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“It was strange”: Even Bayer’s journey to Manchester proved challenging

Lesley Summerville
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“It was strange”: Even Bayer’s journey to Manchester proved challenging

Bayer 04 Leverkusen faces a major challenge on Tuesday when they travel to Manchester City. Unexpectedly, even the journey there proved to be an obstacle.

Everything had actually been carefully planned: Bayer’s schedule for the trip to Manchester was set, including a press conference on Monday evening. But a series of mishaps led to an almost grotesque chain of unfortunate circumstances. The Bayer entourage took off for England almost an hour and a half late, where further delays occurred.

First there were problems with the luggage. Then the plane, which was supposed to be ready for takeoff, had to return from the runway to the gate because it was unclear whether all the luggage was on board. Finally, there was no tractor to move the plane into position.
In Manchester, it took another hour before the first passengers were able to leave the plane—there was a shortage of buses. The press conference with Kasper Hjulmand and Aleix Garcia, scheduled for 6 p.m., was therefore postponed by two hours. “It was strange, but that’s how it is sometimes,” said Hjulmand, referring to the series of mishaps.
“The worst thing was the long wait,” added Aleix Garcia, who will be facing his former club (“We will do our best to get the three points. For me personally, it will be a special game”).

Focus on Haaland? “It’s not just about him”

The focus on the game against clear favorites Manchester City was disrupted by this, but Hjulmand announced that he wanted to return to the set schedule as quickly as possible. “We’re sticking to tomorrow’s schedule and will be ready when it kicks off,” Hjulmand announced—knowing, of course, which opponent his team will be facing. “When we play ManCity, Bayern, or PSG, we have to suffer on the pitch at times. But seconds later, we can attack. We’re good with the ball and want to wait for our moments,” emphasized the Dane.
Hjulmand has no intention of focusing solely on Erling Haaland, who has already scored 19 goals in 16 competitive games this season. “We are ready and want to see if we can stop him. But it’s not just about him. He is well supported in a very good structure,” says Hjulmand.

However, the former Danish national coach was unable to get any tips or insider knowledge—beyond Haaland’s abilities, of course—from Claudio Echeverri. The Argentine, on loan from ManCity, knows a lot about his parent club, but Bayer has good analysts, “we know what City wants,” says Hjulmand, “we know everything.”

Alienated from the team? Criticism of Xabi Alonso grows

Andrew Jackson
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Alienated from the team? Criticism of Xabi Alonso grows

Although Real Madrid still tops La Liga, alarm bells are ringing in Madrid. After the 2-2 draw with promoted Elche, criticism of head coach Xabi Alonso is growing.

Real Madrid is on a tremendous rollercoaster ride at the end of the year. After six competitive wins in a row, the team has now gone three games without a win. The Champions League defeat in Liverpool was followed by two avoidable draws in the league: 0-0 against city rivals Rayo and 2-2 at promoted Elche.

Xabi Alonso demonstratively stood up for his team, which he said was by no means “down and out.” “They are continuing to fight,” the Real coach announced on Sunday: “The results and the game can be improved. We are self-critical, but the mood remains good.” Now it’s a matter of overcoming the “adversity.” “This is Madrid, and we know we have to live with criticism.”

In the current phase, the former successful coach of Bayer 04 Leverkusen needs a thick skin. His predecessor Carlo Ancelotti recently advised him: “One thing I’ve learned is that a draw here is the beginning of a crisis. You have to get used to that.”

There is currently much speculation in Spain’s capital about whether Xabi Alonso is really getting through to the team. “The connection with the players is improving. We know each other better, we’re all in the same boat and heading in the same direction,” assured the 43-year-old: “We celebrate together and are dissatisfied when we don’t win.” The main priority now is to “reverse the momentum.”

“Seriously failed” in line-up and substitutions?

Or are the problems perhaps deeper than that? In any case, Marca, which is close to the club, suspects the worst. On the in-house radio show La Tribu, journalist Roberto Gomez speaks of a “complete alienation between the team and the coach.” Xabi Alonso “failed badly” on Sunday, especially in terms of lineup and substitutions.

The decision not to include Vinicius Junior in the starting lineup was met with incomprehension. Various regulars such as Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras are completely out of form, and Rodrygo’s nomination to the starting lineup was unjustified. Gomez’s harsh conclusion: “The lineup was a real disaster.”

