Udinese and Nigeria goalkeeper Maduka Okoye has been handed a two-month ban by the Italian Football Federation following a high-profile betting scandal linked to a match against Lazio during the 2023/2024 season.

The 24-year-old goalkeeper was found guilty of sporting misconduct after allegations emerged that he deliberately sought a yellow card during the league match against Lazio.

The suspicious booking triggered an investigation into abnormal betting patterns related to that specific incident.

According to a statement from the FIGC, Okoye was accused of intentionally committing an act that led to his caution in order to influence betting outcomes.

The case has raised fresh concerns over the integrity of players’ conduct and the growing influence of illegal betting syndicates on professional football.

Following a thorough disciplinary inquiry, the FIGC’s National Federal Tribunal officially confirmed its decision on Tuesday, announcing that Okoye would serve a two-month ban from all official matches.

The ban will commence from the first official game of the 2025/2026 season.

The court statement, issued by the Disciplinary Section of the National Federal Tribunal, read, “The National Federal Tribunal, Disciplinary Section, definitively ruling, imposes on Emil Maduka Okoye the sanction of two (2) months of disqualification in official matches, starting from the beginning of the first official competition of the 2025/2026 sporting season.”

This ruling means Okoye will miss six competitive matches, including Udinese’s season opener in the Coppa Italia against Carrarese on August 18, as well as the first five Serie A fixtures.

He will become eligible for selection again from October 19 when Udinese face newly promoted Cremonese away from home.

The outcome has sparked debate across both Italy and Nigeria, especially given Okoye’s national team status.

It also adds to growing scrutiny on the actions of players involved in controversial betting-related misconduct in recent years.

Okoye, who previously served as Nigeria’s first-choice goalkeeper and played at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, has not yet publicly commented on the ruling.

He has struggled to regain his top form since that tournament and faced criticism for inconsistent performances. The suspension now places further doubt on his chances of reclaiming a regular starting role at both club and international level.

Nigerian pop sensation Ayra Starr and LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard have been added to the list of stars for the Giants of Africa Festival 2025, which will be held in Kigali, Rwanda, from July 26 to August 2.

Giants of Africa Festival 2025 will bring together 320 young athletes from 20 African nations, and more than 20,000 spectators for a week of community, culture, basketball, education, and entertainment.

Ayra Starr will perform at the festival’s closing concert on August 2, joining a powerhouse line-up that includes Afrobeats stars Kizz Daniel and Timaya.

Additionally, local Rwandan artist Alyn Sano is now set to perform at the festival’s inaugural Threads of Africa Fashion Show on July 31.

Launching a week of unforgettable music moments, the festival’s exhilarating opening show on July 27 will feature performances by South African DJ phenomenon Uncle Waffles and MTV VMA-winning choreographer Sherrie Silver. Rwandan stars Kevin Kade, Ruti Joël, Boukuru and Chriss Easy will also perform on the opening weekend.

Two-time NBA champion Leonard has also been added to the Giants of Africa Festival 2025’s all-star line-up.

The LA Clippers forward will mentor youth campers, open a new basketball court in partnership with Giants of Africa at St Ignatius School, and host a special clinic for 50 local youth at Club Rafiki in one of Kigali’s most underserved districts.

Additional celebrity guests appearing throughout the week include Robin Roberts, Chiney Ogwumike, Didier Drogba, Michael Blackson, Boris Kodjoe, and more.

Giants of Africa is a non-profit organisation dedicated to empowering African youth through basketball, founded by basketball executive and former player Masai Ujiri.

Ujiri recently appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show and Good Morning America to discuss how the festival unites communities, spark potential, and drive transformative change across the continent.

Fauja Singh, a British-Indian man believed to be the world’s oldest marathon runner, has died after being hit by a car in India at the age of 114.

Police said Singh was crossing a road in the village where he was born in Punjab when an unidentified vehicle hit him.

Locals took him to hospital, where he died.

Singh, a global icon, set records by running marathons across multiple age categories, including when he was over 100.

He began running at 89 and ran nine full marathons between 2000 and 2013, when he retired.

