Miami’s Erik Spoelstra and Denver’s Michael Malone are two of the four NBA coaches to have spent at least eight years with their current team

Months after the men's groundbreaking run to the semi-finals in Qatar, Morocco's women will make World Cup history of...

An LGBTQ+ activist from Qatar says “people need to be worried” about Sheikh Jassim’s bid to buy Manchester United. Dr Nasser Mohamed, who now lives in San Francisco in the United States, sees the efforts to acquire United as part of a “pattern” of purchases by individuals or funds connected to Qatar, and says global brands in multiple sectors are “surrendering control to an authoritarian regime”. Sheikh Jassim made an improved fourth bid to buy 100 per cent of the club and clear United’s debts on Tuesday but faces competition from chemicals billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Sources close to Sheikh Jassim have repeatedly insisted he is bidding alone as a private individual, without any direct or indirect support from the Qatari state or any of the country’s sovereign wealth funds. Many United fans appear to see Sheikh Jassim’s bid as preferable, amid reports Ratcliffe’s bid would be structured to allow current co-owners Avram and Joel Glazer to maintain a minority stake. But Dr Mohamed, whose Alwan Foundation seeks to advocate on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community across the Middle East, told the PA news agency: “The sad reality is that everybody has a price. “People need to be worried. Surrendering control to an authoritarian regime, giving them more and more with the money that they have… (Qatar) is doing this everywhere. By controlling a big team like (United), they will continue to grow in their influence and their voice and their presence. Dr Nasser Mohamed “They’re doing it through real estate. They’re doing it in fashion, they’re doing it in sports, they’re doing it in tech, and they’re gaining control. And you really need to be worried. “It’s the same pattern, right? It’s establishing dominance and having influence over people. And by controlling a big team like (United), they will continue to grow in their influence and their voice and their presence. “As a global community, should we let people with money basically do what they want to unchecked, with nobody stopping them? “Can anybody stop them from doing anything? People want oil and gas from the region and that is impacting our ability to push back on it. “There are people with this insane amount of power that can just go in and do whatever they want, and nobody can stop them.” Even if the Premier League did establish there was state involvement or control of United, it is unclear if new rules around human rights in the league’s owners’ and directors’ test would be a barrier, because Qatar and members of its government are not the subject of human rights sanctions from the UK government. Dr Mohamed says conditions in Qatar for its LGBTQ+ community have returned to how they were prior to the World Cup. Dr Mohamed, who says he is directly in contact via social media with more than 100 members of the community, spoke prior to the World Cup about the persecution he alleges the community faced from the country’s Preventive Security Department, including detention, beatings and forced conversion therapy. He said there had been a period of calm in the two months immediately after the World Cup, but said shortly before the start of Ramadan in March “the crazies came back out”. “Arrests happened again, another round of them,” he added. “And the intrusive searches in the airports, the hunting, all of the things that they were doing (before the World Cup) are back again as of a month and a half ago.” The Qatar government said in October last year that claims of mistreatment of the LGBTQ+ community contained in a report by Human Rights Watch were “unequivocally false” and that the country “does not tolerate discrimination against anyone”. He also criticised the countries involved in the OneLove campaign during the World Cup for failing to offer practical support to the Alwan Foundation, which recently was able to provide a scholarship for a transgender person from Qatar who has resettled in England. FIFA threatened the seven European nations involved, including England and Wales, with sanctions starting at a yellow card for their captains if the rainbow-coloured armbands were worn. Germany’s players covered their mouths in a team photograph prior to their match against Japan, with their coach Hansi Flick saying they had wanted to convey the message that FIFA was silencing them. “I did meet the presidents of the FAs who were going to wear the OneLove armband. I gave them an hour’s talk about driving change. They were like, ‘cool, that’s good to know’ – and they just walked away,” Dr Mohamed said. “You have the Germany team, they made the whole gesture – they didn’t put a single dollar towards the cause. Why are you making a scene? What’s the point? “If you’re going to speak about an issue that’s difficult, let’s be solution-oriented. Let’s not just be provocative for the sake of being provocative. You know, like that just is not helpful.” The Football Association declined to comment. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Michael Vaughan to return to BBC cricket coverage this summer Manchester United could be without Marcus Rashford for Bournemouth game Sam Allardyce wants positive Patrick Bamford response to social media threats

Last year, we made some mistakes on our annual 25-under-25, ranking the best young players in the NBA. Here's everything we got wrong.

