Rome (AFP) – Cagliari have appointed Eusebio di Francesco as their new manager, the Serie A club announced on Monday. In a statement, Sardinian outfit Cagliari said that Di Francesco had signed a two-year deal. The former Sassuolo and Roma boss, sacked in October by Sampdoria, replaces Walter Zenga. Di Francesco, 50, made his mark […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Tunisia have become the second elite African league after Morocco to restart amid the coronavirus pandemic and four-time African champions Esperance stretched their lead to 12 points by winning. But Zambia, who resumed in mid July, will end their season this Thursday due to a surge of COVID-19 cases, having completed only […]

London (AFP) – Frank Lampard has called on the Premier League to give Chelsea a fair start to next season, saying the September 12 launch date is "too early" for his players. The Blues lost Saturday's FA Cup final 2-1 to London rivals Arsenal but are still not finished with the current campaign. Lampard's side […]

Milan (AFP) – Serie A concluded on Sunday after a marathon 11-month 2019-20 season, with Juventus crowned Italian champions for the ninth year in a row. Here, AFP Sport takes a look at the highs and lows after the final weekend of the campaign: Juve hit 10-year low Juventus were crowned champions for the 36th […]

Paris (AFP) – After an enforced hiatus of almost five months, the UEFA Champions League and Europa League resume this week in order to clear up the last remaining business in a troubled season. Both competitions were frozen in March as the coronavirus pandemic took hold across the continent, and while European football's governing body […]

London (AFP) – Brentford and Fulham will slug it out for a place in the Premier League on Tuesday when the London rivals clash in a Championship play-off final worth an estimated £170 million ($220 million) to the winners. The rewards for promotion mean the Wembley showdown is often called the richest match in world […]

Rome (AFP) – Lecce were relegated from Serie A after one season in the top flight on Sunday as a dramatic season both on and off the pitch in Italy came to a close. Fabio Liverani's side lost 4-3 at home to mid-table Parma but would have dropped down to Serie B even if they […]

Geneva (AFP) – FIFA president Gianni Infantino will continue in his post, world football's governing body insisted Sunday, as they blasted the launch of Swiss criminal proceedings against him. "There was and is absolutely no reason to open any investigation because nothing remotely criminal has happened and there is nothing at all to suggest any […]

Moscow (AFP) – Russia international forward Alexander Kokorin, who spent nearly a year in prison over a night of drunken assaults, has signed a three-year deal with Spartak Moscow, the club announced Sunday. Kokorin, 29, rejoined Zenit St Petersburg following his release from jail last September but was loaned out to Sochi in February, scoring […]

Milan (AFP) – Juventus coach Maurizio Sarri warned that his side would be back to their attacking best in the Champions League next week despite finishing their Serie A campaign with a 3-1 home defeat against Roma on Saturday. It was Juventus's second consecutive defeat since sealing a ninth Serie A title in a row, […]

Coimbra (Portugal) (AFP) – Congo international Chancel Mbemba scored twice as FC Porto defeated old rivals Benfica 2-1 on Saturday to win the Portuguese Cup for the 17th time. Mbemba scored both his goals in the second half of the final played behind closed doors in Coimbra. Victory allowed Porto to complete a league-cup double […]

Milan (AFP) – Lazio forward Ciro Immobile scored his 36th goal of the season on Saturday in a 3-1 defeat against Napoli to equal the record for the most goals in a Serie A campaign. The 30-year-old Italy international tapped in after 22 minutes to match Argentina forward Gonzalo Higuain's record of 36 goals, set […]

Milan (AFP) – Juventus crashed to their second consecutive defeat as the Serie A champions finished their season with a 3-1 home loss against Roma on Saturday, days before their Champions League campaign resumes. Inter Milan took second place with a 2-0 win over direct rivals Atalanta in Bergamo, who fell to their first league […]

London (AFP) – Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe left the relegated Premier League club on Saturday after mutually agreeing to part ways. Howe's future had been up in air since Bournemouth's five-year stay in the top-flight came to an end last Sunday. Howe admitted after Bournemouth's last game of the season at Everton that a quick […]

London (AFP) – Mikel Arteta hopes Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will stay at Arsenal to lead the Gunners to more success after scoring twice to beat Chelsea 2-1 in the FA Cup final on Saturday. Arsenal captain Aubameyang dropped the trophy before lifting his first piece of silverware since moving to English football from Borussia Dortmund two […]