Lille – Betis Séville : Les compos officielles

Le LOSC lance sa campagne européenne ce mardi soir. Pour cette première journée de la phase de ligue de la Ligue des champions, Lille reçoit le Real Betis au stade Pierre-Mauroy, avec l’ambition de bien démarrer cette nouvelle aventure continentale. Le coup d’envoi est prévu à 21h. biznow.biz

Davide Ancelotti mise sur Mbappé et Ueda

Pour cette première européenne sur le banc lillois, Davide Ancelotti a décidé d’aligner une équipe avec plusieurs choix forts. Ethan Mbappé est notamment titularisé sur le côté, tandis que Gaëtan Perrin et Ayase Ueda complètent le secteur offensif.

Au milieu, Benjamin André porte le brassard et sera accompagné de Nabil Bentaleb. Derrière eux, Berke Özer prend place dans les buts, avec Tiago Santos, Nathan Ngoy, Alexsandro et Romain Perraud devant lui.

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Le LOSC doit toutefois composer avec l’absence de Hamza Igamane, toujours indisponible en raison d’une blessure. Lille aborde cette rencontre avec sept points pris lors de ses trois premières journées de Ligue 1.

Lille : Özer – Santos, Ngoy, Alexsandro, Perraud – André (c), Bentaleb – Mbappé, Haraldsson, Perrin – Ueda.

Pellegrini titularise Isco et Parrott

En face, Manuel Pellegrini aligne une équipe expérimentée pour le grand retour du Betis en Ligue des champions. Le club andalou retrouve la C1 après plus de deux décennies d’absence et compte notamment sur Isco, désigné capitaine, pour mener son jeu offensif.

Álvaro Vallés est titularisé dans les buts, avec Bellerín, Bartra, Natan et Firpo en défense. Au milieu, Bernal et Fornals auront la charge de l’équilibre, tandis qu’Antony, Isco et Riquelme évolueront derrière Troy Parrott.

Le Betis arrive avec confiance après sa victoire contre le Real Madrid en Liga, mais devra composer avec plusieurs absences, notamment celle d’Abde Ezzalzouli, touché au genou.

Betis : Vallés – Bellerín, Bartra, Natan, Firpo – Bernal, Fornals – Antony, Isco (c), Riquelme – Parrott.

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Springbok legend John Smit has described Malcolm Marx as the bane of existence for every team he faces after another big outing from the best player on the planet.

Reigning World Rugby and SA Rugby Player of the Year, Marx starred on and off the ball as South Africa beat the All Blacks 29-24 last week to go 2-1 up in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series before Saturday’s finale in Baltimore.

Speaking on the I Love Rugby podcast with Wallabies great George Gregan and ex-Scotland lock Jim Hamilton, Smit extolled the values of arguably his best successor.

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“There are a couple of things about Malcolm that make him the best in the world, certainly the best who’s worn the No 2 shirt in South Africa,” the 111-cap hooker said.

“He’s a beast. He’s a monstrous man. He’s big, athletic, fast. He carries well, he steals, he scrums, he’s got an unbelievable throw. There’s no real chinks in the armour.

“He’s the kind of guy who gets in there and serves. He provides a level of confidence that when you sit in a change room before a big Test match and you look around and you see [him], you think, ‘I’m going to be OK.’

MORE: Ex-Wallabies chime in on Bok scrum wooha

“Probably his first Test [of 2026] was the quietest we’ve seen him because he hadn’t played a bit for a while, and I think he took that to heart. And he just got better and better.

“The last thing I’ll say about Malcolm is that he must be the bane of existence for every opposition team that plays against him. But I don’t think there’s one person in world rugby who doesn’t like him as a human afterwards … that says a lot about the guy.”

The Boks went 12-5 down at FNB Stadium and found a way to fight back through a first-half penalty try from a scrum that settled a week of back and forth between coaches Rassie Erasmus and Dave Rennie.

ALSO: ‘Boks don’t need to manipulate scrum’

“The thing that stands out for me in that Test is that every South African, every ‘green goblin’, was waiting for the scrum to deliver,” Smit added.

“South Africa need that weaponised scrum to create their confidence and get that psychological benefit.

“I actually called it sitting next to Vincent [Koch], who was watching with me, and I just said, ‘If this scrum is par or New Zealand get a penalty, I can promise you we’re in for a dogfight’.

“We took a bet and I said, ‘Hundred bucks it’s a penalty try’. And he said, ‘Hundred bucks it’s nothing’. So I’m a hundred rand richer, guys.”

Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images

The post Barney: Marx a beast who serves Boks appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.

NAIROBI, Kenya Sept 8 – In a historic milestone for African women’s football, Zambian captain Barbra Banda and Malawian goal-poacher Temwa Chawinga have been shortlisted for the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or.

Their inclusion among the 30 elite nominees isn’t just a victory for their respective nations; it’s a firm statement that elite women’s football is shifting rapidly toward relentless, world-class African talent.

Both strikers have enjoyed an astonishing 12 months, terrorizing defenses across the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the United States and the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations.

Barbra Banda: The Unstoppable Force

Playing for Orlando Pride in the United States, Banda has established herself as one of the most lethal number nines on the planet.

