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FIFA offers 20k free WWC tickets amid poor sales

FIFA said it is giving away 20,000 free tickets for Women’s World Cup games in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Dunedin amid concerns about the slow pace of sales in New Zealand. Co-hosts Australia have snapped up the lion’s share of the 1 million tickets sold so far, with their Matildas team seen as contenders to win the tournament. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) FIFA chief women’s football…

EA Sports FC to feature Haaland on first cover

AMSTERDAM — Manchester City striker Erling Haaland will be the first cover star of EA Sports FC since the globally popular football game ended its three-decade partnership with FIFA. Haaland, 22, takes over as the face of the game from Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe and Chelsea’s Sam Kerr, who both adorned the cover of FIFA 23 last year. The Norway international takes the honour after finishing a historic first season…

Mexico can reverse recent woes with Gold Cup title in sight

LAS VEGAS — Typically even-tempered and collected, Mexico interim manager Jaime “Jimmy” Lozano couldn’t help but smile much more after collecting a 3-0 semifinal victory on Wednesday against Jamaica that has guided his team to the Gold Cup final. “If I rewind the tape to three weeks ago, I was unemployed,” said the 44-year-old coach from Mexico City. “There was a person, who was up in that box [at the…

Forest’s Toffolo charged with 375 alleged betting breaches

Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo has been charged by England’s Football Association (FA) with misconduct in relation to its betting rules with 375 alleged breaches, the governing body announced on Wednesday. The alleged breaches occurred between 2014 and 2017 when Toffolo was with Norwich City and had loan spells at clubs including Swindon Town, Rotherham United, Peterborough United and Scunthorpe United. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) “It’s…

Kick It Out discrimination reports hit record level

Anti-discrimination group Kick It Out received a record number of reports of discriminatory behavior during the 2022-23 soccer season. Figures released by the organization on Wednesday showed that 1,007 reports — an increase of 65.1% over the previous season — were made during the campaign from the grassroots and professional games in Britain and across social media. Discrimination reports in the professional game rose by 27.4% to 484, including those…

Spieth invests in Leeds as part of 49ers group

Jordan Spieth and fellow American golfer Justin Thomas have bought shares in the 49ers group that is in the process of taking over English football club Leeds United. The group 49ers Enterprises, the investment arm of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers, has been a shareholder in Leeds since its initial investment in May 2018. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) Last month, Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani reached an…

What Messi’s MLS, Apple, Adidas deal means for everyone else

The moment seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi announced he would head to the U.S. to begin his MLS career, the “Messi effect” immediately took hold. Inter Miami CF’s social media following exploded, ticket prices skyrocketed and upcoming fixtures sold out. And all before he even signed a contract. Ahhh, the contract. As the league and club went to work on the specifics of Messi joining Inter Miami following the…

Chelsea exodus continues as Fofana joins Berlin

David Datro Fofana became the latest player to leave Chelsea this summer after he joined Union Berlin on a season-long loan, both clubs announced on Tuesday. Fofana, 20, made only three Premier League appearances for Chelsea after they signed him for a reported fee of around €12 million ($13.1m) from Norwegian team Molde FK in January. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) – Chelsea launch new home kit…

Van der Sar out of immediate danger at hospital

Former Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar remains in intensive care but is in a stable condition and out of immediate danger following his bleed on the brain last week, his wife Annemarie confirmed on Tuesday.

Gerrard: ‘Family feeling’ key to my Saudi move

Steven Gerrard said a “family feeling” at Saudi Pro League club Al Ettifaq was one of the things that persuaded him to accept a coaching job with the side. The former England and Liverpool captain signed a three-year contract last week after previously saying he would not take up an offer to join the team. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) – Saudi Arabia transfer tracker: Done deals,…