Verstappen out of Monaco Grand Prix on opening lap

Monte Carlo, Principality of Monaco: Red Bull's Dutch driver Max Verstappen was forced to retire on the very first lap of the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday after an issue right from the front row of the grid. mchezo.life

The four-time world champion, who had hoped to make a strong start to seize the lead -- which is crucial in Monaco where overtaking is virtually impossible -- was stuck in place when the flag went up, a victim of a technical issue on his car.

"Mad Max" expressed his disbelief over the team radio before setting off at reduced speed on the Monaco circuit and then returning to the pits at the end of the first lap.

الأخباردي لا فوينتي: النهائي سيكون «عرضا مذهلا»قال مدرب المنتخب الإسباني لويس دي لا فوينتي إنه يعتزم إيلاء «اهتمام خاص» بقائد المنتخب الأرجنتيني ليونيل ميسي، لكنه استبعد اللجوء إلى رقابة فردية.وأعرب عن إعجابه الكبير بمنتخب ا...فتح →

"The engine was bizarre, even on the warm up lap. And then I could see on the grid the engine going crazy. The race was destroyed," said Verstappen.

He reacted wisely by moving to the left, allowing Monaco's Charles Leclerc of Ferrari to swoop safely around him.

Italian driver Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes, the championship leader who started from pole position, held onto the lead at the first corner and is in an ideal position to secure a fifth consecutive Grand Prix victory.

Tijuana, Mexico: Iran's World Cup squad landed in Mexico on Sunday, June 7, 2026, under the shadow of a bitter diplomatic row, after the United States -- which is in open military conflict with Tehran -- refused to issue visas for some team support staff.

The dispute erupted just days before Thursday's kickoff of the 2026 World Cup, which is being jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.

After departing from their training camp in Turkey a day earlier, the Iran team landed early Sunday in the Mexican border city of Tijuana, AFP witnessed.

The team will be based in the city throughout the tournament, despite playing their entire group stage in the United States.

When they do play in the US, it will be the first World Cup to see a host nation receive the team of a country it is at war with.

Iran's team spent nearly three weeks at a training camp in Antalya, using their time in Turkey to apply for visas to travel to Mexico, Canada and the United States.

On the eve of their departure for Mexico, the players received their US visas, Washington's envoy to Turkey Tom Barrack said on X late Friday.

But Iran's embassy to Turkey said support staff had been denied visas -- 15 administrative and management staff are concerned, an Iranian diplomat and state TV said.

"You have now escalated the deliberate and discriminatory treatment against Iran's national football team to its highest level," the embassy wrote Saturday on X, calling for world football's governing body FIFA "to hold the US accountable for violations of its rules."

Adding to the tensions, Iran's ambassador to Mexico said Saturday the squad had been notified that, under their visa conditions, the team must enter and leave US soil on the same day as their matches.

"We can enter in the morning and we must leave the same day," Iran's envoy Abolfazl Pasandideh told reporters.

That appeared to contradict what the team's spokesman Amir Mahdi Alavi told state TV earlier.

"The visas issued for the national team are multiple-entry visas, and the national team will arrive at the match venue one day before the first game and, for the following games, two days prior to each match," Alavi said.

FIFA rules for World Cups stipulate that a team's coach must give a news conference on the eve of the match at the venue where the game will be played.

Cairo: France's David Trezeguet and Brazil's Zico and Dunga all left their mark on World Cup history decades ago.

In 2026, their names will return to football's biggest stage but this time on the backs of Egyptian players.

When the Pharaohs walk onto the tournament pitch this month, several squad members will carry monikers drawn from some of the game's most iconic figures -- names first picked up years ago on dusty training grounds, in youth academies and across local leagues.

The tradition is rooted in similarities of playing style or appearance and in a football culture that has long embraced legendary names.

One standout is Mahmoud Hassan, popularly called "Trezeguet," who plays for Egyptian giants Al Ahly.

The 31-year-old winger, who previously had a spell in the Premier League with Aston Villa, made his World Cup debut at Russia 2018 and is now preparing for his second appearance.

His nickname was given by youth coach Badr Ragab, who saw in Hassan's style and aerial prowess shades of the French striker who helped France lift the 1998 World Cup and later featured in the 2002 and 2006 tournaments.

الأخبارسكالوني: كل شيء في الماتادور يثير قلقيأكد مدرب منتخب الأرجنتين ليونيل سكالوني إن «كل شيء» في منتخب إسبانيا، «يثير قلقه». وأشاد مدرب «ألبيسيليستي»، الساعي إلى إحراز نجمة ثانية تواليا بعد تلك التي توج بها في قطر 2022،...فتح →

"From his first days... I noticed (Hassan's) resemblance to Trezeguet, both in appearance and playing style," Ragab told AFP.

"He was strong in the air and scored goals in a similar way, so I gave him the name. I never imagined it would stay with him for so long."

The original Trezeguet earned 71 caps for France before ending his international career in 2014.

Now, Egypt's own Trezeguet is edging towards a milestone of his own, sitting just short of 100 caps, a mark he could reach should Egypt progress beyond the group stage at the World Cup.

The team will face Belgium, Iran and New Zealand in Group G.

'Little Zico'

Brazil's influence is also visible within the Egyptian squad.

Mostafa Abdel-Raouf, a midfielder for Pyramids FC, has been known as "Little Zico" since his early days in the game, a reference to one of Brazil's most gifted playmakers.

Unlike Hassan's nickname, the origin was more personal than tactical.

Abdel-Raouf's older brother, who also played football, was nicknamed Zico because his full name included "Zaki".

"When Mostafa started playing, coaches called him 'little Zico' because he was my younger brother," he told AFP.

The name stayed with him as he moved through different clubs, he added.

The original Zico made 71 appearances for Brazil and played in three World Cups before retiring in 1994.

Egypt's 29-year-old Zico is only just beginning his international journey.

Called up for the first time ahead of the tournament, he made an immediate impact, scoring on his debut in a friendly against Russia in May.

Another Brazilian-inspired nickname belongs to Nabil Emad, known as "Dunga", after the midfielder who captained Brazil to World Cup glory in 1994.

The 27-year-old, now playing as a defensive midfielder for Saudi Pro League club Al-Najma, is competing in his second major international tournament after the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

His nickname dates back to his early career, when he was spotted playing in Egypt's second division.

"I admired the Brazilian player, and Nabil played in the same position with a very similar style," said Wael Habib, a former official at Al Assiouty, now Pyramids FC, who signed him in 2014.

Emad went on to establish himself at Pyramids, later joining Egyptian giants Zamalek before moving abroad.

In Egypt, such naming traditions are far from unusual.

Ragab, who coined the nickname Trezeguet, also handed out other European-inspired names in his youth teams, including "Nedved" for ex-Al Ahly winger Karim Walid, after Czech legend Pavel Nedved.

Other players have carried names borrowed from well-known figures, from Al Ahly's Ahmed Ramadan, known as "Beckham", to former Zamalek player Youssef Ibrahim, whose nickname "Obama" set him apart beyond the pitch.