Over the past year, her blistering speed, physical dominance, and ice-cold finishing have seen her bag 13 goals in just 18 matches in the 2026 NWSL campaign.

On the international stage with Zambia’s Copper Queens, Banda remains the beating heart of her country’s football identity.

After a staggering Olympic campaign in which she made global history by scoring three career Olympic hat-tricks, Banda carried that form into the 2025 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) fixtures.

Her ability to carry Zambia on her shoulders in high-stakes fixtures, including a memorable four-goal masterclass against Egypt, solidified her status as an undeniable Ballon d’Or contender.

Temwa Chawinga: The Record-Breaker

Equally deserving of her spot on the 30-woman shortlist is Kansas City Current forward Chawinga.

Chawinga’s rise has been nothing short of meteoric. Having already made history as the NWSL Golden Boot winner and breakout star, she continued her frightening scoring efficiency into 2026, delivering 9 goals and 2 assists in under 800 minutes of club action.

For Malawi’s Scorchers, Chawinga is a national icon. Making her long-awaited WAFCON debut, she put Europe and Africa on notice by scoring 5 goals in 6 international appearances, including a breathtaking brace against continental giants Nigeria.

She inspired Malawi to the final of the WAFCON on their debut, where they lost 3-0 to Cameroon.

Chawinga’s rare combination of direct running, explosive change of pace, and tactical intelligence makes her virtually unmarkable in transition.

The presence of African talent at the highest individual level is no accident, but rather the continuation of a trail blazed just a few years ago.

Nigerian icon Asisat Oshoala made history in 2022 as the first-ever African woman to earn a Ballon d’Or nomination following an extraordinary, title-winning campaign with Barcelona, where she finished as joint-top scorer in the Spanish league.

Building on that landmark moment, Chawinga is following directly in the footsteps of her sister, Tabitha, who broke barriers herself when she was shortlisted in 2024 alongside Banda after a dominant season in France with PSG and Lyon.

Crucially, this is far from a first rodeo for either player. Banda has become a permanent fixture in global rankings, securing a historic 12th-place finish in 2024, the highest rank ever achieved by an African female footballer, before backing it up with a 14th-place finish in 2025.

For Temwa, this 2026 nod marks her second consecutive nomination after she crashed the shortlist last year following an unbelievable 41-goal season across all competitions.

Notably missing from the list is Barcelona and Spain playmaker, Aitana Bonmatí.

After making history by winning three consecutive Ballon d’Or awards, Bonmatí has failed to make the 30-player shortlist for the first time in her career.

While the African duo headlines our local focus, several other standout nominees on the 2026 shortlist deserve praise:

Selma Bacha (France / Lyon): The French full-back remains the gold standard for modern, overlapping defenders. Her elite crossing accuracy and defensive tactical awareness played a massive role in Lyon’s domestic and European dominance.

Mariona Caldentey (Spain / Arsenal): Fresh off a masterclass club season, Caldentey’s creative output, vision, and ability to unlock deep defensive blocks make her one of the most complete midfielders in the world.

Klara Bühl (Germany / Bayern Munich): Bühl’s blistering form on the wing, combining lethal long-range shooting with high-volume chance creation, made her an indispensable anchor for both club and country.

The 2026 Ballon d’Or race highlights a glorious truth: women’s football is no longer dominated by a single continent. With Banda and Chawinga leading the line, Africa’s footballing royalty has officially taken its place among the absolute best in the world.

Ce mardi 8 septembre, les 30 nommés pour le Ballon d’Or 2026 ont été dévoilés. Parmi eux, dix joueurs du Paris Saint-Germain figurent dans la liste, un record historique pour un club sur une même édition du prestigieux trophée.

Le PSG marque l’histoire

Le Paris Saint-Germain établit un nouveau record avec dix représentants parmi les 30 candidats au Ballon d’Or. Le club parisien améliore ainsi sa propre marque, puisqu’il comptait neuf nommés lors de l’édition 2025.

Ousmane Dembélé, Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Marquinhos, Nuno Mendes, João Neves, Willian Pacho, Fabián Ruiz, Ferran Torres et Vitinha sont les dix Parisiens en lice pour le trophée. Dembélé, vainqueur en 2025, tentera notamment de conserver sa couronne.

Cette présence massive récompense la saison exceptionnelle du PSG, notamment marquée par un deuxième sacre consécutif en Ligue des champions. Le club parisien est d’ailleurs le plus représenté parmi les 30 candidats, devant le Real Madrid et le FC Barcelone.

Le PSG également présent dans les autres catégories

La moisson parisienne ne s’arrête pas au Ballon d’Or. Matvey Safonov figure parmi les dix nommés pour le Trophée Yachine, qui récompense le meilleur gardien de la saison.

Warren Zaïre-Emery est, lui, candidat au Trophée Kopa, qui récompense le meilleur jeune joueur. Le milieu de terrain français fait partie des dix nommés dans cette catégorie.

Enfin, Luis Enrique est nommé pour le titre d’entraîneur de l’année. Le technicien espagnol figure parmi les cinq candidats à cette récompense.

Avec ces nombreuses nominations dans les différentes catégories, le PSG confirme l’ampleur de sa saison 2025-2026. Les performances collectives du club parisien se traduisent ainsi par une présence record dans les différentes listes du Ballon d’Or 2026.

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