Asia

A cup final in Saudi Arabia just had one of the most bizarre and disturbing fan-player interactions you will ever see.

Following Saudi Arabia’s Super Cup final between Saudi League giants Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad on Thursday — a match that saw Al-Hilal completely dominate Al-Ittihad with a 4-1 scoreline — a fan evidently upset with his club’s performance on the pitch and eager to protest the loss to Al-Ittihad, assaulted a player with a whip from the stands. Yes, this actually happened.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick on Tuesday during Al Nassr’s 8-0 demolition of Abha in the Saudi Pro League to extend his lead in the Golden Boot race.

Abha have been abysmal this season conceding a league-high 68 goals in 26 games. Ronaldo exposed their weak defense scoring a hat trick and providing two assists in the first half.

Ronaldo scored two free kicks in the span of 10 minutes to open the floodgates.

He then completed his first half hat trick with a cool chipped finish. This marked back-to-back hat tricks for CR7 and the 65th hat trick of his career.

An unthinkable Cristiano Ronaldo miss vs. Al Ain in the AFC Champions League quarterfinal on Monday proved crucial as Al Nassr were eliminated on penalties.

United Arab Emirates side Al Ain won the first leg at home 1-0 but faced a tall task in the return leg in Saudi Arabia. They shocked the hosts taking a 2-0 lead in the first half, but then the Saudi side mounted a comeback.

Ronaldo had a massive opportunity to tie the aggregate score in the 61st minute when Al Ain’s goalkeeper spilled the ball right in front of the Portuguese star. What happened next was shocking.

FIFA are launching a new series of friendly matches in one location during the international window called the FIFA Series, with a pilot project kicking off in four countries next month, world soccer's governing body said on Monday.

Although there are no trophies or prize money, the series is designed to benefit national teams that do not have the opportunity to play teams from other confederations, with FIFA set to cover travel costs.

UPDATE: Cristiano Ronaldo has been suspended for one game and will pay a small fine announced the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee of the Saudi Football Federation on Wednesday.

Cristiano Ronaldo is in hot water after Al Nassr’s 3-2 victory vs. Al Shabab on Sunday for an obscene gesture made toward opposing fans following the final whistle. Saudi media reported that the Saudi FA have opened an investigation into the incident.

SEOUL — A Korea Football Association (KFA) advisory committee recommended sacking head coach Jürgen Klinsmann on Thursday after their semi-final exit at the Asian Cup and amid criticism of his leadership, KFA Technical Director Hwangbo Kwan said.

The National Team Committee does not make administrative decisions, leaving it up to the KFA's Executive Board whether to act on its recommendation to fire Klinsmann, whose contract runs through the 2026 World Cup.

TW: Death

A terrifying video is circulating the internet of an Indonesian player struck by lightning during a game.

The player struck by lightning was 35-year-old Septain Raharja. On Saturday the FBI Subang player was playing in a friendly game at Siliwangi Stadium in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia, when he was killed by a lightning strike.