- Croatia extend Scotland's losing streak
- South Africa, New Zealand boost T20 World Cup semi-final hopes
- 'Very challenging': Israel faces Hezbollah in tricky terrain
- Farrell begins to feel at home as Racing 92 beat Toulon
- South Africa boost T20 World Cup semi-final hopes with Bangladesh win
- Samson ton powers India to T20 series sweep after record total
- Djokovic to face Sinner in Shanghai final with 100th title in sight
- UN peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon: spokesman
- Pro-Conquest film fuels debate in Mexico over colonial legacy
- Samson ton powers India to record 297-6 in Bangladesh T20
- New Zealand enjoy perfect start to America's Cup defence over Britain
- Pogacar emulates icon Coppi with fourth straight Il Lombardia triumph
- UN warns against 'catastrophic' regional conflict
- New Zealand crush Ineos Britannia in America's Cup opener
- Djokovic to face Sinner in blockbuster Shanghai Masters final
- With medical report Harris seeks to play health card against Trump
- Sri Lanka seeks to match success in W.Indies T20s
- Sinner reaches Shanghai final, will end year number one
- China-EU EV tariff talks in Brussels end with 'major differences': Beijing
- Sabalenka downs Gauff in three sets to reach Wuhan final
- Israel warns south Lebanon residents to 'not return'
- Sinner tames Machac to reach Shanghai Masters final
- Buried Nazi past haunts Athens on liberation anniversary
- Harris to release medical report confirming fitness for presidency: campaign
- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- Hezbollah fires at Israel as wars rage on Yom Kippur
- Analysts warn more detail needed on new China economic measures
- China tees up fresh spending to boost ailing economy
- China says will issue special bonds to boost ailing economy
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Dodgers drop Padres 2-0 to advance in MLB playoffs
- Alexei Navalny wrote he knew he would die in prison in new memoir
- Last-minute legal ruling allows betting on US election
- Despite hurricanes, Floridians refuse to leave 'paradise'
- Israel observes Yom Kippur amid firestorm over Lebanon strikes
- Trump demonizes migrants in dark, misleading speech
- X says 'alert' to manipulation efforts after pro-Russia bots report
- US, European markets rise before Boeing unveils sweeping job cuts
- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Comoros shock Tunisia, Salah, Mbeumo strike in AFCON qualifiers
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Germany win in Nations League as 10-man Dutch rescue point
- Undav brace sends Germany to victory against Bosnia
- Israel says fired at 'threat' near UN position in Lebanon
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- Ecuador's last mountain iceman dies at 80
- Milton leaves at least 16 dead, millions without power in Florida
- Senegal set to announce breakaway development agenda: PM
- UN says 2 peacekeepers wounded in south Lebanon explosions
- Injury-hit Australia thrash 'embarrassing' Pakistan at Women's T20 World Cup
Video games give sports stars second life
The post-retirement careers of the biggest sports stars can be fascinating to watch -- Viagra ads, property ventures, crypto projects -- but one option is becoming a sure-fire winner: put your face on the cover of a video game.
And death is no barrier for this particular career, with two popular games this year choosing sports legends who are no longer with us.
LA Lakers basketball star Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter accident in 2020, graces the cover of "NBA 2K24".
And two of the world's greatest footballers from bygone eras -- Pele and Johan Cruyff -- get posthumous respect with their figures emblazoned on "FC 24" from EA Sports.
They are joined on the cover of the EA game by a galaxy of still-living stars of the more recent past -- Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldinho -- and present -- Erling Haaland and Alexia Putellas.
French legend Zidane told AFP in June that many young children now knew him largely through his appearance in the EA's game, formerly known as "FIFA".
"Kids aged eight to 10 don't know me, unless their dads have told them about what I did back in the day," said the World Cup winner.
"It's more through PlayStation, so it's kind of funny. I'm used to it."
- Marketing nostalgia -
The ties between video game publishers and sports stars go deep, particularly in the United States.
The leading video game series on American football bears the name of a former player, John Madden, who retired in 1978 to become a sports commentator.
Julien Pillot, an economist specialising in cultural industries, told AFP the endorsement of bona fide legends was clearly a powerful marketing tool.
And the often huge cost of getting their endorsement, he said, was "more than offset" by the sales they generate -- both of the games themselves and the ubiquitous in-game "cards" required to unlock additional content.
Gaming firms were playing on the "intergenerational aspect" and adding "a touch of nostalgia", said Pillot.
It's a feature that executives are not shy about highlighting.
"My seven-year-old only really knows who Pele is because of his amazing rating on FC," David Jackson, vice-president of the EA Sports FC brand, told AFP.
He said the game had allowed fans to feel a little bit of the magic of playing with stars from earlier generations.
And it works both ways, according to some of the stars involved -- even those who don't rate as highly as Pele.
"People of a certain generation know me by what I've done on the pitch," said World Cup winner Robert Pires at the launch party for the EA game in Paris.
But a 12-year-old boy told Pires recently he had only learnt who the French star was through playing the game.
"I asked him: 'Am I good?'" said Pires. "He told me: 'You're good, but you're slow.'"
Ch.Kahalev--AMWN