Day 2 of the MLBB Mid Season Cup (MSC) 2026 Knockout took place on July 30, 2026. Russia’s Team Spirit hammered Malaysia’s Team Vamos in the Quarterfinals and advanced to the Semifinals. Indonesia’s ONIC also reached the Semifinals by defeating Turkey’s Aurora Gaming. Vamos and Aurora were eliminated from the event.
The MSC 2026 Knockout Stage kicked off on July 29 with eight teams. The Quarterfinal matches were played in the first two days of the stage. So far, four teams have been eliminated from the MLBB contest, while Team Spirit, ONIC, Falcons, and Yangon Galacticos are in the race for the trophy.
Day 2 summary of MSC 2026 Knockout
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On Day 2, Team Spirit played magnificently in their first match against Team Vamos and won the battle 3-0. The Russian squad looked impressive in all three rounds of the match. They will now face ONIC in the Semifinals for a spot in the Grand Finals.
Team Vamos was impressive in the Group Stage as the Malaysian side clinched two consecutive matches and entered the Playoffs. They had defeated Team Spirit there but failed to beat them in the Playoffs.
ONIC outplayed Aurora Gaming in a high-octane clash by a scoreline of 3-2. The Indonesian lineup had a disappointing start to the match, losing out in the opening round. They then made a quick comeback and defeated their opponent in the second round, but didn’t maintain their consistency and lost another round. The lineup managed to win the last two rounds.
Aurora Gaming made a nice start to the MSC 2026, as the squad outclassed defending champion Team Liquid in their first match of the Group Stage. The Turkish team also beat ONIC in the Group Stage to qualify for the Playoffs but were unable to win against them in the Playoffs, getting eliminated from the event.
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On Day 1, Team Falcons emerged victorious against TeamVitality 3-1 and qualified for the Semifinals. Yangon Galacticos came out victorious against Pro Esports and entered the Semifinals. Both the losing teams were knocked out of the competition.
On July 31, the first match of the Semifinals will be held between Team Falcons and Yangon Galacticos at 15:30 IST. The second match of the Semifinals will be played between Team Spirit and ONIC at 18:00 IST. The winners of both games will move to the Grand Finals, while the losers will be eliminated from the MSC 2026.
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Keegan, a revered figure who managed Newcastle United and also played for the club for two years, passed away on 20 July after a battle with stage four cancer.
Donnelly, alongside his presenting partner Anthony McPartlin, honoured Keegan on their podcast, Hanging Out With Ant And Dec.
The duo hailed him as a “true legend to Newcastle United supporters,” reflecting on his profound impact.
They opened the episode by acknowledging Keegan’s immense significance to the people of the North East.
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Ant and Dec with Kevin Keegan in 1995 (Getty)
“Kevin Keegan was the reason that I really got into football, he was the David Beckham of his day. He was the Lionel Messi and the Cristiano Ronaldo of the 70s and 80s,” Donnelly said.
The 50-year-old continued: “He signed for Newcastle United in 1982, which is when my eldest brother had started taking me to football.
“Him signing for Newcastle was huge news, and that started my rollercoaster love affair with Newcastle United and football.
“He was my childhood hero. When we got the news through last week, I was absolutely devastated.
“I’m not ashamed to say I shed a tear.”
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Donnelly, who is from Newcastle upon Tyne, added: “He just meant so much to the people of the North East.
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“What he gave to us in his energy and enthusiasm and the hope he gave us for our football team.
“He just meant so much beyond football to the whole region. He was just such a special man.
“We were lucky enough to meet him on a couple of occasions.”
Donnelly, known for hosting shows such as I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, also recalled meeting Keegan for the first time when he was a young boy after he won a competition.
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He grew visibly emotional and said: “That was the best. They say you should never meet heroes, but he was absolutely the exception.”
“I shed a tear last week, and I shed another one this morning,” Donnelly added.
McPartlin also shared his sentiments about the football star, nicknamed “King Kev”, and said: “Words like legends and saviours get bandied around, but he did – he saved our club when he came back as manager.
“He’s a true legend of the game, and to Newcastle United supporters, and he will be missed.”
Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson (87) reacts after scoring a touchdown against the Washington Commanders at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Dec. 7, 2025. Hockenson celebrated in the second half after finishing the drive with a scoring catch as Minnesota’s passing attack found success at home. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images.
When the Minnesota Vikings traded for T.J. Hockenson back in 2022, the early results were promising. Hockenson seemed to have the world at his feet as he put forward a case to be recognized as one of the best tight ends in football. Then disaster struck.
T.J. Hockenson Out to Restore Reputation in 2026
After a strong second half in 2022 following his trade from the Detroit Lions, T.J. Hockenson was well on his way to breaking the 1,000 receiving yards mark for the first time in his career.