Pete Alonso and the Mets have been on the wrong side of Karma ever since Alonso yelled the words 'throw it again!' towards the Braves Bryce Elder.Trash talk, bat flips, stare downs and an occasional taunt are all part of the new age of baseball. These things can be seen in every level ...

Spain's Pablo Larrazabal produced a late birdie blitz to win his second title in four weeks at the...

Skip Bayless on Ja Morant's latest social media posts.

An MLB rumors slideshow provides an update on Carlos Correa's most recent injury and more buzz about turmoil with the San Diego Padres.

Conor McGregor finally received his black belt in jiu-jitsu this week, with his coach John Kavanagh presenting it to the former UFC champion at the SBG Ireland gym. McGregor has begun training ahead of a planned fight with Michael Chandler in late 2023 or early 2024, and he was filmed sparring with Irish UFC prospect Ian Garry in Dublin on Sunday. While in his native Ireland, McGregor also took part in a jiu-jitsu class with his longtime coach, who ended the session by awarding the 35-year-old his black belt. “It’s not normal to give out a belt during the no-gi class,” said Kavanagh, “but nothing about this man’s career or life has been normal. An incredible exponent of martial arts his whole life, he obviously excelled in the professional area. But for me, it’s his interest and his passion about it day to day, whether it’s working with the new guys or training with pros. “It’s a huge pleasure for me to give [this to] a longtime student but also one of my best friends, Conor McGregor.” An emotional McGregor then said: “I appreciate this, guys. Thank you, John, for so much over the years. It’s just great to be home, great to be around UFC talent and see all the talent here around the gym. I’m with SBG for life, and I appreciate this. It means the world to me, thank you so much. “I’ve been doing this a long time, you know? It’s my life. To get it off John, it’s not even about... It’s deeper when you get a black belt off John. There’s not many black belts off Coach Kavanagh. It means the world. “I’ve been here, what, 20 years? So, that’s how long it takes to get a black belt off that man!” McGregor also re-posted a tweet that he first shared in November 2013, which read: “I just want two gold belts, a jiu-jitsu blackbelt, a hall of fame plaque and 25 million in the bank. Is that too much to ask? Gym time!!” McGregor would go on to become the first dual-weight champion in the UFC, after achieving the same status in Cage Warriors, and his net worth was estimated by Forbes to be $180 million in 2021. The Irishman is also a surefire UFC Hall of Famer. He last fought in July 2021, however, suffering a broken leg in his second straight loss to Dustin Poirier, who knocked him out six months earlier. Read More Mark Zuckerberg trains with UFC champions Adesanya and Volkanovski on speedboat Adesanya vs Strickland live stream: How to watch UFC 293 online and on TV this weekend Derek Chisora backs Francis Ngannou to drop Tyson Fury UFC schedule 2023: Every fight happening this year Conor McGregor makes sudden U-turn over UFC comeback Mark Zuckerberg trains with UFC champions on speedboat

Midfielder Keira Walsh has injured her right knee in a Women's World Cup Group D match against Denmark in yet another setback for European champion England

When the San Diego Padres acquired Josh Hader from the Milwaukee Brewers, A.J. Preller likely did not think he would be traded just a year later. Could the Braves be a suitor?Josh Hader would be an electric addition to the Atlanta Braves bullpen. Of course, he would also come at a steep price, m...

El Salvador's football federation on Tuesday ordered first-division Alianza to play home matches behind closed doors for a year, blaming the club for a fatal...