Author: Opalim Lifted

An official proposal to expand the men’s 2030 World Cup to 64 teams has been put forward by South American governing body Conmebol. The tournament will be hosted by Spain, Morocco and Portugal, after the opening matches are held in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The 2026 World Cup will be the first with 48 teams but Conmebol wants to expand further for 2030 to mark the competition’s 100-year anniversary. “This will allow all countries to have the opportunity to live the world experience and so nobody on the planet is left out of the party,” said Conmebol president Alejandro Dominguez…

Christian Chukwu, former captain and head coach of the Super Eagles, has died. Chronicle NG gathered that the former Enugu Rangers coach passed away at the age of 74 in the early hours of Saturday, in his home state of Enugu. However, the exact circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear at the time of filing this report. His longtime teammate and friend, Dr Olusegun Odegbami, confirmed the development in a post via his official X handle on Saturday. Odegbami, who won the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations alongside Chukwu, wrote: “My Chairman has passed on. This morning, ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu,…

Six days after being condemned for their performance in the derby stalemate at Old Trafford, Man City roared back from two goals down to beat Crystal Palace in a thrilling encounter at Etihad Stadium. After their defence had been badly exposed for Eberechi Eze and Chris Richards to put the visitors into a comfortable lead, Man City hit back after Palace had a third goal ruled out by a close call from the new semi-automated offside technology. Outgoing City skipper Kevin de Bruyne was at the centre of the astounding reversal of fortunes. First De Bruyne levelled as he deceived…

A coalition of private school proprietors in Edo State took to the streets of Benin City on Friday in a peaceful protest against what they denounced as an “alarming” increase in income tax imposed by the state government. Operating under the banner of the Coalition of Associations of Private Schools (CAPS), the demonstrators converged at the Edo State Ministry of Education, wielding placards and banners, to express deep concerns over a tax hike they claim could destroy the educational ecosystem. The coalition, which includes the Association of Private School Owners of Nigeria (APSON), the Association for Formidable Education Development (AFED),…

Mohamed Salah’s new contract is the perfect outcome for all involved with Liverpool and delivers confirmation that both parties in this sporting marriage simply cannot live without each other. Salah, even though he is 33 in June, would have received lucrative offers from elsewhere had he decided to leave Anfield on a free transfer when his current £350,000-a-week agreement ends at the conclusion of this season. The availability of this world-class talent, as driven as ever and seemingly still at the peak of physical powers, would have attracted the attention of the biggest European names as well as sparking renewed…

Mohamed Salah is staying at Liverpool, bringing one of the season’s key storylines to a conclusion. At times, though, it seemed in doubt. So What Happened Behind The Scenes? Was there a £500m offer from Saudi Arabia and how did the Egypt forward go from being unsure of his future to expressing delight at signing a deal that lasts until he turns 34? Deal breakthrough came at end of March When Salah set the cat among the pigeons about his future in November by saying he was ‘more out than in’, he wasn’t being disingenuous. Yet it was also not…

Mohamed Salah has signed a new two-year contract with Liverpool. The Egypt forward’s previous deal was scheduled to run out in the summer and there had been doubts he would stay. That followed comments the 32-year-old had made during the season, as well as speculation linking him with a move to Saudi Arabia. However, he will now have the chance to add to his 243 goals and 109 assists for Liverpool in 394 appearances. “Of course I’m very excited – we have a great team now,” said Salah. “Before we also had a great team. But I signed because I…

The Chief Judge of Taraba State, Justice Joel Agya, has officially declared a one-week Easter vacation for the state’s High Court, scheduled to run from Monday, 21 April to Sunday, 27 April 2025. This recent development was outlined in Legal Notice No. 2 of 2025, personally signed by Justice Agya and released to journalists in Jalingo. According to the notice, the declaration is in accordance with the provisions of the Taraba State High Court Civil Procedure Rules 2011. Quoting Order 8 Rule 4 (C) of the Rules, the Chief Judge stated: “The sitting of the High Court for the dispatch…

Bayo Ojulari, group chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, says the $2.8 billion Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline project reached 72 percent completion rate at the end of the first quarter of 2025. Ojulari announced the development at the 2025 Oloibiri lecture series and energy forum (OLEF) organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja. In his keynote address, Ojulari, represented by Udy Ntia, NNPC executive vice-president, upstream, said globally, upstream oil and gas companies are expected to invest more than $30 billion in digital technologies in 2025. “These technologies are not…

Chukwuma Soludo, governor of Anambra, said 23 indigenes of the state are currently on death row in Indonesia due to drug-related offences. Soludo disclosed this recently, while addressing members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who defected to the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to support his re-election bid. “Go to Indonesia, 23 Ndi Anambra are on death row there for drug-related offences,” he said. “These native doctors will deceive you that they will prepare a charm that when you carry drugs and enter the airport, the white man’s scanner will go blind. “These young people believe them and today,…