The Women's Professional Players Association apologizes for the "open mic and Pegula" incident

The President of the Women's Tennis Association, American Valerie Camilo, apologized on Friday after a microphone placed next to the court picked up offensive comments made by American star Jessica Pegula about her Russian competitor, Mira Andreeva.

Pegula found herself in the midst of widespread controversy after a conversation she had with her coach, Mark Knowles, at one of the training fields in Indian Wells, California, was broadcast via the association’s live broadcast on the YouTube platform.

During the conversation, Pegula was heard describing Andreeva, 19, in a video clip that went viral on social media, as “acting like an arrogant diva, she should be more humble.”

She added: “I lost my respect for her (Andreeva). She is a nice girl, but she has to grow up.” "I don't know, maybe she's simply not good at handling the situation."

The world number five was also heard criticizing Andreeva's coach, the Spanish Conchita Martinez, who previously won the Wimbledon title, for not dealing with the behavior of the Russian player who won the Roland Garros title.

She said: “Conchita Martinez has lost some of my respect, as she is the one who encourages her to do such behaviour,” adding: “If I were her coach, and my player had just played 4 great games, leading 4-0, and then she got angry with me, I would have told her: Don’t talk to me like that. "It must be put to its limits."

Camilo said, during a press conference on the eve of the start of the final tournament of the women’s season, on Sunday, in Indian Wells, USA, that the controversy resulted from “several failures in implementing the live broadcast, despite the policies and procedures we have adopted.”

She added: “I would like to apologize, on behalf of the entire WTA, for these incidents.”

She continued: “The association pays great attention to the privacy of female players, and we have policies and procedures aimed at achieving a balance between their need for safe spaces and giving fans a greater opportunity to get closer to the game.”

“There was a lack of advance notice and clear signage to help players know there was recording equipment in the area,” she added, stressing that all audio recording devices have since been removed from the training areas.

Camilo explained that microphones were placed on the training courts to capture “ambient sounds,” such as the sound of hitting the ball, and not to record conversations between the players and their coaches.

“It is clear, then, that there was a flaw in the technical implementation and monitoring mechanisms,” she said, before offering a direct apology to Pegula and Knowles: “I would like to direct a special apology to Jessica Pegula and Mark Knowles.”

She continued: “What happened was unfortunate and unacceptable. Jess is one of the league's most prominent advocates and one of its biggest stars. She does not deserve this distraction.”

The final tournament of the WTA season begins on Sunday, where Pegula will face, in her opening match, her compatriot Coco Gauff, fourth, in the first group competitions, which includes the Kazakh Elena Rybakina, number one in the world, and the Czech Linda Noskova, eighth, while Andreeva, third, will meet with the Ukrainian Yelena Svitolina, sixth, in the second group competitions, which includes the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, the second, and the Czech Carolina. Mokhova seventh.

A source familiar with the negotiations told Agence France-Presse on Friday that the process of extending the contract of international winger Ousmane Dembélé, who won the Ballon d'Or in 2025, with his team, Paris Saint-Germain, until 2030, is moving in the right direction, despite the fact that no final agreement has been reached yet.

According to the same source, the talks between the Parisian club and the French striker are characterized by a very constructive and positive nature, with a common desire on both sides to reach a quick agreement.

The source added that the negotiations are progressing well, but there are still some outstanding points that need to be resolved.

Dembele joined Paris Saint-Germain in 2023, and the club has a contract with him until June 2028. The 29-year-old player, who is currently suffering from a thigh injury, is especially seeking to improve his salary.

The Spanish coach of the capital club, Luis Enrique, recently described the former Barcelona player, in an interview with Paris Saint-Germain media, as “the heart of the team.”

On the other hand, according to another source familiar with the negotiations, the club has been holding talks for several months with its Georgian international winger, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who suffers from a serious knee injury, to extend his contract beyond 2029.

At the beginning of the season, specifically on September 5, Paris Saint-Germain announced the extension of the contracts of Enrique until 2030, his international compatriot Fabian Reus until 2028, and Ecuadorian Willian Pacho, Portuguese Joao Neves, Brazilian Lucas Peraldo and Ceni Maiolo until 2031.

