Sports

Digital ads extend lead over traditional media, set to hit Rs 728 billion in 2025: MAGNA

Digital advertising (51% share) overtook traditional advertising in 2024. In 2025 Digital adex will rise +12%, INR 728 billion ($8.4 billion) while traditional media revenue is forecast to increase by +3.4%, INR 643 billion ($7.5 billion), as per MAGNA. Social advertising is advancing to be the largest format and is expected to overtake Television in […]

Published

2 months ago

July 3, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Hema Malik, Chief Investment Officer, IPG Mediabrands India, said: “MAGNA predicts above average ad spend resilience in 2025 neutralizing the impact of ad spend on cyclical events in 2024 led by National Elections & T20 World Cup. In 2025 MAGNA expects dynamic ad spend in Finance, Media, Pharma, Technology, Gaming and Retail, while Automotive and Electronics might lag. The trio of Video, Social and Retail will once again lead the Adex growth. Live sports, which were the only Linear TV mainstays, have been upended with more people streaming sports content. Ad-supported streaming experience rapid growth in access, consumption, and advertising sales, as nearly all streaming TV platforms offer more affordable ad-supported plans. Long-form video is growing at a blistering pace of over +25% and is 6% of the total video forecast, estimated to gain double digit share in the next three years.”

Overall, India’s economic outlook remains positive, with robust growth potential supported by a combination of domestic demand, government investment, and a thriving services sector. In a high-stake election year (2024), the market grew +6.5%. IMF in its April 2025 report, projects a slight contraction in activity with a growth forecast of +6.2% in 2025 and a marginal recovery with +6.3% expansion in 2026.

Monetary tightening of the past is now being rolled back by the central bank, paving way for recovery. With the inflation cooling from 4.7% in 2024 to estimated 4.2% in 2025 and 4.1% in 2026, central bank is signalling staunch support for economic revival with front loading interest rate cuts and injecting liquidity into the market.

Evolving global trade landscape is expected to influence India’s growth trajectory and potential trade headwinds could have an impact on the economy. However, India is well placed to manage the effects of trade disruptions because of domestic growth drivers and low dependence on exports. Nonetheless, the key sectors that drive both trade and domestic adex such as CPG, Auto, Textiles, Electronics & Tech face challenges and India maintains an extremely cautious stance.

The Media Owners revenue outlook in 2025 is positive across both linear and digital formats. 2025 H1 will see an increase of +6% and the latter half of the year will grow +9%. Any impact of trade is likely to be felt in the second half of the year and though our full-year forecast accounts for this challenging environment, the situation is still forming shape and there is uncertainty.

An, YOY growth of +7.8% in 2025 with total revenue increasing by INR 99 billion taking the total adex from INR 1272 billion ($14.7 billion) to INR 1371 billion ($15.9 billion). Digital Pure Player formats valued at INR 680 billion ($7.9 billion) are driving the advertising economy, which is estimated to grow at +11.4%. Video (INR 413 billion, $4.8 billion) which is the second largest format is estimated to grow +4%. While Digital Video growth is +17%, overall video spends are weighed down by linear television which is forecast to grow +2.5%. Digital Pure Play and Video accounts for 80% of the total adex. Publishing (INR 205 billion, $2.4 billion) will grow +3.5% with the digital version of the format growing at twice the rate. Audio & Experiential, which is 5% of the adex, will be growing at +5.9% and +12.9% respectively. In 2026, the growth is expected to be +7.7%.

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Sports

2025 MIAC Volleyball Season Preview

Story Links BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) volleyball teams are back on the court and ready for the 2025 season. The fall season officially gets underway on Friday, August 29, with nearly two dozen non-conference matches. While a handful of MIAC squads will stay home to host contests […]

Published

8 minutes ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) volleyball teams are back on the court and ready for the 2025 season.

The fall season officially gets underway on Friday, August 29, with nearly two dozen non-conference matches. While a handful of MIAC squads will stay home to host contests next weekend, others will log travel time, with matches as close as Iowa and Wisconsin and as far as California, Georgia, and Washington. Conference play gets underway the week of September 22. The regular season will run through Saturday, November 8.

