In the Women’s Champions League, Lyon thrashed Swiss side Servette Geneva in their opening European match. Last season’s runners-up left their opponents with no chance. The defending champions Barcelona also got off to a flying start, securing a 5–2 victory over Paris-based PFC.

India’s September 25 schedule at the Asian Games 2026 will feature seven confirmed medal events, along with qualification rounds, knockout contests and group-stage matches across shooting, canoe sprint, athletics, weightlifting, squash, table tennis, swimming, fencing, surfing, hockey and esports. 

The day will begin early, with surfing, fencing and shooting events starting before 6:30 am IST. India’s first confirmed medal opportunity will come in shooting, where Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil and Niraj Kumar will compete in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions team final from 7:15 am. 

Canoe sprint will provide another medal opportunity at 8:10 am, when Dhanamanjuri Devi Khwairakpam, Pooja, Soniya Devi Phairembam and Parvathy Geetha compete in the women’s kayak four 500m Final A. 

Weightlifting will then take centre stage, with Seram Nirupama Devi competing in the women’s 61kg Group A final at 1:30 pm.

Athletics will account for the final four confirmed medal events of the day. Manpreet Kaur and Krishna Jayasankar Menon will compete in the women’s shot put final at 3:35 pm, followed by Sindhushree Ganesha and Baranica Elangovan in the women’s pole vault final at 4:33 pm. 

Gulveer Singh will contest the men’s 10,000m final at 5:02 pm, while Damneet Singh and Praveen Kumar will compete in the men’s hammer throw final at 5:10 pm. 

Apart from the confirmed medal events, India will have several opportunities to progress to later rounds. Shooting will see Kamaljeet and Suruchi Inder Singh compete in the 10m air pistol mixed-team qualification at 6:15 am, while the men’s foil team and women’s épée team will begin their respective knockout campaigns in fencing. 

Table tennis will have a packed schedule, with Indian combinations competing in mixed doubles, men’s doubles, women’s singles, men’s singles and women’s doubles. The mixed doubles quarterfinals will feature Manush Shah/Diya Chitale against Wong Chun Ting/Doo Hoi Kem of Hong Kong, China, while Harmeet Desai/Yashaswini Ghorpade will face Lin Shidong/Kuai Man of China. 

Squash will also feature several key knockout matches. Abhay Singh will face Ryunosuke Tsukue of Japan in the men’s singles quarterfinal at 9:15 am, while Anahat Singh and Tanvi Khanna will meet in an all-Indian women’s singles quarterfinal at 10:00 am. Veer Chotrani will face Pakistan’s Muhammad Irfan in another men’s singles quarterfinal at 10:45 am. Joshana Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar will also compete in the mixed doubles quarterfinal. 

Swimming will see Indian competitors in the men’s 50m breaststroke, 200m backstroke, 400m freestyle and 200m butterfly heats. Danush Suresh, Rishabh Das, Utkarsh Patil, Dhakshan Shashikumar, Aneesh Sunil and Sajan Prakash will be in action.

Athletics will also continue with Anamika Kozhinjaparambil and Pooja competing in the women’s heptathlon long jump and javelin throw. India will also have Kiran and Prachi in the women’s 400m heats, followed by Vishal Kaylvizhi Thennarasu in the men’s 400m heat. 

Team sports will see the Indian women’s hockey team take on Japan in a Pool B match at 7:30 am. India will also be represented in esports, with the Pokémon UNITE team facing South Korea in a Group C match at 7:55 am.

 Here’s a look at the full schedule of India’s matches and events for September 25 at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya.

India’s medal events on September 25

India will have seven confirmed medal events on September 25. The first medal opportunity will come in shooting, where Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil and Niraj Kumar will compete in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions team final at 7:15 am IST. At 8:10 am, Dhanamanjuri Devi Khwairakpam, Pooja, Soniya Devi Phairembam and Parvathy Geetha will feature in the women’s kayak four 500m Final A in canoe sprint. 

Seram Nirupama Devi will compete in the women’s 61kg Group A final in weightlifting at 1:30 pm. Athletics will account for the remaining four medal events, with Manpreet Kaur and Krishna Jayasankar Menon competing in the women’s shot put final at 3:35 pm, followed by Sindhushree Ganesha and Baranica Elangovan in the women’s pole vault final at 4:33 pm. Gulveer Singh will contest the men’s 10,000m final at 5:02 pm, while Damneet Singh and Praveen Kumar will compete in the men’s hammer throw final at 5:10 pm.

Asian Games 2026 September 25 India events live streaming details

The live streaming of the Asian Games 2026 events on September 25 will be available on the SonyLIV app and website in India.