Atletico Madrid will host Barcelona, the defending champion, at the Metropolitano Stadium, on Sunday, in an anticipated confrontation in the twelfth round of the Spanish Football League, which carries great importance in the race for the top spot before the international break. Barcelona leads the standings with 30 points, compared to 28 points for Atletico Madrid, which is in second place, while Real Madrid comes in third place with 27 points, before meeting Valencia on Saturday.

Atletico Madrid is looking to exploit the ground and crowd factors in order to seize the lead, after presenting strong levels in recent weeks, despite its loss to Bayern Munich, Germany, 0-2, in the Champions League, a defeat that ended a series of 9 consecutive matches without losing in all competitions. Coach Diego Simeone's team achieved a 2-0 victory over Levante in its last league match, and hopes to quickly regain its balance against a competitor who knows well how to deal with major confrontations.

Atletico is counting on Argentine Julian Alvarez to lead the front line, while South Korean Lee Kang-in may regain his place in the starting lineup. Doubts still surround the participation of defender Christian Romero due to injury. On the other hand, Barcelona is seeking to strengthen its position in the lead and distance itself from its closest pursuers, after regaining the winning tone by defeating English club Aston Villa 3-0 in the Champions League, following its loss to Real Madrid in El Clásico two weeks ago.

German coach Hansi Flick's team is presenting a strong offensive season, having scored 46 goals in its first 11 league matches, and also achieved a major victory over Deportivo Alaves 6-1 at the conclusion of its matches last October. Barcelona relies heavily on the brilliance of Brazilian Rafinha, who scored 15 goals and made 3 goals in the league, to be one of the most prominent keys to the team’s offensive play, along with Englishman Anthony Gordon, who has left a good impression since joining the team.

But Barcelona will face some significant absences, with Dani Olmo, Jules Kounde and Eric Garcia still injured, in addition to Rodri's absence for a month due to a hamstring injury. Barcelona won 2-1 over Atletico in its last visit to its stadium, in the Champions League competitions last April, while Atletico succeeded in beating its competitor in the Champions League quarter-finals and the Copa del Rey semi-finals last season, which gives Sunday’s confrontation additional importance, in light of each team’s desire to confirm its superiority over the other.

For its part, Real Madrid will undergo a difficult test outside its stadium when it visits Valencia, on Saturday, at the Mestalla Stadium, in a confrontation during which the Royal team seeks to continue its series of victories and put pressure on its rivals in the race for leadership. Real Madrid enters the match in high spirits, having achieved 7 consecutive victories in all competitions, the most recent of which was a victory over AEK Athens of Greece 3-2 in the Champions League on Wednesday. It also previously defeated Barcelona at Camp Nou, and defeated Racing Santander 3-0 in the Spanish League. The Royal team occupies third place with 27 points from 11 matches, after achieving 9 victories against two defeats, and its players scored 28 goals, while conceding 10 goals, to continue chasing the top teams, while looking forward to achieving a new victory outside its stadium.

On the other hand, Valencia hopes to invest the ground staff and the public in continuing its awakening, after achieving a valuable victory over its host Elche with an unanswered goal in the last round, ending a series of difficult results and regaining some confidence before facing one of its most prominent rivals. Valencia occupies fifteenth place with 9 points, collected from two victories and three draws, compared to 6 defeats. Its players scored 8 goals, while they conceded 17 goals, which reflects the difficulties that the team has faced since the beginning of the season.

Coach Javier Aguirre's team needs to provide a more cohesive defensive performance and appear more effective in front of goal, if it wants to get a positive result against a competitor that has clear attacking strength. On Saturday, Malaga will meet with Racing Santander, Espanyol with Deportivo La Coruña, Osasuna with Athletic Bilbao, and on Sunday Elche will meet with Real Betis, Real Sociedad with Rayo Vallecano, Celta Vigo with Levante, and Villarreal with Getafe.