The top six teams in the conference standings at the end of the regular season will move on to the 2025 MIAC Volleyball Playoffs. The conference tournament will begin with two quarterfinal contests on Tuesday, November 11, followed by a pair of semifinal matches on Thursday, November 13. The 2025 MIAC Volleyball Playoff Championship is set for Saturday, November 15, with the winner securing the conference’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament. The 2025 NCAA Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship is scheduled for December 3-6, 2025, at the Shirk Center Arena in Bloomington, Illinois.

The bracket for the national tournament will be unveiled during the Selection Show on Monday, November 17. After the automatic qualifiers have been awarded to conference champions across Division III, the remaining NCAA Tournament qualifiers will be selected “at-large” via the NCAA Power Index (NPI). The Women’s Volleyball NPI will calculate winning percentage, strength of schedule, home-away results, and quality wins to rank teams for at-large postseason consideration.

2024 FINAL STANDINGS

Gustavus (20-10, 11-0)*

Bethel (20-9, 9-2)

St. Catherine (20-9, 9-2)

Saint Benedict (15-12, 8-3)#%

Augsburg (16-14, 7-4)

St. Olaf (19-10, 6-5)

Macalester (13-15, 5-6)

Carleton (13-13, 4-7)

St. Scholastica (13-16, 3-8)

Hamline (9-19, 2-9)

Concordia (2-25, 2-9)

Saint Mary’s (7-21, 0-11)

*MIAC Regular Season Champion

#MIAC Playoff Champion

%NCAA Championship Participant

RULE CHANGES

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel (PROP) reviewed and approved a handful of rule changes last year for implementation during the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Among those items was a rule that allows referees to issue a red card to the host team if a spectator enters the designated player area. PROP also clarified rules on uniforms and accessories, creating logo standards for uniform bottoms, allowing for snug-fitting nose rings and ear cuffs to be worn during matches, and requiring that headbands be a single color.

Teams were also allowed two libero designations for each set beginning last season, and a successive contact rule was put into place to limit controversy created by judgment calls. On a team’s second hit, contacting the ball more than once in a single attempt to play the ball is not a fault if the ball is next contacted by a teammate. The rule change was made to promote better consistency and match flow for players and fans.

In the MIAC, volleyball coaches approved a pre-match protocol similar to the NCAA Championship format to ensure clarity and consistency throughout the conference.

MIAC SPORTS NETWORK

The MIAC Sports Network powered by Hudl returns as the streaming home of all MIAC-hosted games, events, and championships. The MIAC Sports Network is available on the web (https://miacsportsnetwork.com/) along with streaming apps for television and mobile devices, including Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku (TV), iOS, Android (mobile), and Amazon Fire Tablet. The app can be found and installed free of charge by searching for the MIAC Sports Network.

The 2025 MIAC Volleyball Playoffs will be streamed live on the MIAC Sports Network in a pay-per-view format. Individual playoff contests will be streamed for $10 each. A $25 “playoff pass” to stream all five matches will also be available for purchase. Details and information on purchasing pay-per-view access will be made available in advance of the conference playoffs. Access and availability of regular-season match streams will not be impacted by this policy change.

AWARD WATCH

The 2025 MIAC Volleyball All-Conference honors will be voted on by MIAC coaches after the regular season. In addition to a 22-player All-MIAC squad, coaches will also vote on individual awards for the MIAC Offensive, Defensive, Rookie, and Coach of the Year.

Throughout the regular season, the MIAC will recognize top individual performances with the MIAC Volleyball Offensive and Specialist (Defensive/Setter) of the Week awards. Athlete of the Week awards will begin on Tuesday, September 2, and be announced each Monday following through the end of the regular season. During the week following the MIAC Playoffs, participating coaches will also select a nine-player All-Playoff Team in recognition of outstanding performances throughout the conference tournament.

