A major barrier for WSL clubs hoping to sign African talent is the Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) criteria set out in the league’s registration rules.

Foreign players must earn a minimum number of points in five categories to be eligible for a GBE visa.

The number of caps they have for their national team, appearances in the Women’s Champions League and the ranking of their former clubs play a part.

WSL sides also have to compete with the wages and transfer fees being offered by NWSL clubs, who are targeting the best African footballers.

They have to use resources for scouting which, at the moment, is prioritised across Europe.

Another major issue is the lack of coverage given to the domestic game in Africa, as well as issues around Wafcon.

There was confusion in this edition when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) named Channel 4 as the UK broadcast partner, but no matches were shown live in the opening round as an agreement had not been formally reached.

The tournament had also been postponed just 12 days before it was set to kick off in Morocco, eventually taking place three months later.

Switzerland captain Lia Walti, who signed for Brighton this summer, told BBC Sport that, globally, coverage of women’s football has room for improvement.

“I think you have to bring the game to the people. You kind of have to force people to watch it. I felt that was how it maybe started in England,” she said.

“In a lot of other countries I think they have bad coverage. It’s not shown at all, or if it’s shown, from where they film the game [makes it look] really poor.

“It affects the way you watch a game. You don’t really see the speed, the tactics or anything and you don’t enjoy watching the game.”

Paris St-Germain have been forced to move their opening Ligue 1 game after the summer’s “exceptional heatwaves” left their Parc des Princes pitch “severely damaged”.

The French champions had been due to start their title defence against Rennes in the capital on Sunday, but the fixture will be reversed and held in Brittany instead.

Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) officials said an assessment of the pitch in Paris “did not allow the match to be played under satisfactory conditions, particularly with regard to the safety and physical integrity of the players”.

PSG say they will replace the pitch at the Parc des Princes before their next home fixture against Monaco on 4 September.

The club said they “fully understand the inconvenience caused by this change” but stressed it was an “exceptional situation”.

France had its hottest day ever on average country-wide on 24 June, with temperatures hitting almost 41C in Paris and half the nation placed under a red heat alert.

The number of deaths recorded in France between 22 and 28 June increased by 2,025 – nearly 30% – and deaths rose by 62% in the Paris region alone during the same period.

Temperatures across western Europe have been exceptionally high this summer, with wildfires burning through areas of France.

Spanish club Celta Vigo were forced to postpone their La Liga opener against Osasuna earlier this month after a fungal “disease” affected the pitch at their Estadio de Balaidos.

An outbreak of fungus grew on Celta’s pitch over the summer, when temperatures did not drop below 25C for over three weeks.

Max Verstappen has ended any uncertainty over his future with Red Bull in Formula 1 by signing a new contract through to the end of 2030.

Red Bull announced ahead of Verstappen’s home grand prix in the Netherlands this weekend that the four-time world champion would be remaining with the team for a further four years.

The 28-year-old’s previous contract — signed in early 2022 a few months after winning his maiden world title — ran to the end of 2028, but he has regularly been linked with a possible move away from Red Bull.

Earlier this year, Verstappen cast doubt on his F1 future given his dislike of the new generation of cars, while he was also subject to links to McLaren in recent months.

In the races leading up to F1’s summer break, the Dutchman dodged opportunities to firmly state that he would remain with Red Bull for 2027 or provide an update on his future. At last month’s Belgian Grand Prix, he said that “if there was something new, I would say it myself”.

Thursday’s announcement has now firmed up Verstappen’s future plans ahead of what is set to be the last running of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort this weekend, a race that would not exist were it not for his success and popularity.

In a statement, Verstappen referred to Red Bull as being like a “second family,” and expressed his commitment to get the team back to the top of F1, calling it the “ultimate goal.”

“To continue this journey with the same team that I have been with my whole career is really special and something I have always wanted to do,” Verstappen said.

Four more years of full send ✍️​

We’re delighted to announce that Max has signed a contract extension with the Team until the end of 2030 🦁​#F1 pic.twitter.com/7u1TgslIvS

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) August 20, 2026

The renewal commits Verstappen to Red Bull into the next decade and continues their long-standing partnership that dates back to when the Dutchman raced in Formula 3 as a 16-year-old.

Verstappen became the youngest ever F1 driver in 2015, aged 17, racing for Red Bull’s junior team Toro Rosso (now Racing Bulls) before being promoted to the senior squad four races into the 2016 season. Victory on his Red Bull debut made him the youngest race winner in F1 history.

A first world championship followed for Verstappen in 2021 following a titanic battle against Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes, starting a period of domination. He claimed the following three drivers’ championships, including a record-breaking 2023 campaign where he won 19 out of 22 races.

Recent times have led to moments of frustration for Verstappen amid Red Bull’s dip in on-track performance. He has failed to win a race so far this season, and admitted at the British GP he was “fed up” of the team’s reliability issues following two rear wing failures in two race weekends.

Alternative options for Verstappen looking into next year looked slim given the deals in place for the drivers at the other front-running teams.

Zak Brown, the CEO of McLaren Racing, said last month that a conversation with Verstappen’s camp “didn’t go anywhere” given the long-term deals he has in place for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

At Mercedes, a team to which Verstappen has regularly been linked in recent years, George Russell signed a multi-year agreement last year and 19-year-old teammate Kimi Antonelli has been in sparkling form this year, winning six races en route to the championship lead.

Ferrari recently signed Charles Leclerc to a new, long-term contract extension, while seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has returned to form this year, winning in Barcelona, and remains under contract for next year.

It left an extension of his time at Red Bull as Verstappen’s most likely option going into the coming seasons.

The news serves as a major moment in F1’s driver market going into 2027 by locking down one of the biggest names and seats available on the grid.