Football. Football fans should get maximum pleasure in September. There will be a lot of matches. First, all European championships that attract attention have already started. Second, European cup matches are in full swing. Third, it is precisely in the September matches of national teams that much, if not everything, may become clear regarding the heroes and losers of the Euro-2004 qualifying tournament among national and youth teams.
Let's start with the national teams. On September 5, the youth teams will play their next matches, and the following day the national teams will take the field. From the matches that are of sporting interest, the following should be highlighted: Holland - Austria, Iceland - Germany, France - Cyprus, Slovenia - Israel, Macedonia - England, Ireland - Russia, and Italy - Wales. In addition, games will take place in Bosnia, Romania, Belarus, Latvia, Sweden, Scotland, Armenia, Ukraine, Liechtenstein, Bulgaria, Andorra, Azerbaijan, and Georgia.
On September 10, another game day will take place - the penultimate one in the qualifying group tournament. On this day, the most notable confrontations will be: Slovenia - France, Denmark - Romania, Czech Republic - Holland, Poland - Sweden, Germany - Scotland, Spain - Ukraine, Belgium - Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro - Italy. In addition, on the 10th, Israel, Luxembourg, Moldova, Latvia, Faroe Islands, Northern Ireland, England, Slovakia, Andorra, Wales, Russia, and Albania will host qualifying tournament matches.
European tournament matches will become the main topic of discussion among fans in the second half of the month. On August 28 and 29, the draw for the group stage of the Champions League and the first round of the UEFA Cup will take place in Monaco, after which it will be possible to talk about the competition calendar. It is now known for certain that on September 16 and 17 the first round of group stage matches will take place, and on September 30 and October 1 - the second round matches. On September 24, opponents in the first round of the UEFA Cup will play their first matches.
Well, and of course, every weekend in the national championships is a match day. In September, we remind you, all European championships will already be actively underway.
Tennis. Last Monday, one of the four most prestigious tournaments started - the US Open, which takes place on the courts in New York. US Open 2003 will last two weeks and finish on September 7. Note that the main contenders for victory among men are Americans Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick, Swiss Roger Federer, and Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero. Among women, the top spot is given in advance to Belgians Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin-Hardenne, and American Lindsay Davenport. Ukraine also fielded its representatives. Tatiana Perebiynis and Yulia Vakulenko will compete in the women's tour. Alena Bondarenko, Elena Tatarkova, Yulia Beygelzimer, and Yuliana Fedak are entered in the qualifying round.
The second significant event in the tennis world in September should be considered the traditional and quite representative Moscow tournament "Kremlin Cup", which will begin on September 29 and end in the first days of October. Its prize fund is more than one million dollars.
In addition, in the Davis Cup (world championship among men's national teams), the semifinals will take place. From September 19 to 21, the teams of Australia and Switzerland, as well as Spain and Argentina, will compete against each other.
Formula-1. In the world of royal auto racing, September is a difficult time. The fight for the championship title intensifies to the limit in all versions - from individual to team. On August 14, the Italian Grand Prix will take place in Monza, and on the 28th in Indianapolis - the US Grand Prix. Let us remind you that in the team championship, Ferrari, Williams-BMW, and McLaren-Mercedes are competing for leadership. In the individual standings, four still have good chances to become champion: brothers Michael and Ralf Schumacher, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Kimi Räikkönen.
Basketball. On September 5, the European Championship among men's national teams will start on the basketball courts of Sweden (in the cities of Lulea, Norrkoping, Boras, and Sodertalje). The Ukrainian team, which got into a group with Greece, Turkey, and Croatia, will not receive the promised reinforcement from across the ocean in the person of NBA representatives Vitaliy Potapenko and Stanislav Medvedenko. Therefore, its low chances of reaching the final, which will take place on September 14, are reduced to a minimum.
Athletics. After the world championship, which will end in Paris in late August, the athletics world will take a short break. Among the significant events, only the "Golden League" competition in Brussels (September 5) should be highlighted.
Cycling. Cycling fans from September 6 will be able to enjoy the traditional Vuelta race, which takes place on the roads of Spain. The finish of the race is scheduled for September 28.
Chess. In mid-September, the match for the world chess championship title will begin between Ukrainian Ruslan Ponomariov and Russian Garry Kasparov. It will take place in Yalta under the patronage of Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma.
Rhythmic gymnastics. Following the representatives of artistic gymnastics, who in Anaheim determined the lists of participants for the Olympic tournament in Athens 2004, the "artists" will also single out the most worthy. From September 24, Budapest will be occupied by gymnastic graces.