His running club and charity, Sikhs In The City, said its upcoming events in Ilford, east London, where he had lived since 1992, would be a celebration of his life and achievements.

The hit and run happened on Monday as the centenarian was walking in his birth village, Beas Pind, near Jalandhar.

As news of the death broke, tributes poured in.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him an “exceptional athlete with incredible determination”.

Harmander Singh, Fauja Singh’s coach at Sikhs In The City, confirmed his death in a statement posted to the running club.

The statement said: “It is with great sadness that we can confirm our icon of humanity and powerhouse of positivity Fauja Singh has passed away in India.

A torchbearer for the 2012 London Olympics, Singh clocked several milestones during his running career, including reportedly becoming the first centenarian to complete a full marathon in 2011 in Toronto.

However, his claim of being the world’s oldest marathon runner was not recognised by Guinness World Records as he could not show a birth certificate from 1911. Singh’s British passport showed his date of birth as being 1 April 1911, and that he had a letter from the Queen congratulating him on his 100th birthday.

His trainer, Harmander Singh, said that birth certificates were not made in India at the time Singh was born.

Guinness World Records officials said they would have loved “to give him the record”, but that they could only “accept official birth documents created in the year of the birth”.

As a young boy growing up in Punjab, Singh was teased by people in his village as his legs were weak and he could not walk properly until the age of five.

“But the same boy, once mocked for his weakness, went on to make history,” he told BBC Punjabi in June.

Before he turned 40, Singh, a farmer, had lived through the turbulence of both the World Wars and experienced the trauma of Partition.

He first took to running to cope with grief.

After the death of his wife Gian Kaur in the early 1990s, he moved to London to live with his eldest son Sukhjinder. But during a visit to India, he witnessed his younger son Kuldeep’s death in an accident which left him devastated.

Overtaken by grief, Singh would spend hours sitting near the spot where his son had been cremated. Concerned villagers advised his family to take him back to the UK.

Back in Ilford in London, during one of his visits to the gurdwara, Singh met a group of elderly men who would go on runs together. He also met Harmander Singh, who would go on to become his coach.

Singh made his debut at the London Marathon in 2000, a month shy of turning 89. He participated through a Golden Bond entry – a system where charities pre-purchase a fixed number of spots for a fee. He chose to run for BLISS, a charity that supports premature infants. His tagline: “Oldest running for the youngest! May they live as long as him.”

Singh says that before the run, he was told by event officials that he could only wear a patka (headgear worn by many Sikh boys and men) and not a turban.

“I refused to run without my turban. Eventually, the organisers allowed me to run with it, and for me, that’s my biggest achievement,” he said.

He finished the race in six hours and 54 minutes, marking the beginning of a remarkable journey.

By his third successive appearance at the London marathon, he had shaved off nine minutes from his previous best.

In 2003, at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, he bettered his timing by an astonishing one hour and five minutes, completing the race in five hours and 40 minutes.

Singh shot to international fame when Adidas signed him for their 2004 Impossible is Nothing advertising campaign, which also featured legends such as Muhammad Ali.

In 2005, he was invited by Pakistan’s prime minister to participate in the inaugural Lahore marathon. A year later, in 2006, he received a special invitation from Queen Elizabeth II to visit Buckingham Palace.

Among the many mementos and certificates displayed at Singh’s home in Punjab is a framed photograph of him with the Queen.

He continued to compete in marathons well into his 100s and earned the nickname “Turbaned Tornado”. Most of his earnings from endorsements went directly to charitable foundations.

In 2013, he participated in his last long-distance competitive race in Hong Kong, completing a 10km run in one hour, 32 minutes and 28 seconds.

He credited his health and longevity to a simple lifestyle and disciplined diet.

In his final years, Singh divided his time between India and the UK.

British MP Preet Kaur Gill shared a photo of herself with him on X, writing: “A truly inspiring man. His discipline, simple living, and deep humility left a lasting mark on me.”

Jas Athwal MP said Singh “inspired millions across the world”. He wrote on X: “His spirit and legacy of resilience will run on forever.”