Lima (AFP) – Iconic former Newcastle United winger Nolberto Solano was detained in his native Peru for breaking the country's coronavirus lockdown to go to a party, according to reports on Friday. The 45-year-old became the first Peruvian to join an English Premier League team when he signed for Newcastle in 1998, quickly becoming a […]

London (AFP) – Ireland international James McClean has been fined two weeks' wages by Stoke City and agreed to delete his Instagram account after posting what the Championship club termed "an inappropriate social media post". The 30-year-old Northern Ireland-born midfielder posed in a black balaclava while teaching his children a "history" lesson. Balaclavas are associated […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Frank Lampard believes it is unrealistic to "push and push" players to maintain their fitness levels during the coronavirus pandemic with no concrete timetable as to when football will return. Football in England has been suspended until at least April 30, but that date is expected to be pushed back […]

London (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp says the mood at Liverpool is upbeat despite the coronavirus lockdown, even admitting he has tried to copy Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's dance moves to keep himself occupied. The Premier League leaders were on the verge of their first top-flight title for 30 years when English football was suspended earlier this month. […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United will refund supporters if they have to play their remaining home games of the season behind closed doors or if they are scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic. The deadline for season ticket renewals for next season has also been suspended, with no indication as to when the current campaign […]

Sydney (AFP) – Football Federation Australia sent home 70 percent of its staff Friday in a bid to survive the coronavirus pandemic, as other sports were locked in crisis talks on how best to weather the storm. Despite holding out to be one of the last competitions in the world still playing, the plug was […]

Shanghai (AFP) – With nagging concerns about coronavirus sweeping through teams and players scattered across the world, unable or hesitant to return, China is finding that restarting football is no simple matter. The problems faced by China, one of the first countries to suspend football and the epicentre of the pandemic, could be a glimpse […]

Milan (AFP) – Italy's sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora said Thursday he was "very, very doubtful" that Serie A action would return as hoped in early May. Both Spadafora and Italian football federation chief Gabriele Gravina had last week expressed their hope that the championship could resume on the weekend of May 2. "The forecasts that […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta believes the 'homework' he has set his players during the coronavirus outbreak could see some of them become coaches. With the Premier League halted and Britain in a state of lockdown, players are having to train at home. Arteta tested positive for COVID-19 a fortnight ago but has […]

Madrid (AFP) – Spanish sports stars Rafael Nadal and Pau Gasol launched a fund-raising drive on Thursday explaining they wanted to give something back to the coronavirus hit nation that nurtured them to greatness. Tennis ace Nadal and NBA hero Gasol have targeted raising 11 million euros ($12.3million) in the nation that has suffered the […]

London (AFP) – Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce suggested Thursday playing games every day in a bid to get the Premier League season finished when it is safe for the campaign to resume following the coronavirus pandemic. "We have to try and get this season finished, whatever that takes, everybody wants that," Bruce said in […]

Paris (AFP) – Michel Hidalgo, the coach of the great France team that won the 1984 European Championship, has died at the age of 87, the French players union and the French Football Federation said on Thursday. Hidalgo, who had been ill for a number of years, died "naturally of exhaustion" at home in Marseille, […]

Berlin (AFP) – Four of Germany's biggest football clubs have pledged 20 million euros ($22 million) to help Bundesliga rivals facing financial difficulty in the coronavirus crisis, the German Football League (DFL) announced Thursday. Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig — all of whom qualified for this season's Champions League — said […]

Milan (AFP) – Italian football bosses confirmed on Thursday the national team's training centre at Coverciano in Tuscany will be made available to local authorities for the treatment of coronavirus patients. Italy is now the global epicentre for the disease which now killed 7,503 in the country and infected almost 75,000. "Health is of the […]

Glasgow (AFP) – Scotland manager Steve Clarke said there are now "far greater considerations in life" than football on the day he was supposed to lead his nation in a play-off semi-final for Euro 2020 against Israel. That game like the finals themselves has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic which up to Wednesday […]