Wales Takes A Stand Against Infantino

The Football Association of Wales is apparently the first to officially withdraw its support for FIFA President - Gianni Infantino. 

The move takes away one vote of confidence for the head's hopes of re-election.

More FAs are sure to follow suit. I'm actually both surprised and happy it's my own country's FA that did it first.

What Wales Has Stated About Gianni Infantino

The recent failures in good governance, processes, leadership, values, stakeholder management, communications and sound judgement have led us to a position where Mr Infantino has lost the confidence of the FAW to remain at the helm of world football

Failing to put the best interests of football first is a failure we cannot accept

Taysom Hill And The Broncos

In a short follow up to Thursday's post, it looks like Taysom Hill could be on his way to play for the Denver Broncos.

Upon reading that news last night, I immediately thought 'OF COURSE!' to myself.

Hill played under the Broncos' head coach - Sean Payton - for many years. It was so obvious that would be one of his potential next destination. If an agreement can be reached, of course.

I love the prospect of Taysom Hill coming in for plays on that offence. Definitely something to look forward to.

Speaking of 'looking forward' - it's now six weeks until the start of the 2026 regular season. From next Sunday we can start using one hand to countdown.

Buy Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026

I Try Cherry & Vanilla Pepsi

The trilogy is complete!

In early July, I mentioned that Pepsi had released a trio of new sugar free drinks. The three flavours all have an ice cream theme. The first one I tried was Rasperry Ripple. That was followed by the surprisingly nice Salted Caramel. Cherry & Vanilla eluded me because it was unavailable on the two attempts.

Well, third time lucky. And all that.

As I've written in the past, I enjoy cherry colas. I also have a fondness for vanilla-flavoured Coca-Cola and even enjoyed Cherry Float Coke earlier this year. I felt that there was a good chance I'd enjoy Pepsi's take on a fruit and vanilla collision.

Unfortunately, even though I found the drink to be refreshing, it didn't live up to my hopes. 

The flavours didn't seem to complement each other in Pepsi's version as they do with the Coca-Cola variety. However, with all that said, there is something that might explain it.

After trying regular Cherry Float Coca-Cola earlier this year, I tried the zero sugar version a little over a week later.  I didn't find it to be as enjoyable as the fuller flavoured one. It's worth pointing out that these Pepsis are all sugar free as well, so maybe there's something to conclude from the two experiences.

It's possible I would have enjoyed a full fat Cherry and Vanilla Pepsi.

Now that I've tried all three, it's time to rank all three flavours. From worst to first. To be fair, if you've read all three posts, I'm sure you'd have worked it out already. 

Ranking the three new Pepsi flavours for Summer 2026

3. Cherry and Vanilla

2. Raspberry Ripple

1. Salted Caramel

The Stand

How Can Gianni Infantino and FIFA Get Out Of This One?

UEFA showed a lot of balls yesterday, when the football governing body stood up against FIFA's plans to offer up the World Cup to private investors. 

Such a proposal could bring around $20 Billion more to FIFA. 

The idea appears to have caught all of the football bodies off by guard. Many are evidently against the proposal but some might be tempted by the monetary reward FIFA's president - Gianni Infantino - has waved towards those whose okay he is looking to secure.

A lot of balls

UEFA has made it clear. No European team will be involved in anything relating to FIFA until such an enterprise is nixed.

Could you imagine a World Cup tournament without any European representation? To put it in current context: the 2026 World Cup had three of the four semi-finalists came from teams under the UEFA umbrella.

So far joining UEFA, in this stand against FIFA, are CONCACAF (The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football) and the Asian Football Confederation.

As well as that - in the midst of writing this post, news that someone high up at FIFA has resigned in protest at the move has filtered in.

Carlos Cordeiro - senior advisor to Infantino at FIFA - has left his post. In his resignation letter, he wrote 'As a senior advisor to the FIFA President, a former banker and lifelong football fan, I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup.'

The figurative rats are jumping ship. Let's hope the captain does the right thing. 

Taysom Hill Leaving The Saints

Versatile.

Whenever I see that word, I remind myself of a conversation I had with a classmate, in our final year at high school.

We were talking about the Championship Manager PC game. My friend mentioned a player (I cannot recall who!) he always tried to bring to whichever club he managed. I surmise he was in charge of. 

'He's versatile,' my friend stated. He then stopped. 'Do you know what versatile means?' he asked.