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Sports

Pilots Fall to Titans 1-0

Next Game: Long Beach State 8/24/2025 | 1:00 PM ESPN+ Aug. 24 (Sun) / 1:00 PM Long Beach State PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Pilots fell in their home opener against Cal State Fullerton Titans 1-0. The Pilots fall to 0-1-1 on the season. How it Happened The […]

Published

12 minutes ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Pilots fell in their home opener against Cal State Fullerton Titans 1-0. The Pilots fall to 0-1-1 on the season.

How it Happened

The Pilots and Titans clashed in the first half, playing a defensive battle that left both teams scoreless after the first 45. The goal for the Titans came in the 73rd minute when Isabella Cruz worked her way into the box for the shot and score. The Pilots searched for the equalizer, but came up just short.

Game Notes

Sophia Hills recorded two saves for the Pilots out of six total Titans shots.

Portland outshot the Titans seven to six.

Two players made their Pilot debuts Thursday night: Talia Niebles-Webb and Adison Bosa.

Up Next

The Pilots stay home for their next match, taking on the Long Beach State Beach on Sunday, Aug. 24. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Check PortlandPilots.com for tickets, live stats and video options.

Get Your Tickets Now!

Secure your spot now for any upcoming Portland Pilots ticketed home event by visiting PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or by downloading the Portland Pilots App. For group and fan experience package information, email pilotsboxoffice@up.edu.

Donate Today

Fans interested in making a contribution to University of Portland Athletics can do so by clicking here. Your gift helps our over 300 student-athletes compete at the highest level – on and off the field – in the rapidly changing world of intercollegiate athletics. All gifts to Pilot Athletics are 100% tax deductible.

Follow Along With the Action

Get the latest news and information about your favorite University of Portland athletic programs by visiting PortlandPilots.com. You can also follow along for the most dynamic coverage and team-centric content by following us on Twitter, liking us on Facebook, and following us on Instagram.

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Sports

Why Chelsea and Aston Villa (and Arsenal) are wary of UEFA's financial rules

Contrary to popular belief, there is no overarching deadline for profit and sustainability rules (PSR). Particularly in the Premier League, eyes have been drawn to June 30 as a pseudo-transfer deadline day whereby desperate clubs must get business done or invoke the wrath of the authorities. In reality, the matter is more nuanced; five of […]

Published

18 minutes ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Why Chelsea and Aston Villa (and Arsenal) are wary of UEFA's financial rules

Contrary to popular belief, there is no overarching deadline for profit and sustainability rules (PSR).

Particularly in the Premier League, eyes have been drawn to June 30 as a pseudo-transfer deadline day whereby desperate clubs must get business done or invoke the wrath of the authorities. In reality, the matter is more nuanced; five of this season’s Premier League clubs work to a different accounting date.

PSR isn’t a once-a-summer worry. While activity may heighten around those accounting dates, the rules are based across a full year’s worth — or rather, three years’ worth — of club finances. Decisions made across the season, and particularly during transfer windows, all dictate eventual compliance.

This season, the issue is compounded for nine top-tier sides. Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace have each qualified for UEFA competition in 2025-26: the first six in our list will play in the Champions League, Villa and Forest in the Europa League and Palace, controversially, will compete in the Conference League.

European competition brings with it further regulatory consequences. Alongside the loss limits imposed by Premier League PSR, those nine clubs will need to comply with UEFA’s ‘football earnings rule’. European football governing body also requires adherence to a ‘squad cost rule’, which, as the name suggests, directly limits how much clubs can spend on players. The rule has long been trailed domestically but is yet to come into force; the Premier League ran it in “shadow” format last season and will do so again this year.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal will play in the Champions League again this season (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

UEFA’s football earnings rules operates with the same foundational aim as Premier League PSR: limiting club losses. Under domestic rules, English top-flight clubs can lose on a pre-tax basis — after deductions for expenditure on infrastructure, youth and community development and the women’s team — up to £105million (around €120m/$141m at today’s rate) over a rolling three-year period. Clubs’ 2025-26 PSR calculations will include the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons as well.

