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Birmingham chief executive Garry Cook has blamed “misalignment” for the circumstances that led to John Eustace’s sacking but vowed to make the club “a football powerhouse” amid reports Wayne Rooney is set to take charge as boss. Eustace’s departure from St Andrew’s on Monday morning further stoked rumours that former England captain Rooney is due to be appointed as manager following his DC United exit on Sunday. While an update on the new boss is expected in “the coming days”, Cook explained the timing of Eustace’s exit was driven by facilitating the best possible circumstances for his successor. It became clear that there was a misalignment with the leadership of the club. Birmingham City CEO Garry Cook In a statement posted to the club’s official website, Cook wrote: “John had clear ambitions and goals for the season. Unfortunately, following a series of meetings over a number of months, it became clear that there was a misalignment with the leadership of the club. When this happens, the best thing to do is to part company. “The timing of the decision allows the incoming manager sufficient time to evaluate the playing staff ahead of the January and summer transfer windows. “In a short period, the owners, board members and club leadership have overseen the start of a transformation that not even the most optimistic Blues fan would have considered possible. And this is just the beginning.” Birmingham, who sit sixth in the Championship, have made a solid start to the season with five wins, three draws and three losses, including a come-from-behind 3-1 derby win over West Brom on Friday. Eustace led Birmingham to safety last season, a feat Cook acknowledged in a meeting on Monday morning in which he “shared the reasons for the decision to part company”. Cook did not directly discuss the recruitment process for a new boss in his statement, but hinted at ambitions to attract top talent. He added: “The owners and board members are ambitious. They are driven to help make Birmingham City a football powerhouse. It will not happen overnight. It is a step-by-step approach. “We are well aware of what has happened at Blues over the past decade. We believe we have moved on from those dark days giving hope and aspiration to existing and new fans. Our intent is to be judged over what we do in the years to come and be ambitious with the new story that we are writing. “Creating a winning culture in an organisation that has been on its back foot for a number of years is not easy. My executive team are aware that we are aspiring to be world class, but it takes more than words. “Birmingham City Football Club needs world-class professionals across every department, to enhance our performance on and off the pitch. Experienced people who know how to be successful and are driven by winning. We are not going to stop identifying and adding such talent to help us realise our ambition.” Read More Catalans win in Grand Final would ‘make huge noise around the world’ – McNamara A closer look at the UK and Ireland’s host venues for Euro 2028 A closer look at the UK and Ireland’s host venues for Euro 2028 James Ryan and Mack Hansen injury doubts for Ireland against New Zealand Dawid Malan hits superb hundred as England post 364 for nine against Bangladesh Anna Shackley looks forward after ‘a really nice last couple of months’

By Fernando Kallas MADRID Dallas Mavericks' Slovenia forward Luka Doncic will get a rapturous home welcome when he

The Spanish FA have released a statement on the availability of Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal for their upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers.

The hosts of Euro 2028 will be the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland after a joint bid across the five nations was confirmed by Uefa on Tuesday. Following a meeting of Uefa’s Executive Committee, the UK and Ireland was awarded the 2028 tournament in a rare five-association partnership, The UK and Ireland bid delegation included six football youth ambassadors who support the development and diversity of the game as well as a presentation by the five Football Association leaders and former Wales captain Gareth Bale. Euro 2028 will be the largest major sporting event ever held across all five nations and is set to be a commercial success, delivering record crowd numbers at famous venues. There will be approximately three million tickets available, which is more than any previous European Championship, and with an average stadia capacity of 58,000 more fans than ever will be able to attend matches in person. The FA also estimates that 2.5m fans will take part in Uefa’s fan festivals across the UK and Ireland during the tournament which will have a renewed focus on sustainability. A compact and connected transport plan is being drawn up to ensure that more than 80 per cent of ticket holders are able to travel to matches by public transport and the proposed match schedule aims to reduce and limit emissions for fans attending the games. There will also be a personal carbon footprint tracker for every spectator. Euro 2028 is also predicted to generate socio-economic benefits of up to £2.6bn for the UK and Ireland with the bid partners already investing more than £500m - between 2019 and 2025 - to improve and upgrade grassroots facilities. A further £45m legacy fund will be invested to develop football and create additional benefits as the tournament approaches. However, there are still issues to resolve over the next five years however with agreement still to be reached on who will fund the redevelopment of Casement Park - Northern Ireland’s host stadium. Plans for a 34,000 stadium have been delayed by legal challenges and are further complicated by the lack of a functioning Executive at Stormont. Costs have also risen from an original estimate of £77.5m to more than £100m. England will be involved in hosting a Euros for a third time having hosted alone in Euro 96 and were one of 11 countries involved in staging the continent-wide Euro 2020. All five nations are expected to go through qualification for the tournament, with Uefa reserving two host nation places for any of the teams which do not make it on merit. Read More UK and Ireland confirmed as joint hosts of Euro 2028 UEFA picks UK-Ireland to host soccer's 2028 European Championship. Italy-Turkey to stage Euro 2032 Uefa torn over plans to reinstate Russian youth teams Ukraine urges other nations to boycott playing Russia after Uefa decision Earps thanks fans after England GK jersey sells out in hours Saudi Arabia targets two European clubs ‘similar in size’ to Newcastle

Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman has confirmed that Ryan Gravenberch has not been called up for international duty due to previously dropping out of the squad.