'Of course I do,' I uttered with astonishment. Seeing as I remember that conversation all those years later, you can obviously tell how I insulted I was at the question.

I came across my own versatile player as an adult. Not for football. Obviously not for Championship Manager, either.

Taysom Hill is a versatile player in American football. His 'Swiss Army Knife' style has performed well for me whenever I've picked him on my fantasy football teams whether they were regular or DFS.

Whenever he's in the fantasy draft, Hill is assigned as a tight end. That's pretty decent for someone who can feature in quarterback and running back plays. 

If that fantasy football league I play in returns for 2026 (it's not looking good), there's a good chance I'll look out for Hill again. However, it won't be as a member of the New Orleans Saints.

Hill, and the Saints, announced yesterday that he will not return to the team. The player wrote a really nice letter to the city of New Orleans. The Saints, on the other hand, sent Hill off with a touching video tribute.

Selfishly, I hope this isn't it. I'd like Taysom Hill on my next fantasy team. Because he's versatile.

SummerSlam Intros Take Me Back

There's a video, recently uploaded to the WWE Vault channel on YouTube, which took me for a ride down Memory Lane.

It consists of a load of intro videos to WWE SummerSlams from years gone by. They start with 1990 and work up.

Seeing those videos, to begin some of the biggest PPVs in WWF/E history, took me back to some good times.

And bad ones!

There were at least a couple which reminded me of watching SummerSlam on a Monday night with the first day back at school, following the summer holidays, looming.

Not that I completely hated school. I'd have rather stayed home and watched my SummerSlam tapes, though.

2026 Booker Prize Longlist Revealed

The longlisted nominees, for this year's Booker Prize, were revealed within the last hour. In this post, you'll find a list of all of the titles vying for honour as well as the judges and important dates for your Booker Prize diaries.

The 2026 Booker Prize 'Booker Dozen' 

As has become a tradition for the Booker Prize, thirteen novels have been selected for the 'Booker Dozen'. 

• All Them Dogs by Djamel White
• Black Bag by Luke Kennard
• Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman
• John of John by Douglas Stewart
• May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry
• Switzy by Emma Cline
• The Disappearers by Marlon James
• The End of Everything by M. John Harrison
• The Palm House by Gwendoline Riley
• The Renovation by Kenan Orhan
• The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis
• The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
• The Vivisectors by Missouri Williams

There are two previous winners in this year's longlisted nominees. They are Douglas Stewart (Shuggie Bain, 2020) and Marlon James (A Brief History of Seven Killings, 2015). 

Should either author win, they'll join Mary Attwood, J.M. Coetzee, Peter Carey and Hilary Mantel on the list of two-time winners.

The Judges

The judging panel, for the 2026 Booker Prize, will be chaired by Mary Beard. She'll be joined by Raymond Antrobus, Jarvis Cocker, Rebecca Liu and Patricia Lockwood.

2026 Booker Prize Shortlist Announcement Date

This year's Booker Prize shortlist will be revealed on Tuesday 22nd September at an event held at the Southbank Centre, London. All five judges will be on hand to discuss their six selections.

2026 Booker Prize Award Ceremony

The winning nominee will be announced on Monday 9th November. The award ceremony will once again be held at Old Billingsgate in London. The victor will receive £50,000 while the other shortlisted authors will each be given a runners-up prize of £2,500.

Bill Oddie Passes Away

Bill Oddie has passed away at the age of eighty-five.

I suppose my first introduction to 'Britain's most famous birder' was when he voiced one of my favourite cartoons as a child - Bananaman.

Yes, I came along somewhere in between Oddie's stint as part of The Goodies and his other ventures which came after his time as part of the comedy trio.

One of Oddie's paths led to being in pantomime with a friend of my family. She invited us over to London to see a performances one December weekend during the late 80s. We hung out with her after the show and Oddie came by. He didn't stay, though. My memory of that experience is of Oddie walking away as a few people came by requesting his autograph. 

That recollection is corrupted, however. As I sit here thinking back, I am envisioning Oddie still in the costume of the character he played - Sarah the Cook from Dick Whittington and his Cat. That cannot be how it truly went. He must have been in his regular clothes.

Anyway, back to modern day. 

Oddie's work with birdwatching is what I'll remember the most. He served his audience well by teaching them about one of nature's most magnificent, and intriguing, creatures.