The football earnings rule also runs over three seasons but is stricter, limiting clubs to just €60m in adjusted losses. That limit can be increased by €10m per season, for a total of €30m in a three-year assessment period, provided clubs comply with the financial conditions UEFA uses to assess whether or not they are in good health. Even if a club passes this, their loss limit under UEFA rules of €90m is around £27m lower than the amount allowed by the Premier League.

Crucially, the final year of UEFA’s monitoring period for the football earnings rule is the accounting period that ends in the year the relevant European competition commences. For English clubs, whose accounting periods run to mid-year, that means clubs competing in 2025-26 are assessed across 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25.

In other words, for football earnings purposes, nothing they do hereon, or since their 2024-25 accounting period ended earlier this summer, will impact their current season assessment (though it will impact next season’s, should they qualify for Europe again).

Separately, the squad cost rule moves away from the broader topic of loss limits and directly targets cost control. UEFA requires clubs to calculate their ‘squad cost ratio’, then limits those clubs to keeping that ratio at or below 70 per cent (it was 80 per cent in 2024, a limit both Chelsea and Villa exceeded). Trickily for outside analysis, the ratio is calculated on a calendar-year basis — this season’s assessment will look at 2025 as a whole — rather than the accounting period basis the football earnings rule uses.

A club’s squad cost ratio, loosely put, is calculated by taking the sum of employment expenses relating to the players and manager, alongside the annual cost of amortising any fees incurred when signing them, including agent fees. Those combined costs are then divided by the sum of the club’s annual revenue (including other operating income, which often isn’t included in a club’s top-line revenue figure) and the club’s profit or loss on player sales.

All of the elements listed here are included on a calendar-year basis, except player sale profits or losses. Those are taken over the past three calendar years, then prorated to 12 months; that means clubs benefit from profits outside of the assessed calendar year, but only by a third of the value.

Plainly, changes to squads made in the coming days will have a significant bearing on how clubs comply, especially with the squad cost rule. With ratios calculated across a calendar year, club figures are assessed up to December 31, meaning, unlike with other rules, there’s no scope to attend to problems in January or in that period between the season ending and the end of the accounting year. If you’re at risk of non-compliance with the squad cost rule, the summer window is pretty much your deadline for fixing things.

Of particular importance here is the impact of player sales. Domestic PSR and the football earnings rule include all of the profit booked on any departures, but the prorating method used for the squad cost ratio means only one-third of sales profits are included in that calculation.

In other words, Villa’s recent £39m sale of academy graduate Jacob Ramsey only contributes £13m to their squad cost denominator in the 2025 calculation. The flip side of that is they will be able to include £13m profit from Ramsey’s sale in their calculation in each of the next two seasons too, although that point will be moot if they aren’t in European competition then. It’s also of little comfort to any club involved in a present compliance battle, as Villa are.

Both the football earnings and squad cost rules apply to all clubs in Europe this season, but for Chelsea and Villa, there’s the added complication of the ‘settlement agreements’ they entered into with UEFA this summer, after breaching both of those rules. Alongside paying €42m in combined fines and agreeing to future financial measures, the pair also accepted a condition whereby their ‘List A transfer balance’ must be positive.

List A refers to the list of players clubs must register to compete in Europe before September 2, the day after the transfer window closes for most European leagues. In Chelsea and Villa’s case, they must ensure any changes between the List A they submit now and the one they submitted back in February, before last season’s knockout stages, result in a positive transfer balance.

That transfer balance is determined by taking the costs saved on players removed from the list and offsetting against costs introduced by adding new signings (or others) to it. Those costs basically comprise the annual hit to a club’s bottom line in fee amortisation and wages. In other words, Chelsea and Villa need to ensure the annual cost of their squad submitted next month is less than or equal to the annual cost of the squad submitted in February.

There is one caveat. The Athletic has confirmed with UEFA that, just like for the squad cost rule, the governing body allows clubs to include one-third of transfer profits for the transfer balance calculation.

