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☆ Al-Hilal: Saudi Arabia club sets record for most consecutive wins in men’s soccer
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( George Ramsay | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal set the world record for the most consecutive victories in men’s soccer on Tuesday, defeating Al-Ittihad 2-0 in the AFC Champions League. Before that, Dutch giant Ajax had held the record for 44 years after a 26-game winning streak between 1971 and 1972. “Everyone at Al Hilal is delighted to achieve world football history by winning 28 consecutive matches,” said manager Jorge Jesus. “It is up to everyone at Al-Hilal to ensure that we close out the season as Roshn Saudi League champions and meet our targets in the cup competitions. According to Guinness World Records, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin has the most consecutive wins in soccer – men’s or women’s – with 41 across all competitions between 2012 and 2013.

Persons: Hilal, Al Hilal, ”, Jorge Jesus, Romarinho, Yasser Al, Shahrani, Hilal's, Yasser Bakhsh, Abderrazak, Ali Al, Malcom, Jesus, ” Al, Al Ain, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al, Nassr, Neymar Organizations: CNN, Saudi, Al, AFC Champions League, Welsh, New Saints, Ajax, ”, “, Saudi League, Champions League, Saudi Pro League, Guinness World Records, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin Locations: Saudi Arabian, Ittihad, Al, Hilal, Jeddah

☆ Al-Nassr knocked out of the AFC Champions League by Al Ain after Cristiano Ronaldo’s costly miss
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( George Ramsay | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr crashed out of the AFC Champions League after a thrilling tie against Al Ain ended 4-4 on aggregate before the Emirati side triumphed on penalties. Monday’s end-to-end game could have gone either way, though Ronaldo will likely regret his staggering miss in the second half which could have seen Al-Nassr progress to the semifinals. Together, always!”After Al Ain won the first leg 1-0, the visiting team got off to a superb start in Riyadh thanks to two first-half goals from Soufiane Rahimi, whose neat finish had been the difference between the teams last week. Al Ain players celebrate their dramatic victory. Al Ain, chasing its first AFC Champions League title in 21 years, will next face another Saudi Arabian team – either Al-Hilal or Al-Ittihad – in the semifinals.

Persons: CNN — Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al, Nassr, Al Ain, Ronaldo, “, Soufiane Rahimi, Khalid, Sadio Mané, Abdulrahman, Fayez, Alex Telles ’, Ayman Yahya, Sultan Al, Shamsi, Raghed Al, Yasser Bakhsh, Marcelo Brozović Organizations: CNN, AFC Champions League, Al, Getty, AFC, League, Saudi Arabian Locations: Riyadh, Portuguese, Al Ain, Saudi, Al, Hilal, Ittihad

☆ Champions Urawa advance to Asian Champions League group phase
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Michael Church | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Soccer Football - AFC Champions League - Final - Second Leg - Urawa Red Diamonds v Al-Hilal - Saitama Stadium, Saitama, Japan - May 6, 2023 Urawa Red Diamonds' Hiroki Sakai and Shusaku Nishikawa and teammates celebrate with trophy on the podium after winning the AFC Champions League REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTOKYO, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Holders Urawa Red Diamonds booked their berth in the group stages of the Asian Champions League on Tuesday as Maciej Skorza's side defeated Hong Kong outfit Lee Man 3-0, but China's Shanghai Port were knocked out by BG Pathum United of Thailand. Yoshio Koizumi gave Urawa the perfect start at Saitama Stadium with a second minute strike and Shinzo Koroki doubled the lead when he headed in Hiroki Sakai's cross from the right four minutes later. Reds, who have won the title three times, will now feature in Thursday's group phase draw in Kuala Lumpur alongside BG Pathum United, Chinese Super League side Zhejiang FC and Incheon United of South Korea. BG Pathum United advanced after a hat-trick by Igor Sergeyev saw the Thai side hand 2018 Chinese champions Shanghai Port a Igor Sergeyev 3-2 defeat. The Uzbekistan international struck again in the 61st minute and, while Markus Pink netted with four minutes remaining to ensure a nervous finish for the visitors, BG Pathum United held on to advance.

