Dana White hails Abu Dhabi as ‘perfect host’ after Power Slap success

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s national football team’s French head coach Herve Renard announced on Wednesday the lineup for the seventh and eighth rounds of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
The Green Falcons will host China on March 20 at Al-Awwal Park Stadium before they travel to play against Japan on March 25 at Saitama Stadium 2002.
The Frenchman’s list constitutes of 27 players, who will join the Green Falcon’s training camp in Riyadh, starting March 16, ahead of their two qualifiers.
The list includes Ahmed Al-Kassar, Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Hamed Yousef, Mishari Sinior, Hassan Kadesh, Jihad Zekri, Saad Al-Moussa, Ali Lajami, Hassan Al-Tambukti, Muhannad Al-Shanqeeti, Saud Abdulhamid, Nawaf Bushel, Ali Majrashi, Faisal Al-Ghamdi, Nasser Al-Dosari, Musab Al-Juwair, Ziad Al-Jahni, Mohammed Kano, Salem Al-Dosari, Turki Al-Ammar, Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Ayman Yahya, Muhannad Al-Saad, Ahmed Al-Ghamdi, Marwan Al-Sahafi, Firas Al-Buraikan and Abdullah Al-Salem.
The Green Falcons are in Group 3 in the third round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, alongside Japan, Australia, Bahrain, China and Indonesia.

JOHANNESBURG: Former Cameroon star Samuel Eto’o was elected to the CAF executive committee by acclamation in Cairo on Wednesday as he was the lone candidate from the central Africa region.
The 44-year-old became eligible only last week after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned a CAF ban on the ex-Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea forward.
His elevation to the executive of the African governing body came at a CAF extraordinary general assembly — an annual meeting of top football officials in the continent.
Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) president Eto’o now joins the supreme decision-making body in Africa.
The gathering at a hotel overlooking the pyramids also confirmed that South African Patrice Motsepe would serve a second four-year term as CAF president. He was unopposed.
Motsepe was elected by acclamation in Morocco four years ago, succeeding Malagasy Ahmad Ahmad, who had been suspended by FIFA over financial misconduct.
CAF secretary general Veron Mosengo-Omba is among those who have credited Motsepe with improving the finances and governance of the organization.
“Patrice was a gift for African football. In 2021 CAF was a toxic body. He brought good governance to all levels of the organization,” Mosengo-Omba said ahead of the meeting.
The CAF ban of Eto’o came last year after the three-time Champions League winner was found guilty by the Cairo-based organization of an ethics breach.
Last July, CAF said the Cameroonian had “seriously violated the principles of ethics, integrity and sportsmanship” by becoming a brand ambassador for a betting organization.
Apart from the suspension, the four-time African Footballer of the Year was fined $200,000 (EUR185,000). This was later quashed.
Born in the Cameroon port city Douala, Eto’o has been involved in several controversies since becoming FECAFOOT boss in 2021.
He was caught on video assaulting a football supporter outside a stadium after a match at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
He later apologized, saying: “I would like to apologize for losing my temper and reacting in a way that does not match my personality. It was an unfortunate incident.”
Last year, he was banned by FIFA from attending all Cameroon men’s and women’s national team matches for six months after an incident at the Women’s under-20 World Cup in Colombia.
The world body found Eto’o guilty of “offensive behavior, violation of the principles of fair play and misconduct of players and officials.”
When Belgian Marc Brys was appointed national coach of the Cameroon men’s team last year, he clashed regularly with Eto’o.
Eto’o enjoyed a glittering career, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest African footballers.
He helped Cameroon win the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games football tournament and was part of the 2000 and 2002 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)-winning teams.
Eto’o featured at four World Cup and six AFCON tournaments and scored a record 18 goals in the African tournament.