News

New AFC Stadium in collaboration with FIFA

Published

4 years ago

October 18, 2022

Editor

New AFC Stadium in collaboration with FIFA to build on Asian football’s strong momentum The future of Asian football is set to usher in greater success and progress as the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa and FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed the collaborative project of a new AFC Stadium in a ground-breaking ceremony held in Putrajaya, Malaysia on Monday.

Situated approximately 30km from the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the AFC Stadium in Putrajaya, which is the federal administrative capital of Malaysia, will be constructed on a land site spanning 15.43 acres, fully equipped with a grandstand, spectators’ boulevard and atrium, administrative offices, and underground carpark.

The new state-of-the-art football-specific stadium will be financed through funding from the FIFA Forward programme and will further strengthen the AFC’s ambitions, through its Vision and Mission, to support its Member Associations (MAs) and Regional Associations (RAs) with greater efficiency. The Football Association of Malaysia and the Malaysian Government will provide logistical support to the project.

Underlining the significant step forward for the AFC and its MAs and RAs, the AFC President said: “The AFC’s Vision and Mission has underlined our ambitions to ensure we maximise the potential of our MAs and RAs.

“The AFC House has been the focal point of football development through numerous courses, workshops and seminars in the areas of Technical and Refereeing and now with this new AFC Stadium, we have the potential to do so much more,” added Shaikh Salman.

“On behalf of the Asian football family, I must convey our gratitude to FIFA for their willingness to chart a new era of progress with the AFC as well as the Malaysian Government for their dedication towards the development of Asian football, not only through this project but for its steadfast support over the decades.

“I am confident that the new AFC Stadium will pave the way for our MAs and RAs to scale even greater heights in the next decade.”

Echoing the AFC President’s sentiments, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who was in the Malaysian capital to attend the 11th AFC Executive Committee meeting, said: “I think it is an important investment for Asian football, and I want to congratulate and commend the AFC President and the Executive Committee members.”

“It is a great project, and I am really proud and happy that we are teaming up through this AFC and FIFA stadium which can mark a new step in the whole very important part of the Asian region.”

The stadium floor area is approximately 580,000 sqft with a seating capacity of 10,000 and will feature the highest quality FIFA-graded football pitch.

Amongst others, some of the key features also include a cafeteria, a leading-edge media tribune and a media commentators’ room as well as a vibrant water feature to be constructed at the entrance of the stadium.

FIFA සමඟ එක්ව නව AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගනය

FIFA සමඟ එක්ව නව AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගණය ආසියානු පාපන්දු ක්‍රීඩාවේ ප්‍රබල ජවයක් ගොඩනැංවීම සඳහා ආසියානු පාපන්දු ක්‍රීඩාවේ අනාගතය වඩාත් සාර්ථක සහ ප්‍රගතියක් කරා ගෙන යනු ඇතැයි ආසියානු පාපන්දු සම්මේලනයේ (AFC) සභාපති ෂෙයික් සල්මාන් බින් එබ්‍රහිම් අල් කලීෆා සහ FIFA සභාපති ගියානි ඉන්ෆැන්ටිනෝ තහවුරු කළහ. සඳුදා මැලේසියාවේ පුත්‍රජයා හි පැවති මුල්ගල තැබීමේ උත්සවයකදී නව AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගනයේ සහයෝගීතා ව්‍යාපෘතිය.

මැලේසියාවේ ක්වාලාලම්පූර් හි AFC හවුස් සිට ආසන්න වශයෙන් 30km පමණ දුරින් පිහිටා ඇති, මැලේසියාවේ ෆෙඩරල් පරිපාලන අගනුවර වන පුත්‍රජයා හි AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගනය අක්කර 15.43 ක භූමි භාගයක ඉදිකරනු ලබන අතර, අංගසම්පූර්ණ ප්‍රේක්ෂකාගාරයක්, ප්‍රේක්ෂකාගාරයක් සහ ඇට්‍රියම් වලින් සමන්විත වේ. , පරිපාලන කාර්යාල, සහ භූගත රථගාල.

