotal caution flew for a spin by Ty Gibbs with 74 laps remaining, Logano was running eighth for what would be the final restart.

As most of the leaders chose to pit under green for a splash of fuel with about 40 laps left to run, Logano’s team went in a different direction. He was not alone in this decision to try and stretch the field with playoff rival Denny Hamlin right behind him and Daniel Suarez four seconds up the road. Crucially, he was also a full lap ahead of Bell, who led those with fresh tires and a full load of fuel.

With 30 laps to go, a charging Bell was over 20 seconds behind Logano and Suarez, but Logano was quickly slashing away at that margin. He waited patiently, chipping away at Suarez’s lead until he was given the green light to go. With a helpful push from his wounded teammate, Ryan Blaney, Logano began to close rapidly, easily passing Suarez with just six laps left in the race.

It was the first lap Logano had led the entire race. But Bell was still forward and Logano was closing fast. With one more lap, Bell would have likely won the race no matter how much fuel Logano had on board, but the No. 22 team timed it perfectly. Logano crossed the line 0.662s ahead of a shocked Bell, locking himself into the final four.

“I was just focused on the information I was being fed,” explained Logano. “I was going as fast as I felt comfortable going with saving fuel. I knew I couldn’t waste time with Suarez. I knew I had to get by him. Took an extra lap longer than I wanted it to be. Was able to get by him in enough time. Felt like we were in good shape.

“I only knew that because of what Coleman [Pressley, spotter] was telling me up there. He is like, ‘I think we are in good shape. He is not going to catch us if we keep doing what we are doing. As long as you don’t get enough traffic friction by passing cars and not doing it efficiently, you’re going to be able to stay ahead there.’

Joey Logano, Team Penske, Pennzoil Ford Mustang

Photo by: John Harrelson / NKP / Motorsport Images

“The pace was starting to equal out as tires were wearing after a long run like that. That information made me pretty confident. I know Paul [Wolfe, crew chief] well enough now that when I hear it in his voice, he felt pretty confident we were going to make it on gas.”

Logano has been here before, turning a 2022 win at Vegas into his second NASCAR Cup title. Just like this, he doesn’t have to put any effort whatsoever into the rest of this round with all eyes now on Phoenix. “The next two weeks don’t really matter,” he declared. “It’s the advantage that we earned. We know what that advantage is worth. It’s a worth a lot. Our focus tomorrow morning will be on Phoenix, job to finish.”

Should Logano prevail, he will be the first driver to ever win three titles under this format and just the tenth driver in history to ever win three or more.