SPORTS

Rome, Italy | AFP | Dutch central defender Matthijs de Ligt, one of the most coveted young players in world football, signed Thursday for Juventus from Ajax for a fee of 75 million euros ($84.2 million) plus add ons. The 19-year-old agreed a five-year contract with the Italian champions. Juventus said …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP |  Caeleb Dressel and Katie Ledecky will spearhead a powerful US assault when the swimming world championships begin Sunday, with the Americans looking to make a big statement before next year’s Tokyo Olympics. The event in Gwangju is the biggest meeting on the 2019 calendar, …

Gwangju, South Korea | AFP |  Japan’s swimmers have promised to lift their game at next week’s world championships to lift the spirits of ailing team mate Rikako Ikee in her battle with leukaemia. The 19-year-old poster girl for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was diagnosed with the illness earlier this …

Nanjing, China | AFP | Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola said on Wednesday that he will let his players decide who will captain the Premier League champions next season following the departure of long-time skipper Vincent Kompany. The captain’s armband is up for grabs at City after Kompany left at the …

FT: 🇺🇬 40 🇿🇦 67 Liverpool, UK | THE INDEPENDENT | Their 67-40 win ensures that the Proteas and England join Australia and New Zealand in the last four. Uganda fall out after a brave showing, and will seek to improve on their 8th placing at the last World Cup when they take on …

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | AFP |  A hijab-wearing, diminutive Malaysian wrestler known as “c” cuts an unusual figure in the ring, a female Muslim fighter taking on hulking opponents in a male-dominated world. Dressed in flame-patterned trousers, a black and orange hijab and top, Nor Diana uses sophisticated moves to …

Yangon, Myanmar | AFP |  Sidestepping cowpats and garbage, Myanmar’s only home-grown junior rugby side train on the outskirts of Yangon, preparing to take on children from the city’s well-heeled international schools. When the Little Dragons aren’t running barefoot on the litter-strewn dirt, the makeshift field on the outskirts of Yangon is sometimes …

Wellington, New Zealand | AFP | New Zealand coach Gary Stead has called for the Cricket World Cup’s rules to be overhauled, labelling the showpiece final “hollow” after England defeated the Black Caps on a technicality. The teams could not be separated at the end of both regular play and a …

Perth, Australia | AFP |  Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said Tuesday he was optimistic that goalkeeper David De Gea would sign a new deal to remain at Old Trafford as Manchester United prepared to face old rivals Leeds in Perth. United’s pre-season tour of Australia has been overshadowed speculation over the futures …

                           Pld Won Pts England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿          3   3   6 South Africa 🇿🇦    2   2   4 Uganda 🇺🇬          3   2   4 Jamaica  🇯🇲         3   1   2 Scotland  🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿        …