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European football chiefs slam FIFA over schedule

BRUSSELS — European football chiefs and the global players’ union, FIFPRO, united on Monday to criticise FIFA over the global football calendar as they filed an antitrust complaint against the global football governing body. FIFPRO and the European Leagues, which represents 37 domestic leagues, jointly filed the complaint at the European Commission in Brussels in which they argue global football’s governing body FIFA is abusing its right as both tournament…

A-League 2024-25 season preview: All you need to know

The 20th season of the A-League Men has arrived. Two decades of ups and downs, tears and jeers, laughter and love, heartbreak and ecstasy, and, occasionally, a unique brand of nonsense that gives the league a character that has earned it a place in the hearts of so many. – A-League Tipping: Create a comp and test yourself against the best! But beyond the platitudes, there’s football to be played.…

Carsley: Haven’t applied for full-time England job

England interim manager Lee Carsley said he has not made a formal application to become their permanent boss and added that he felt privileged to be given the opportunity to manage the senior side. Having managed England under-21s since 2021 and leading them to the European U21 Championship title last year, Carsley is overseeing England’s September Nations League fixtures with a view to staying on throughout the autumn as they…

Japan’s Way: The Samurai Blue’s quest to be best outside Europe, South America

TOKYO, Japan — In the modern age of football, extended coaching stints are rare; rare enough that if a coach leads a nation through multiple FIFA World Cup cycles, like Japan’s Hajime Moriyasu, it’s a genuinely notable event. Just under two years on from its staging, just seven of the 32 coaches that stalked the touchlines of Qatar still find themselves in the same employment today. There’s Lionel Scaloni, of…

Arsenal boss Eidevall defends team after boos

Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall has defended his players after boos echoed around the Emirates Stadium following their 2-1 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday. Fans have become increasingly vocal following two damaging results for the Gunners in four days. Bayern Munich humbled the Women’s Super League (WSL) side 5-2 on Wednesday in their first game of the Champions League group stage before Chelsea scored twice in 16 minutes to claim victory…

Bielsa: Luis Suárez’s comments affected authority

Uruguay national team head coach Marcelo Bielsa has admitted his authority as manager has been impacted by the public accusations made by Luis Suárez earlier this month. The former Uruguay forward called out Bielsa for implementing what he called problematic work conditions during the 2024 Copa América, before detailing the lack of communication between the coaching staff and players. Suárez later revealed he felt hurt over the manager’s actions, and…

Uruguay FA boss backs Bielsa in Suárez dispute

Uruguay Football Federation president Ignacio Alonso pledged his full support to Marcelo Bielsa despite confirming the declarations made by Luis Suárez over the problematic working conditions imposed by the head coach. On Oct. 3, Suárez spoke publicly about the grim impact Bielsa’s leadership had on the team during the 2024 Copa América by detailing the lack of communication between the coaching staff and players. He admitted to feeling hurt over…

Spain boss: Clubs’ responsibility to rest players

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente says the onus should be on clubs to rest players, not national teams, amid an increase in injuries across European football. Six of the Spain team that started the European Championship final win over England in the summer will miss this week’s UEFA Nations League games against Denmark and Serbia due to injury. It has led to closer scrutiny of the game time being…

Playing for Pochettino: What USMNT can expect from new boss

Earlier this week, the players on the U.S. men’s national team took the first steps into a new frontier as they experienced their first training sessions under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino. He provided a taste of what to expect at his introduction last month. “The player needs to feel that you care,” Pochettino said at his September news conference in New York. “When the player feels that you care,…

UWCL talking points: Big defeats for Arsenal, Barça; is new format a bad idea?

The 2024-25 UEFA Women’s Champions League is up and running with matchday one of the group stage complete. Eight-time European champions Lyon kicked off on Tuesday with a 3-0 win over Galatasaray, while Group A rivals Roma beat Wolfsburg 1-0. Women’s Super League champions Chelsea beat Real Madrid 3-2, but FC Twente’s 2-0 win over Celtic puts them top of Group B. There were fireworks on Wednesday with Bayern Munich…