By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
Management and almost certainly players conspired to cover up a crime. Plus: Mystery Matt; Illinois Did NOT Play 9 OTs; Noah’s Arc; and more!
Posted on October 29, 2021
More Saudi Sportswashing In Takeover Of Newcastle FC
By Minky Worden/Human Rights Watch
Three years ago this month, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered by Saudi agents. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has marked this grim anniversary by using the Saudi sovereign wealth fund he chairs to buy Premier League football club Newcastle United for a reported £300 million. And as many Newcastle fans cheer the news, women’s rights activists and political prisoners are languishing in Saudi jails.
Hosting major sporting events is a major part of Saudi Arabia’s “sportswashing” strategy, an effort to distract from its serious human rights abuses by taking over events that celebrate human achievement. Buying a Premier League club is perhaps Saudi leaders’ most high-profile effort so far to launder their appalling human rights record.
Posted on October 28, 2021
Suspicious Betting Trends In Soccer
By Stats Perform
Stats Perform Integrity and Starlizard Integrity Services have released their fourth annual Suspicious Betting Trends in Global [Soccer] Report. The report aims to provide fellow stakeholders in the sports integrity community with a significant and informative overview of current trends in suspicious football betting.
Detailed analysis was conducted on betting markets offered on 61,296 soccer matches played throughout the world in 2020. While this is down 23% on the 80,939 matches analyzed the previous year – primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing the cancellation of so many fixtures – it is comparable to the 62,250 matches analyzed two years ago.
Key findings of the 2021 Suspicious Betting Trends in Global [Soccer] Report:
Posted on October 23, 2021
The Beachwood Radio Sports Hour #379: Sky High
By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
Chicago’s champions. Plus: Bears Money Is Stupid; The Cheaters vs. The Tomahawkers; Yasmanknee Grandal; Cubs Have It Their Way; Bielema Dilemma; Bulls Reportedly Trying To Be Suns; Bowman’s Blackhawks Bombing; and Red Stars Reach For Sky.
Posted on October 22, 2021
The Beachwood Radio Sports Hour #378: Tonyball, Bears On The Run, Eyes On The Sky & More!
By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
It’s not that Tony La Rusta was outmanaged by Dusty Baker, it’s that he outmanaged himself. Plus: Steve Stone’s Suckage; Bears On The Run; Eyes On The Sky; Cubs Can Finally Afford A GM Again; Boo Blackhawks; Red Stars Rising and more!
Posted on October 15, 2021
Sad Sacks
By Roger Wallenstein
As the Houston Astros were idled Monday by the rain that delayed Game 4 of the ALDS, we can assume that Dusty Baker and his charges couldn’t have been seen at Navy Pier or the Art Institute. Looking for them at other tourist attractions like the Shedd or the Museum of Science and Industry would have proved fruitless.
What we can assume is that wherever those athletes spent the day, the words about “sketchy stuff” uttered by Sox reliever Ryan Tepera were ringing in their ears. The profanity-laden chants aimed at José Altuve by thousands of Sox diehards throughout Sunday’s rousing 12-6 White Sox triumph were still echoing in their heads.
As if the visitors needed any additional motivation.
Posted on October 13, 2021
‘Just Let Me Play Sports’
By Danielle McLean/The Hechinger Report
RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas – Adelyn Vigil sometimes dreams of volleyball.
The 13-year-old imagines the arm movements, the sound of the ball hitting her hand. Not an aspiring star, Adelyn has enjoyed volleying the ball, informally, but doesn’t really know how to play the game. But her friends do, and she simply would like to be part of a team.
“Whenever people play sports, it looks so fun,” said Adelyn. “It looks like they are just enjoying themselves.”
She is not sure playing on a sports team will ever happen for her, though. A trans girl living along the Mexican border in Texas’s Rio Grande Valley, Adelyn once participated in school-based extracurricular activities, like cheerleading and poetry club. But she dropped them when she was told by school administrators that she could not use restrooms or locker rooms that corresponded with her gender identity.
Posted on October 11, 2021
The Beachwood Radio Sports Hour #377: A Match-Up Of Managerial Malpractice
By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes
Dusty and Tony meet again, and we can’t stand either of ’em. Plus: Scrubbie Culture; Matt Nagy Is Now PC2; Sky Eclipses Sun; Preseasoning; and Red Stars React.
Posted on October 8, 2021
The Defiance Of Women’s Soccer In Nigeria
By Chuka Onwumechili and Jasmin Goodman/The Conversation
Not too long ago, Desire Oparanozie, then captain of the Nigerian women’s soccer team, again demanded equal pay for female Nigerian players. In Nigeria, female players are paid woefully less than their male counterparts in comparable international roles and her call had come after her team’s sit-in over unpaid bonuses and allowances for the 2019 World Cup.
Women’s soccer is increasingly popular in Africa, with the national federation recently introducing a continent-wide competition for women at club level. And Nigeria’s national women’s soccer team – The Falcons – have long dominated soccer in Afrida. They’ve won 11 of 13 championships including the inaugural one in 1991 and the latest edition in 2018. Yet despite this domination and fame, they are not treated as equal to the men’s team that has not dominated its African opponents.
In our research, we chronicle the struggle of these women – and their spirit of resistance in demanding human rights and visibility. It’s a spirit that can be traced back to the beginning of the women’s game in Nigeria.
Posted on October 6, 2021
Astros Opening
By Roger Wallenstein
According to FiveThirtyEight, the White Sox’ 24 losses in 42 games decided by one run this season threaten to sideline our South Side ballclub in its post-season quest even before it begins Thursday in Houston. The prognostication website gives the Sox just an eight percent chance of flying a World Series championship banner for 2021 at The Grate. That’s like 25 tries and two successes.
Meanwhile, the Astros are given a 12 percent rating to go all the way. Is Houston really four percentage points better than Tony La Russa’s talented outfit? This requires further examination.
Posted on October 5, 2021