That’s significant for Chelsea, who have sold Noni Madueke, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Mathis Amougou for notable fees this summer, all of whom were on the previous List A submission. So too were Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku, both players who have spent the summer being linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea could remove Jackson and Nkunku from List A and benefit from cost savings in their transfer balance calculation even without selling them (though their costs would still impact football earnings and squad cost rule figures), but a profitable sale would enhance Chelsea’s ability to add new signings to their List A. Other departures have already opened up some room: Lucas Bergstrom (released this summer), Marc Guiu (loaned to Sunderland) and Jadon Sancho (loan from Manchester United ended) were all on the previous List A, too.

In Villa’s case, selling Ramsey to Newcastle generated profit to help their transfer balance but also removed the only ‘club-trained player’ from their list. UEFA requires clubs to reserve eight spots in their 25-man List A squad for ‘locally trained players’, within which ‘association-trained players’ can only assume four of those eight spots. That means four must be occupied by club-trained players. Ramsey was the only such occupant in February, and Villa only submitted a 20-man squad. With his departure, they’re unlikely to fill all 25 spots again.

Ramsey isn’t the only departure from Villa’s List A, with several more freeing up space to add Evann Guessand and Marco Bizot for the coming Europa League campaign. Robin Olsen, who Bizot has replaced, left the club this summer, as did Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Axel Disasi, who, despite being on loan for only half a season, added significant salary costs to the list when they were placed on it six months ago. Leon Bailey’s departure on loan to Roma constitutes further cost savings, as the Italian side will cover his wages in full. Nottingham Forest are exploring a move for Villa right-back Matty Cash, another List A member.

Of course, just meeting the transfer balance requirement doesn’t mean they — or Chelsea — will automatically comply with UEFA’s other rules without further action. As a reminder, both clubs exceeded an 80 per cent squad cost ratio last season, and the limit has fallen to 70 per cent this time.

Chelsea and Villa have already broken UEFA rules recently, so the need to have them at the forefront of their thinking during the window is obvious. One other club doing the same might be less so.

Arsenal have not run afoul of any regulations, either at home or abroad, but the club’s heady recent spending has left them in a position of wariness around UEFA’s squad cost rule. That feeling has only been compounded by the imminent signing of Eberechi Eze. In amortisation alone, Crystal Palace playmaker Eze would add around £13m to £14m annually if he signs a five-year deal at the Emirates.

Arsenal are hoping to add Eze before the window closes (Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Arsenal have spent heavily in recent years without recouping that much in sales. Wages, naturally, have grown as performances at home and abroad have improved in recent years. Notable new contracts to 18-year-olds Miles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri have added to the substantial costs brought on board by signing Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi and Madueke. The departures of Thomas Partey and Jorginho have helped offset costs but Arsenal have not shifted anyone of real note this summer.

Arsenal hope to sell some players in the next 10 days or so. As reported in The Athletic’s DealSheet this week, Jakub Kiwior, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira, Reiss Nelson, Karl Hein, and Albert Sambi Lokonga are candidates for exits.

Arsenal have none of the ‘transfer balance’ limitations of Chelsea and Villa, but selling either of Kiwior and Zinchenko would have the added benefit of freeing up further List A slots, something the departures of Partey and Jorginho also did. Any profitable sales at all would aid squad cost rule compliance, albeit with only a third of that profit counting towards the 2025 calculation.

Once the mayhem of the transfer window has subsided, before those competitions kicking off their group stages, The Athletic will take a deeper look at each club’s position within the rules beyond domestic borders.

For now, there remain plenty of moving parts. It is easy to see why at least three clubs will have an eye firmly on UEFA rules as the transfer deadline approaches.

(Top photos: Unai Emery and Enzo Maresca; Getty Images)

Sports

Women’s Volleyball vs University of Mobile (Ala.) on 8/21/2025 – Box Score

KU 1-0 [Makenzi Bennett] Kill by Emily Osborne (from Emma McPherson). [Makenzi Bennett] Kill by Emily Osborne (from Emma McPherson). 1 0 UM 1-1 [Gabby […]

Published

34 minutes ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

1-0

[Makenzi Bennett] Kill by Emily Osborne (from Emma McPherson).

1-1

[Gabby Sheffield] Kill by Cece Worsham (from Mallory Dills).

