It was a big moment when Uruguay’s Darwin Núñez stepped up to take a penalty in the closing stages of Thursday’s World Cup qualifier away to Colombia. Uruguay were losing 2-1 — the same scoreline by which they went down in the previous round, away to Ecuador, meaning they were in danger of a second consecutive defeat. And as the clock ticked down on the third match of the campaign,…
Six games, six wins, 13 goals scored, one conceded. France became one of the first teams to qualify for Euro 2024, along with Belgium and Portugal, on Friday night with two games left, and Kylian Mbappé is showing he’s made to be captain. It was another controlled and efficient performance from Didier Deschamps’ France as they won 2-1 against Netherlands in Amsterdam. The Dutch were missing Frenkie de Jong and…
Poland invited some of their fans who had made the trip for the team’s 2-0 Euro 2024 qualifier victory over Faroe Islands to fly home with the team after bad weather delayed flights out of the country. Among the supporters was Andrzej Bobowski, known as “the king of Polish fans,” who has attended the last 12 World Cup tournaments but could easily have been stranded and missed Poland’s game with…
Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest-paid footballer in the world in 2023, earning more than the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar during the past 12 months, according to Forbes. Ronaldo, who Forbes also ranks as the highest-paid athlete of any sport, topped the list with expected total earnings of $260 million. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) The Portugal forward’s contract with Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr, who…
FIFA president Gianni Infantino wrote to the Israel and Palestine football federations Friday, offering his condolences for the “horrendous violence” over the past week in a conflict that has taken over 2,700 lives and injured thousands more. In the letter first reported by Sky News, Infantino and world football’s governing body called for “the immediate end of hostilities and for the immediate relief of the suffering of the people of…
St. Louis City SC head coach Bradley Carnell started his playing career as a teenager at Bidvest Wits FC in Johannesburg, South Africa. One weekend, he and the rest of “The Clever Boys” won an away match thanks to a late penalty kick. The fans of the opposing team, upset with the result, stormed the field, bloodlust in their eyes. “They got the referee,” Carnell told ESPN. “They put him…
MONTE CARLO, Monaco — Even today, it still comes up. Even after a quarter-century in the gritty, muddy trench warfare that is football’s transfer system. Even after working side-by-side with the late Mino Raiola, one of the most famous and influential agents out there. Even after representing the likes of Pavel Nedved, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Marco Verratti, Paul Pogba, Erling Haaland and others — a multinational galaxy of stars, from Ballon…
Wayne Rooney has said that “ambitious” Birmingham City minority owner Tom Brady is “fully involved” in the club’s efforts to gain promotion to the Premier League after the former England forward was appointed as the team’s new coach on Wednesday. Rooney, 37, left his previous role as D.C. United’s coach after their elimination from MLS playoff contention on Saturday and signed a 3½ year deal to become the new Birmingham…
Karim Benzema joined Al Ittihad this summer because he always wanted to live in Saudi Arabia and “help Saudi football grow.” The France forward, who won the Ballon d’Or in 2022, left Real Madrid after 14 years “to try a new challenge,” signing for Al Ittihad in June with the Saudi Pro League champions as a free agent. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) “Well with everything I’ve…