Asian Games 2026 September 25 India events live telecast details

The live telecast of Asian Games 2026 events will be available on Sony Sports Network in India.

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A date has been set for Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua’s highly anticipated heavyweight clash.

The bout, one of the biggest in British boxing history, will take place at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on December 11.

The details were announced by Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and president of the Saudi Boxing Federation, with the tagline: “Years in the making. One night to settle it.”

Alalshikh’s The Ring will collaborate with promoter Dana White, with the fight streamed globally on Netflix at no additional cost.

Manchester United’s respective academy teams have been pleasing starts to the new season.

The Under-21s entered the September international break third in the Premier League 2, having won all three of their matches, and the two teams above, Southampton and Tottenham, have played one more match.

Meanwhile, the Under-18s are third in the Premier League North table, six points adrift of league leaders Manchester City. Newcastle are second, but United beat the Magpies just before the international break.

This week’s Academy Notebook brings you an injury update and highlights a kind gesture from Shea Lacey.

Kamason update

Jaydan Kamason was absent from the U21 squad against Brentford for their final game before the international break due to a small injury.

Sources described Kamason’s absence as precautionary. It’s understood the issue is only a small niggle, meaning the defender is expected to be back in action in a couple of weeks.

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When Kamason returns, he is hoping for a clear run-up until the January transfer window with the hope of leaving on loan. United received loan interest from Championship clubs over summer, but it was decided Kamason should stay with the academy for the first half of the season.

That decision was made to give Kamason a guarantee of minutes, and he looked really sharp before picking up the small injury, recording an assist in games against Ipswich Town and Leicester.

Lacey’s kind gesture

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Shea Lacey is an exciting prospect, as was highlighted by his goal against Brighton in the Carabao Cup, but he’s also a good egg.

Lacey once made a young fan’s day by gifting his boots at Carrington and he made another kind gesture after the 1-1 draw against Fulham last weekend, when he handed over his shirt to a young supporter.

Hanson, a young United fan, attended the Fulham game with his father. The pair briefly spoke to Lacey outside the team’s hotel and showed him the sign Hanson had created, reading: “Shea, can I have your shirt please.”

Lacey promised that if he spotted the pair, he would hand his shirt to Hanson, and he kept his word after the final whistle.

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Ibragimov on fire

Amir Ibrahimov made his senior debut for Russia over the summer, which was a big milestone, but he was left out of their expanded squad for matches against Iran, Namibia and Nigeria during this international break.

Sources close to the player said he was staying in Manchester to focus on United.

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However, not joining up with Russia also gives the player more time, as FIFA allows players who have played up to three senior international caps prior to the age of 21 to switch nations. Ibragimov made two caps for Russia earlier this year, becoming the third-youngest player for his nation.

The 18-year-old has been in terrific form this term, scoring two goals and contributing two assists in four games. The U21s won 3-2 against Brentford before the break, but they were trailing in the game until Ibragimov equalised with a smart finish from the edge of the box.

While it’s understood Ibragimov sees his long-term future in the No.10 role, he has been played as a false nine this season. “He learned a lot from going on international duty over the summer,” said U21 boss Adam Lawrence recently.

“He came back with a couple of things in terms of the intensity of the game at that level and some of the details around his game he really wanted to focus on.

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“If I look at his levels from the start of the season in terms of the qualities he’s showing, recognising when to drop in, when to run in behind and being a goal threat, he’s in a good space.”

International call-ups

United have several youngsters who have been called up to international duty this month, and it’s been great to see so many included in the England Under-20 and Under-19 squads.

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Harry Amass, Ayden Heaven, Jack Fletcher, Jim Thwaites and Lacey were called up to the U20 side, meaning United will have strong represantion in that age group, while Albert Mills, Bendito Mantato and Tynan Thompson are all part of the Three Lions’ U19s squad for the break.

Thwaites’ call up was particularly interesting, as it representes the first time he’s played with one of England’s youth teams. The midfielder is a big talent, so it’s about time he was given a chance on international duty.

Marink Reedijk has vow to develop a “brave, intense and committed” Hibernian team after leaving Belgian top-flight club Beveren to become the club’s new manager.

The Dutchman, 35, replaces David Gray, who was sacked eight days ago after a difficult start to the term for the Scottish Premiership outfit.

Reedijk has spent the last two seasons with Beveren, earning promotion to the top flight last season after an unbeaten campaign.

He previous worked in academy roles at Ajax and West Bromwich Albion, and in with the senior teams at KSV Roeselare, Vitesse and RSCA Futures.

Hibs say Reedijk – who is “honoured” to be appointed – arrives with a reputation for attacking football and building a strong team culture.