Xabi Alonso addressed the Vinicius Junior issue when asked: “That’s not a problem, we talked about it, as we often do. He understands and knew what role he would play.”

The coach saw completely different starting points. After the equalizer in the 78th minute, he would have liked to see “a little more pressure” from his team. However, there was a lack of “continuity.” Instead, Real conceded a second goal. What nevertheless makes Xabi Alonso optimistic ahead of Wednesday’s important Champions League away game at Olympiacos Piraeus: “The team didn’t give up.”

Double goal scorer Ducksch is now a game changer in Birmingham

Sports Of The Day
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Double goal scorer Ducksch is now a game changer in Birmingham

Birmingham City is gradually closing in on the promotion spots in the Championship. Marvin Ducksch, who was able to unleash his iconic celebration for the first time at the weekend, has played a decisive role in this.

After leaving Bremen, things have understandably quietened down for Marvin Ducksch in Germany. But the 31-year-old, who signed a three-year contract with Birmingham City last August, is making a name for himself with the Championship newcomers.

After struggling with a calf injury at the start of the season, Ducksch is really hitting his stride as the calendar year draws to a close. His name is closely linked to Birmingham’s successes: He has been in the starting lineup for five league games, four of which the Blues won, scoring 14 of their 24 goals.

Last Saturday, Ducksch also made his first appearance as a goalscorer in his new jersey. In the 4-1 home win against Norwich, he opened the scoring in the third minute. Coach Chris Davies described the combination finished by the Dortmund native as “one of our best goals this season.”

Ducksch now seems to have really arrived on the island. “We got him going and made him fit,” Davies told the club’s TV channel about Ducksch’s influence. What makes him a “game changer” at the moment? “He’s a player who always creates chances for other players around him through his interplay and intelligence,” Davies praised, adding: “But he’s a striker, and all strikers want to score goals.”

Davies raves about the offensive “chemistry”

Ducksch can now tick off this mission as well. In Birmingham, he also harmonizes beautifully with his 23-year-old strike partner Jay Stansfield, who joined the then third-division (!) club in the summer of 2024 for a staggering €18 million and also scored twice against Norwich. Davies raved about the increasingly strong “chemistry” in the Blues’ offense. In ninth place, Birmingham has 24 points, just three fewer than third-place Stoke City. Second-placed Middlesbrough (30 points) is also within striking distance. The fact that the club celebrated its 150th anniversary on Saturday and presented a design for a new 62,000-capacity stadium last week fits in with the current rosy overall picture. Just like Marvin Ducksch.

Van Persie puts van Persie on the bench

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Van Persie puts van Persie on the bench

Feyenoord has suffered another setback in the title race with Eindhoven. Coach Robin van Persie caused a stir with his squad selection.

It is probably only a matter of time before another van Persie storms the Eredivisie. A little more than seven years after Robin van Persie’s career ended, his son sat on the bench at Feyenoord Rotterdam on Sunday—and Robin van Persie himself had ordered him there. The 42-year-old has been head coach at the top Dutch club since February.

The father did not allow Shaqueel van Persie to come on as a substitute in the home game against NEC Nijmegen, but it was not a day for personnel experiments: Feyenoord lost 4-2 to the new fourth-placed team, suffering another setback in the championship race with defending champions PSV Eindhoven, who had taken the lead on Saturday with a hard-fought 1-0 win at NAC Breda and now have a six-point cushion.

Nevertheless, it was a small milestone for van Persie junior to be included in the professional squad for the first time. Normally, the 19-year-old left-footed player plays for the U21s. Van Persie senior also spoke of a “special moment,” but said it was purely for professional reasons: “I won’t give him preferential treatment, but I won’t disadvantage him either because he’s my son. That wouldn’t be fair to him.”

The former world-class striker, who played more than 100 times for the Dutch national team, already trained his son in the Feyenoord youth team. The London-born player—Robin van Persie played for Arsenal from 2004 to 2012—moved there in 2015 after being trained at Manchester City and Fenerbahce.

Despite losing streak: Van Persie refuses to acknowledge crisis

Feyenoord could really use a striker with van Persie’s accuracy right now. Saturday’s defeat was their third in a row across all competitions and their fourth in their last five games. However, the coach refuses to acknowledge a “crisis” so far.

