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Veteran Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny admits it “still hurts” to have missed out on a Premier League title during his time at Arsenal. Szczesny, in Birmingham for pre-season training with Barça, is nevertheless grateful to have finally seen his former club end their league title drought in the 2025-26 season. Arsenal had finished runners-up in the previous three consecutive campaigns. “I suffered a lot [during] the Champions League final,” Szczesny…

FIFA has started a consultation process over an expansion of the Men’s World Cup to 64 teams, with documents seen by ESPN aiming for a decision by Aug. 14. The cut-off date is a month before Gianni Infantino’s deadline for 211 member associations to green light his plan to sell off a stake controlling FIFA major competitions. The $20 billion sell off plan unveiled by Infantino, the FIFA president, appears…

Sandro Tonali has opened up about his £100 million ($133 million) move to Tottenham Hotspur from Newcastle this summer, naming head coach Roberto De Zerbi as a key figure in the transfer. In a roundtable interview with reporters from The Athletic, BBC Sport and other outlets, Tonali spoke about his connection to De Zerbi via their shared hometown of Brescia in Italy, how he plans to deal with the pressure…

South African Football Association (SAFA) president Danny Jordaan confirmed the departure of Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos on Friday, the final day of his contract, after five years. Broos took charge in May 2021 after Bafana Bafana’s failure to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). The Belgian oversaw their third-place finish in the 2023 tournament (held belatedly in early 2024 in Ivory Coast) and their first knockout…

Senior FIFA adviser and former U.S. Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro, who represented the world soccer body on the White House Task Force for the World Cup, resigned Friday in protest at its private equity plan. “I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup,” Cordeiro, a former Goldman Sachs banker, said in a statement resigning as adviser to FIFA president Gianni Infantino that urged other…

Cole Palmer has joked that new Chelsea teammate Morgan Rogers should be wary of using his trademark ‘ice cold’ celebration. The two have been friends for a number of years, having been at Manchester City together earlier in their careers. They are now teammates again Rogers after joined Chelsea from Aston Villa earlier this month in a record deal for a British player. According to Rogers, the former Middlesbrough man…

FIFA’s controversial plan to sell stakes in a World Cup company has been dealt what appears to be a fatal blow after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) joined UEFA and Concacaf in rejecting it. Gianni Infantino’s future as FIFA president now appears uncertain too, with the AFC statement also highlighting “fundamental weaknesses in FIFA’s consultation and decision-making processes that must now be addressed.” Concacaf members — which include 2026 World…

Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer has thanked Eddie How for giving him the best day of his life as a fan but warned there are challenging times ahead for the club. Sources have told ESPN that Howe will leave Newcastle before the start of the season. It’s understood he has been frustrated with the club’s transfer situation. Having lost Alexander Isak to Liverpool last summer, other big names have left…

FIFA defended its proposed World Cup private equity venture early Friday and declared that “nobody is selling football” following broad criticism of the plan across international soccer. FIFA blamed “erroneous reporting in the media” for the intense public outcry of its plan to sell stakes in soccer’s biggest tournament to private equity investors.. “We respect the feedback and concern aired in public and reaffirm our commitment to an open and…

Real Madrid have signed forward Carlos Espí from Levante on a five-year contract, the club announced on Thursday. Spain youth international Espí, 21, scored 11 goals in LaLiga last season and was named the league’s best player under the age of 23. – Madrid’s Cucurella on Chelsea: ‘Always my home’ – Zidane is back! After five years away, what will he do as France boss? Earlier on Thursday, ESPN had…