Bournemouth have sacked manager Gary O’Neil, despite the fact that he guided them to Premier League survival last season, and hired Spanish coach Andoni Iraola in his place, the club announced on Monday. O’Neil took over from Scott Parker on an interim basis in August before being handed the job officially in November. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) He steered Bournemouth to a 15th-placed finish in the…
Eden Hazard has joked that he’s been “resting for three years” following an injury-hit spell at Real Madrid — but insisted he isn’t thinking about leaving football altogether, after retiring from the Belgium national team. The forward, 32, left Madrid this month by mutual consent after his contract at the Bernabeu was terminated a year early. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) Hazard retired from international football after…
The summer transfer window is open for some leagues in Europe and there’s plenty of gossip swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals! Manchester City defender Kyle Walker is eager to join Bayern Munich permanently, with advanced talks taking place between him and German champions, reports Sky Sports Deutschland’s Florian Plettenberg. It has been reported that the 33-year-old…
A project using artificial intelligence to track social media abuse aimed at players at the 2022 World Cup identified more than 300 people whose details are being given to law enforcement, FIFA said Sunday. The people made “abusive, discriminatory, or threatening posts [or] comments” on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube, soccer’s governing body said in a report detailing efforts to protect players and officials during the tournament…
European clubs should not be afraid of a player exodus to Saudi Arabia, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said on Sunday, suggesting the country was making a mistake investing in stars at the end of their careers. Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema have been paid record-high contracts to join Saudi Arabian clubs this year, and similar offers were made to Lionel Messi and Luka Modric. They have combined to win every…
England manager Gareth Southgate said he plans to give Trent Alexander-Arnold more opportunities in midfield after the Liverpool right-back starred in his new international role during Friday’s 4-0 victory over Malta in their Euro 2024 qualifier. Alexander-Arnold thrived in a hybrid midfield role for Liverpool in the final months of the 2022-23 season and was at his creative best against Malta in his first international start for a year, scoring…
The United States men’s national team’s 3-0 win over Mexico in the Concacaf Nations League semifinal on Thursday was halted before the completion of second-half stoppage time by the referee amid anti-gay chanting. Referee Ivan Barton, who had already handed out four red cards in the game, paused the game in the 89th minute because of anti-gay chanting heard from the crowd at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Play resumed,…
The 2022-23 Premier League season is over, but before you know it another one will be on the horizon as it begins again on Aug. 11. After the fixtures for the new campaign were released on Thursday, clubs will be looking to use their summer tours to prepare. And that will include some teenage players you may not be aware of. Here is a selection of those to watch from…
LAS VEGAS — Thursday’s Concacaf Nations League (CNL) semifinal against Mexico was the U.S. men’s national team’s version of “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” in that there were enough deviations from perceived reality to fill a feature-length movie. There was the news that emerged just before kickoff that Gregg Berhalter will be making an unexpected return as U.S. manager. This after the U.S. Soccer Federation let his contract expire last…
Premier League club revenues rose by 12% to a record £5.5 billion ($6.96 billion) in the 2021-22 season as European football capitalised on fans returning to stadiums after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to analysis from Deloitte. In its Annual Review of Football Finance, Deloitte’s Sports Business Group said the “big-five” leagues in England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France had a combined 10% rise in revenues — with Spain’s LaLiga rising…