In those games—including the 2-0 defeat at VfB Stuttgart—the main problem was a failure to convert chances. “We played a fantastic first half and should have gone into the break with at least three goals. When you play so well, it’s hard to stomach a 1-1 score at halftime,” he lamented after the 2-4 defeat, in which Feyenoord had led 2-1 until the 69th minute. On Thursday, they face Celtic in the Europa League.

The Bad Boys are back: Three reasons for the Detroit Pistons’ success

Jason Maverick
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The Bad Boys are back: Three reasons for the Detroit Pistons’ success

Twelve wins in a row, clear first place in the East. Just two years after their horrendous 28-game losing streak, the Detroit Pistons are back on top. But how did this happen so quickly? Here are three reasons for the surprising turnaround.

1. The Pistons have the best duo in the Eastern Conference

It’s no secret that the Pistons have an All-Star caliber player in their ranks in former No. 1 pick Cade Cunningham. The point guard is once again putting up fabulous numbers this season, which, coupled with the franchise’s recent success, are bringing him closer to the field of MVP candidates. Statisticians credit the American with 27.4 points and 9.9 assists in 13 games this season. So far, so unsurprising.

One difference compared to previous years, however, is the production of co-star Jalen Duren. The center has already made a name for himself in recent years as a double-double machine. In the summer, however, the big man, who just celebrated his 22nd birthday, seems to have worked intensively on his offensive skills.

Duren averaged 20.5 points in his first 14 games of the season, almost twice as many as last season (11.8 PPG), while his efficiency has remained virtually unchanged. At 2.08 meters, he is certainly not one of the biggest big men in the league, nor does he have a three-point shot yet. However, Duren makes up for these shortcomings with his rare combination of size and tremendous athleticism. His 11.5 rebounds per game are not only among the top six in the league, they also come close to his personal career best (11.6). His 4.2 offensive rebounds per game are clearly unmatched in his NBA career.

In addition, the fourth-year pro has unexpectedly acquired good ball-handling skills, which he is increasingly using to beat his tall opponents off the dribble.

2. Defensive pest is back – the Bad Boys Pistons

In the 1990s, the Bad Boys Pistons spread fear and terror with their physical and sometimes unfair style of play. Almost three decades later, parallels can be seen once again. Only four teams top their 23.0 fouls per game. Only two teams can beat their 28.7 opponent free throws per game.

Their defensive strength within the three-point line is Detroit’s key to success. This is made possible by their often very tall lineups. Ausar Thompson is just as much of a defensive pest as Isaiah Stewart. Duren also repeatedly shows flashes of his potential in this area. Teams average only 43.9 points in the Pistons’ zone – fourth best in the league! With 6.1 blocks per game, the new Bad Boys even rank third.

This adds up to a defensive rating of 110.0 – clearly the best in the Eastern Conference and second only to the historic defense of the Oklahoma City Thunder (102.8 DRAT) in the league.

3. Detroit’s offense: More diverse than ever!

The Pistons’ great offensive strength is not just the Cunningham/Duren show. Ten players (minimum five games) are currently averaging over eight points. The departures of Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr. have been adequately replaced. Duncan Robinson is shooting 44 percent from three-point range on a high volume (7.3 per game). Caris LeVert is finding his feet in the team after a slow start. In addition, numerous young players have taken a big step forward this season. Alongside Duren’s offensive doubling, two-way guard Daniss Jenksins is considered the big surprise of the new season with his 11.4 points per game. The 24-year-old helped keep the backcourt rotation stable in the face of Ivey’s long absence. Speaking of Jaden Ivey, he recently made a successful return with ten points in his first game after almost a year out with injury, giving the league leaders another option.

Calculations: How Lando Norris could become Formula 1 world champion in Qatar

Jason Maverick
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Calculations: How Lando Norris could become Formula 1 world champion in Qatar

Despite his disqualification, Lando Norris could still win the world championship title next weekend in Qatar – here’s what the McLaren driver needs to achieve to do so

The disqualification in Las Vegas was a bitter setback, especially for Lando Norris: The McLaren star not only lost his second place, but also 18 championship points. This reduced his lead over teammate Oscar Piastri and defending champion Max Verstappen from 42 points to “only” 24 points.

Norris currently has 390 points in the drivers’ championship, while Piastri and Verstappen each have 366 points. Without the disqualification, the Brit would have been virtually certain to win the world championship. Now everything is up for grabs. Nevertheless, Norris can still clinch his first title this coming weekend.

