Brighton signs teenage forward Kostoulas from Champions League-bound Olympiakos

LONDON (AP) — Brighton has signed teenage forward Charalampos Kostoulas, who gave up a Champions League season with Olympiakos to play in the Premier League.

The 18-year-old Kostoulas signed a five-year contract, Brighton said, with the transfer fee reportedly set at an initial 35 million euros ($40.4 million).

“It is a dream for everybody to come here and play football,” the Greece Under-21 striker said in an interview published Friday by Brighton.

He scored seven goals in 22 games in the Greek league as Olympiakos won a record-extending 48th title and completed a trophy double in the domestic cup.

Olympiakos was elevated directly into the lucrative Champions League opening phase — because title-holder Paris Saint-Germain already secured a place by winning the French league — and will play eight games in the single-standings league.

Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League and did not qualify for European soccer.

Kostoulas was the central striker in Olympiakos’ Under-19 team that won the 2024 UEFA Youth League, one month before the senior team won the Conference League.

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Olympiacos' Charalampos Kostoulas, right, in action during the Youth League Final against AC Milan at the Colovray Sports Centre in Nyon, Switzerland, Monday, April 22, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP, file)

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama returned to the court after limping off with a right leg injury in the opening minutes of the San Antonio Spurs' game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.

Wembanyama returned to the bench at the close of the first quarter and was on the court to start the second quarter.

Wembanyama dropped to the court after making knee-to-knee contact with the left leg of Milwaukee center Giannis Antetokounmpo under the Bucks basket with 9:18 remaining in the first quarter. Antetokounmpo was driving to the rim when the two made contact.

Wembanyama remained on the court for a few seconds before rising and hobbling unassisted in a half sprint toward the locker room.

Wembanyama suffered a hyperextended knee on Dec. 31 in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks in a similar play. He returned to the bench but missed the next two games.

San Antonio enters Thursday's game on a two-game skid, including a 119-98 loss at Oklahoma City on Tuesday.

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San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama reveals a freshly shaved head as he warms up before an NBA basketball game against the Milwaukee Bucks in San Antonio, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)