Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – South American football governing body CONMEBOL hit back at Argentine superstar Lionel Messi on Saturday after he accused the body of corruption. Messi reacted after he was sent-off during Argentina's 2-1 victory in the third place play-off against Chile earlier in the day. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was involved […]

Cairo (AFP) – Andre Ayew-captained Ghana seek a seventh straight Africa Cup of Nations victory over Tunisia when they clash Monday in the final last-16 match in Egypt. After the countries drew a 1963 group game, the Black Stars defeated the Carthage Eagles in Tunis to win the 1965 final and begin an amazing six-match, […]

Lyon (AFP) – Gianni Infantino was never going to describe it as anything other than the "best women's World Cup ever", but the success of the landmark tournament in France has shown the potential women's football has to keep on growing. The last month has drawn the spotlight onto the game like never before, with […]

Cairo (AFP) – The president of the Egyptian Football Association Hani Abou Rida resigned late Saturday and "sacked" his technical team after the hosts' shock elimination from the African Cup of Nations. The decision had been "a moral obligation" said the Egyptian FA in a statement after "disappointing Egypt's supporters" in a 1-0 defeat to […]

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – Brazil coach Tite vowed on Saturday to respect his contract regardless of the outcome of the Copa America final against Peru, amidst rumors he's set to quit. Tite gave short shrift to journalists asking about his future ahead of Sunday's final in which Brazil are aiming for a first major […]

Cairo (AFP) – Egypt coach Javier Aguirre accepted the blame for the host nation's disastrous Africa Cup of Nations last-16 exit after a 1-0 loss to South Africa on Saturday. "Of course I am responsible," said Aguirre, who signed a four-year deal last August after replacing Hector Cuper following the World Cup. The Mexican indicated […]

Cairo (AFP) – Coach Stuart Baxter hailed South Africa's shock 1-0 defeat of Africa Cup of Nations hosts and title favourites Egypt in the last 16 on Saturday as a "masterclass". Thembinkosi Lorch popped up with the winning goal five minutes from time to silence the partisan 75,000-capacity crowd in Cairo and shatter Egyptian hopes […]

Cairo (AFP) – Thembinkosi Lorch scored on 85 minutes to give South Africa a stunning 1-0 victory over Africa Cup of Nations hosts Egypt after a pulsating last-16 clash in Cairo Saturday. After three woeful group performances, South Africa were rank outsiders against the record seven-time African champions, whose line-up included Liverpool star Mohamed Salah. A […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Lionel Messi was harshly sent off as Argentina secured third place at the Copa America with a 2-1 victory over Chile on Saturday. In a niggly and fractious match, five-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi and Chile captain Gary Medel were given their marching orders eight minutes from half-time after tangling on […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Argentina superstar Lionel Messi was sent off after clashing with Chile's Gary Medel during the Copa America third place play-off on Saturday. In a niggly and fractious match, five-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi and Chile captain Gary Medel were given their marching orders eight minutes from half-time after tangling on the […]

Alexandria (Egypt) (AFP) – Cameroon coach Clarence Seedorf refused to speculate on his future after the defending champions crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations in the last 16 after Saturday's 3-2 loss to Nigeria. Odion Ighalo scored two goals and set up Alex Iwobi for the winner as Nigeria rallied from 2-1 down […]

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – It's a good time to be playing Brazil, according to Peru coach Ricardo Gareca as he prepares his side to take on the hosts in the Copa America final. Peru are surprise finalists in a competition in which they last reached the title decider in 1975, not least because they […]

Alexandria (Egypt) (AFP) – Odion Ighalo scored twice and teed up Alex Iwobi's winning goal as Nigeria eliminated defending Africa Cup of Nations champions Cameroon after a thrilling 3-2 victory in Alexandria on Saturday. China-based forward Ighalo bundled home a scrappy opener but Clarence Seedorf's Cameroon hit back through Stephane Bahoken and Clinton Njie with […]

Nice (France) (AFP) – Sweden ended their women's World Cup campaign on a high by beating England 2-1 in Saturday's third-place play-off in Nice, as Sofia Jakobsson's first-half strike proved to be the winner. England were looking to claim the bronze medals for the second successive World Cup, but it was Peter Gerhardsson's side who […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool's injured midfielder Naby Keita will be sidelined for the rest of the Africa Cup of Nations, the Premier League club confirmed on Saturday. Keita returned to Merseyside on Monday for assessment by Liverpool's medical staff after aggravating the adductor muscle injury which ruled him out of the Champions League final. The […]