Persons: Hiroki Sakai, Shusaku Nishikawa, Issei Kato, Maciej Skorza's, Lee, Yoshio Koizumi, Shinzo Koroki, Hiroki Sakai's, Takahiro Sekine, Igor Sergeyev, Sergeyev, Mirahmetjan Muzepper, Markus Pink, Cheon Seong, Gerso, Franko Andrijasevic's, Michael Church Organizations: Soccer Football, AFC, League, Diamonds, Urawa, AFC Champions League REUTERS, Rights, Urawa Red Diamonds, Asian Champions League, Shanghai Port, BG Pathum United, Saitama, Reds, Super League, Zhejiang FC, Incheon United, Port, Uzbekistan, Pathum United, Vietnam's, Port FC, Michael, Michael Church Our, Thomson Locations: Hilal, Saitama, Japan, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Thailand, Urawa, Kuala Lumpur, South Korea, Thai, Vietnam's Haiphong, Zhejiang

☆ Asian confederation boosts prize fund in revamped club competition from 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Michael Church | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kicking off in September 2024, the leading 24 club sides from across the continent will play in the new AFC Champions League Elite, with the winners earning US$12 million. The AFC Champions League Elite headlines a new three-tier set-up and replaces the existing format, in which clubs complete in either the AFC Champions League or the secondary AFC Cup. "Today the AFC is embarking on a new and historic era with these forward-looking initiatives in both men's and women's Asian club football," AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said in a statement. Details about the AFC Women's Champions League, including start date, prize fund and the number of clubs involved, have yet to revealed. The playoff rounds of the 2023/24 AFC Champions League, the last under the current model, are due to kick off on Tuesday.

Persons: Marius Hoibraten, Alexander Scholz, Issei Kato, HONG KONG, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Michael Church, Pritha Sarkar Organizations: Soccer Football, AFC, League, Diamonds, Urawa, AFC Champions League REUTERS, Asian Football Confederation, Champions League, AFC Champions League Elite, US, League Elite, AFC Champions League, AFC Challenge League, AFC Women's Champions League, Thomson Locations: Hilal, Saitama, Japan, HONG, Asia

☆ Spanish midfielder Iniesta joins Emirates Club
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Soccer Football - Friendly - Vissel Kobe v FC Barcelona - Japan National Stadium, Tokyo, Japan - June 6, 2023 Vissel Kobe's Andres Iniesta applauds the fans as he gets substituted by Haruya Ide REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File PhotoAug 8 (Reuters) - Former Spain and Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has joined Emirates Club, the UAE Pro league announced on Tuesday. "Welcome Iniesta", Emirates club said on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter. The 39-year-old player left Japanese club Vissel Kobe last month after five years. Iniesta won nine LaLiga titles with Barcelona and four Champions League titles. With Spain, he won the 2010 World Cup and back-to-back Euro titles in 2008 and 2012.

Persons: Vissel Kobe's Andres Iniesta applauds, Haruya Ide, Kim Kyung, Andres Iniesta, Iniesta, Shady Amir, Clare Fallon Organizations: Soccer Football, FC Barcelona, Japan, Haruya Ide REUTERS, Barcelona, Emirates Club, UAE Pro, Emirates, Twitter, Vissel Kobe, League, Spain, Vissel, AFC Champions League, Thomson Locations: Kobe, Tokyo, Japan, Spain, Ras Al, Khaimah, Vissel Kobe

☆ Kylian Mbappé: Saudi Arabian club submits world record bid superstar
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Saudi Arabian soccer club Al Hilal has submitted a world-record bid of over $332 million (300 million euros) for Paris Saint Germain (PSG) striker Kylian Mbappé, according to multiple reports on Monday. CNN has reached out to PSG, Al Hilal and Mbappé’s representatives for comment. The current world record fee is $262 million (€222 million) when Neymar moved from Barcelona to PSG in 2017. Al Hilal reached both the FIFA Club World Cup and the AFC Champions League finals last season. Last month, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced that Al Hilal was one of four Saudi clubs that have been transformed into companies, each of which is owned by PIF and non-profit foundations for each club.

Persons: Al Hilal, Kylian Mbappé, Neymar, Mbappé, Nasser Al, Khelaifi, Luis Enrique, “, ” Al, doesn’t Organizations: CNN, Al, Paris Saint Germain, PSG, Saudi, FIFA Club, AFC Champions League, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Sovereign Wealth Fund, French Locations: Saudi Arabian, Japan, Al Hilal, Barcelona, Paris, French, Saudi Arabia, Spanish, Real Madrid

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