Sports quiz of the week: Barcelona, World Cup, Masters and F1 in Vegas

There was a big crowd at Camp Nou this week to watch Barcelona beat Real Madrid in the Women’s Champions League. Photograph: Urbanandsport/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock

1. The World Cup is nearly upon us. Qatar, the hosts, have never played at the tournament before. Who were the last team to make their World Cup debut as hosts?

   1. Italy

   2. England

   3. South Africa

   4. South Korea

2. The official ball for the World Cup was unveiled this week. The Al Rihla (which means ‘the journey’) has been talked up by Adidas. Which of these claims did the company not make about the ball?

   1. It is “inspired by the culture, architecture, iconic boats and flag of Qatar”

   2. The core of the ball has been designed to increase “rebound accuracy”

   3. The design allows the ball to “maintain a significantly higher speed as it journeys through the air”

   4. It “takes inspiration from the calming power of nature” and “exudes refined luxury”

3. 

   England have reached the final of the Women’s Cricket World Cup. Why is that remarkable?

   1. They have never gone further than the group stage in the past

   2. They lost their first three games in the tournament

   3. Seven of their players missed the semi-final due to Covid

   4. Their oldest player is just 23

4. Las Vegas will host a Formula One grand prix next season. What will be unusual about the race?

   1. Only one member of each team will take part in the race

   2. It will take place on a Saturday, not a Sunday

   3. No country has ever hosted three grands prix in the same season before

   4. The race will begin at 5am local time to satisfy broadcasters across the world

5. There were 91,553 fans at the Women’s Champions League match between Barcelona and Real Madrid this week at Camp Nou. Barcelona are claiming it is a record attendance for a women’s match, but there were at least 100,000 present for the Women’s World Cup final in 1971. Where was that game played?

   1. Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid

   2. Estadio Azteca, Mexico City

   3. Wembley, London

   4. The Rose Bowl, Pasadena

6. 

   Tiger Woods had a practice round at Augusta this week, fuelling rumours that he might make a comeback at the Masters, which begins on Thursday. When did Woods first win the tournament?

   1. 30 years ago

   2. 25 years ago

   3. 20 years ago

   4. 15 years ago

7. Only one golfer in the current top 10 of the world rankings has won the Masters. Which one?

   1. Jon Rahm

   2. Rory McIlroy

   3. Cameron Smith

   4. Dustin Johnson

8. Rory McIlroy is warming up for the Masters by playing at the Texas Open this weekend. On Thursday, he hit a birdie on the 17th hole. Why was that unexpected?

   1. He had smashed his putter in anger at the previous hole and had to putt with a driver

   2. He played the hole left-handed after losing a bet with his playing partner

   3. He put his first two shots in the water before driving in from 350 yards

   4. His tee shot landed below a car

9. 

   Roy Hodgson is going back to Anfield this weekend with Watford. Which of these former Liverpool managers has returned to Anfield and beaten the club in a league game?

   1. Graeme Souness

   2. Roy Hodgson

   3. Gérard Houllier

   4. Brendan Rodgers

   5. Rafa Benitéz

10. LeBron James has moved into second on the NBA’s all-time top scorer list with 37,024 points. Who is the only player to have scored more points than the 37-year-old?

    1. Michael Jordan

    2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

    3. Kobe Bryant

    4. Shaquille O’Neal

Solutions

1:A - In 1934, when they won the tournament. , 2:D - That line is not from Adidas, but from the marketing guff for David Beckham’s perfume Aromatic Greens – one of “his most personal fragrances yet” apparently., 3:B - England put together a run of five wins to reach the final after defeats to Australia, West Indies and South Africa in the group stage., 4:B - It will be the first Saturday grand prix in 38 years (since the South African Grand Prix at Kyalami in 1985)., 5:B - Denmark beat Mexico 3-0 thanks to a hat-trick from Susanne Augustesen, who was just 15 years old. , 6:B - In 1997, when he finished on 18-under-par, 12 shots better than Tom Kite in second. Woods was just 21 years old., 7:D - Johnson won it in 2020, when his score of 20-under-par broke Tiger’s record from 1997., 8:D - The car was parked near the green to give one of the sponsors some promotion. It worked. McIlroy was given a free drop and nearly chipped in for an eagle. , 9:B - Liverpool sacked Hodgson in 2011 and he beat them in his next match back at Anfield in 2012, when in charge of West Brom. The other managers – Souness, Houllier, Rodgers and Benítez – have all returned to Anfield, but none of them has won., 10:B - LeBron is 1,363 points short of Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 38,387 points.

Scores

1. 1 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week

2. 2 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week

3. 3 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week

4. 4 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fine score. Have a great weekend

5. 5 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fine score. Have a great weekend

6. 6 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fine score. Have a great weekend

7. 7 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fine score. Have a great weekend

8. 8 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fantastic score. Have a great weekend

9. 9 and above.

   Nicely done. That's a fantastic score. Have a great weekend

10. 0 and above.

    Ah well. Better luck next week

11. 10 and above.

    Nicely done. That's a fantastic score. Have a great weekend