President of the Nigeria Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C), Dr. Rafiu Ladipo, has commended GOtv for its continued support for Nigerian boxing.

Ladipo made the commendation on Tuesday in Lagos at the press conference to announce the 19th GOtv Boxing Night, which holds at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, on 14 July.

The NBB of C President said the pay television company has remained consistent in its support of the sport, a gesture he said has resulted in the revival of the sport domestically.

“If there is one thing that is obvious about GOtv Boxing Night, it is consistency. Since the first edition in 2014, it has been consistent. We’ve seen similar shows like this that after some time, they go off.

“But in the case of GOtv Boxing Night, it has continued to grow in leaps and bounds. From edition one, two, three, seven, 10, 13, 15, 17 to 19, it is not easy. So I will like to, once again, say a big thank you to GOtv,” he said.

Ladipo added that he is especially delighted by four Nigerian boxers, whose careers have been boosted by GOtv Boxing Night. Many other boxers, he said, have become known through the event in other countries.

“Our boxers are easily recognised anytime they go outside Nigeria to fight. This wouldn’t have been possible if not for GOtv, which gave them the platform to showcase their skills.

“Unlike in the past where our boxers are not given the right treatment, this is no longer so, thanks to GOtv,” said Ladipo.
His view is also shared by the NBB of C Secretary General and President, West African Boxing Union (WABU), Remi Aboderin, who said he is delighted by the regularity of Nigerian boxers travelling to fight in other countries as well as visits by foreign boxers to fight in Nigeria.
“Since the GOtv Boxing Night began, we have been seing our boxers go out to fight and boxers from other African countries coming here to face our best boxers.

“Also, our boxers are increasingly being rated and their records documented. This has been possible because of GOtv’s support. Hopefully, we will continue to see many talented boxers emerge to become champions in Africa and the world,” said Aboderin.

Real Madrid has reportedly agreed to double Eden Hazard‘s Chelsea salary’ to a staggering £400,000 per week when he finalises his £130million move.

According to the Evening Standard, Madrid have agreed on terms with Hazard to double his current wages from £200,000 to £400,000 per week.

His imminent big-money transfer to the Bernabeu is expected to be announced within the next 24 hours after an agreement was reached this week between the two clubs, with Madrid agreeing to pay an initial £88m, which will still rise to £130m dependent on various bonuses and incentives for the former Lille player.

The deal will make Hazard is the most expensive signing in their history, ahead of both Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale. It will also be the second-largest Premier League transfer ever, after Philippe Coutinho‘s £145m move from Liverpool to Real’s arch-rivals Barcelona in January 2018.

The final match of the inaugural edition of the UEFA Nations League Final between hosts Portugal and the Netherlands, as well as is the third-place playoff between Switzerland and England will be broadcast live this weekend on DStv and GOtv.

Both games, which kick off at 2pm for the Third-place and 7:45pm for the Final on Sunday, will be broadcast exclusively on SuperSport 3 to DStv Premium and SuperSport Select 4 to GOtv Max subscribers.

Portugal defeated Italy and Poland at home and away respectively, and drew the reverse fixtures to get through to the semi-final.  Coach Fernando Santos’ side breezed into the final of the competition after their talisman and captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, netted a hattrick in their 3-1 win over Switzerland in the first semi-final game at the Estadio Drago on Wednesday.

In addition to the in-form Ronaldo, A Seleção will also bank on the likes of Bernardo Silva, veteran Joao Moutinho and more importantly, their supporters as their 12th man to win the trophy and add to continental triumph of Euro 2016.

The Netherlands, on the other hand, began their competition on a stumbling note after they lost away to World Cup champions, France. They, however, bounced back in remarkable fashion, defeating Germany and France at home, before finishing their League A campaign with a draw against Germany away. Ronald Koeman’s men marched into the final after a commanding 3-1 victory against England at Guimaraes in Portugal. The Oranje will depend on their youthful attackers such as Memphis Depay and Frenkie de Jong to deliver the goals, while relying on teenage sensation Matthijs de Ligt and experienced defender and captain, Virgil van Dijk to provide the needed steel at the back.

Both teams have met 13 times, with the Iberian side winning seven wins compared to two for the Dutch. Their most recent meeting was a friendly in Geneva in March last year in which the Netherlands won 3-0, thanks to goals from Depay, van Dijk and Ryan Babel.

For the Third-place game, the English Three Lions will hope better their record in the losers’ final after they lost to Belgium at this same stage during the 2018 World Cup. But Switzerland, experiencing a resurgence under coach Vladimir Petkovic, will want to use the game to continue their strong showing at recent international competitions.

For more information on the unmatched football on DStv and GOtv, as well as the upcoming fixtures, visit www.supersport.com.

Gianni Infantino was re-elected by acclamation for a second term as FIFA president at the Congress of world football’s governing body in Paris on Wednesday.

The 49-year-old, who took charge of FIFA in February 2016 after the departure of the disgraced Sepp Blatter, stood unopposed for re-election for a new four-year term which will run until 2023.

He said that the organization has been transformed into being “synonymous with credibility.”

Before the decision, Infantino said: “It is only thanks to you that we have been able to transform FIFA, to transform it into a new FIFA, an organization that is synonymous with credibility, confidence, integrity, equality, human rights, social engagement, modernity, professionalism and equality.”