He made people laugh and then let them learn. 

I Try Salted Caramel Pepsi

On July 7th, I wrote a post after trying one of three new flavours recently introduced by Pepsi. I noted that the raspberry ripple flavour was nice and was better than two other special Pepsi flavours from early 2025.

I have now found, and tried, the second summer special.

Yep, it's salted caramel.

As I pointed out in the post from earlier this month, the logo appears on the image of an ice cream inside a cone in these new flavours. Brilliant.

I thought the drink itself was top notch and refreshing (drinking in the heat may have been a factor!). In fact, I'd go so far as to say it's better than raspberry ripple.

With that said, it's very sweet (even though it's sugar free). I could see many disagree with me on this one. I wouldn't blame them for doing so.

When I first took a sip, I was reminded of the Pepsi from last Christmas. I suppose that was because you shouldn't really see Pepsi and gingerbread, and - in this case: salted caramel - figuratively mashed together.

But, here we are. Salted caramel Pepsi is something that wouldn't be foreign as a Christmas flavour. 

I recommend giving it a go.

Next up will hopefully be the elusive cherry and vanilla Pepsi. Stock had run out at my local Tesco, so I was unable to purchase it when I was hunting for the remaining two flavours.

Once I find it, I'll write about it. 

I suspect I might have left the best for last considering Cherry Coke is my GOAT cola. Plus, I enjoyed Coke Cherry Float earlier this year. It wouldn't surprise me if I have a similar opinion about Pepsi's rendition.

Going Soon - Microsoft Copilot Podcasts

I was today years old when I realised it's possible to get Microsoft Copilot to create a podcast using your prompts.

I was also today years old when I found out that facility will be discontinued in a little over three weeks from now.

This afternoon was spent giving it a go. It's quite clever, to be fair. I uploaded the PDF of Taylor's Pro Football Gambling Annual 2026 and it created a podcast book review.

Unfortunately, there is no way to download the file from the Copilot app (well, I suppose there are ways but not easier methods!). I would have liked to have been able to keep it, but it'll be gone once August 18th's closure comes along.

Makes you wonder what the point of having AI podcasts on Copilot is if you're unable to download the file to use elsewhere, right?

I suppose that's why it's going. They only serve a purpose to a certain point. And that's it.

One other little annoyance is they reviewed part of the book and covered a 49ers game. The male voice read the team name out as 'Forty-Nine Ears'. The female also said '49ers' in a peculiar way, but it wasn't as bad as '49ears'.

Still, it came out well.

I asked for 49 ears. Doesn't look like I got enough.

WWE Radio Launches July 27

World Wrestling Entertainment is launching its own radio station next week.

Starting from Monday July 27th, WWE Radio will be on SiriusXM (satellite radio broadcaster).

The station will broadcast live events like SummerSlam, the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania as well as other programming.

It's quite a controversial move because Busted Open Radio - a weekday show, which currently airs on SiriusXM - is part of the package.

In my - and many others' - opinion, Busted Open has been compromised. I cannot envision them giving other companies attention now that the big W W and E is written on the marquee.

I'm old enough to remember when there was a 'Radio WWF' syndicated show back in the early 1990s. It obviously didn't reach me here in the UK, but I was fascinated by the idea of wrestling content being broadcasted over the airwaves.

And as I wrote that, an old memory immediately returned to me. Something I hadn't recalled until moments ago:

Back in 1992, there was a wrestling radio show I could pick up on my satellite TV box if I tuned the dial when I had Eurosport (possibly Screensport!) on. I only caught the show once or twice. They reviewed the VHS tape of WCW Halloween Havoc 1990 on it. I ended up buying the videocassette because I was intrigued by what went down in the Sting versus Sid Vicious match.

The power of pro wrestling radio in full effect. Let's see if it works thirty-four years later.

Another Kevin Keegan Post

It has been a few days since Kevin Keegan passed away and I wanted to add a bit more following the post from a couple of days ago.

The Sun had a really cool tribute to Kevin Keegan on Tuesday. It had him on the front and back pages but there was also a twelve-page special inside.

At least a couple of the articles were written by Ian Ridley, who authored a biography about Keegan a few years ago. I found that book quite enjoyable.

Speaking of bios - I own a signed copy of Keegan's 1997 autobiography. However, it's not signed by the author! 

