DOHA: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer remain on course to meet in the Qatar Open final after both won their quarterfinals in straight sets on Thursday. Federer, a two-time champion in Doha, routed sixth-seeded Viktor Troicki 6-2, 6-2 in just 65 minutes and will face third-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semifinals. Top-ranked Nadal was given …

Politics shouldn’t interfere with sports but sometimes it can’t be helped, especially when your life depends on it. When countries at the source of the Nile decide that it’s time to set new water quotas, then you know it’s time to host the new, ever so friendly Nile Basin Football Tournament. To recap, countries at …

MADRID: A second-half burst of goals saw Villarreal rally from a two-goal deficit Thursday for a 4-2 win over Valencia that put it into the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey. Marco Ruben’s 63rd-minute strike ensured Villarreal advanced after a scoreless first leg. Ruben tapped into an open goal after Cani’s one-two with Giuseppe Rossi …

CAIRO: Zamalek striker Ahmed Gaafar apologized to manager Hossam Hassan after informing the latter that he wanted to leave the club via a mobile message. Gaafar was obviously angry after Hassan surprisingly dropped him from the team’s starting line-up in last week’s Cairo derby draw against Ahly. The Zamalek coach, who revealed Gaafar’s angry SMS …

CAIRO: The friendly Nile Basin tournament began on Wednesday with hosts Egypt aiming to warm up for a crucial 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers campaign this year. Hassan Shehata’s men entertain Tanzania in Group A, which also includes African minnows Uganda and Burundi. Despite the insignificance of the regional tournament, the Egypt manager is …

CAIRO: The Egyptian national team will inaugurate the first Nile Basin Countries football tournament Wednesday with a match against Tanzania at the Arab Contractors Stadium. The tournament, comprising seven teams and played under the slogan "No to Terrorism," cancelled its opening ceremony after the attack on Al-Qeddesine Church in Alexandria claimed 23 lives and left …

CAIRO: Ahly are planning to play three friendly matches during the stoppage of the Egyptian Premier League. The games are scheduled for January 10th, 14th and 17th while Ahly’s opponents are yet to be determined. The Cairo side have just re-appointed highly-rated coach Manuel Jose. They are to play their first competitive match under the …

CAIRO: Egyptian hitman Mido terminated his contract with Ajax Amsterdam by mutual consent on Tuesday. "It’s over now. I agreed with Ajax’s officials to annul my deal," the towering man told FilGoal.com. "Now I’m a free to join any other club in the current winter transfer window. "I received several offers from Spain and England …

CAIRO: Zamalek star Shikabala has backed down on his decision not to play for Egypt and is set to join the team’s camp ahead of this week’s Nile Basin friendly tournament. The 24-year-old announced that he doesn’t want to play for the national team after being subjected to hostile chants from Ahly supporters in last …

CAIRO: Ahly captain Hossam Ghaly says he is ready to fill in whatever position manager Hassan Shehata asks him to play in, even if he was used as a goalkeeper. The 28-year-old excelled as a sweeper for Ahly during the past few weeks, which saw the Egyptian champions switch back to their traditional 3-5-2 formation …

CAIRO: Coach Mostafa Younes has quit Egypt’s U-20 team for the sake of his media job, FilGoal.com has learnt. The former Ahly star informed Egyptian FA chairman Samir Zaher of his decision to resign after a meeting on Wednesday afternoon. His resignation came just few weeks after the EFA said Younes had decided to snub …

CAIRO: “They’ve come really because the concept of ‘soccer without borders’ is one we all understand,” commented United States ambassador to Egypt Margaret Scobey. Recently, the United States embassy in Cairo, with the help of the Egyptian Football Federation, recruited the help of the Soccer Without Borders organization to come to Egypt and hold soccer …

By David Legge / AFP JOHANNESBURG: Defending champions Egypt are teetering on the brink of elimination from the African Nations Cup going into the new year while Botswana are just one win away from a fairytale first appearance. The struggle for 14 places at the premier national-team football competition on the continent will dominate 2011 with …

CAIRO: Zamalek will be eying a perfect end to the first round of the Egyptian league at Cairo Stadium on Thursday, ahead of the international break when they face their arch-rivals Al Ahly. Al Ahly will seek to end a series of bad results that have left the team lagging at fourth place, six points …

CAIRO: Mido admitted that he has to work hard once again in order to convince new Ajax manager Franck de Boer with his capabilities. Mido fell down the pecking order with the arrival of De Boer in place of Martin Jol, who needed a couple of months to start involving the Egyptian in his first-team …