[Gabby Sheffield] Kill by Cece Worsham (from Mallory Dills).

1-2

[Frederica Silva] Attack error by Emily Osborne (block by Cece Worsham; Aubree Valcourt).

1-3

[Frederica Silva] Attack error by Sophie Dorris.

2-3

[Frederica Silva] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Emma McPherson).

2-4

[Frederica Silva] Kill by Cece Worsham (from Mallory Dills).

2-5

[Frederica Silva] Service ace (Gabby Sheffield).

2-6

[Frederica Silva] Attack error by Peyton Frazer.

3-6

[Frederica Silva] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Emma McPherson).

4-6

[Jaci Drinnon] Attack error by Cece Worsham (block by Jennifer Cope; Sophie Dorris).

4-7

[Jaci Drinnon] Kill by Cece Worsham (from Mallory Dills).

4-8

[Mallory Dills] Attack error by Sophie Dorris (block by Cece Worsham; Aubree Valcourt).

5-8

[Mallory Dills] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Emma McPherson).

6-8

[Hannan Ellis] Kill by Jennifer Cope (from Peyton Frazer).

7-8

[Hannan Ellis] Service ace (Team).

8-8

[Hannan Ellis] Service ace (Cece Worsham).

—

Timeout Keiser.

8-9

[Hannan Ellis] Kill by Abby Lester (from Mallory Dills).

8-10

[Cece Worsham] Service ace (Jaci Drinnon).

9-10

[Cece Worsham] Kill by Jennifer Cope (from Hannan Ellis).

9-11

[Georgia Simmons] Kill by Aubree Valcourt (from Mallory Dills).

9-12

[Faith Marquis] Kill by Isabella Steffel (from Mallory Dills).

10-12

[Faith Marquis] Service error.

11-12

[Gabby Gordon] Attack error by Abby Lester (block by Corrina Porch-Maxey; Emily Osborne).

11-13

[Gabby Gordon] Kill by Makenzi Bennett (from Mallory Dills).

12-13

[Paryss Betts] Kill by Emma Hampton (from Hannan Ellis).

12-14

[Emma McPherson] Kill by Isabella Steffel (from Mallory Dills).

13-14

[Makenzi Bennett] Kill by Sophie Dorris (from Emma McPherson).

13-15

[Gabby Sheffield] Kill by Cece Worsham (from Mallory Dills).

14-15

[Jaci Drinnon] Attack error by Cece Worsham (block by Peyton Frazer; Jennifer Cope).

15-15

[Jaci Drinnon] Attack error by Cece Worsham.

15-16

[Gabby Sheffield] Service error.

16-16

[Frederica Silva] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Emma McPherson).

15-16

[Jaci Drinnon] Attack error by Cece Worsham (block by Jennifer Cope; Sophie Dorris).

16-16

[Jaci Drinnon] Attack error by Cece Worsham.

16-17

[Jaci Drinnon] Service error.

17-17

[Mallory Dills] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Emma McPherson).

18-17

[Hannan Ellis] Kill by Jennifer Cope.

—

Timeout Keiser.

19-17

[Hannan Ellis] Attack error by Abby Lester (block by Peyton Frazer; Jennifer Cope).

20-17

[Hannan Ellis] Service ace (Makenzi Bennett).

20-18

[Hannan Ellis] Attack error by Peyton Frazer (block by Aubree Valcourt).

21-18

[Hannan Ellis] Attack error by Abby Lester.

22-18

[Hannan Ellis] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Hannan Ellis).

23-18

[Cece Worsham] Kill by Peyton Frazer (from Hannan Ellis).

23-19

[Georgia Simmons] Attack error by Emma Hampton.

24-19

[Faith Marquis] Kill by Corrina Porch-Maxey (from Hannan Ellis).

24-20

[Gabby Gordon] Kill by Isabella Steffel (from Mallory Dills).

24-21

[Paryss Betts] Attack error by Emily Osborne (block by Isabella Steffel; Cece Worsham).

25-21

[Paryss Betts] Service error.