නව නවීන පාපන්දු-විශේෂිත ක්‍රීඩාංගනය FIFA Forward වැඩසටහනෙන් අරමුදල් සපයනු ලබන අතර AFC හි දැක්ම සහ මෙහෙවර හරහා එහි සාමාජික සංගම් (MAs) සහ කලාපීය සංගම් (RAs) සඳහා සහාය වීම සඳහා AFC හි අභිලාෂයන් තවදුරටත් ශක්තිමත් කරනු ඇත. ) වැඩි කාර්යක්ෂමතාවයකින්. මැලේසියාවේ පාපන්දු සංගමය සහ මැලේසියානු රජය මෙම ව්‍යාපෘතිය සඳහා සැපයුම් සහාය ලබා දෙනු ඇත.

AFC සහ එහි MAs සහ RAs සඳහා සැලකිය යුතු ඉදිරි පියවරක් අවධාරණය කරමින් AFC සභාපතිවරයා මෙසේ පැවසීය: “AFC හි දැක්ම සහ මෙහෙවර අපගේ MAs සහ RAs හි හැකියාවන් උපරිම කිරීම සහතික කිරීම සඳහා අපගේ අභිලාෂයන් අවධාරණය කර ඇත.

AFC හවුස් පාපන්දු සංවර්ධනයේ කේන්ද්‍රස්ථානය වී ඇත්තේ තාක්‍ෂණික සහ විනිසුරුවන් යන ක්ෂේත්‍ර ගණනාවක පාඨමාලා, වැඩමුළු සහ සම්මන්ත්‍රණ හරහා වන අතර දැන් මෙම නව AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගනය සමඟින් අපට තවත් බොහෝ දේ කිරීමට හැකියාව ඇත,” ෂෙයික් සල්මාන් වැඩිදුරටත් පැවසීය.

“මෙම ව්‍යාපෘතිය හරහා පමණක් නොව, ආසියානු පාපන්දු ක්‍රීඩාවේ දියුණුව සඳහා ඔවුන් දක්වන කැපවීම වෙනුවෙන් AFC මෙන්ම මැලේසියානු රජය සමඟ ප්‍රගතියේ නව යුගයක් සටහන් කිරීමට ඔවුන් දක්වන කැමැත්ත පිළිබඳව ආසියානු පාපන්දු පවුල වෙනුවෙන් මම FIFA වෙත අපගේ කෘතඥතාව පළ කළ යුතුයි. නමුත් දශක ගණනාවක් පුරා එහි ස්ථිර සහයෝගය සඳහා.

“නව AFC ක්‍රීඩාංගනය ඉදිරි දශකය තුළ අපගේ MAs සහ RAs සඳහා තවත් විශාල උසකට යාමට මග පාදනු ඇතැයි මට විශ්වාසයි.”

AFC සභාපතිවරයාගේ හැඟීම් ප්‍රතිරාවය කරමින්, 11 වන AFC විධායක කමිටු රැස්වීමට සහභාගී වීමට මැලේසියානු අගනුවරට පැමිණ සිටි FIFA සභාපති Gianni Infantino මෙසේ පැවසීය: “එය ආසියානු පාපන්දු ක්‍රීඩාවට වැදගත් ආයෝජනයක් යැයි මම සිතමි, මට AFC සභාපතිට සුබ පතන්න සහ ප්‍රශංසා කිරීමට අවශ්‍යයි. සහ විධායක කමිටු සාමාජිකයන්.”

“එය විශිෂ්ට ව්‍යාපෘතියක් වන අතර, ආසියානු කලාපයේ සමස්ත ඉතා වැදගත් කොටසෙහි නව පියවරක් සනිටුහන් කළ හැකි මෙම AFC සහ FIFA ක්‍රීඩාංගනය හරහා අප අත්වැල් බැඳ ගැනීම ගැන මම ඇත්තෙන්ම ආඩම්බර වෙනවා සහ සතුටු වෙනවා.”

ක්‍රීඩාංගනයේ බිම් ප්‍රමාණය වර්ග අඩි 580,000 ක් පමණ වන අතර ආසන 10,000 ක ආසන ධාරිතාවක් ඇති අතර ඉහළම තත්ත්වයේ FIFA ශ්‍රේණිගත පාපන්දු පිටියකින් සමන්විත වේ.

අනෙක් ඒවා අතර, සමහර ප්‍රධාන අංගයන් අතර ආපනශාලාවක්, ප්‍රමුඛ පෙළේ මාධ්‍ය විනිශ්චය සභාවක් සහ මාධ්‍ය විචාරකයින්ගේ කාමරයක් මෙන්ම ක්‍රීඩාංගනයේ දොරටුවේ ඉදිකරන ලද විචිත්‍රවත් ජල අංගයක් ද ඇතුළත් වේ.