The UK and Ireland’s bid to host Euro 2028 has been formally approved, UEFA has announced. Ten stadia across the five nations will host the matches in five years’ time, with analysts projecting a three billion euro (£2.6bn) boost to the host nation economies on the back of the tournament. The bid was unopposed after Turkey withdrew to focus on a joint bid for the 2032 finals alongside Italy, and it was given the official seal of approval by UEFA’s executive committee on Tuesday morning. Wembley is set to host the final – and potentially both semi-finals – with the other English venues included in April’s final bid submission being the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the Etihad Stadium, Villa Park, St James’ Park and Everton’s new ground at Bramley-Moore Dock. Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, Hampden Park in Glasgow, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium and a redeveloped Casement Park in Belfast will also host matches. Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer welcomed the news, saying: “I’m thrilled we’ve secured UEFA EURO 2028. It will be the biggest sporting event ever jointly hosted in the UK and Ireland. “We will put on a brilliant tournament with fans at its heart. We will warmly welcome fans from across Europe to our islands’ shores and give people memories that will last a lifetime. “On top of that, the tournament is expected to deliver up to £2.6 billion of socio-economic benefit across the host nations, creating jobs and opportunities.” All five nations are expected to go through qualification for the tournament, with UEFA understood to be reserving two host nation places for any of the teams which do not make it on merit. The UK-Ireland bid would have been the overwhelming favourite to host Euro 2028 even if Turkey had remained in the race. Senior UEFA sources have repeatedly stressed the importance of hosting another European Championship in a major market – following on from Euro 2024 in Germany – as essential to boosting UEFA’s finances in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. There will still be issues for the bid team to resolve over the next five years however – with agreement still to be reached on who will fund the redevelopment of Casement Park. Plans for a 34,000 stadium have been delayed by legal challenges and are further complicated by the lack of a functioning Executive at Stormont. Costs have also risen from an original estimate of £77.5million to more than £100m. The GAA is part-funding the project but has not reached an agreement with Stormont over where the remainder will come from. Tuesday’s decision means England will be involved in hosting a Euros for a third time. They hosted alone in Euro 96 and were one of 11 countries involved in staging the continent-wide Euro 2020. The UK and Ireland associations first announced they were focusing on a bid for Euro 2028 in February last year. It had been expected that they would bid for the centenary World Cup in 2030 but Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham admitted at the time there were “many areas of uncertainty” with doing so, leading to the switch in focus. Read More James Ryan and Mack Hansen injury doubts for Ireland against New Zealand Dawid Malan hits superb hundred as England post 364 for nine against Bangladesh Anna Shackley looks forward after ‘a really nice last couple of months’ Football rumours: Manchester United looking to send Jadon Sancho out on loan Last-quarter touchdown seals win for Las Vegas Raiders against Green Bay Packers On this day in 2015: Kevin Sinfield has fairytale finish to rugby league career

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola refused to go into detail over a post-match scuffle involving Kyle Walker, Erling Haaland and a member of Arsenal's coaching staff.

The United Kingdom and Ireland are set to be announced as the hosts for Uefa Euro 2028 with another joint bid between Turkey and Italy the likely destinations for the 2032 edition. Uefa still need to grant official approval to the bids, which have so far been unopposed, when they meet Switzerland on Tuesday. Ten stadiums across the UK and Ireland are set to play host to Euro 2028 with Wembley Stadium (London), Principality Stadium (Cardiff), Hampden Park (Glasgow), Aviva Stadium (Dublin), and Casement Park (Belfast) all named as venues in the bid. The final is due to be held at Wembley, the same location where the Lionesses won the 2022 Euros and where the men lost to Italy in the 2020 Euro final. Germany host the competition next year after the previous edition was held in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Follow along with all of the latest updates as the 2028 and 2032 hosts are announced. Read More Euro 2028 venues: UK and Ireland name 10 stadiums as Anfield and Old Trafford miss out UK and Ireland set to host Euro 2028 after Turkey withdraw bid Saudi Arabia bid for 2034 World Cup strengthened after Australia and New Zealand hit hurdle

The annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank kick off this week against a backdrop

Eden Hazard announces retirement from professional football at the age of 32.

Manchester City remain interested in signing Joshua Kimmich from Bayern Munich and could firm up their interest in 2024. The German champions blocked a potential exit this summer, but the midfielder is now set to enter the last 18 months of his contract.

Real Madrid are gearing up to announce Vinicius Junior's new long-term contract. The Brazil international has been at the Santiago Bernabeu since he was 18.