Vietnam women's volleyball team won the Asian championship for the third time in a row; Ronaldo may tour Hong Kong
The Vietnamese women's volleyball team successfully defended the AVC Nations Cup championship; Cong Phuong's team may lose the play-off ticket; Ronaldo may tour Hong Kong... are notable sports news of the past 24 hours.
Vietnam women's volleyball team won the Asian championship 3 times in a row
On the evening of June 14 in Hanoi, the Vietnamese women's volleyball team played the final match of the AVC Nations Cup 2025 against the Philippines. As expected, with their superior class, coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet and his team successfully defended their championship title after 3 sets lasting more than 1 hour.
The first set was marked by Tran Thi Thanh Thuy. The Philippines team defended Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen very carefully but they could not control the main attacker, the captain of the Vietnamese women's volleyball team. Thanh Thuy scored 11 points and was also the one who ended the set with a 25-15 win for the home team.
In the second half, the Philippines played better and caused many difficulties for the Vietnamese team. They maintained a lead over the home team at times. However, after passing the 10-goal mark, the students of coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet gradually pulled away to create a gap with their opponents.
Thanh Thuy, Bich Tuyen, and Bich Thuy took turns scoring points in this set. However, it was Kim Thoa who ended the match with a surprising two-handed drop shot. The Vietnamese team won 25-17 in set 2.
Entering the third set with the pressure to win, the Philippine players seemed to rush their moves, leading to many missed shots. They only caused difficulties for the Vietnamese team with the strong smashes at position 4 of the main striker Shaina Nitura - an athlete who plays with glasses and is not very tall.
The Vietnamese women's volleyball team quickly created a large score gap and maintained it until the end of the set. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy ended the match by tossing the ball back into the back of the court, making it impossible for her opponent to save the ball. The home team won 25-14 in set 3 and won the AVC Nations Cup championship.
Cong Phuong's team may lose the play-off ticket.
Binh Phuoc's heavy defeat to Ninh Binh on the afternoon of June 14 made the competition for a play-off spot extremely tense. In this match, Binh Phuoc did not have the service of Cong Phuong due to injury, while veteran goalkeeper Bui Tan Truong was suspended. Without two key players, the Southeast team played erratically and was completely overwhelmed by their opponents.
In the same match, Ho Thanh Minh shone with the only goal in the 75th minute, helping PVF-CAND win 1-0 against Khanh Hoa. These three valuable points helped the young team reduce the gap with Binh Phuoc to only one point.
After round 21, Binh Phuoc has 41 points while PVF-CAND has risen to 40 points. This fragile gap makes the race for second place, which means a play-off spot, become breathless in the final round.
According to the tournament format, the champion of the First Division will be promoted directly, while the second-placed team will play a play-off with the second-to-last team in the V.League to compete for a promotion ticket. Currently, Ninh Binh has won the championship and is sure to be promoted, so the competition between Binh Phuoc and PVF-CAND only revolves around the play-off ticket.
In the final round, Binh Phuoc will host Long An at home, while PVF-CAND will also have home advantage over Dong Nai. With only 1 point more, Binh Phuoc must win to decide their own fate, otherwise the whole season's efforts will be in vain.
In the final match, if he cannot recover in time, Cong Phuong will have to witness his team facing the risk of missing out on the dream of playing in the toughest playground in Vietnam.
Man City lost 50 million pounds because of Grealish
Man City have offered an incredibly low transfer fee to any team that wants to buy Jack Grealish outright this summer.
Birmingham Live reports Manchester City are prepared to accept a £50m loss on the sale of Grealish. The former Aston Villa captain is now a fringe player at the Etihad as manager Pep Guardiola overhauls his squad after a poor season by the club's standards.
Man City have not received any official offers for Grealish, although they only asked for 50 million pounds for the England star - a sharp decrease compared to the record fee of 100 million pounds the club spent to buy the player in August 2021.
According to The Guardian, Man City may even have to lower Grealish's price below £50 million if not many clubs are interested in buying the English star outright. Another reason why Man City is having trouble in the Grealish deal is the player's salary.
Grealish has two years left on his contract, which is worth around £300,000 a week. If no club is willing to buy him outright, Man City could also consider loaning him out.
Aston Villa, Tottenham, Everton and Bayer Leverkusen are potential destinations for Grealish, but these clubs are concerned about the player's salary. If Grealish is not willing to reduce his salary, Man City will have a lot of difficulty in selling the player.
Ronaldo may tour Hong Kong
The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) has signed a contract with commercial partner SMC Group to host the 2025 Saudi Arabian Super Cup in Hong Kong. The tournament will take place from August 19 to 23 at the 40,000-seat Hong Kong Stadium.
Four of Saudi Arabia’s top clubs, Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad and Al Qadisiyah, will compete for the prestigious trophy. This marks a new milestone in the tournament’s international journey, with the aim of building and strengthening global relationships in line with the country’s grand ambitions.
Ibrahim Al-Qassim, Secretary General of SAFF, highlighted the importance of this expansion: “This represents a qualitative shift for the tournament, which has achieved remarkable success in previous editions. The Saudi Arabia Super Cup has become one of the most prominent tournaments attracting public attention.”
According to multiple sources in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo is preparing to sign a contract extension with Al Nassr, allowing him to stay at the club at least until the end of the 2026 World Cup. With an ambitious goal of scoring 1,000 career goals, Ronaldo still seems to have a lot to contribute.
If he signs a new contract with Al Nassr, Ronaldo will be one of the prominent names appearing at the Saudi Arabia Super Cup tournament in Hong Kong.
In April, Ronaldo also announced that he would open a museum called "CR Life" in Hong Kong, scheduled to open in July. More than just a trophy gallery, Ronaldo's museum promises to help recall goals and memorable moments in his career.
Player convicted of armed robbery to attend FIFA Club World Cup
According to Reuters, Boca Juniors confirmed that defender Ayrton Costa is allowed to participate in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Costa's special visa is valid for 26 days - the period during which the tournament takes place. Previously, this player was denied a visa twice by the US immigration agency.
In the past, Ayrton Costa participated in an armed robbery in 2018 and was arrested by the police. At that time, Costa was only 19 years old. In addition, Ayrton Costa was convicted of concealing a criminal when his brother murdered his girlfriend.
By 2023, Ayrton Costa was sentenced to suspended prison. Because of his criminal record, the US initially refused to allow him to enter the country, claiming that Ayrton Costa "had not yet completed his sentence".
Boca Juniors then tried to find a way to get Ayrton Costa to play and asked FIFA to intervene. Eventually, the player was granted a special visa to participate in the FIFA Club World Cup. He can play as early as the match against Benfica on June 16.
Boca Juniors are the most famous and traditional team in Argentina. They will be in Group C with Auckland City, Benfica and Bayern Munich. If they can beat Benfica on the opening day, the chance for Ayrton and his teammates to advance to the group stage will be open.