Madrid (AFP) – Spanish and European champions Real Madrid announced on Thursday that they will hold a presidential election over the close season, provided somebody comes forward to challenge the incumbent Florentino Perez. "The Electoral board...have agreed to an election for the club president and board of directors," read a statement published on the English […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City have completed the signing of Brazilian goalkeeper Ederson from Benfica, the Premier League club announced on Thursday. The announcement came a week after Benfica said they had agreed to sell the 23-year-old to City for 40 million euros ($45 million, £34.7 million), making him the second most expensive goalkeeper ever. […]

Melbourne (AFP) – Argentina's Superclasico showdown with arch-rivals Brazil is set to pump tens of millions of dollars into the Australian economy when they play in front of 100,000 fans on Friday. Although Neymar is missing from Brazil's line-up, his Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi will light up the occasion at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Melbourne […]

Melbourne (AFP) – New manager Jorge Sampaoli says he is looking to superstar Lionel Messi to revive Argentina's World Cup fortunes starting with Friday's friendly with Brazil in Melbourne Sampaoli has been installed to kick-start the two-time world champions' ailing South American campaign where they lag outside the automatic qualifying positions in fifth spot with four […]

Burton-on-Trent (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Centre-back Chris Smalling believes he has proved he is willing to play through the pain for Manchester United, despite manager Jose Mourinho's claims to the contrary. Mourinho has accused Smalling of not putting his body on the line, suggesting he would only play when he felt "100 percent" and claiming "brave" […]

Burton-on-Trent (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United and England prodigy Marcus Rashford has reiterated that he sees his long-term playing future at centre-forward. Rashford, 19, was mainly used in wide positions by United manager Jose Mourinho this season, before an injury to Zlatan Ibrahimovic saw him moved to a central role, where he thrived. United […]

Burton-on-Trent (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane says he is ready to succeed Wayne Rooney as England's long-term captain. England manager Gareth Southgate has eased Manchester United forward Rooney, 31, out of the picture and says he will decide who captains his side on a match-by-match basis. He has praised Kane's "leadership […]

Tokyo (AFP) – Japan suffered a blow Thursday when playmaker Shinji Kagawa was ruled out of next week's World Cup qualifier against Iraq after dislocating his shoulder. The Borussia Dortmund midfielder fell awkwardly in the 1-1 friendly draw with Syria in Tokyo on Wednesday, a warm-up for Tuesday's match in neutral Iran. The Japan Football […]

Paris (AFP) – England will look to close in on a place at the 2018 World Cup when they face auld enemy Scotland in qualifying this weekend, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal are in action before heading to the Confederations Cup. AFP Sports looks at the key games and the state of play in European […]

New York (AFP) – Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo remained atop Forbes magazine's list of 100 highest-paid athletes, with Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James moving up to second on a list heavy on NBA players. The 32-year-old Portugal forward is estimated to have earned a total of $93 million between his football salary of $58 […]

Murcia (Spain) (AFP) – Diego Costa insists he will look for an exit route out of Chelsea after being told by manager Antonio Conte he is not in the Italian's plans for next season. Costa was an integral part of Chelsea's Premier League winning campaign this season, scoring 22 goals. However, he claims he has […]

Madrid (AFP) – Eduardo Berizzo will take charge of Sevilla next season after the Spanish club announced the agreement of a two-year deal with the Argentine on Thursday. "Sevilla FC and Eduardo Berizzo have reached an agreement in principle for the Argentine to be the club's new coach for the next two seasons," Sevilla said in a […]

Burton-on-Trent (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Centre-back Chris Smalling believes he has proved he is willing to play through the pain for Manchester United, despite manager Jose Mourinho's claims to the contrary. Mourinho has accused Smalling of not putting his body on the line, suggesting he would only play when he felt "100 percent" and claiming "brave" […]

Burton-on-Trent (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United and England prodigy Marcus Rashford has reiterated that he sees his long-term playing future at centre-forward. Rashford, 19, was mainly used in wide positions by United manager Jose Mourinho this season, before an injury to Zlatan Ibrahimovic saw him moved to a central role, where he thrived. United […]

Nice (France) (AFP) – Italy beat Uruguay for the first time in 27 years with a comfortable 3-0 success in Nice, France on Wednesday, as the South Americans' defender Jose Gimenez had a shocker. While this victory will be no consolation for the Italians, who were eliminated from the 2014 World Cup at the group […]