April 29, 2025. Sports news round-up / last 24 hours

The sports scene is dominated by football. On the domestic front, the SuperLiga title battle takes on new dimensions amid tensions and controversial decisions. Internationally, Cristian Chivu's performances as coach of Parma in Serie A are attracting attention, while the sporting world is witnessing coaching moves to top clubs and national teams. Snooker has caught the spotlight through the World Championships, where Ronnie O'Sullivan is once again making his mark.

HOME FOOTBALL

• FCSB/CFR/Dinamo: CFR and Dinamo finished 1-1 draw, giving FCSB the chance to move clear at the top of the standings. With 4 rounds to go, the red-and-blue are 6 points behind Universitatea Craiova and 7 points behind CFR.
• CFR Cluj: Although CFR remain 7 points behind FCSB, owner Ionuț Varga says he is not giving up and CFR will fight until the end.
• Kyros Vassaras/CCA: Kyros Vassaras has taken drastic decisions against the central Dan Petrescu and the VAR referee, Hațegan who made mistakes during the match between Rapid and FCSB. The two have been suspended until the end of the season.
• Rapid/FCSB: Tensions between Rapid and FCSB after the last play-off clash. The majority shareholder of giuleștenilor, Dan Șucu has accused behind-the-scenes games in favor of FCSB in order to become champions. In response, Gigi Becali pointed out to the Giulești owner that his team is 14 points behind FCSB and that the real problem with the Rapidistas' performance lies in their own backyard, not that of the red-and-whites.
• Petrolul/Farul Constanța: Farul wins 1-0 away to Petrolul Ploiești and escapes the 'quicksand' zone at the bottom of the standings.

FOTBAL International

• Cristian Chivu/Parma: Cristian Chivu close to a historic win over Lazio, in Rome itself. Lazio and Parma drew, 1-1, after a spectacular match in which Chivu's Parma led 2-0 until near the end of the game. The Romanian coach was praised in the Italian sports press, receiving a 7.
• PAOK/Răzvan Lucescu: PAOK secured an important 2-1 win over rivals Panathinaikos Athens to move within one point of second place, which guarantees a place in the UEFA Champions League.

Transfers

• Sepsi/Dorinel Munteanu: Sepsi have sacked Dorinel Munteanu. The decision was taken because of poor results that have put the team in the places fighting to avoid relegation.
• Gigi Becali/FCSB: After CFR's match against Dinamo, who drew with Dinamo and remained 7 points behind the leaders, the FCSB owner believes that his team can no longer escape the title and has started to plan for new transfers. Becali is considering top players from the domestic league, such as Alex Mitriță, Louis Munteanu, Dobre and Denis Alibec.
• Carlo Ancelotti: Carlo Ancelotti will take charge of the Brazil national team in June. The Italian will part ways with Real Madrid. After Madrid's underwhelming season, president Fernando Perez has decided to pay Ancelotti all the wages the Italian was due to collect until the end of his contract and part by mutual agreement.

SNOOKER

• Ronnie O'Sullivan: Ronnie O'Sullivan has qualified for the quarter-finals of the World Snooker Championship. The Brit beat China's Junxu Pang 13-4.

Top Athletes and Teams

1. CFR Cluj/Dinamo
2. FCSB/Rapid Bucharest
3. Cristian Chivu/Parma
4. Ronnie O'Sullivan
5. PAOK/Răzvan Lucescu

***** Synthesis provided by NewsVibe Romania. The top sports topics are identified from automated topic monitoring of mainstream media sources. The analysis, data and images presented have been enhanced using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence tools.