Berlin (AFP) – Nineteen-year-old Brazilian forward Matheus Cunha made history for RB Leipzig on Wednesday, as a 1-0 win over Wolfsburg saw Leipzig reach the German Cup quarter-finals for the first time. Cunha fired Leipzig to an early lead on nine minutes, latching on to a sharp through ball from Lukas Klostermann and turning the […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale were both left on the bench for the Copa del Rey semi-final between Barcelona and Real Madrid on Wednesday. Messi had felt pain in his thigh during Barca's draw against Valencia on Sunday and, despite training on Tuesday evening, was not deemed fit enough to start the […]

Nantes (France) (AFP) – Nantes have asked two lawyers to explore legal options to ensure Cardiff City pay the transfer fee for Emiliano Sala, a source close to the French club revealed Wednesday. Sala, 28, was travelling from France to join up with his new Premier League club in a light aircraft on January 21 […]

London (AFP) – West Ham have launched an investigation after social media footage emerged of abuse directed at Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah during a Premier League match at the London Stadium. The Egypt international was filmed on a mobile phone from a section of home supporters as he was taking a corner during Monday's game. […]

London (AFP) – Geraint Thomas has confirmed he will miss the Giro d'Italia to be "in the best shape possible" for the defence of his Tour de France crown. Last year Thomas, 32, followed in the footsteps of Team Sky teammate Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins, becoming the third Briton to win the Tour. "The […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund face a nervous wait to see if top scorer Marco Reus will be fit for next week's Champions League clash at Tottenham Hotspur after the forward suffered a thigh injury. Reus went off after drilling in a superb free-kick, his 17th goal in all competitions this season, in […]

New Delhi (AFP) – Top Swiss side FC Basel on Wednesday bought a 26 percent stake in Chennai City, becoming the first foreign side to buy into an Indian football club. Chennai, which has only been in existence in India's I-League for three years, did not give the value of a deal that will see […]

Lausanne (AFP) – FIFA president Gianni Infantino is set to serve a second term after world football's governing body said on Wednesday he would be the only candidate for June's vote. The 48-year-old has been in charge of FIFA since February 2016, after succeeding the disgraced Sepp Blatter following the corruption scandal which rocked the […]

Athens (AFP) – Manolo Jimenez has returned to manage AEK Athens for a third time, the Greek Super League club announced Wednesday saying the Spaniard had signed a one-and-a-half-year contract. The deal has an option for another year if both sides agree. "The champion has returned home. The AEK family wishes Manolo good luck in […]

Doha (AFP) – Qatar said Wednesday it is committed to labour reform following an Amnesty International report that the 2022 World Cup host is failing to stop widespread labour abuse. Doha said it was on course to deliver "lasting" change after the London-based human rights group accused the energy-rich state of "running out of time" […]

Bangkok (AFP) – Thai prosecutors will oppose bail for a refugee football player detained in Bangkok and facing extradition to Bahrain, the office of the attorney general said Wednesday, citing flight risks. Hakeem al-Araibi was granted refugee status in Australia after fleeing charges in Bahrain connected to Arab Spring protests but was stopped in Thailand […]

London (United Kingdom) (AFP) – The United Arab Emirates embassy in London denied Wednesday reports that a British man was arrested in the country for wearing a Qatar football shirt, saying he was in fact held for wasting police time. It said Ali Essa Ahmed, described as a dual Sudanese-British citizen, last month reported to […]

Lausanne (AFP) – Two and a half years after becoming UEFA president in the wake of the scandal that brought down Michel Platini, Aleksander Ceferin will win a new four-year term at the head of European football's governing body on Thursday. The 51-year-old Slovenian lawyer — who saw off the Dutchman Michael van Praag in […]

London (AFP) – British crash investigators on Tuesday launched an underwater operation to recover a body from the wreckage of the plane carrying Argentine footballer Emiliano Sala in the Channel. "We are attempting to recover the body. If we are successful, we will consider the feasibility of recovering the aircraft wreckage," an Air Accidents Investigation […]

Berlin (AFP) – Flu-hit Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund crashed out of the German Cup on Tuesday, losing a penalty shoot-out at home to Werder Bremen following a 3-3 draw after extra time. Goalkeeper Jiri Pavlenka was Bremen's hero in the shoot-out as he saved Dortmund's opening attempts from Paco Alcacer and Maximilian Philipp as Bremen […]