The power of African football will be on display on Saturday, when Liverpool take on Tottenham Hotspur in the final of the UEFA Champions League (UCL), the world’s most prestigious club competition.

The match billed for Atletico Madrid’s 67,000-capacity Wanda Metropolitano Stadium and scheduled for live broadcast on all DStv packages as well as GOtv Max and Plus packages, will see Africa’s biggest soccer exports on both sides.

Liverpool boast the trio of Egypt’s Mohamed ‘Mo’ Salah, Senegal’s Sadio Mane and Cameroon’s Joel Matip, who will lead the charge for what will be the Reds’ sixth victory in the competition and the second since being renamed the UEFA Champions League.

Mane and Salah, who both got 22 Premier League goals, form two-thirds of Liverpool’s dreaded front three, while Matip is the other half of the much vaunted central defensive partnership with Holland’s Virgil van Dijk.

Salah will hope to banish the hurt suffered in last year’s final, when he suffered a shoulder injury early in the game, a development that affected his performance at the 2018 World Cup with Pharaohs in Russia. The Egyptian superstar has only four goals in 11 Champions League games this season.

Mane, Senegal’s speed and goal demon was impressive in the Premier League. The 27-year old has played 12 Champions League matches, scoring four goals. Matip has risen from a bit-part player to an integral part of the team, which conceded the fewest number of goals in the Premier League, is likely to start the final.

On Spurs’ side will Cote d’Ivoire’s Serge Aurier and Kenya’s Victor Wanyama, who have not been used regularly in the Champions League this season.

Aurier, a vastly experienced right-back, has played only five Champions League games, while Wanyama, a defensive midfielder, has been on the pitch for only 292 minutes, but may get a game on Staurday as he will be expected to keep Mane.

The UEFA Champions League final broadcast will include half hour highlights of the four semi-final games; the official UEFA Champions League preview show at 6:00pm; the studio build-up including crossings from Madrid at 6:30pm; and then the live match from 8:00pm.

Football action will continue for DStv and GOtv after the UEFA Champions League final when the much-anticipated 2019Africa Cup of Nations kicks off on 21 June.

The much awaited UEFA Champions League final clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, scheduled for Saturday, will be broadcast live on DStv and GOtv.

The live telecast of the match, the second-ever final appearance of two Premier League sides, will offer fans match build-up programming, including highlights of past the two finalists’ games. Subscribers will have access to an array of pre-match programming, including half hour highlights of the four semi-final games; official UEFA Champions League preview show at 6pm; the studio build up including crossings from Madrid at 6:30pm before the match kick-off at 8pm. These will be available onSuperSport 3 (DStv Channel 203), SuperSport 10 (DStv Channel 210) and Select 2 (GOtv channel 32).

“The Champions League is Europe’s most prestigious competition and one that football fans all over the world follow passionately. This season has seen spectacular comebacks and will have two English teams facing off in the final for only the second time in history. We are indeed glad to be on the right side of history as the finale will be broadcast live for our customers on all DStv packages, GOtv Max and GOtv Plus,” said Mr. John Ugbe, Chief Executive Officer for MultiChoice Nigeria.

 Both English teams made astonishing recoveries in their semi-final clashes, with Spurs overcoming the exciting, youthful AFC Ajax of the Netherlands, while Liverpool had a legendary triumph over Spanish champions Barcelona.It’s a milestone match for Spurs who are appearing in their first Champions League final ever, with coach, Mauricio Pochettino masterminding an incredible campaign which has seen come through arguably the toughest group and knockout ties against Borussia Dortmund, Manchester City and Ajax.

Spurs were well off the pace in the Premier League, but being crowned European champions would make this the greatest season in the history of the London club and establish Pochettino as a legend in Tottenham for all time.Jurgen Klopp is already well on his way to doing the same for Liverpool, though there is surely a fear that his team will be labelled the ‘nearly men’: they got to the Champions League final last year and succumbed to Real Madrid, while their incredible Premier League campaign this season (in which they racked up 97 points – one point behind the season winners Man City).

A defeat in this final could be a huge psychological blow for Liverpool, but a victory (and a sixth European Championship title – more than any other English side) could lay the foundation for this Reds side to dominate at home and abroad as their predecessors did way back in the 1970s and ‘80s.

In head-to-head terms, Tottenham and Liverpool have met in 170 previous matches across all competitions. The Reds have dominated the rivalry, claiming 79 wins compared to 48 for Spurs, while 43 matches have been drawn.

The teams’ most recent clash a Premier League game live on SuperSport in late March at Anfield which saw ‘Pool claim a 2-1 win: Roberto Firmino’s opener was cancelled out by Lucas Moura, before a late fumble from Hugo Lloris resulted in an own goal for Toby Alderweireld.

Rafael Nadal has defeated Novak Djokovic 6-0, 4-6, 6-1 to win a ninth Italian Open title and a record 34rd Masters crown on Sunday night.

World number one Djokovic, who won at the Madrid Open last week, produced an incredible performance in his 54th meeting with second-ranked Nadal.

With the victory, Nadal now overtakes Djokovic at the top of the list for Masters wins. The pair were level at 33 each before Sunday’s final in a timely boost ahead of his assault on a 12th French Open crown in a week’s time.