Playing against his former team in Week 16 of the 2023 season, Hockenson sat on 960 receiving yards and five touchdowns – reaching 1,000 seemed a formality. Then the Vikings TE1 suffered a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee – a devastating injury.
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Nov 30, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson (87) makes a catch during the second half against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images
It was a catastrophic injury that not only ended that season in its tracks but also lingered well into the 2024 season. Hockenson went from borderline top five at his position to almost becoming a forgotten man.
The Vikings and Hockenson agreed on a restructured contract in March that would save the team $5.75 million in salary cap space and make Hockenson a free agent at the end of the season – a year early. It ended speculation that Minnesota was looking to release their TE1 who was due to be the highest-paid TE in the league this season.
Two Years of Struggle
T.J. Hockenson didn’t return from his injury until Week 9 of the 2024 season but would then go on to play in every game for the rest of the season. In those 10 games, Hockenson caught 41 of 62 targets for 455 receiving yards – respectable numbers for the number of games played.
There were a few bad drops that caught the eye but most notably, for the first and to date only time in his career, Hockenson didn’t score a single touchdown across the season.
With a full preseason behind him, the hope was for a return to form for the Vikings TE1 in 2025. Hockenson did get back on the score sheet in 2025 with three touchdown catches. However, despite playing in 15 games his receiving yards actually dropped slightly to 438 from 51 receptions on 66 targets. That’s a humble 29.2 yards per game. From those statistics, something that sticks out to me is that in five extra games, Hockenson only got four more targets.
The offensive woes of the Vikings in 2025 stemmed from a complete disaster at the quarterback position, which saw three different starting QBs across the season (all of whom struggled). People jump to this fact when defending Justin Jefferson’s down season last year, but it is brushed aside when Hockenson is the subject at hand.
Can Hockenson get Back to His Best?
Hockenson had some of his sharpness back in 2025 and his successful catch percentage of 77.3 was the highest of his career. Get accurate balls to him regularly and Hockenson will deliver. He also earned praise from the coaching staff for his blocking being the best it has been in his career so far.
Pro Football Focus recently ranked Hockenson as the 21st-best TE in football. At 29 years old, he should have plenty left in the tank and in a settled Vikings offense that needs to show much improvement from last year, there is no reason why he shouldn’t get himself back in the frame for a top 10 guy at his position.
With this now being a contract year with Hockenson playing for his future he should have all the motivation that he needs.
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Another record-breaking season for trainer Chris Waller has been capped off with a midweek double at Randwick’s Kensington track, securing his sixteenth consecutive Sydney trainers’ premiership. The tally of Sydney metropolitan wins for the season now stands at 183.
The victories were achieved with Godolphin’s two-year-old filly Sequinned in the Inglis Xtra Bonus Plate (1100m) and Concordia Wind in the Tropicus @ Vinery Stud Handicap (1550m), adding a celebratory flourish to Waller’s dominant season.
The stable’s success was mirrored by its riders, with apprentice Siena Grima claiming the Sydney junior rider’s title with 34 wins, while James McDonald, a frequent jockey for Waller, secured the senior division for the tenth time.
Assistant trainer Charlie Duckworth commented on the driving force behind the stable’s success. “Chris is a relentless worker, and he does a lot of it himself,” Duckworth said. “Plenty of people get accolades for him, but he is the driving force.”
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Duckworth elaborated on the team’s exceptional performance this season. “Amazing that he has gone and broken his own records again. He had a bumper year in terms of the top tier horses, and I think we’ve also had more provincial winners than we had last year. Every category has been stronger this year without expanding in terms of numbers. It’s pretty cool.”
Waller’s string of 22 Group 1 winners this season surpasses his previous best of 19 from the 2024-25 period. Both Sequinned and Concordia Wind showcased promising performances at Randwick, despite not yet reaching the highest echelons of racing.
Sequinned, a half-sister to Bivouac, was in just her third career start. A city win as a two-year-old was a significant achievement for the filly, given her esteemed pedigree. “The main thing is you get a metropolitan win on the pedigree page. Not that you need much on a pedigree page like hers, but it still boosts the whole family,” Duckworth stated. “Then you just try to plot a path and hopefully end up in black type if you can.”
Ridden by Zac Lloyd, Sequinned ($11) secured a 1-1/4 length victory over Wanda’s Spark ($2.50), with Eviction Notice ($2.25 favourite) finishing third.
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European football’s governing body UEFA said on Thursday it would boycott the World Cup if FIFA pressed ahead with its private investor plan. “No UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive, unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership,” UEFA said in a statement. FRANCE 24’s James Vasina reports.
Serie A giants AS Roma travel to Wales this weekend to face off with EFL Championship side Cardiff City in a pre-season friendly.
