Vietnam U17 to win Southeast Asian Championship 2026; Real Madrid stumbles in La Liga title race.
The journey to victory at the 2026 Southeast Asian U17 Championship showcased the maturity of the Vietnam U17 team under coach Cristiano Roland; Real Madrid unfortunately dropped a victory when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Real Betis in injury time... These are some of the prominent sports news stories from the past 24 hours.
Vietnam U17 to win Southeast Asian Championship 2026: A testament to a new generation.
The journey to winning the 2026 Southeast Asian U17 Championship demonstrates the maturity of the Vietnam U17 team under coach Cristiano Roland.
On the evening of April 24th, the Vietnam U17 team defeated Malaysia U17 3-0 in the final of the 2026 Southeast Asian U17 Championship, thus becoming the most successful team in this tournament with 4 titles. Throughout the campaign, coach Cristiano Roland's team showed the image of a well-organized collective, no longer dependent on individual moments.
Throughout the tournament, whether holding an advantage or falling behind early, the "Golden Star Warriors" never launched an all-out attack, only accelerating when absolutely necessary. New players like Truong Nguyen Duy Khang, Le Sy Bach, and Le Trong Dai Nhan also quickly adapted to Coach Roland's tactical system.
This also marks the first time since 2010 that the "Golden Star Warriors" have defeated the same opponent twice in the same Southeast Asian U17 Championship.
Hanoi FC dramatically defeated Ninh Binh 3-2 in a back-and-forth match in the V-League.
Goals from Hung Dung, Anh Tiep, and Van Quyet helped Hanoi FC assert their dominance against Ninh Binh's star-studded team, despite the chasing efforts of Geovane and Quoc Viet.
The highlight match of V-League Round 20 was incredibly dramatic as Hanoi FC defeated hosts Ninh Binh 3-2.
Hanoi FC started the match with the intention of launching an early attack and quickly reaped the rewards in the 4th minute. Do Hung Dung proved his worth as a leader by unleashing a powerful low shot after an assist from Dinh Hai, giving goalkeeper Dang Van Lam no chance to save it. The early goal allowed the visitors to completely control the game for the first 30 minutes.
In an attempt to find an equalizer, coach Bae Ji-won brought on Golden Ball winner Hoang Duc. Ninh Binh launched a full-scale attack and even managed to put the ball into Hanoi FC's net, but all goals were disallowed for offside after VAR intervention. The match ended after 7 minutes of added time with a narrow victory for Harry Kewell's team.
Discrimination against Vinicius risks young player being banned from the World Cup.
UEFA's Disciplinary Committee has handed down a harsh penalty to Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni for racist behavior towards striker Vinicius Junior in the Champions League.
According to the official announcement, Prestoni has been suspended for a total of six matches in UEFA-managed club and national team competitions. Of these, three matches will be postponed on the condition that the player does not re-offend within the next two years.
This penalty was imposed following an investigation by the UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspectorate into conduct identified as "discrimination".
The incident occurred during the Champions League play-off match between Benfica and Real Madrid. According to Vinicius's allegations, the Argentinian player made racist remarks after the Brazilian star scored. This quickly sparked controversy and prompted UEFA to launch an investigation.
Real Madrid stumbles in the La Liga title race.
Real Madrid suffered a disappointing loss, being held to a 1-1 draw by Real Betis in injury time during the 34th round of La Liga on the morning of April 25th.
Entering the match at La Cartuja Stadium, Real Madrid quickly demonstrated their superiority and soon took the lead thanks to a goal from Vinícius Junior.
In the second half, Real Madrid nearly doubled their lead when Kylian Mbappe put the ball into the net from a pass by Trent Alexander-Arnold. However, VAR determined that the French striker was offside, disallowing the goal.
Failing to capitalize on their opportunities, Real Madrid paid the price in the final minutes of the match. In the fourth minute of added time, Hector Bellerin took advantage of the chaos in the penalty area to score the equalizer, making it 1-1 for Betis and extending the Royal team's streak of not keeping a clean sheet to 10 matches.
This result means Real Madrid only narrowed the gap with league leaders Barcelona to 8 points, but they have played one more game. "Los Blancos" are facing the risk of the gap widening as the season enters its decisive phase.