FIFA உடன் இணைந்து புதிய AFC ஸ்டேடியம்

ஆசிய கால்பந்தின் வலுவான வேகத்தை கட்டியெழுப்ப ஃபிஃபாவுடன் இணைந்து புதிய AFC ஸ்டேடியம் ஆசிய கால்பந்தின் எதிர்காலம் அதிக வெற்றியையும் முன்னேற்றத்தையும் கொண்டு வர உள்ளது என ஆசிய கால்பந்து கூட்டமைப்பு (AFC) தலைவர் ஷேக் சல்மான் பின் இப்ராஹிம் அல் கலீஃபா மற்றும் FIFA தலைவர் கியானி இன்பான்டினோ உறுதிப்படுத்தினர். மலேசியாவின் புத்ராஜெயாவில் திங்கள்கிழமை நடைபெற்ற அடிக்கல் நாட்டு விழாவில் புதிய AFC ஸ்டேடியத்தின் கூட்டுத் திட்டம்.

மலேசியாவின் கோலாலம்பூரில் உள்ள AFC ஹவுஸிலிருந்து சுமார் 30km தொலைவில் அமைந்துள்ள, மலேசியாவின் கூட்டாட்சி நிர்வாகத் தலைநகரான புத்ராஜெயாவில் உள்ள AFC ஸ்டேடியம், 15.43 ஏக்கர் நிலப்பரப்பில், பிரமாண்டமான, பார்வையாளர்களுக்கான பவுல்வர்டு மற்றும் ஏட்ரியத்துடன் முழுமையாகக் கட்டமைக்கப்படும். , நிர்வாக அலுவலகங்கள் மற்றும் நிலத்தடி கார் பார்க்கிங்.

புதிய அதிநவீன கால்பந்து-குறிப்பிட்ட ஸ்டேடியம் FIFA ஃபார்வர்ட் திட்டத்தின் நிதியுதவி மூலம் நிதியளிக்கப்படும் மற்றும் அதன் உறுப்பினர் சங்கங்கள் (MAs) மற்றும் பிராந்திய சங்கங்கள் (RAs) ஆகியவற்றை ஆதரிக்க அதன் பார்வை மற்றும் பணி மூலம் AFCயின் லட்சியங்களை மேலும் வலுப்படுத்தும். ) அதிக செயல்திறனுடன். மலேசிய கால்பந்து சங்கம் மற்றும் மலேசிய அரசு இந்த திட்டத்திற்கு தளவாட ஆதரவை வழங்கும்.

AFC மற்றும் அதன் MA க்கள் மற்றும் RA களுக்கான குறிப்பிடத்தக்க முன்னேற்றத்தை அடிக்கோடிட்டுக் காட்டி, AFC தலைவர் கூறினார்: “AFC இன் பார்வை மற்றும் பணி எங்கள் MAக்கள் மற்றும் RA களின் திறனை அதிகரிப்பதை உறுதி செய்வதற்கான எங்கள் லட்சியங்களை அடிக்கோடிட்டுக் காட்டுகிறது.

“தொழில்நுட்பம் மற்றும் நடுவர் துறைகளில் ஏராளமான படிப்புகள், பட்டறைகள் மற்றும் கருத்தரங்குகள் மூலம் AFC ஹவுஸ் கால்பந்து மேம்பாட்டின் மையப் புள்ளியாக இருந்து வருகிறது, இப்போது இந்த புதிய AFC ஸ்டேடியத்துடன், நாங்கள் இன்னும் பலவற்றைச் செய்ய முடியும்” என்று ஷேக் சல்மான் கூறினார்.

ஆசிய கால்பந்து குடும்பத்தின் சார்பாக, இந்த திட்டத்தின் மூலம் மட்டுமல்லாமல், ஆசிய கால்பந்தின் வளர்ச்சிக்கான அர்ப்பணிப்பிற்காக AFC மற்றும் மலேசிய அரசாங்கத்துடன் முன்னேற்றத்தின் புதிய சகாப்தத்தை பட்டியலிட FIFA விருப்பம் தெரிவித்ததற்காக நான் எங்கள் நன்றியைத் தெரிவிக்க வேண்டும். ஆனால் பல தசாப்தங்களாக அதன் உறுதியான ஆதரவிற்காக.

“புதிய AFC ஸ்டேடியம் அடுத்த தசாப்தத்தில் எங்கள் எம்ஏக்கள் மற்றும் ஆர்ஏக்கள் இன்னும் பெரிய உயரங்களை எட்டுவதற்கு வழி வகுக்கும் என்று நான் நம்புகிறேன்.”