“I can feel the ambition and see the clarity of what the club is trying to achieve,” he said. “That was a big part of what attracted me here.

“I want us to be an assertive team. A team that gives everything, plays with purpose and gives our supporters something to really get behind.”

Reedijk will be assisted by Rogier Molhoek at Easter Road.

More to follow.

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Following a promise to launch an independent review of Fifa’s governance, president Gianni Infantino has stated he has “never been more determined and committed” to doing “what is right for the game”.

Infantino has come under intense scrutiny, notably from European governing body Uefa, after details of a proposed private investment vehicle to manage the World Cup and other tournaments were disclosed by The Times in July.

Through US court petitions, Uefa is demanding access to files relating to the deal. It could potentially file a criminal complaint in Switzerland should evidence show Infantino undervalued the commercial entity at $20 billion.

Although Fifa has branded the legal actions by Uefa as a “smear campaign”, Infantino responded with promises to reform the governing body’s internal structures.

However, these commitments have done little to reassure critics seeking clarity regarding the investment proposal alongside Fifa’s management of the Folarin Balogun case.

Posting on Instagram, the Swiss executive said: “There must be a culture of dialogue, of listening to each other and respecting one another.

“This is not about generating positive headlines, it is about doing what is right for the game. I have never been more determined and committed in doing that.”

Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt, who serves as a Fifa vice-president and sits on the Fifa Council, has written to Infantino demanding the disclosure of files concerning both the investment plan and the Balogun matter. She plans to confront him directly during the upcoming Fifa Council meeting in Zurich on 15 October.

In addition, Infantino has been faulted for “woefully inadequate” levels of co-operation with an investigation by democratic members of the United States House Judiciary Committee examining his ties to US president Donald Trump.

His social media message urging open communication was published from Jeddah during discussions with senior Saudi figures. The Saudi Arabian federation, alongside Qatar, has positioned itself as a crucial backer for Infantino as he seeks to retain leadership and win a fourth term in next year’s election.

Meanwhile, Uefa has vowed to present a credible challenger prior to the submission deadline for candidacies on 18 November.

The upcoming fortnight starting with an international friendly against world No. 44 Panama on Friday will offer Indian players a chance to gain valuable experience and find a new direction as a footballing nation. The match against Panama at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium is a precursor to contests against more storied opponents in five-time world champions Brazil (October 3) and two-time title winners Uruguay (October 6) at Kolkata.

Panama, a tiny nation with 4.65 million population, have achieved some tall feats on the football field. Apart from qualifying for the 2018 and 2026 FIFA World Cups, they have also finished runners-up in the CONCACAF Nations League 2024-25.

In the 2026 global showpiece, they stretched superior rivals like England, Croatia and Ghana in Group L before making an exit.

In contrast, the India have been struggling to make a strong impression even at the Asian level, and have been plagued with domestic structure turmoil in recent times.

But if the Khalid Jamil coached side can produce a doughty show against undoubtedly superior opponents in the coming two weeks that can induce a fresh wave of confidence and optimism into the Indian ranks.

Playing against a more accomplished side, will help the players to widen their knowledge base.

These matches will also offer the Indian team and the administrators to look into the mirror and gain some understanding about the depth the standard of the game in the country has plummeted over the years.

After all, a cathartical opportunity does not knock on the door often.

Jamil seemed to have understood that point well.

“This is a very important window for us, with three challenging matches against teams that have played at the World Cup.

“Playing Brazil and Uruguay in Kolkata, after facing Panama in Bengaluru, will give the players valuable experience at the international level,” he said after announcing a 26-played squad for the three matches.

Anwarl Ali in the defence, Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad in the midfield and forwards Edmund Lalrindika, Manvir Singh and Rahim Ali can look forward to play a positive game to keep their fancied opponents at bay.

But that is easier said than done as Panama have included 14 players from their 2026 World Cup squad, and overall, 22 out of 24 footballers have experience of playing in foreign leagues like Major Soccer League in the USA, and in Turkey, Mexico and Austria.

Amir Murillo of Besiktas, Andres Andrade of LASK, Tomas Rodriguez of Barcelona SC Guayaquil and Jose Cordoba of Norwich City are some of their frontline players.

The Indians will have to guard against Panama’s ability to sit back before launching vertical counterattacks, making a compact strategical approach mandatory by the hosts.

That larger picture aside, the match against Panama will keep the Indians mentally ready ahead of the matches against Brazil and Uruguay, who have stars like Vinicius Junior, Raphinha, Alvaro Rodriguez, Facundo and Ronald Araujo.