This will be Cardiff’s final pre-season game before their 2026-27 campaign officially begins next weekend, while Roma still have three more games following this one.
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So can Roma start their time in Wales with a win, or will Cardiff pick up a big scalp?
Cardiff City vs AS Roma Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
The last time Cardiff faced off with Roma in a friendly match was prior to the 1963-64 season, when they travelled to Italy and suffered a 1-4 loss, a tour that also saw them draw 3-3 with Juventus and lose to Lazio.
Cardiff have already played three pre-season friendlies, beginning with a bad 0-6 defeat at the hands of Midtjylland. Since then, though, the Welsh side have beaten both Forest Green Rovers and Cork City, scoring eleven goals in those two games while conceding just two.
Roma’s first pre-season friendly saw them travel to Cannes, and they ended up drawing 3-3 with the French third-tier side. They are set to follow this match against Cardiff with one against another Welsh side, Newport County, before they play Brighton and Borussia Dortmund.
Outside of France’s Manu Kone, who remains on an extended break following the World Cup, Roma have a full-strength squad to call upon for this match, with the likes of Paolo Dybala, Donyell Malen and Matias Soule all available.
Cardiff’s eleven-goal haul in their last two friendly matches was not a surprise to fans who followed them in their League One campaign last season. The Bluebirds were the competition’s top scorers with 90 goals, something that heavily contributed to their promotion.
Cardiff City vs AS Roma Prediction
There’s no doubt that on paper, Roma are a far superior outfit to Cardiff, even without arguably their best player in the form of Manu Kone.
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However, Cardiff are very dangerous going forward – as their recent friendly wins showed – and they do have the home advantage here. What’s more, they will be arguably better-prepared and sharper for this match after playing more games, while Roma looked rusty against Cannes.
With that in mind, then, the prediction here is a score draw,
Super Falcons goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie has spoken for the first time since Nigeria’s shocking 3-2 defeat to Malawi at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), promising that the team will learn from the setback and return stronger.
The nine-time African champions suffered a surprise defeat in their Group C opener, leaving their title defence under immediate pressure.
Reacting in a post on social media on Thursday, July 30, Nnadozie admitted the result was painful but praised the fighting spirit of the team.
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“This one hurts really bad. Not the result we wanted, but the fight was real. Left it all on the field, but wasn’t enough to get the three points,” she wrote.
“We take full responsibility for our performance against a very tough opponent. It stings, but we grow. Falls hurt, but we do not stay down.”
The goalkeeper ended her message on a positive note, saying: “Head high, heart full. Proud of this team, always.”
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Her comments came after head coach Justin Madugu defended his players following the defeat, insisting the loss was a collective failure and not the fault of any individual.
“Chiamaka Nnadozie is a top-class goalkeeper. It wasn’t the fault of one player, we generally had a bad day as a team,” Madugu said.
The coach described the defeat as a wake-up call and expressed confidence that the Super Falcons have the quality and experience to recover.
“We have identified the areas we need to improve on, and we’ll go back to work immediately. I believe this team has the quality, character and experience to bounce back stronger,” he said.
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Nigeria will now shift focus to a crucial Group C clash against Zambia on August 1, knowing that victory is vital to keep alive their hopes of winning a record-extending 10th WAFCON title.
The subsidiary would be responsible for FIFA’s commercial rights like broadcast, sponsorship, ticketing and licensing contracts for its competitions, including the World Cup.
UEFA’s 55 members met to discuss a response to FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s controversial plans.
“No UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive, unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership,” UEFA said in a statement.
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“The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product… No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale,” the statement added.
Shortly after, North America’s soccer body CONCACAF unanimously rejected the FIFA plan, though it stopped short of a boycott.
UEFA swiftly rejected FIFA’s proposal
UEFA had come out publicly in opposition to the plan within an hour of it first being reported by the Financial Times and Times on Tuesday.
Shortly after the newspaper reports, FIFA, the sport’s global governing body, issued a statement confirming the plan.
In a later statement, it gave FIFA’s 211 member associations until September 19 to express their written support for the scheme. The proposal requires a simple majority and approval from the FIFA Council to pass.
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Even before Thursday’s meeting, UEFA had doubled down on its criticism after learning of the deadline, saying: “Today we have learned of FIFA’s deadline to associations to support their proposals or have the one-off payout offer withdrawn. This says everything you need to know about this plan.
Aleksander Ceferin’s UEFA has been at loggerheads with FIFA for some timeImage: Mike Egerton/PA/picture alliance
It added that talks with many stakeholders showed that “there is significant and growing opposition to FIFA’s scheme. FIFA cannot to use our sport to enrich themselves and their friends.”
DFB: FIFA plan ‘problematic and unacceptable’
Germany’s mass-circulation Bild paper reported that key UEFA officials including German FA (DFB) President Bernd Neuendorf had already discussed the FIFA plans via a video call on Wednesday.