AFC தலைவரின் உணர்வுகளை எதிரொலிக்கும் வகையில், 11வது AFC செயற்குழு கூட்டத்தில் கலந்து கொள்வதற்காக மலேசிய தலைநகருக்கு வந்திருந்த FIFA தலைவர் Gianni Infantino கூறினார்: “இது ஆசிய கால்பந்திற்கு ஒரு முக்கியமான முதலீடாக நான் நினைக்கிறேன், மேலும் AFC தலைவரை வாழ்த்திப் பாராட்ட விரும்புகிறேன். மற்றும் செயற்குழு உறுப்பினர்கள்.”

“இது ஒரு சிறந்த திட்டமாகும், மேலும் இந்த AFC மற்றும் FIFA ஸ்டேடியத்தின் மூலம் நாங்கள் ஒன்றிணைவதில் நான் மிகவும் பெருமையும் மகிழ்ச்சியும் அடைகிறேன், இது ஆசிய பிராந்தியத்தின் முழு மிக முக்கியமான பகுதியிலும் ஒரு புதிய படியைக் குறிக்கும்.”

ஸ்டேடியத்தின் தளம் தோராயமாக 580,000 சதுர அடி மற்றும் 10,000 இருக்கை திறன் கொண்டது மற்றும் மிக உயர்ந்த தரமான FIFA தரப்படுத்தப்பட்ட கால்பந்து ஆடுகளத்தைக் கொண்டிருக்கும்.

மற்றவற்றுடன், சில முக்கிய அம்சங்களில் சிற்றுண்டிச்சாலை, ஒரு முன்னணி ஊடக ட்ரிப்யூன் மற்றும் ஊடக வர்ணனையாளர்களின் அறை மற்றும் ஸ்டேடியத்தின் நுழைவாயிலில் கட்டப்படும் துடிப்பான நீர் வசதி ஆகியவை அடங்கும்.

Cricket

Feroza, Sidra guide Pakistan Women to comfortable win

Published

1 day ago

July 23, 2026

Editor

Pakistan Women produced a composed batting performance led by Gull Feroza and Sidra Amin to register a five-wicket victory over Sri Lanka Women in the opening ODI of their tour after successfully chasing 211 with seven overs to spare.

After opting to bat, Sri Lanka struggled to build substantial partnerships despite several batters making useful contributions. Opener Vishmi Gunaratne gave the hosts a positive start with 28 off 38 deliveries, striking four boundaries before becoming the first of three victims for left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu.

Captain Chamari Athapaththu looked set for a bigger score, compiling an elegant 46 from 67 balls with six fours. She added 53 runs with Hasini Perera for the second wicket, but Nashra’s timely breakthrough halted Sri Lanka’s momentum.

Perera contributed a patient 35 while Kavisha Dilhari added another valuable 35 in the middle order. Nilakshika Silva remained unbeaten on 46 from 50 deliveries, ensuring Sri Lanka batted out their full quota of 50 overs to post 210 for nine.

Pakistan’s disciplined bowling attack shared the workload effectively. Nashra Sandhu finished with impressive figures of 3 for 42, while Tasmia Rubab claimed 2 for 34. Umm-e-Hani, Syeda Aroob Shah and captain Fatima Sana chipped in with a wicket apiece to keep the scoring under control.

In reply, Pakistan laid the foundation through Gull Feroza, who produced a fluent 78 off 77 balls, laced with 11 boundaries. She dominated the opening stand before being trapped leg before wicket by Kavisha Dilhari after steering her side into a commanding position.

Experienced batter Sidra Amin anchored the chase with a measured 57 from 94 deliveries, rotating the strike effectively while building partnerships that kept Pakistan comfortably ahead of the required rate. Ayesha Zafar then finished the job with an unbeaten 27, while Najiha Alvi contributed a useful 13.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers found occasional breakthroughs, with Dilhari returning 2 for 37, while Inoka Ranaweera, Chamari Athapaththu and Nimasha Meepage claimed one wicket each. However, the modest target never placed Pakistan under sustained pressure as they reached 211 for five in 43 overs to take an early lead in the series.