CAIRO: Ahly defense star Wael Gomaa explained how he intends to keep Zamalek striker Ahmed Gaafar at bay ahead of this week’s Cairo derby clash. “There is a basic rule in marking which says that the defender should remain close to his man to put pressure on him, but with Gaafar it is different,” Gomaa, …

CAIRO: Ahly have been handed an LE 10,000 fine by the Egyptian FA after their fans verbally abused Zamalek wizard Shikabala following a league game last week. The Red Devils’ jubilant supporters hurled insults at Shikabala after the team snapped a four-match winless run by beating Harras Hodoud 2-1 last Tuesday. They retaliated after the …

By Jim Slater/ AFP WASHINGTON: In a year when the world watched Tiger Woods lose his marriage, his top ranking, his iconic image and every tournament he played, golf thrived with new stars and looked to a less Woods-centric future. The fall of Woods dominated the year in golf, from a February apology that commanded global …

By Caroline Cheese/ AFP LONDON: Just as tennis fans were busy debating whether Roger Federer is the greatest player ever, Rafael Nadal provided further evidence that the Swiss star might not even be the best of his generation. Fifteen months after Federer became the sixth man in history to win all four Grand Slam titles, Nadal …

By Alaa Abdel-Ghani As far as friendlies go, Qatar’s 2-1 defeat of Egypt was not out of the ordinary, except that Egypt, No 9 in the world, lost to a country seeded 114. But Qatar is becoming used to causing upsets, beating much greater odds when it won the bid to host the 2022 World Cup. …

By Tamim Elyan Sports pundits had a lot to speculate about and many occasions to celebrate in 2010, a year that witnessed the birth of new stars and new champions most of whom Africa has been the stage for. Before January, hardly did Alexandrian footballer, Mohamed “Geddo” Nagy, know that he would send millions of Egyptians …

CAIRO: Mohamed Abou Trika scored twice to lead Ahly’s comeback and give the league champions a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Harras Hodoud. A first-half strike from Pape Latyr N’Diaye gave the visitors a one-nil lead, but the in-form Abou Trika made it four goals in three games with a second-half brace. The Egypt talisman became …

JOHANNESBURG: African football scaled dizzy heights in 2010 as it staged the World Cup tournament for the first time and received international acclaim. FIFA president Sepp Blatter gave South Africa nine out of 10 in his post-championship report card with security and infrastructure fears proving unfounded. South Africa had been at the receiving end of …

CAIRO: Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o was named African Footballer of the Year a record fourth time at the annual CAF awards ceremony in Cairo Monday. Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan was awarded best Africa-based player. Egypt’s and Ahly star, 34-year-old Hassan, beat off competition from his compatriot Mohamed “Geddo” Nagui and TP Mazembe ace Alain Dioko. Hassan …

Zamalek full-back Sabri Rahil intends to stay with the Cairo club despite struggling to find a regular place within Hossam Hassan’s selection. The 23-year-old, who joined from MCDR in 2007, has been playing second fiddle to Egypt left-back Mohamed Abdul-Shafi since Hassan has taken charge last year. While admitting he has received overtures from other …

CAIRO: Samir Zaher will remain as the chairman of the Egyptian FA after the final appeal against the legitimacy of his victory in the 2008 elections was turned down. The Egyptian court of law announced the ruling on Monday, which means that Zaher is staying in his position until the date of the next elections. …

CAIRO: Harras Hodoud manager Tarek Al-Ashri revealed that he will face league holders Ahly with a three-man attack. The cup champions visit Cairo on Tuesday hoping to cause another upset against the misfiring Reds, who have a number of key players injured. “Pape Latyr Ndiaye, Ahmed Eid and Ahmed Mekki will start upfront,” Al-Ashri told …

By AP HULL, England: An Egyptian family has completed the protracted takeover of second-tier English side Hull. Local businessmen Assem and Ehab Allam initially struck a deal on Nov. 10 to purchase the northern club, which is reported in the British media to have debts of around £20 million ($31 million), from then-owner Russell Bartlett. Hull, …

DOHA: Qatar held on for a morale-boosting 2-1 win over Egypt on Thursday in its first match since winning the right to host the 2022 World Cup. The friendly match at the Khalifa Stadium attracted a capacity crowd of nearly 50,000, boosted by a large contingent of flag-waving Egyptian fans. Sebastian Soria gave the hosts …