Paris (AFP) – UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin on Friday hit out at criticism of Paris Saint-Germain and defended clubs who threaten football's traditional elite, pointedly telling AFP that "things change" in an interview ahead of this weekend's Champions League final. Real Madrid and Liverpool meet in the final for the second time in five years […]

Paris (AFP) – Global players' union FIFPro has sounded the alarm over the damaging impact on professional footballers of playing too many matches in a report released Thursday, ahead of this weekend's Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid in Paris. FIFpro's Player Workload Monitoring report focuses on the findings of a survey carried […]

Vienna (AFP) – The European Champions League will see an increase of four teams to 36 and the present group stage replaced by one single league from the 2024/25 season, UEFA said on Tuesday. The revamp of European football's premier club competition will see each team play eight league games — four home and four […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City beat Real Madrid 4-3 in an incredible Champions League semi-final first leg on Tuesday. AFP Sport looks at three things we learned from a thrilling clash at the Etihad Stadium: Guardiola's emotional rollercoaster Punching the air both in ecstasy and agony at various times during an astonishing contest, […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City regained top spot in the Premier League from Liverpool with a 3-0 win over Brighton on Wednesday, while Arsenal revived their push for the top four by beating Chelsea 4-2 at Stamford Bridge. Liverpool stormed to the top of the table by tearing Manchester United to shreds in […]

London (AFP) – Antonio Conte says the Champions League can "change your life" as he seeks to strengthen Tottenham's grip on a top-four place in the Premier League. Spurs can go six points clear of fifth-placed Arsenal, at least for a few hours, if they beat Brighton at home in the early Premier League kick-off […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel said his team need a "fantastic script" to overturn a two-goal deficit against Real Madrid on Tuesday and qualify for the Champions League semi-finals. Reigning European champions Chelsea have been destabilised by the enforced sale of the club after the British government sanctioned owner Roman Abramovich for his […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City made three changes as John Stones replaced the suspended Kyle Walker for Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg against Atletico Madrid. City boss Pep Guardiola opted to select England centre-back Stones to fill the void left by Walker, who is serving the final game of a three-match ban […]

London (AFP) – Thomas Tuchel says Chelsea want to "prove a point" in their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid as they seek to bounce back from their shock 4-1 defeat by Brentford. The European champions lost for the first time at the weekend since owner Roman Abramovich announced he was selling the club last […]

London (AFP) – Diego Simeone conceded on Monday that Manchester City have "better" players than Atletico Madrid but said Chelsea's Champions League success last year shows his team can still reach the semi-finals. Atletico are the underdogs heading into the first leg in Manchester on Tuesday but Simeone's side have history for upsetting the odds, […]

Lisbon (AFP) – Benfica midfielder Adel Taarabt insisted Monday the Portuguese side have no fear of Liverpool ahead of their Champions League quarter-final tie against the English giants. Benfica will be looking to pull off another shock against six-time European champions Liverpool after already seeing off Barcelona in the group stage and Ajax in the […]

Paris (AFP) – Troubled holders Chelsea were drawn against 13-time winners Real Madrid in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Friday, while Manchester City will take on Atletico Madrid. Liverpool were drawn to play Benfica as all three remaining English clubs were kept apart and Bayern Munich were paired with Spanish side Villarreal. Chelsea […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Villarreal reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday after inflicting a humiliating 3-0 defeat on Juventus in Turin to go through 4-1 on aggregate. Penalties from Gerard Moreno and Arnaut Danjuma and Pau Torres's tap-in in the final quarter of an hour were enough for Unai Emery's well-organised side […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Chelsea put their off-field troubles to one side to seal a place in the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday as a Cesar Azpilicueta goal clinched a 2-1 win at Lille in the second leg of their last-16 tie, and a 4-1 aggregate victory. Reeling from the impact of UK government sanctions […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain's ultra fans group on Saturday said Qatari club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi should step down after the French giants' Champions League elimination by Real Madrid. "Management resignation," the Collectif Ultras Paris (CUP) group wrote on social media, calling for supporters to join them in "showing our dissatisfaction... without violence" during Sunday's […]