Paris (AFP) – Daily medical questionnaires, frequent temperature checks, weekly testing, face masks in the changing room and showers at home only. Not to mention trying to work out how to celebrate goals. Such is the reality for footballers in leagues returning from the coronavirus shutdown. Poland was among the first European countries to start […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich face one of the final obstacles in their hunt for an eighth consecutive Bundesliga title this weekend as players in Germany contemplate staging collective protests following the death of George Floyd in the United States. The German FA said on Wednesday footballers including Jadon Sancho who paid tributes to Floyd […]

Asuncion (AFP) – South American football will restart with the "maximum guarantees" for the health of players and those involved, CONMEBOL president Alejandro Dominguez told the medical teams of the region's 10 member associations by video call on Thursday. Football in South America has been suspended since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Dominguez said […]

Lisbon (AFP) – Defending Portuguese champions Benfica stuttered back into action on Thursday after a three-month absence and were held to a 0-0 draw, a result ideally suited to an empty, noiseless Estadio da Luz. The result took Benfica back to the top of the table on goal difference from Porto who returned from the […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea are closing in on a deal to sign striker Timo Werner from RB Leipzig, British media reported Thursday. The 24-year-old had been thought to to be attracting interest from Premier League champions-elect Liverpool but it appears Chelsea have in fact met the German's reported release clause of some £53 million ($67 […]

Milan (AFP) – Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said on Thursday he was the victim of an "insulting controversy" after admitting to coronavirus symptoms when his team played a Champions League match against Valencia in March. "It's a controversy that I really find very insulting. I know I followed the protocols," Gasperini told Sky Sport […]

Stockholm (AFP) – The statue of Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic will remain in his birthplace of Malmo despite it being repeatedly vandalised, the city's mayor said Thursday. Some fans had petitioned the authorities to relocate the statue to Stockholm while separate citizens' initiative demanded it be maintained elsewhere in Malmo. "The statue remains in Malmo […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham have received a £175 million ($220 million) loan from the Bank of England to help them through the coronavirus crisis as the club predicted losses of £200 million over the next year. Spurs' finances will be damaged by the loss of matchday and hospitality income, cancellation of non-football events such as […]

Dortmund (Germany) (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund players showed their support of the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd in the United States by taking a knee at a training session on Thursday. Dortmund's Jadon Sancho and Achraf Hakimi were cleared of wrongdoing by the German FA earlier in the week after […]

Rome (AFP) – It seemed an impossible prospect just a few weeks ago in a country ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic, but in Italy the idea of a return of crowds to stadiums is now being floated as the football season prepares to restart. Since football returned in Europe last month after the virus-imposed shutdown, […]

London (AFP) – Managers will be able to make up to five substitutions for the remainder of the 2019/20 Premier League season after clubs agreed to the temporary rule change at a meeting on Thursday. FIFA proposed the solution last month to "protect player welfare" with a large number of matches packed into a few […]

London (AFP) – Gareth Bale's agent says the Real Madrid forward is unlikely to return to the Premier League because he wants to finish his career at the Bernabeu. Bale is believed to have a difficult relationship with Real manager Zinedine Zidane and was almost sold to Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning last year. […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona forward Luis Suarez is in line to return from a long injury lay-off when La Liga resumes next week behind closed doors in the heat of the Spanish summer after a three-month coronavirus shutdown. Suarez, 33, was sidelined for four months in January after undergoing surgery on his right knee but […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich's Germany defender Jerome Boateng has called on more famous white sportspeople to add their voices to the chorus of outrage at the US police killing of George Floyd. Floyd, a black American man, died after a white policeman kneeled on his neck for several minutes. His death has sparked eight […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – AFL club LA Galaxy Wednesday condemned a series of racist social media posts by the wife of their Serbian midfielder Aleksandar Katai and demanded their immediate removal. In the now-deleted Instagram posts, Tea Katai reportedly mocked the Black Lives Matter movement and urged violence against people protesting over the death of […]