London (AFP) – Football anthem "Three Lions" is leading the race to top the Official Singles Chart this Friday as Gareth Southgate's England prepare for their World Cup semi-final against Croatia. Officialcharts.com said the song, performed by comedians Frank Skinner and David Baddiel and the Lightning Seeds, had shot up from 24 to number 1 […]

Moscow (AFP) – Andrej Kramaric says his time in English football was "a great story" even though he rarely played during a brief stint at Leicester City as Croatia gear up for their World Cup semi-final against England. The 27-year-old forward is hoping to start for Zlatko Dalic's side in Moscow on Wednesday. He moved […]

Moscow (AFP) – England captain Harry Kane is drawing inspiration from the country's 1966 World Cup heroes as the striker looks to fire his team to a surprise final appearance in Moscow. The Tottenham forward is the tournament's leading scorer with six goals, putting him level with Gary Lineker's 1986 haul, ahead of Wednesday's semi-final […]

Istra (Russia) (AFP) – When France line up for their World Cup semi-final French great Thierry Henry will stare back at them from the Belgium bench — and Les Bleus can't stop talking about it Henry, who was part of the France squad that won the 1998 World Cup on home soil, has been assistant […]

Paris (AFP) – Gianluigi Buffon, Paris Saint-Germain's veteran goalkeeper, said Monday he was not a guaranteed starter as he embarks on a new challenge following his move from Juventus. "Nobody ever told me I would be a starter," said Buffon, 40, as the Italian was presented to the media. "I was always first choice at […]

London (AFP) – Wimbledon chiefs insisted again Monday that the men's final will start at its traditional time despite it clashing with a potential England World Cup triumph. The All England Club has come under increasing pressure to rethink its 2pm (1300GMT) start time for Sunday's men's singles final with the football showpiece in Moscow […]

London (AFP) – England midfielder Jack Wilshere said it felt "special" to be joining West Ham on a free transfer on Monday as it is the club he and his family supported. The 26-year-old — whose lack of form towards the end of the season with Arsenal led to his being omitted from the World […]

Repino (Russia) (AFP) – Eric Dier says England are reaping the rewards at the World Cup for a change in approach following a humiliating exit to Iceland at Euro 2016 but are hungry to go beyond the semi-finals. Aside from success on the field, a young side playing attractive football and seemingly freed from the […]

Zagreb (AFP) – Former Croatia international Ognjen Vukojevic has been kicked out of the World Cup semi-finalists' delegation after posting a pro-Ukraine clip that caused a political row. The Croatian football association (HNS) said Monday Vukojevic had been "relieved from his duties as an expert associate of the Croatia squad and is no longer a […]

Madrid (AFP) – Former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique was appointed Spain's new coach on Monday after previous incumbent Julen Lopetegui was sacked on the eve of the World Cup in what turned out to be a disappointing campaign. "Luis Enrique's appointment as coach for the next two years was approved unanimously," Luis Rubiales, president of […]

Saint Petersburg (AFP) – Eden Hazard and a brilliant Belgian generation stand between France and a place in the World Cup final as the countries bring their historic rivalry to Tuesday's first semi-final in Saint Petersburg. Not since 1986 have Belgium made it this far at the World Cup, losing to a Diego Maradona-inspired Argentina […]

Madrid (AFP) – Former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique was appointed Spain's new coach on Monday after previous incumbent Julen Lopetegui was sacked on the eve of the World Cup. "Luis Enrique's appointment as coach for the next two years was approved unanimously," Luis Rubiales, president of the Spanish football federation, told reporters. His press briefing […]

Leipzig (Germany) (AFP) – Former coach Ralf Rangnick will take charge of RB Leipzig again this season on a one-year deal, the Bundesliga club announced on Monday. Leipzig parted ways with Ralph Hasenhuettl after a disappointing 2017/18 season which saw them finishing sixth in the German top flight and miss out on Champions League qualification. […]

London (AFP) – Joe Hart played cricket on Saturday rather than watch Jordan Pickford keep a clean sheet for England in the World Cup quarter-finals. The 31-year-old, who played 75 times for England including in nine of the 10 qualifiers, said he was "gutted" at not making Gareth Southgate's squad and turned out for his […]

London (AFP) – England's 1966 World Cup hat-trick hero Geoff Hurst says Gareth Southgate's young team can match the achievement of Alf Ramsey's men and go all the way in Russia. The 76-year-old — who scored a hat-trick in the final at Wembley against West Germany — told the Sun newspaper that Southgate had fostered […]