Parents who wish to name their children after Barcelona player LIONEL MESSI "will now be prohibited from doing so in his home city."
Authorities in Argentina "have moved to stop any more kids being called ‘Messi’ amid concerns that the situation could get out of control" (PAKISTAN TODAY, 9/10). ... Former German Alpine skier MARKUS WASMEIER "will not be part of the FIS World Cup coverage team of German public broadcaster ARD this upcoming winter." The double Olympic champion and ARD "have decided to end their relationship after almost 20 years." The 51-year-old thanked the broadcaster for a "fantastic time" and wants to take on new duties (SID, 9/11). ... Amlin Aguri, a new racing team sponsored by London-based global insurance company Amlin, confirmed its driver line-up for the inaugural race of the all-electric FIA Formula E Championship. TAKUMA SATO will join KATHERINE LEGGE for the opening ePrix in Beijing on Saturday, with FABIO LEIMER acting as the team’s reserve driver (Formula E). ... MIKE TYSON "has launched an expletive-filled tirade on Canadian TV."
The "shower of bad language" came when Tyson was appearing on CP24 TV in Toronto "to promote his one-man stage show Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth."
The interview turned nasty when news anchor NATHAN DOWNER "turned his questioning to Tyson's earlier visit to the city" where the former boxer met Mayor ROB FORD and labelled him "the best in Toronto's history" (STUFF, 9/11). ... Argentine tennis player JUAN DEL POTRO on Thursday "pulled the plug on his scheduled Asian ATP tournament swing, saying he needs more time to heal after his wrist surgery last spring."
The decision leaves the No. 14 "out of events in Kuala Lumpur, starting a week from Monday, as well as in Tokyo and Shanghai" (DPA, 9/11). ... Liverpool forward RAHEEM STERLING took offense "to the headline ran on The Sun's Twitter feed to link to a story about the player," which read, "Raheem Sterling: from gun-filled Jamaican slum to Anfield hero."
The 19-year-old took to Twitter Tuesday night "to deny that he came from such a place, and described Jamaica as paradise" (London INDEPENDENT, 9/11). ... When POPE FRANCIS “was named the new pope, he also became the most famous fan” of Argentine first division side San Lorenzo in the world. Now, “he will be more than this: the club’s new stadium will carry the name ‘Pope Francis.’” The club said via its official twitter account, "Se aprueba el nombre del futuro Estadio en Av. La Plata. Se llamará: Papa Francisco.” (“The name of the future stadium on Av. La Plata has been aproved. It will be called: Papa Francisco”) (CLARIN, 9/10).
IN SPAIN: Spain’s Public Prosecutor's Office for Corruption has “opted not to charge” Barcelona President JOSEP MARIA BARTOMEU or Economic VP JAVIER FAUS with “crimes of tax fraud or misappropriation of funds as a result of the legal investigation into the signing” of NEYMAR (MARCA, 9/11). ... Former Real Madrid footballer IGNACIO ZOCO has been named president of the club’s Veterans Association. Zoco, who played for the club from ’62-74, replaces fellow former Real player ALFREDO DI STEFANO, who died in July (AS, 9/11).
A NICE SUM: Fiat said that LUCA DI MONTEZEMOLO, the departing chairman of Italian luxury sports-car maker Ferrari, will receive nearly €27M ($34.8M) "in severance pay and other compensation." Fiat said that Di Montezemolo, who said that "he would leave the car maker next month," will receive €13.7M ($17.7M) "as part of an severance indemnity agreed in his contract" in '03. In addition, Di Montezemolo will receive €13.3M ($17.2M) "to compensate for the remainder of his contract" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 9/10).