“We must not lose the fans’ support, but we are well on the way to squandering that,” he told public broadcaster ZDF. “I consider this to be extremely problematic and unacceptable.
“If UEFA rejects this request (for approval of the plan), then it is dead, because I believe that you won’t be able to find any investor who would be willing to go ahead with this project if UEFA is out,” he added.
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Bernd Neuendorf can’t see the FIFA plan going forward without UEFA on boardImage: Ulrich Wagner/picture alliance
Other critics have expressed fears that the deal could lead to more tournaments, teams and matches to increase revenue and boost the value of investors’ stakes.
UEFA hasn’t been the only confederation to criticize the report. CONCACAF, responsible for North and Central America, as well as the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) have also expressed concerns that the proposal was made public without their consultation while the African confederation (CAF) have said they will discuss the plans next week.
Members of the FIFA Council, including Neuendorf, have said they were not consulted on the latest proposal.
FIFA: Subsidiary could raise billions ‘this year’
FIFA has said the new subsidiary, to be known as FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) would be valued at $20 billion and that it would aim to raise up to $4.2 billion “this year” by “carefully selecting long-term investors who will purchase minority, non-controlling interests” in the company.
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Under the plan, FIFA said it could make $10 billion available for development beginning in 2027. Each federation would be eligible for up to $20 million in one-time Fast Forward funding, in addition to $20 million through the regular FIFA Forward program during the 2027-30 cycle. Without approval, FIFA projects a development package of about $2.7 billion.
FIFA unveils controversial World Cup investor plan
Infantino: ‘A golden opportunity’
In the face of the opposition, FIFA President Gianni Infantino released a video on Wednesday evening, describing the project a “golden opportunity to turbocharge the development of the game globally.”
He added that the proposal was “part of a democratic process” and in comments directed to football fans, he stressed that “the sport they watch and love will not change.”
Senne Lammens cemented his place as United’s No.1 in his debut season at Old Trafford, while Andre Onana has already has already joined Trabzonspor on loan. Michael Carrick has added Karl Darlow on a free transfer from Leeds United to his array of shotstoppers, but could yet lose Altay Bayindir and Radek Vitek.
Gill’s agent has suggested that the goalkeeper will soon leave for San Lorenzo. He told DSports Radio: “We are in talks with English clubs as well as clubs in Germany.
“There were enquiries with Manchester United. We only received two concrete offers. We are currently in the negotiation phase.
“The sale is close, the time is right. We have to handle it very carefully because there are many things involved. It’s ideal for him to take a step up in quality. He’s prepared and capable of playing in any league, without a doubt.”
He added, “We’re trying to finalise it as quickly as possible for everyone’s benefit. It would be very important for San Lorenzo; hopefully, it will come to fruition.”
United glovesman Lammens returned to Carrington on Thursday following his post-World Cup break. Vitek has featured in each of the club’s friendlies so far against Wrexham and Rosenborg.
After the clash against the Westlsh side, the former Bristol City loanee confirmed that he is ready to find a new club.
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“I feel great and ready to go again somewhere to be, hopefully, number one, so we will see. We will see what is going to happen,” Vitek said.
“At the moment, I am still here, but we will see. I hope so. I hope there will be some interest. I think you will know when things are more concrete.
“I am ready for both, to be fair. [It] Depends what the club wants and also depends on the options. We will see.
“There have been a few interests on the table. But we hope to get the best one and hopefully it will happen soon.”
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Just as he did in Birmingham four years ago, Ball had got, well, the ball rolling,
He competes in tandem races as an athlete with a visual impairment and is a multiple world champion across the tandem sprint events, also winning a gold at the 2024 Paralympics in the tandem B kilo alongside his pilot Steffan Lloyd.
In 2022, he was Team Wales’ first Commonwealth medallist and first gold medallist This time Ball delivered the first cycling podium position in the men’s B tandem 1,000m time trial.
Ball and Rotherham matched the silver they won in Birmingham with great rival Neil Fachie from Scotland taking the gold.
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It was a third successive Commonwealth Games second place in this event for Ball.
“It is special to equal to what we did in Birmingham four years ago,” said Ball.
“We have to be proud of what we’ve done. We gave it everything on the track and I was on the floor for 20 minutes afterwards.”
Fachie effectively came out of retirement for this event and now has six Commonwealth Games golds and one silver to his name.
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The rivalry between Fachie and Ball is long-standing with Rotherham having been the pilot for both men.
Fachie won gold in this event four years ago, while the results were reversed in the tandem sprint.
So Ball and Rotherham will have a chance to defend their sprint title on Saturday.
Rotherham, who hails from Bolton, said: “I spent three days learning the Welsh national anthem and I’m gutted I didn’t get to sing it today.
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