Paul Hayward was a contributing editor at Tortoise. Previously he was chief sports writer at the Daily Telegraph and the Guardian. His latest book is England Football: The Biography.
Paul Hayward
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Friday 16 December 2022
Qatar’s final reckoning
Sunday’s World Cup final in Qatar features Qatar’s two most famous employees – Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe. Doha has the climax it paid $200 billion for.
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Friday 9 December 2022
Le big match
England vs. France is more than Kylian Mbappe against Harry Maguire. It’s also a clash of financial models and cultures.
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Wednesday 7 December 2022
Morocco marches towards the quarter-finals as the Arab world’s envoy
Spain’s defeat last night was the latest upset in a tournament full of them
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Tuesday 6 December 2022
Could Ronaldo be the new face of Saudi soft power?
The Portuguese forward could soon leave European football for Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr. Such a move would be another win for the Gulf state
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Friday 2 December 2022
Fury follows fall of rugby giant
Doddie Weir’s death at 52 from motor neurone disease stirred anger as well as grief. Paul Hayward examines the slowness to unlock funding.
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Wednesday 30 November 2022
A century and a half of the England football team
On the Three Lions’ 150th birthday Paul Hayward reflects on how far the national team have come – and the challenges that face them now
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Tuesday 29 November 2022
England vs. Wales is a distraction from a real-life rivalry
Political tensions between Iran and the US have threatened to spill over onto the pitch in recent days
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Friday 25 November 2022
Hats off to the World Cup – or else
The story of former Welsh footballer Laura McAllister being ordered to remove her rainbow bucket hat in Qatar was the start of a new tailspin for this World Cup.
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Thursday 24 November 2022
Fifa is jeopardising its own existence in Qatar
The federation’s actions at the World Cup have alienated most of the footballing world
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Wednesday 23 November 2022
Off the pitch, Messi plays for the team that just beat him
Argentina’s defeat yesterday has reduced Lionel Messi’s chance of ever winning a World Cup – but his lucrative deal with Saudi Arabia will soften the blow
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Tuesday 22 November 2022
England are off to a strong start – but this is the easy bit
Paul Hayward delivers his verdict on the Three Lions’ opening game at Qatar 2022
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Monday 21 November 2022
Sensemaker: Why Qatar gently weeps
What just happened
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Friday 11 November 2022
Football’s desert winter
A unique selling-point of English top-flight football is that it slogs through December and January largely without pause – but this year is like no other
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Friday 4 November 2022
Rugby’s rich and poor
Rugby’s autumn internationals will see crowds flock to stadiums over the next month – but behind the earthy allure of England fixtures top-flight club rugby is at risk of collapse
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Friday 28 October 2022
Qatar parks the bus
Twenty-four days before kick-off to the 2022 World Cup, Qatar’s ruling clan are exasperated by the level of disapproval the tournament has received.
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Friday 21 October 2022
Games without frontiers
Football’s first winter World Cup is just the latest skirmish in a bigger battle for the future of sport
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Friday 21 October 2022
Oil on the pitch
Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco’s sponsorship of world cricket is the latest example of a petrostate exerting influence over sport. But resistance is growing from the athletes carrying their message.
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Friday 14 October 2022
Long-term goals
Cristiano Ronaldo’s domination on the football pitch at the age of 37 shows why longevity – not earnings – is the quality that sets the greats apart from the rest
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Friday 7 October 2022
Metal fatigue
After five years, the Liverpool-Manchester City rivalry that has dominated the Premier League is drawing to a close – it’s City’s game now. Paul Hayward reports on how Liverpool allowed itself to fall behind
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Friday 30 September 2022
England expects
The England football team will celebrate its 150th anniversary in November, just as the World Cup begins in Qatar. Paul Hayward reports on a team haunted by the past, and weighs up their potential ahead of the tournament
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Friday 23 September 2022
The stable door
Racing lost its most important champion this month with the death of the Queen. Now the Sport of Kings must confront a difficult future, as Paul Hayward reports
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Thursday 8 September 2022
Boundary dispute
Cricket’s The Hundred competition has finished for another year. Has it been a success?
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Tuesday 6 September 2022
The end of innocence
The 1972 Olympic Games should have marked a new beginning for West Germany. Instead they changed sport and the world forever
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Friday 2 September 2022
Burning money
Football’s transfer window closed last night with the usual extravagant bang but no team has received less bang for its buck in recent years than Manchester United. Paul Hayward follows United’s path of profligacy
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Friday 26 August 2022
Punching power
Ukraine’s boxers are fighting on two fronts – in the ring, where they’re battling for titles, and on the ground, where they’re fighting for their country’s existence
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Monday 1 August 2022
10 minute read
Sensemaker: Superlative win
What just happened
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Wednesday 27 July 2022
Isles of wonder?
The London Olympics seemed to promise a new beginning for Britain. Ten years on, Paul Hayward wonders what happened
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Tuesday 26 July 2022
10 minute read
Sensemaker: Game on
What just happened
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Tuesday 2 August 2022
England’s women victorious
England’s women won the European Championship for the first time in their history – but what does their victory mean for the future of the game, and what needs to be done to ensure the legacy isn’t lost?
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Monday 27 June 2022
A coup at Claridge’s: Qatar’s quiet move on London
A tiny Gulf state has bought up some of Britain’s prized assets. But at what cost?