Ahead of the match between his former and current clubs, Kagawa spoke with managing directors Carsten Cramer and Lars Ricken, among others. Roman Weidenfeller was also at the table. The two had played together for Borussia Dortmund and won two German championships and two DFB Cup ***** les together. Joo-Ho Park, who played for BVB from 2015 to 2017 and is now active with the BVB Legends, also joined the group.
"You've been part of professional soccer for 20 years, and we want to honor that," said Cramer as he presented Kagawa with a trophy commemorating his now 20-year professional career—along with an invitation to represent BVB as an ambassador in the future.
Kagawa's professional career began at Cerezo Osaka. He now plays for that club again and will face Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday. "I'm very proud that the relationship continues, and I still think about the ***** les and memories from my time in Dortmund. The older I get, the more that means to me," the now 37-year-old said at a press conference about BVB at noon. (cr)

#titles

France now has the leader it had dreamed of for years. The French Football Federation (FFF) has officially appointed Zinédine Zidane as the new national team manager.
The 54-year-old coach succeeds Didier Deschamps, who stepped down after the 2026 World Cup following 14 years in charge of the team.
Zidane's challenge will be to match, or at least come close to, Deschamps' achievements, after he led France to World Cup glory in 2018 and another final in 2022.
Considered one of the greatest players of all time, Zidane now takes charge of the country he captained to both the World Cup and European Championship ***** les. His managerial résumé is just as impressive, with three consecutive Champions League ***** les and two La Liga crowns won across his two spells in charge of Real Madrid.
Zidane's first challenge will be to lead France in the UEFA Nations League before turning his focus to qualification for Euro 2028, with a squad that still boasts top-level talent such as Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouaméni and William Saliba.

#deschamps #league #titles

FC Bayern is lighting up its Allianz Arena in the colours of Disability Pride Month, which is taking place for the first time in Munich, from 21-23:00 CEST on Friday. Red represents physical disabilities, yellow stands for cognitive disabilities, white signifies invisible disabilities, blue symbolises mental illnesses, green represents sensory disabilities and black is in memory of people who died due to discrimination. It’s a visible sign of respect, self-determination and an inclusive society. Together with the state capital of Munich, the German champions are sending out a clear signal: people with disabilities are, of course, an integral part of society – including in sport and in the stadium.
“FC Bayern stands for diversity and does a lot to raise awareness of the lives of people with disabilities,” explained disability officer Kim Krämer. “The club has been carrying out various inclusion-focused projects for many years. The fact that FC Bayern and the City of Munich are now sending out a visible sign in Disability Pride Month is another step on the road towards a natural coexistence. The illumination of the Allianz Arena is a strong signal that everyone belongs at FC Bayern, and that they can get involved and help to shape the club – regardless of disability.”
FC Bayern is constantly working on making the Allianz Arena and its general offerings as accessible as possible, in consultation with the fans. For example, there are now 324 wheelchair ******* es in the stadium, as well as commentary for the blind, a delivery service to the seats, live subtitles for people with hearing impairment and the presentation of the line-ups in sign language for men’s, women’s and basketball matches on the website. Information in simple language also makes it easier for people to find their way around. The club is continuously optimising its digital offerings to enable as many people as possible to access them independently.
FC Bayern and Alzheimer's ******* ociation provide dementia care training

#people #allianz #pride

Wimbledon may be decided on the scoreboard, but a lot of careers there have really been defined in the stands.
Titles matter, but so do roars on Centre Court, singalongs on Henman Hill and the way a player can change the sound of the place in one swing. If the all-time Wimbledon GOAT debate were handed entirely to the fans, the rankings would look a little different from a media guide or record book.
MORE: Predicting the Wimbledon 2026 major storylines
So this is not a strict resume ranking. It is a fan-vote power ranking built on noise, nostalgia and how much a player has come to feel like part of the grounds themselves. Longevity helps, drama helps more, and style counts nearly as much as silverware.
Here is how a fan ballot might stack up.