To cut a long and very random story short, my Dad helped out Ray Wilkins one weekend, when Ray was in town working for Sky Sports. He asked if I'd like anything signed. The only thing I could think of was there was a photo of Keegan and Wilkins inside the book, so I gave my father the book for Ray to sign the following day.

Returning to the past few days, it has been touching to see everybody talk so fondly of Kevin Keegan. It's unsurprising, however. He always came across as a class act. 

Seeing, and hearing, all this respect to Keegan has taken me back. It was such a wonderful time to be alive during that era.

Lowering Expectations On The King Route Of '26

The other day, I wrote about Shota Umino's concussion ruling him out of continuing in this year's NJPW G1 Climax and how it is another L in my predictions for 2026.

I've looked through all of the other guesses and will strike out on so many. There's even one I don't think I'll pull off that is in my control!

I wrote that 'I'll read at least six Stephen King books' and that 'I have to go from Cell (2006) to Under the Dome (2009)'. 

It might not be achieved.

I've read Cell and Lisey's Story. So, that's two down. However, I don't know whether I'll pull off all of the next four titles in King's bibliography because I have to get ready to do the annual Booker Prize Marathon in the autumn.

And then there's Sylvester Stallone's autobiography - The Steps - set to be published on September 29th (my preorder is in!).

A week after Stallone's memoir comes out, the third book in the Talisman Trilogy - Other Worlds Than These by Stephen King and the late Peter Straub - will be released. I've read the first two books in the series, so might decide to jump the queue and get to that one sooner rather than later.

So, yes - I could very well get another 'spoiler' incorrect. I have good reasons for failing, though.

The Messiah

Even though I had been prepared for it, because we were told Kevin Keegan had cancer earlier this year, it still hit me hard when news of his passing reached me yesterday afternoon.

'Kevin Keegan' was my first favourite football player. Putting it that way doesn't put it in the correct context, however.

Back when I was a toddler, maybe a tad bit older, either my parents or relatives (likely the latter if I had to gamble) handed me a football book and I asked who one of the players happened to be. They told me it was Keegan and I remember them trying to teach me to say his name.

It resulted in me uttering the words 'Kevin Keegan, Kevin Keegan' when I would play with soft footballs around my living room. 

I tried looking for the book on eBay last night. I came across Kevin Keegan annuals, Shoot annuals and others. My search was in vain. Nothing stood out. 

There's also a photo of me in a red and white striped hat and scarf which pops up every now and again. I don't recall if it was 'Kevin Keegan, Kevin Keegan' Liverpool related, but it would have been from around that time just going by how old I would have been when it was taken.

What I do know for sure is this - the Irish side of my family turned me to the dark side - Manchester United - after Keegan had retired. I had a new 'Kevin' to follow in Kevin Moran. I even had a Kevin Moran United licensed football.

I was a passive Manchester United supporter for most of that early childhood. By the early 1990s, with the Premier League in its infancy, United was no longer my team. I would go to watch Cardiff City at Ninian Park but it was okay back then for us to have a Premier League team to support. 

Keegan had returned to Newcastle United by then. He had delivered the team to the top flight. It was only appropriate for me to renew my 'Kevin Keegan, Kevin Keegan' fandom. Newcastle United became my team. 

All because of Keegan.

What a ride it was to be on that Newcastle United bandwagon. I experienced some amazing highs (Newcastle's 5-0 rout of Manchester United in October 1996 immediately comes to mind) and an incredible low which saw me close to tears over a football game for the first time in my life.

Cardiff City had drawn either Luton or Newcastle at home in the FA Cup fifth round during the 1993/94 season. I bought tickets for the game expecting City to meet Newcastle. I figured there would be no way a Premier League side would lose to a team in the second division. How wrong was I? Luton won 2-0, ending any hope I had of seeing the dream matchup.

I fought back tears that night. I've never felt as gutted over a football result since. And this is coming from someone who's had his fair share of gambling losses on footy games.

I have so many fond memories (and evidently bad ones!) from those years following Newcastle under Kevin Keegan. 

They truly lived up to their 'The Entertainers' moniker. 

That all ended in January 1997, when Keegan left Newcastle for a second time. His first, as a player, was inside a helicopter as it flew away from St. James' Park.

I stuck with Newcastle for years after that. I was still following them when Keegan made his return to the Newcastle dugout in January 2008. It was 4025 Days after the 1997 departure (I must have counted it for the blog post!)

