World Cup

The decision to remove Indonesia as host of the May 20-June 11 tournament was taken after its football federation said it had cancelled the draw after the governor of the largely Hindu island of Bali refused to host Israel's team.

"FIFA has decided, due to the current circumstances, to remove Indonesia as the host of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2023," a FIFA statement said.

"A new host will be announced as soon as possible, with the dates of the tournament currently remaining unchanged. Potential sanctions against the PSSI may also be decided at a later stage."

A peak five-minute audience of 21.31 million people tuned in to ITV (and +1) to watch the end of the World Cup 2022 quarter-final match on Saturday.

England crashed out of the tournament after losing 2-1 to France.

Some people may have watched on other services such as ITVX, which are not reflected in the Barb rating figures.

The five-minute peak of 21.31 million was the most-watched single channel TV moment of 2022 so far.

Former champions Argentina, Spain, Germany and Brazil all suffered shock group-stage losses and Africa, Asia and North America were represented in the last 16 along with traditional powerhouses South America and Europe.

Infantino said the matches -- "played in beautiful stadiums" -- had already attracted a TV audience in excess of two billion viewers.

"Fantastic atmosphere, great goals, incredible excitement, surprises, small teams beating big teams," he said in comments released by FIFA on Wednesday.

Most casual fans would know about Australia, New Zealand and England but over the coming weeks, we’ll introduce you to some of the other teams.

Tonga have become a rugby league force to be reckoned with since beating Great Britain and Australia at the end of the 2019 season. The impact of COVID-19 halted their momentum but a 26-6 loss to New Zealand in June 2022 is seen by Tonga as a mere setback.

Cooper went down in the first seven minutes of the second half after attempting one of his trademark goose steps. The 34-year-old immediately fell to the ground clutching his heel and was clearly in agony.

It has been confirmed that he suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon, a notoriously difficult injury to mend in the context of elite sports.

The injury could mean he doesn’t set foot back onto a rugby pitch until the mid-2023 and leaves the mercurial playmaker in a race against time to prove his fitness ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.

Hu'akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni said the Government is throwing its full support behind the team.

It's the first time Tonga has qualified for the World Cup after beating Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands in the Oceania qualifiers.

Coach Jaqua Pori-Makea-Simpson said it was a big step forward for women's sport in the Kingdom.

Solomon Islands head coach Felipe Vega-Arango sent out the same starting eleven that overcame Tahiti in their previous fixture. Meanwhile, Marcos Gusmao made just one change from Papua New Guinea’s clutch victory over Fiji, Raymond Gunemba replacing Stahl Gubag in attack.

The Tongan national squad have enjoyed a meteoric rise through the rankings in international rugby league in recent years.

They reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2017 before going on to claim historic wins over Australia and Great Britain in 2019.

Woolf, who is also coach of Super League champions St Helens, believes Tonga will have their best squad yet at this autumn’s World Cup, which is hosted in England.

Woolf told Love Rugby League: “I think we have got a real opportunity at the end of the year.

The former world player of the year, who will be 38 by the time the competition comes around, is aiming to play in his fourth World Cup and his first as captain having been handed the role after the 2019 tournament in Japan.

"Yeah, finished, 2023 World Cup. I'm delighted to be able to say it," Sexton said.

Ireland have become increasingly reliant on the three-time Six Nations winner in recent years with the Leinster flyhalf's form showing little sign of dipping and few younger players emerging to really challenge him for the number 10 jersey.

In her fourth Cricket World Cup Sophie Devine will captain a 15-strong White Ferns squad for the tournament hosted by New Zealand.

Devine's deputy Amy Satterthwaite as well as Suzie Bates will be making their fourth appearance at the tournament.

Wicketkeeper Katey Martin and experienced quick bowler Lea Tahuhu are set to feature in their third World Cup and have over 150 ODI appearances between them.