Squads

India:

 Goalkeepers: Albino Gomes, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Prabhsukhan Singh Gill, Som Kumar

 Defenders: Abhishek Singh Tekcham, Akash Mishra, Anwar Ali, Bijoy Varghese, Hmingthanmawia Ralte, Jay Gupta, Pramveer, Ricky Meetei Haobam

 Midfielders: Anirudh Thapa, Ashique Kuruniyan, Farukh Choudhary, Lalengmawia Ralte, Macarton Nickson, Mohammed Sanan, Ricky Shabong, Sahal Abdul Samad

 Forwards: Edmund Lalrindika, Irfan Yadwad, Manvir Singh, Rahim Ali, Ryan Williams, Vikram Partap Singh.

Panama:

 Goalkeepers: Orlando Mosquera, Marcos De Leon, Eddie Roberts

Defenders: Cesar Blackman, Jorge Gutirrez, Jair Model, Amir Murillo, Omar Valencia, Martin Krug, Andrs Andrade, Jos Cordoba, Jiovany Ramos, Joseph Jones, Eduardo Anderson

Midfielders: Carlos Harvey, Adalberto, Cristian Martinez, Jos Luis Rodriguez, Victor Griffith, Daivis Murillo, Azarias Londono, Rafael Mosquera, Giovany Herbert

Forwards: Jose Fajardo, Josue Vergara, Mijahir Jimnez, Tomas Rodriguez.

Kickoff: 7.30 PM.  

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Neeraj Chopra Wins Silver, Yashvir Singh Bronze As India Seal Double Podium In CWG Javelin

With just a few days left in the regular season, the AL West might make a particularly mediocre kind of history.

After Tuesday night’s games, the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros were tied for first place at 78-79. No full-season division champion has ever had a losing record.

In fact, no team has made the postseason with a sub-.500 record, unless you count a trio of participants from years the playoffs were temporarily expanded: In the 2020 season shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic, Milwaukee and Houston were both 29-31 and made the postseason.

After Tuesday night’s games, the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros were tied for first place at 78-79. No full-season division champion has ever had a losing record.(Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

In 1981, the Kansas City Royals went 50-53 overall — but they were the AL West’s top team in the post-strike second half, meaning they got in.

Then in 1994, the Rangers led a woeful AL West at 52-62 when the players’ strike ended the season. Every team in the division was under .500 and no postseason was played.

MLB expanded its postseason to 12 teams in 2022, raising the likelihood that a sub-.500 team would sneak into October at some point. Just a few weeks ago, it looked like the American League could have several clubs with losing marks in this year’s playoffs. The AL Central’s Cleveland Guardians and Chicago White Sox have since reached 81 wins, so that won’t happen. But the AL West title race could still yield a losing team.

In honor of that, here are 10 of the weakest teams to make the postseason, listed in chronological order with their records and run differentials in mind. Note that some of them went on lengthy postseason runs — so don’t count out the Rangers or Astros just yet.

Record: 82-79 (first in NL East)

Run differential: 20

Postseason: Beat Cincinnati 3-2 in NL Championship Series, lost to Oakland 4-3 in World Series

The rallying cry was “Ya gotta believe!” from reliever Tug McGraw. It wasn’t easy when New York was in last place after an Aug. 30 loss, but the Mets went 21-8 the rest of the way to win the division by 1 1/2 games. Tom Seaver (19-10, 2.08 ERA, 18 complete games) was still at the peak of his powers, and New York held the Reds to eight runs in five games in the NLCS — a series best remembered for a brawl involving Bud Harrelson and Pete Rose. The Mets led the World Series 3-2 and had Seaver starting Game 6, but they couldn’t close out the Athletics.

Record: 84-78 (first in AL West)

Run differential: minus-13

Postseason: Lost to Detroit 3-0 in ALCS

The Royals were 11 games under .500 in the middle of July, but they did enough to win the AL West. George Brett hit .284 — his worst average in a 14-year span from 1975-88 — and he was one of just two All-Stars on the team. The other was Dan Quisenberry, who had 44 saves while throwing 129 1/3 innings. He finished second in the Cy Young race behind fellow reliever Willie Hernández of the Tigers. Although Kansas City took the division almost by default in ’84, the Royals improved to 91 wins the following year and won the World Series.