The math seems simple at first glance: because a maximum of 25 points are awarded for a win in the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Norris would need a lead of at least 26 points after the Qatar Grand Prix to become world champion ahead of schedule.

Why a 25-point lead is not enough

A 25-point lead over Piastri would not be enough, as both McLaren drivers have won seven races each this season. If Piastri were to win in Abu Dhabi and Norris were to come away empty-handed, the McLaren drivers would be level on points, but Piastri would have one more win – and would therefore take the world championship crown.

And Verstappen? The Red Bull driver currently has six wins this season. In the final sprint, he could still draw level or even get one more win if he triumphs in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Norris would have more second places to his name, so Verstappen would have to win both races to take the title on equal points.

Put simply, Norris must score at least two points more than Piastri and Verstappen next weekend. However, the calculation is not quite so straightforward, as the Qatar Grand Prix will feature another sprint race on Saturday, meaning additional points will be awarded.

A victory in Qatar alone would not guarantee the title

A victory on Sunday alone would not be enough for Norris to secure the title, because although the Brit would get 25 points, his rivals could score as many as 26 points with a second place on Saturday and a victory in the sprint, further reducing the gap to the top of the standings.

In addition to winning the race, the championship leader would have to finish at least sixth in the sprint to collect three more points and extend his lead to at least 26 points. That would also be the only way for Norris to win the world championship title in Qatar on his own.

Second place on Sunday would no longer be enough for the McLaren driver to become world champion, even if he were to win Saturday’s sprint. In that case, the Briton would only collect a total of 26 points, while Piastri or Verstappen could score up to 32 points with a race win and second place in the sprint.

Verstappen and Piastri are under pressure

If the Briton does not win Sunday’s race, he would be dependent on the results of his rivals in terms of an early World Championship decision. Should Piastri or Verstappen win the Qatar Grand Prix and finish at least seventh in the sprint, the decision would remain open until the final race in Abu Dhabi.

Due to the sprint weekend, there are numerous scenarios in which Norris could become this year’s world champion ahead of schedule. The simplest option: if the 26-year-old Briton finishes both Saturday’s sprint and Sunday’s race ahead of his rivals, the world championship title will be his for the taking.

“We deserved it”: Alonso brutally honest after miserable race

Sotd Editor
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“We deserved it”: Alonso brutally honest after miserable race

Aston Martin lacking pace in Las Vegas: Alonso drops back to P11, Stroll crashes out early

Aston Martin had a weekend to forget in Las Vegas. Fernando Alonso fell back from seventh on the grid to P13 and moved up to P11 after McLaren’s disqualification. Lance Stroll retired on the first lap after a collision with Gabriel Bortoleto.

Alonso was self-critical after the race. “Definitely not the pace this weekend, very challenging, all free practice sessions,” said the Spaniard. Apart from qualifying in wet conditions, they weren’t fast enough.

“We deserved to be out of the points,” Alonso clarified. The team was also a bit slow at top speed. It was very difficult to fight outside, they will try again next week.

Alonso in the chaos at the start

The start went well for Alonso at first, then chaos ensued in turn one. Liam Lawson pushed Piastri, Alonso, and Leclerc off the track from the inside. “I don’t know if it was investigated or not, but the start was definitely not good,” Alonso explained. The race stewards did not impose a penalty on Lawson. The reasoning was that he had been forced into the situation by George Russell’s braking. A domino effect: Russell braked, Lawson tried to avoid him and hit Oscar Piastri in the process.
“I don’t know, I haven’t seen the replay yet, but that was the cause,” said Alonso. Wrong place, wrong time. The action caused damage to his front wing, but the team reported no loss of performance.
Stroll torpedoed through no fault of his own

“So the pace wasn’t there,” Alonso noted. Despite the reassuring message from the pits, the AMR24 simply lacked speed. Aston Martin lost significant time to the competition, especially on the straights.

For Stroll, the race ended even earlier. Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto caught the Canadian in the first series of corners, causing considerable damage. Stroll had to retire the car, a retirement through no fault of his own on the opening lap. Alonso continued with damage, but performance suffered noticeably. After promising pace in wet qualifying, the dry race conditions were sobering. The team tried a one-stop strategy and switched from medium to hard tires.

A glimmer of hope in the wet

At least they managed to undercut Oliver Bearman. However, the Haas driver struck back in the second stint and overtook Alonso again. Despite all their efforts, they simply lacked the pace to hold on to a points-scoring position.