In-between the Newcastle stints is something which kind of eased the pain from Luton/Newcastle memory. My friend and I went to see Cardiff City take on a Fulham team, managed by Keegan, in the League Cup in August of 1998. 

Wish fulfilled. I finally got to see Keegan manage a team against Cardiff City. As an added bonus, I also got to witness Peter Beardsley play live. Beardsley was my favourite Newcastle player during those Keegan years.

As an aside, Ninian Park is where Keegan scored his first goal for England. The 11th May 1974 game, in the British Home Championship, saw Wales lose 0-2 to their visitors. 

Keegan's third stint at Newcastle didn't go as well as expected. His run ended after eight months and resulted in him winning £2 Million in a constructive dismissal case against the club.

There was only one Kevin Keegan. There'll never be another 'Kevin Keegan, Kevin Keegan'.

* * *

Here are some Kevin Keegan posts I've written over the years.

The Big Fish (January 10 2008) - I had a brilliant idea for Newcastle to bring in Keegan to replace Sam Allardyce and for Alan Shearer to act as his understudy to eventually become long-term Newcastle boss.

What The People Want (January 14 2008) - More about the Keegan/Shearer dream ticket.

4025 Days Later (January 17 2008) - Keegan returns

D-Day For Kev (May 9 2008) - I wrote about Kevin Keegan and then-Newcastle owner - Mike Ashley- being  at odds 

He's Gone Again (September 5 2008) - Keegan leaves Newcastle for the third, and final, time

Keegan Versus Newcastle (October 3 2009) - I write about the legal matters between Keegan and Newcastle

Kevin Keegan (February 18 2011) - a review of the brilliant Keegan biography by Ian Ridley

Watching Cardiff .vs. Newcastle.... (August 18 2018) - I wrote a blog while watching Cardiff .vs. Newcastle on the telly. I reminisced about the Newcastle/Luton/Cardiff FA Cup scenario from 1994. In a coincidence realised this morning, as I write this post, I noticed that the Cardiff .vs. Newcastle game was played on the twentieth anniversary of me going to see Keegan's Fulham take on Cardiff in 1998!

The 5-0 Win (October 20 2021) - I wrote about the classic Newcastle win over Manchester United twenty-five years later.

Two Managers, One Story (January 8 2026) - Written following the passing of Terry Yorath and coverage of Kevin Keegan being diagnosed with cancer

Nostalgia Blast (January 13 2026) - I write about a classic Newcastle shirt and link it to the second departure of Keegan

Post-World Cup Blues!?

I woke up this morning with one thing on mind.

I'm going to miss the World Cup.

Never, in twenty tournaments, have I ever felt the Post-World Cup blues. 

It's quite surprising I had that emotion. It wasn't one of my favourite World Cups. 

What it must have been is I'm going to miss the routine I put myself through for the past month (and then some).

One day soon, I'll force myself to rank my favourite World Cups just to see where 2026 is on the list. It's certainly not at the top. On a positive, it's far from the bottom.

I was happy with last night's score of 1-0 to Spain. I suspected the eventual winners would keep it tight (that's their game!). I'm glad I didn't hedge my bets and wager on Lionel Messi to win the golden boot when I was offered 11/1 on Saturday night, once my Kylian Mbappe wager - from earlier this year - looked firm.

Spain not only had the best team at the World Cup.. it also had the best Walkers crisps flavour for this year's tourney.

Terence Donovan Passes Away

I vividly recall first coming across Terence Donovan on TV back in the 90s.

He played the villainous Al Simpson - father of Sophie (Rebekah Elmaloglou) - in Home and Away for a brief period. Then, a year or so later, newspapers began hyping up that 'Jason Donovan's dad has joined Neighbours' which was quite a big deal considering how Jason had become such a gigantic star stemming from his time on the Australian soap.

I didn't make any connection until I saw Doug Willis in Neighbours. It caused me to realise  'Ohhh, he's the guy who played Al Simpson in Home and Away!'

Donovan's Doug Willis character became a regular and was your typical Aussie. The funny and very random thing, for yours truly, about Doug's building business - Willis Construction - is, during this time, there was business local to me also named 'Willis Construction'. It would be hysterical to see the company's van drive around my area as I made my walk to school.

As an aside, I checked to see if Willis Construction is still in business. I'm happy to report it is!