Brief Scores:
Sri Lanka Women 210/9 (50 overs) – Chamari Athapaththu 46, Nilakshika Silva 46; Nashra Sandhu 3/42, Tasmia Rubab 2/34. Pakistan Women 211/5 (43 overs) – Gull Feroza 78, Sidra Amin 57, Ayesha Zafar 27; Kavisha Dilhari 2/37.

Football

European Parliament Members Push for FIFA Inquiry Over Balogun Suspension Decision

Published

2 weeks ago

July 11, 2026

Editor

A group of European Parliament members is seeking a formal investigation into FIFA President Gianni Infantino following the controversial decision to allow United States forward Folarin Balogun to play after receiving a red card earlier in the tournament.

The lawmakers argue that the move raises serious concerns about FIFA’s independence and whether political influence played a role in altering a disciplinary decision during the FIFA World Cup.

Balogun, 25, was sent off in the United States’ July 1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Under standard tournament regulations, the dismissal would have ruled him out of his team’s next fixture. However, FIFA’s disciplinary authorities later lifted the suspension, enabling the striker to feature in Monday’s match.

The decision came after U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly appealed directly to Infantino on Balogun’s behalf, prompting criticism from European lawmakers who say football’s governing body compromised the integrity of its own rules.

In a joint statement, Members of the European Parliament Barry Andrews, Lara Wolters and Niels Fuglsang described the decision as “a disgrace and a perversion of justice,” arguing that changing the application of red-card suspensions during an ongoing tournament undermines confidence in the sport’s disciplinary system.

The lawmakers are calling on football associations across European Union member states to urge FIFA’s Ethics Committee to examine Infantino’s conduct. They want investigators to determine whether political pressure from the Trump administration influenced the reversal of Balogun’s suspension and to assess what they describe as other possible violations of FIFA’s principle of political neutrality, including the awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize to Trump.

FIFA has maintained that the decision to overturn Balogun’s suspension was made independently by its disciplinary committee.

According to the lawmakers, support for the initiative is growing, with 35 members of the European Parliament already backing the proposal.

“The beauty of sport lies in the consistent and transparent application of its rules,” the statement said. “When political influence determines who is eligible to compete, the principle of fairness is fundamentally weakened.”

News

Sri Lanka dominate Ceylon Masters with 36 gold medals

Published

3 weeks ago

July 3, 2026

Editor

Sri Lankan shuttle experts recorded a majestic dominance at the claiming a record overall tally of 137 medals at the CMB Masters International Badminton Championships 2026, successfully held at the AIR Sports Complex in Rajagiriya. Out of the total Sri Lanka won a straight tally of 101 medals through their experienced shuttlers, while the remaining 36 were added from collaborations in Doubles with shuttlers from other nations.

From the tally of 101, Sri Lanka claimed 22 gold, 27, silver and 52 bronze medals to lead the medals tally at the end of the five-day competition held with the participation of over 500 leading Masters’ shuttlers representing 15 countries. India finished overall second with 65 medals – 19 each of gold and silver and 27 bronze medals.

Malaysia finished behind at third with nine medals, three each of gold and bronze and a silver to their tally. Chinese Taipei, China, Nepal, Switzerland, UAE, France, Australia and Indonesia followed in behind one another to complete the medal board, while certain nations claimed medals from Doubles events collaborating with shuttlers from other countries.

Among the standout performers for Sri Lanka were Niroshan Wijekoon, Nadeesha Gayanthi, Renu Chandrika de Silva, Thushari Brahmanage, Niluka Karunaratne, Rohan de Silva, Hasitha Chanaka, Duminda Jayakody and Deshani Bandara, who were among a host of local players to produce outstanding performances throughout the tournament. Many of the leading Sri Lankan competitors are former national players who represented the country during their prime, while several are former national champions. Their continued success highlighted the depth of experience and enduring quality within Sri Lanka’s Masters badminton circuit.

The strong participation of overseas players also reflected the growing appeal of the event on the international calendar. Players from 15 countries competed in the championships, reinforcing Sri Lanka’s potential to develop sports tourism by hosting major international Masters events.

The CMB International Badminton Championships 2026, organised by Ceylon Masters Badminton (CMB), also received strong backing from the corporate sector. Some of the country’s leading companies, including McLarens Group, Mobil, Prime Group, 3M, Cool Max, Iodex, Li-Ning, Hundred, RovinAds, Seylan Bank, Sampath Bank, HNB Finance, Ceylon Biscuits Ltd, Mr. FixIt, McFoil and Elite Badminton, stepped forward as sponsors, playing a key role in the successful staging of the tournament.