24-22

[Emma McPherson] Kill by Makenzi Bennett (from Mallory Dills).

25-22

[Makenzi Bennett] Kill by Sophie Dorris (from Emma McPherson).

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Sports

2025 Cypress vs Whittier – Men’s Water Polo – News

Event Info Here’s how to watch the 2025 Cypress College vs Whittier – Men’s Water Polo broadcast on FloSwimming. The 2025 Cypress College vs Whittier – Men’s Water Polo broadcast starts on Sep 13, 2025. Stream or cast from your desktop, mobile or TV. Now available on Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast and Apple TV. Don’t […]

Published

42 minutes ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Event Info

Here’s how to watch the 2025 Cypress College vs Whittier – Men’s Water Polo broadcast on FloSwimming. The 2025 Cypress College vs Whittier – Men’s Water Polo broadcast starts on Sep 13, 2025. Stream or cast from your desktop, mobile or TV. Now available on Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast and Apple TV. Don’t forget to download the FloSports app on iOS or Android! If you can’t watch live, catch up with the replays! Video footage from the event will be archived and stored in a video library for FloSwimming subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscription.

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Sports

Favourites deliver as France shed tears of joy at Men’s U18 European Water Polo Championships

Greece, Serbia and Spain all did an efficient job in the crossovers to advance to the quarter-finals in the elite level of the Men’s U18 European Water Polo Championships being staged in the Romanian venue of Oradea. The battle for the eighth spot was as fierce as usual and victory went to France after an […]

Published

2 hours ago

August 22, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Crossovers – France oust the Dutch in emotion-charged clash

As expected, the first of the crossover matches, between France and The Netherlands, generated huge excitement. The Dutch might have been considered favourites as they had caused some headaches for the big teams elsewhere. But it was France who made it through in the lower division.

The French looked fresher and sharper while the Dutch barely showed the quality game which kept them in the game against the Hungarians, Italians and Greeks.

France’s captain and outfield player Killian Braise stopped a penalty with his leg after keeper Camile Dervieux had been excluded, although his initial effort could not prevent a score. Credit: Aniko Kovacs/European Aquatics

Early in the second The Netherlands were still 3-2 up, but started fading. The French converted two penalties to go ahead, then the Dutch missed not two, not three, but four 6 on 5s in a row.

After an early exchange of goals at the beginning of the third, things went from bad to worse for the Netherlands. Luca Barnat buried a man-up for 4-6, then the Dutch lost their captain and one of their top scorers Fabio Jukic with his third major foul, and Swuanzo Shiron put that extra too. Another miss from the next Dutch man-up was especially crucial as an action goal from the French made it 4-8 with 2:35 remaining.

A time-out was called and Jamie de Zwart pulled one back 11 seconds later, however, when they had a chance to halve the gap, they wasted their 6th 6 on 5 in a row as well. They paid for that as the French buried a penalty from their next possession and even if Pim Hageman netted a nice one from action nine seconds from time, the Dutch outlook wasn’t that bright at 6-9 before the final quarter.

They went all in and managed to fight back till 9-10. Emotions were running high as French goalkeeper Camile Dervieux stopped Teun Blankhorst’s penalty only to be excluded for an early move. From among the the field players, captain Killian Braise swam to the goal and he stopped the ball with his leg. But during the awkward move he somehow swept it behind the virtual line, so it was called a goal.

The next one and a half minutes were crucial as both sides missed a 6 on 5, and it was Braise whose blast from the perimeter gave a tremendous boost for the French. They defended well, then earned a 6 on 4, called a time-out, and even though their head coach got a red card in that interval, Johan Scorletti sent the ball home for 9-12 with 2:04 on the clock, leaving no way back for the Dutch.

They tried a 7 on 6, could score only from the second attempt when 1:31 were remaining. The French burned their time then a bad pass ruined the Dutch last real chance, a man-up with 40 seconds to go – when they could finally score for 11-12, it was too late, at 0:02, and the French started their joyful celebrations, with some players shedding tears of joy.

