Lyon (AFP) – United States attacker Megan Rapinoe on Wednesday batted back accusations that she is unpatriotic, describing herself as "uniquely American" after being blasted by president Donald Trump for her planned White House boycott. Trump said Rapinoe had disrespected the USA last month in a video in which she said she wouldn't visit the […]

London (AFP) – The Premier League is weighing up taking control of the English Women's Super League from the Football Association, according to British media reports on Wednesday. The BBC said Premier League clubs have agreed to conduct a feasibility study into the matter following talks with the FA, which founded the WSL in 2011. […]

Marseille (AFP) – Uber Eats has changed the colour of the logo that will appear on Marseille shirts next season to placate the club's fans. In the company logo the word 'eats' is green, but that is the colour of one of Marseille's hated rivals, Saint-Etienne. Fans responded to news of the sponsorship with a […]

Madrid (AFP) – Manchester City are set to sign Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo Hernandez after activating the midfielder's release clause with a club-record fee of 70 million euros on Wednesday. Atletico confirmed that City have paid the $79 million fee which automatically terminates Rodrigo's contract with the Spanish club. "La Liga informed Atletico Madrid on Wednesday […]

Madrid (AFP) – Sevilla announced the club-record signing of French defender Jules Kounde from Bordeaux on Wednesday. Kounde has agreed a five-year contract with Sevilla, who will pay 25 million euros ($28.2 million), according to reports in Spain. An official club statement read: "The defender, who arrived yesterday night in Seville, passed a medical in […]

Kabul (AFP) – A lawyer for the disgraced former head of the Afghan Football Federation hit back Wednesday against sexual abuse allegations targeting his client, saying they were based on "ghost stories" fuelled by the #MeToo movement. Keramuddin Karim has been accused of sexually assaulting and threatening female players, including by holding a gun to […]

Lyon (AFP) – The feeling of crushing disappointment after a semi-final defeat is nothing new for England's women, who are left wondering when they will take that next step after being knocked out the World Cup by holders the United States. If the men's run to the last four of the World Cup in Russia […]

London (AFP) – England's dramatic women's World Cup semi-final defeat to the United States was the most watched television event of the year so far in the United Kingdom, attracting a peak audience of 11.7 million. The Lionesses bowed out at the last four for the third consecutive major tournament after missing a late penalty […]

Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – The final of the Palestine Cup has been postponed after Israel denied Gaza-based players permits to travel, the Palestinian Football Association said on Wednesday. The second leg of the final between Balata FC and Khadamat Rafah, the winners of the West Bank and Gaza leagues respectively, was due to take […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Rafael Benitez admits he faces a stiff challenge in China but hopes to "create something great" at Dalian Yifang, where he can rely on the deep pockets of the club's owner, huge Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group. In separate comments posted on both his own and the club's websites, the 2005 Champions League […]

Phoenix (AFP) – Mexico booked their place in the final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup on Tuesday after a controversial penalty in extra-time handed them a 1-0 win over Caribbean minnows Haiti. Haiti, who had stunned Canada with a come-from-behind 3-2 victory in the quarter-finals, threatened to pull off another shock after a battling defensive […]

Belo Horizonte (Brazil) (AFP) – Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus said after his match-winning display in Tuesday's 2-0 Copa America semi-final victory over Argentina that he'd had a premonition he would score. Jesus opened the scoring on 19 minutes from a Roberto Firmino pass and then 19 minutes from time reversed the favor as Brazil qualified […]

Belo Horizonte (Brazil) (AFP) – Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni insisted the future is bright for his new-look squad despite their 2-0 defeat to Brazil on Tuesday that prevented them from reaching the Copa America final. "Without a doubt, today we showed that this group of players feel the jersey like no-one else," he said. "We […]

Belo Horizonte (Brazil) (AFP) – Gabriel Jesus and Roberto Firmino scored the goals as Brazil beat arch-rivals Argentina 2-0 on Tuesday to qualify for the Copa America final. Played in a white-hot atmosphere and with tempers threatening to boil over, Argentina came close to scoring themselves but both Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi hit the […]

Lyon (AFP) – She was determined to give the credit to other members of her team, but Alex Morgan stepped up on the big occasion with the winning goal against England to take the United States through to the final of another women's World Cup on Tuesday. The holders were without Megan Rapinoe for the […]