The entire weekend was difficult for Aston Martin. Only in wet qualifying did the AMR24 show some competitive lap times. In the race, there was no sign of this, with the pace not good enough at either the front or the back.
The full focus is now on Qatar. Aston Martin must quickly analyze the performance issues and find solutions to be more competitive again in the penultimate race of the season. Time for improvements is running out.

Why the numbers show that Aprilia’s threat to Ducati is an illusion

Sports Of The Day
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Why the numbers show that Aprilia’s threat to Ducati is an illusion

An analysis of the results of the 2025 MotoGP season casts doubt on the claim that Ducati should seriously fear a threat from Aprilia.

The undeniable progress made by Aprilia this year led many observers and experts to claim that Ducati’s dominance in recent seasons was now under threat from the Noale-based manufacturer.

However, an in-depth analysis of this season’s data suggests that the much-discussed Ducati stagnation in the paddock is nothing more than an illusion.

It is undeniable that Ducati’s absolute figures this year are behind those of the previous season. But last season was a record-breaking campaign for the Reds: 19 wins out of a possible 20 (95 percent), 53 podiums out of 60 (88.3 percent), and 14 Grands Prix with a podium consisting solely of Ducati riders. In total, the brand scored 722 out of a maximum possible 740 points (98 percent).

In the recently concluded season, the numbers are not quite as extraordinary, but they are not far off: 17 wins in 22 races (77.3 percent), achieved by four different riders. Added to this are 44 podiums out of 66 (66.6 percent) and seven Grands Prix with three Ducatis on the podium.

In the end, Ducati collected 768 points out of a possible 814 (94 percent). The 2024 ratio has shrunk, yes, but the idea that the 2025 statistics are significantly weaker hardly stands up to closer scrutiny of these figures.

In fact, this was still the second-best season in Ducati’s history. And crucially, several factors had a clear influence on the slight decline.

Fewer bikes and an injured Marquez

Two of these factors stand out in particular: Ducati reduced the number of its bikes from eight to six, and Marc Marquez, the brand’s top rider, suffered a serious injury at the start of the Indonesian Grand Prix.

Due to the damage to his already injured right arm, he missed the last four weekends of the season. Coincidence or not, three of Aprilia’s four victories this year (Australia, Portugal, and Valencia) fell precisely within that period. Equally noteworthy is that Ducati had won 16 of the 18 races held up to Australia, the first race Marquez missed. The only exceptions were Silverstone, where Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi won after Fabio Quartararo’s Yamaha suffered engine failure, and Le Mans, where rain gave Johann Zarco and his Honda an unlikely chance.

In addition, Pramac, now Yamaha’s satellite team, left Ducati, leaving two fewer Desmosedicis on the grid, a loss of 25 percent.

And this was not just any quarter, but the reigning 2024 world champion team, which had contributed three wins and 16 podium finishes with Jorge Martin in that season before the Spaniard finally became world champion.

Aprilia is up, but is that enough?

Aprilia, on the other hand, climbed from one victory in 2024 (Maverick Vinales in Austin) to four this season (3x Bezzecchi, 1x Raul Fernandez). That one Texas victory was also the only podium finish in an otherwise difficult year, while Aprilia sprayed Prosecco a total of eleven times in the 2025 season.

Last year’s 302 points (41 percent of the possible total) grew to 418 points (51.4 percent) – an increase of 10 percent. This means that Aprilia recorded the second-largest increase of all manufacturers, surpassed only by Honda.

Certainly a reason to be proud. But to automatically conclude from this that Aprilia is now a real threat to Ducati is a conclusion that even Bezzecchi does not (yet) draw.

“We would like to be rivals to Ducati, but every year is a new story and nothing can be taken for granted. We have to maintain this mentality and focus on our work. Ducati will start as the favorite,“ he analyzed in Valencia, even before clinching his third win of the season on Sunday. ”Marc [Marquez] won the world title with a five-race lead, so two wins are not enough for me to see myself at his level.”

After losing the title: AMG makes clear demands on the DTM

Jeffrey Gooding
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After losing the title: AMG makes clear demands on the DTM

Will Mercedes-AMG only have one team competing in the DTM in 2026? What this has to do with the balance of performance and why there is so much frustration after the final race

Will Mercedes-AMG continue to compete in the DTM with two teams? Even at AMG’s end-of-season party in Affalterbach on Friday, there was no clear answer as to how the team will line up for 2026. However, after the bitter season finale, Mercedes-AMG customer sports manager Stefan Wendl is demanding progress in the Balance of Performance (BoP) in 2026, which would justify competing with two teams in the first place.
“The DTM is very important to us—and we definitely have a score to settle,” said Wendl. “We want to hold talks with the ADAC and know exactly what we are investing in. Because this is an investment by us and by each individual team.”