Record: 85-77 (first in AL West)

Run differential: minus-20

Postseason: Beat Detroit 4-1 in ALCS, beat St. Louis 4-3 in World Series

Frank Viola was the star of a pitching staff that otherwise offered little — aside from a trio of big names on the downside of their careers. Bert Blyleven allowed 46 home runs, Joe Niekro posted a 6.26 ERA and Steve Carlton made seven largely woeful starts for this Minnesota team. The Twins could hit, though. Kirby Puckett was third in the MVP race, while Kent Hrbek, Gary Gaetti and Tom Brunansky each surpassed 30 homers. Home-field advantage wasn’t determined by record back then, so Minnesota had it in the ALCS despite finishing 13 games behind the Tigers, and again in the World Series after being 10 games worse than the Cardinals. The Twins went 6-0 at the Metrodome in the postseason.

Record: 77-67 (second in NL West, wild card)

Run differential: 2

Postseason: Lost 3-1 to Atlanta in NL Division Series

The first wild card in National League history was this Colorado team in a season shortened by the end of the 1994-95 work stoppage. The Rockies’ ERA of 4.97 is the worst of the live ball era by a postseason team in a non-DH league. Colorado made up for that, not surprisingly, by leading the NL in runs. Dante Bichette led the league in home runs and RBIs and finished third in batting average.

Record: 82-80 (first in NL West)

Run differential: minus-42

Postseason: Lost 3-0 to St. Louis in NLDS

Jake Peavy and a Trevor Hoffman-led bullpen helped San Diego reach the playoffs, but this team never looked the part. The Padres scored the fourth-fewest runs in all of baseball, and their starters went 52-60 with a 4.49 ERA. In the postseason, San Diego never had the lead at any point against the 100-win Cardinals. Game 1 was 8-0 after six innings, Game 2 was 6-1 after seven, and Game 3 was 7-0 after 4 1/2.

Record: 83-78 (first in NL Central)

Run differential: 19

Postseason: Beat San Diego 3-1 in NLDS, beat New York Mets 4-3 in NLCS, beat Detroit 4-1 in World Series

The Cardinals won at least 95 games four times under Tony La Russa, but their best postseason success came as a wild card in 2011 and with this team five years earlier. St. Louis nearly blew a seven-game lead in the division in the final two weeks of the regular season, but a roster with Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen, Chris Carpenter and a young reliever named Adam Wainwright always had a chance to get hot. Yadier Molina’s homer — and Wainwright’s strikeout of Carlos Beltrán — gave the Cardinals the pennant in an epic series with the Mets.

Record: 85-77 (second in AL Central, second wild card)

Run differential: 27

Postseason: Lost to New York Yankees in wild card game

After 103 losses in 2016, the Twins were in first place for a little while before eventually capturing the AL’s final postseason spot and losing 8-4 to the Yankees. Byron Buxton played 140 games, the most of his career to date, and Brian Dozier hit 34 home runs. Joe Mauer had moved to first base by this point but was still quite good at the plate, batting .305. Ervin Santana led the rotation in his last good major league season. This team certainly wasn’t great, but it was good enough in an AL that produced only five teams above .500.

Record: 84-78 (third in NL East, second wild card)

Run differential: minus-57

Postseason: Lost to Philadelphia 2-0 in NL Wild Card Series

The Marlins posted the worst run differential to date by a postseason team — this year’s Astros are currently at minus-59 — but Miami went 33-14 in one-run games. The pitching staff with Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, Jesus Luzardo and Braxton Garrett helped Miami into the playoffs. Of the Marlins’ top 12 players in plate appearances, seven of them finished with negative wins above replacement, according to Baseball Reference. The offense was basically batting champ Luis Arraez, designated hitter Jorge Soler and not much else. Miami lost 93 games the year before this playoff appearance and 100 the year after.

Record: 84-78 (second in NL West, third wild card)

Run differential: minus-15

Postseason: Beat Milwaukee 2-0 in NLWCS, beat Los Angeles Dodgers 3-0 in NLDS, beat Philadelphia 4-3 in NLCS, lost to Texas 4-1 in World Series

Just get in and anything can happen. These Diamondbacks were one of the best examples of that. Arizona started August with nine straight losses to fall below .500, but after doing enough to make the playoffs, they swept two division champions and then won the last two games of the NLCS on the road to capture the second pennant in franchise history. Arizona had a negative run differential in the regular season and was also outscored 30-21 in that series against the Phillies. It didn’t matter.

Record: 83-79 (third in NL Central, third wild card)

Run differential: 35

Postseason: Lost to Los Angeles Dodgers 2-0 in NLWCS

The Reds had a respectable run differential but little star power aside from Elly De La Cruz and the often-injured Hunter Greene. Cincinnati beat out the Mets on a tiebreaker for the NL’s final postseason spot — seven games behind the No. 2 wild card — and then made a quick exit. The Reds’ best month was 15-11 and their worst was 12-15. Simply avoiding any extended slumps was enough to make the playoffs.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.