I believe Terry Donovan left Neighbours somewhere close to the mid-nineties. Maybe a little earlier. He made a few brief returns over the years. His last appearances  - as part of a key storyline - saw Doug lose his battle with dementia. 

In a fun wrinkle to Doug's return, his character was involved in scenes with his son - Brad (then played by a different actor) and his wife - Terese. The trivia note is Terese was played by Rebekah Elmaloglou, so Donovan's Neighbours and Home and Away characters were both related to those played by Elmaloglou.

Over the past few years, previous work by Donovan has popped up on my screen. He was in a few episodes of Prisoner Cell Block H when I caught old Prisoner eps last year. I also found him in an Aussie heist movie - 1978's Money Movers - on Talking Pictures TV sometime within the past five years or so.

It was recently announced that Terence Donovan has passed away at the age of ninety.

What I'd Like To See, In England .vs. France...

The World Cup's third place playoff, between England and France, kicks off at 10pm BST this evening and I have one wish for it.

I'd like a few goals from France's Kylian Mbappe.

As I thought I had mentioned weeks ago (I cannot find the post!), I have Mbappe to win the golden boot. He's currently tied with Argentina's Lionel Messi, with eight goals each. However, Messi has four assists to MBappe's three. That tiebreaker means Messi will win the award should neither player score any more goals in their respective outings.

I also require Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane to have a quiet game tonight. Just like a few night ago. Both are hovering underneath Messi and Mbappe with six goals each. I shall respectfully consider them 'in the hunt' until their tournament participation ends this evening.

The Chase Around The World

I'm a fan of The Chase and one of its spinoffs - Beat The Chasers - so I had looked forward to watching the latest programme in the game show's universe: The Chase Around the World.

Episode one aired yesterday evening. I suppose the best reaction I could give is to share what I wrote in my journal before I turned in last night.

It went like this:

23:45 - Have just finished watching the new spinoff of The Chase called The Chase Around the World. It's a cross between The Chase and Race Across the World with six couples starting out and having to answer questions to uncover clues to get to the next round. 
£100,000 is the top prize.
I thought it was okay. I felt bad for the couple (father and daughter) who finished last. However, they were able to beat the chasers (Anne and Mark) at the end. That kept them in the competition

Now that I've had half-a-day to digest it all in, I stick by the notion that it's 'okay' and seems to be inspired by Race Across the World. I suppose it also has a dash of Beat the Chasers thrown in because the final bit, which sees the team which finished last in the race having to compete against two chasers in a battle to remain on the show, has the opposition up against more than one chaser.

I've seen more negative than positive reactions to it today, though. 

With that said, I have one of those 'this is the sort of thing ITV will quickly give up on' vibes from it. Kind of like how the company cancelled the brilliant The Fortune Hotel after two seasons. 

Don't get me started, once again, on the cancellation of Jeopardy UK - another thing ITV dropped after two runs.

So - yes, I will stick with The Chase Across the World. I am all-in knowing it could have a short shelf life.

More Years Of Hurt

Well, that didn't end well did it?

I'm obviously referring to England's 1-2 loss to Argentina, in the World Cup semi finals.

I'll be straight up, though. As soon as they beat Mexico, I envisioned England making it to the final. That feeling increased upon witnessing Spain's 2-0 victory over France on Tuesday night.

Good job my gut instinct was off-kilter. 

Of the losing party, I particularly feel for Thomas Tuchel this morning. I have always respected him as a coach (I suppose that's why my senses were working overtime picturing England in the final) and feel he's unfairly being treated as the scapegoat.

Tuchel's decision to play defensively - after England went 1-0 - would have been applauded had the game ended with that scoreline. 

Instead, England lost. The knives came out. As expected.

Damned if you do, and all that.

Shota Umino Exits G1 Climax 36 Due To Injury

Shota Umino is out of this year's G1 Climax.

New Japan Pro Wrestling broke the news today citing a concussion Umino suffered in his opening night match against Zack Sabre Jr. on Saturday.

It's a shame. Way back in January, I singled out Umino as my pick to win this year's tournament to determine who will be one of the participants of the WrestleKingdom main event of New Japan's first major show of 2027.

Umino was a participant of Block B in the round robin tourney. New Japan has stated that all of Umino's scheduled opponents will receive two points via forfeit wins.

Zack Sabre Jr. had beaten Umino in the night one clash from Chicago.