Mercedes-AMG was the only manufacturer in the DTM this year, alongside Lamborghini, to support more than one team, with Winward and Landgraf, which is not necessarily an advantage in the battle for a better classification. This is because the teams are also competing with each other, making it more difficult to bluff.

“Different strategies for BoP”: Is AMG bowing to the DTM trend?

But is it even the manufacturer’s goal to field four cars?

“That’s exactly the question we’re dealing with,” replies Wendl. “We deliberately chose this constellation. This is in contrast to the trend in recent years, where almost all manufacturers have withdrawn to just one team.”

At Mercedes-AMG, internal competition is allowed “because we think that the two teams push each other to peak performance. There is another option, which is to explicitly avoid this in order to be able to use different strategies in the BoP. But that has not been the way we have approached motorsport so far.“

Mercedes-AMG on the title decision: ”It feels bad.”

However, that could apparently change, because Mercedes-AMG is still smarting after the season finale. Landgraf-Mercedes driver Auer was in the lead for almost the entire season after two victories on the first two weekends of the season, but was then overtaken by Manthey-Porsche driver Ayhancan Güven in the last race of the season, finishing runner-up by four points.

“It feels bad, especially when you think about the last race event,” says Wendl. “When other brands are able to compensate for two or three negative BoP decisions over a weekend and still have the fastest car in the last race, which we definitely couldn’t do.”

He may be alluding to the fact that not only was the Schubert BMW extremely strong, which led to accusations from Manthey, but also that Güven’s Manthey Porsche drove to victory and the fastest race lap on Sunday despite a restrictor that was reduced by two millimeters over the course of the weekend and a total of 20 kilograms more ballast.

“We weren’t allowed back into the window”

According to Wendl, Mercedes-AMG “performed very strongly” with both teams in 2025 and “won the manufacturers’ title for the 16th time,” but Auer had “a perfect season” with the Landgraf team, “without making any noticeable major mistakes,” yet still did not become champion.

“However, we saw a significant dip from the first qualifying session at the Nürburgring onwards – and, from our point of view, we were no longer allowed into the window that would have allowed us to compete for victories in the last three events,” says Wendl, criticizing the BoP, which is created by the SRO Motorsports Group as a service provider for the ADAC.

Mercedes-AMG calls for clear solution strategy for better BoP

Does he have an explanation for the unfavorable development in the hot phase of the championship? “No, I don’t,” replies Wendl. “But I expect the ADAC to clarify this over the winter as part of the manufacturer TWGs and also clearly present how they intend to do better next year.“

He is aware that creating a correct BoP is highly complex given the constantly changing conditions on a race weekend and that one must ”have the necessary respect for what they do.” Nevertheless, he demands “that the BoP always be as good as possible, because that also determines the sporting value of the championship.”

With regard to next year, he said they now want to wait for the results and then make a decision “as soon as possible” on how to position themselves in the DTM.

Title hat trick complete: Italy wins Davis Cup in tennis

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Title hat trick complete: Italy wins Davis Cup in tennis

For the third time in a row, Italian tennis players have secured victory in the team competition—despite the absence of the host country’s two best professionals.

Italy’s tennis players have completed a hat-trick of Davis Cup titles, even without their top stars Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti. The host nation won 2-0 against Spain in the final of the final round in Bologna, triumphing in the prestigious team competition as it did in 2023 and 2024.

The last team to achieve this feat was the USA, which won five times in a row from 1968 to 1972. However, at that time, the Davis Cup was still played in a challenge round format, with the previous year’s winner automatically qualifying for the final.

Berrettini and Cobolli score the points

Matteo Berrettini had put Italy in the lead with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Pablo Carrena Busta. Flavio Cobolli then secured the second point with a 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 win over Jaume Munar. Spain had defeated the German team in the semifinals.

Italy was without ATP champion Sinner and world number eight Musetti due to injury. Spain had to do without world number one Carlos Alcaraz, who withdrew shortly before the start of the tournament due to thigh problems.

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