•Cristiano Ronaldo /AFP

Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (FPF), the official governing body of football in Portugal on Monday handed Cristiano Ronaldo a 30-day suspension for leaving the Portuguese national team camp during the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) nations league.

The 41-year-old left the Portugal camp on September 30, before accusing coach Jorge Jesus of breaking his word about giving him game time.

Ronaldo apologised to supporters earlier in October, adding he would accept any punishment that was imposed.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid star, who will also have to pay a fine of 255 euros ($286), has received the minimum penalty provided for in the federation’s regulations, which stipulate suspensions of between one and six months for leaving the national team.

Ronaldo left Portugal’s squad after first being made to warm up as a substitute against Norway on September 27 and not brought on, and then finding out he would not start against Denmark in the match on October 1.

Ronaldo’s suspension takes effect from the day of the Denmark match, meaning he has already served 19 days of his ban and will complete it by the end of October.

•CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has raised the maximum annual subvention available to each of its 54 member associations to $700,000.

The new figure is a 33% increase on the previous allocation of $525,000.

The adjustment continues a steady rise in direct funding to national football governing bodies under CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe.

Under the revised framework, each member association will now receive up to $700,000 yearly.

Across all 54 federations, the maximum annual allocation could reach about $37.8 million.

The difference of $175,000 per federation adds up to roughly $9.45 million in potential extra annual funding across the continent.

That gives CAF a bigger financial footprint in football development programmes.

Since 2021, the annual allocation per member association has moved from $200,000 to $700,000, a 250% growth over four years.

The funding has climbed in stages. It stood at $200,000 in 2021, rose to $400,000, then to $525,000, and now sits at $700,000. In four years, CAF has added $500,000 to what each federation can access annually.

Rwanda has signed a 10-year deal with Formula 1 to host races in the African country, starting “in the early 2030s”.

The event – to be called the African Grand Prix – will be held on a new, purpose-built circuit in Bugesera, 25 miles south of the capital Kigali and next to the city’s new international airport.

It will be the first F1 race in Africa since 1993.

A statement from F1 said the project came as a result of “years of collaboration to ensure the right foundations, with the best partner, are in place to deliver a successful, sustainable and world-class grand prix for generations to come”.

The circuit, designed by the former F1 driver Alex Wurz, has been “designed to work in harmony with the natural landscape, using the area’s elevation changes to create a unique and challenging racing experience while delivering exceptional viewing opportunities for fans,” the statement added.

•Red Bull Racing’s Dutch driver Max Verstappen crosses the chequered flag at the finish line to win the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore on October 11, 2026. (Photo by Ng Han Guan / POOL / AFP)

F1 hopes the race will provide an opportunity for the sport to expand its profile in Africa, a relatively unexplored market compared to Europe, Asia and the Americas.

It has not yet been established where the race may best fit into the schedule during the year.

The race is likely to be controversial as Rwanda has previously been accused of sportswashing.

The sport is likely to want to avoid holding the race in the main rain season of March to May. There is a shorter, less disruptive rain season from October to November.F1 is committed to keeping the season at no more than 24 races.

Rwanda President Paul Kagame said: “For more than three decades, the world’s premier motorsport championship has raced without this continent, and that changes with this agreement.”

“Rwanda is proud to host the Formula 1 African Grand Prix, and to share this moment with more than 100 million fans across Africa, many of them young people who deserve to see the sport at home and to see themselves in it: as engineers, technicians, entrepreneurs and, one day, drivers.

“The circuit in Bugesera, alongside the new international airport, will bring jobs, skills, tourism and new business to our country and our region for decades to come, because our aim was never a single race weekend, but a lasting benefit for our people.”

F1 president Stefano Domenicali said the new contract was “a landmark moment for F1”, which would mean the sport was racing “on every inhabited continent”.

Domenicali added: “Africa has always been part of Formula 1’s future, and from the beginning we were determined to return in the right way, with the right partner, a long-term commitment and a clear vision for creating meaningful impact.”