Joy was unbounded among the French players after a victory that earned them a quarter-final place. Credit: Aniko Kovacs/European Aquatics

The other three matches, predictably, produced lopsided contests. The top division teams won withou fuss, though the Greek head coach Ilian Machiaras never stopped educating his players – with his temper, deep voice and wide gestures he produced a stand-alone show around the bench hat was just as spectacular as the match itself.

The game produced 33 goals as Poland put up a good fight, though the Greeks’ win was never in danger. However, Maestro Machiaras wasn’t too happy with the number of goals they conceded and the chances they missed, so his lecturing went uninterrupted for four periods (obviously, for 17-18-year-old players, immediate explanations are important during the matches). The Greeks’ only concern might have been the injury their captain and best shooter Dimitrios Chatzis sustained in the second half as he had to leave the pool and received treatment; hopefully, he can play in the quarters.

An easy put-away for Greek captain Dimitrios Chatzis, who scored five but was injured later: Credit:Aniko Kovacs/European Aquatics

Malta’s dream lived for four minutes. The brave Maltese boys who stunningly won their group ahead of Germany jumped to a 0-2 lead against Serbia. However, the heavy favourites then geared up, found their rhythm and with 9-0 run they decided the match by half-time. In the closing period, Malta scored seven goals to reduce the gap to five at the end, a fine achievement, despite the Serbs’ composure-meltdown.

The Maltese found it hard to cope with the tough Serbian defending. Credit:Aniko Kovacs/European Aquatics

Spain took on Germany and they found it hard to fend off their opponents’ resistance. The start looked easy as the favourites stormed to a 3-0 lead, but the Germans pulled one back 33 seconds before the first break and they kicked off the second with a man-up goal for 3-2. They had more possession, including a 6 on 5 to go even, but missed their opportunities. The Spaniards, after almost four minutes of struggling up front, added two to resore the three-goal gap which they held till halftime when they were 6-3 up.

Then the Spanish put the game to bed quickly with smart man-up plays and fast counters. They hit three in three minutes and added one more shortly before the last break to make it 10-3. The Germans halted their scoreless run after 11 minutes, and then managed to find the back of the net a few more times but the Spaniards also added a couple of goals to keep the margin safe.

The Germans held on for two periods but then the Spaniards took full control – Photo: EA/Aniko Kovacs

Earlier, Turkish players bounced back from their utter disappointment after having lost to Poland and being dropped to the 13-16^th place playoffs. They had to dig deep to fend off Georgia’s renewed surges but at 8-8 they staged a 3-0 run and shut out their rivals in the last six minutes to win the match.

They will meet Romania once more, as on the opening day. The hosts stormed to a 1-9 lead against Ukraine. Though their concentration level dropped significantly in the third, netting three in a row after 6-10 put the match back onto its desired track.

Division One, Rio Maior

In the lower division matches being played in the Portuguese venue of Rio Maior, the Swiss almost blew it, though they built a massive 9-4 lead against the Czechs late in the third period. No one thought they would not score more in the last 10:02 minutes. But as their game went lower and lower, their rivals smelled blood and with 2:35 to go, they trailed only 9-8. After killing a man-down, they forced a 6 on 5 at the other end with 1:02 remaining but couldn’t equalise and the Swiss burnt the remaining time.

The Slovakians left no doubt who was the better side in their match against Denmark. Credit: Nikola Krstic/European Aquatics

Slovakia didn’t have similar problems as they crushed Denmark, while Lithuania and Great Britain produced another exciting clash. The Brits took a flying start to lead 3-5 after eight minutes, but the Lithuanians hit back in the second where they netted eight goals and went 11-8 up by half-time. In the third they blew the Brits away with a 6-1 rush and never looked back.

Results, Day 4

Elite Championships, Oradea

Crossovers

Netherlands v France 11-12

Greece v Poland 21-12

Serbia v Malta 18-13

Spain v Germany 14-7

Fixtures, Quarter-finals, Day 5

16.00 Montenegro v France

17.30 Croatia v Greece

19.00 Hungary v Serbia

20.30 Italy v Spain