Paris (AFP) – Seeking to win an unprecedented third consecutive European Championship, Vicente del Bosque's Spain will once again have to see off old foes Italy to retain their crown. Before winning back-to-back Euros and a maiden World Cup in 2010, Spain suffered an inferiority complex with Italy having never beaten them in five tries […]

Toulouse (France) (AFP) – Belgium coach Marc Wilmots has called for all-round improvements as his side look to seal a quarter-final place at Euro 2016 and finally convince their anxious fans with a win over Hungary on Sunday. A patchy 1-0 win over Sweden followed Belgium's 3-0 win over the Republic of Ireland but Wilmots' […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Jerome Boateng is set to take his place in the Germany starting line-up in Sunday's Euro 2016 clash with Slovakia after coming through training on Saturday, coach Joachim Loew said. The Bayern Munich central defender came off after 76 minutes in Germany's 1-0 win over Northern Ireland in Paris in their […]

Saint-Étienne (France) (AFP) – Coach Adam Nawalka again brushed off concerns about Robert Lewandowski's lack of goals at Euro 2016 as Poland ended their 34-year wait to reach the quarter-finals of a major tournament. Nawalka was delighted as Poland reached the quarter-finals on the big stage for the first time since the 1982 World Cup. […]

Toulouse (France) (AFP) – Hungary striker Zoltan Gera scored one of the best goals of Euro 2016, but as he looks for a way to beat Belgium on Sunday he says his effort has already been outdone. Gera's long-range strike in the 3-3 draw with Portugal helped Hungary top Group F and kept alive a […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Slovakia are looking for a second upset in weeks over world champions Germany in their Euro 2016 clash on Sunday, defender Peter Pekarik said. Jan Kozak's side are the outsiders going into the game in Lille but they beat Germany 3-1 in a warm-up friendly ahead of the Euros in Augsburg […]

Paris (AFP) – Wales star Gareth Bale said his side had been happy to win "ugly" after they edged British rivals Northern Ireland 1-0 to reach the Euro 2016 quarter-finals on Saturday. Bale is the tournament's top scorer with three goals, but he was kept at bay by Michael O'Neill's side at Parc des Princes […]

Paris (AFP) – Northern Ireland manager Michael O'Neill described his team's Euro 2016 elimination at Wales' hands on Saturday as "devastating" and said his side had deserved to go through. "It's devastating. We were the better team on the day," O'Neill said. "I couldn't ask anything more of the players throughout the tournament." Northern Ireland, playing […]

London (AFP) – Highly-rated England Under-21 international winger Nathan Redmond became Southampton's first signing of the close season on Saturday joining from relegated Norwich for a reported fee of £10 million ($13.6million, 12.3million euros). The 22-year-old, who was part of the England Under-21 side that won the prestigious Toulon tournament in May, signed a five-year […]

Paris (AFP) – Northern Ireland's Gareth McAuley scored a heart-breaking own goal to hand British rivals Wales a 1-0 victory in Paris on Saturday that sent them into the Euro 2016 quarter-finals. In a cagey contest, Michael O'Neill's Northern Ireland largely succeeded in muzzling Gareth Bale, but the Real Madrid star produced a wicked 75th-minute […]

Saint-Étienne (France) (AFP) – Goal scorer Jakob Blaszczykowski was delighted his midas touch helped make history as Poland booked their Euro 2016 quarter-final berth by beating Switzerland 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out on Saturday. Blaszczykowski proved again he produces when his team need him most as he gave his side a first-half lead in the […]

Saint-Étienne (France) (AFP) – Xherdan Shaqiri said Arsenal-bound Granit Xhaka can cope with Euro 2016 heartache after his penalty miss sent Poland into the quarter-finals at Switzerland's expense on Saturday. Xhaka, who will join the Gunners after the European Championship finals, sent Switzerland's second penalty wide while Poland nailed all five kicks to seal a […]

Saint-Étienne (France) (AFP) – Poland claimed the first Euro 2016 quarter-final place Saturday by beating Switzerland 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out after Arsenal-bound Granit Xhaka blasted his spot-kick wide. Jakob Blaszczykowski proved again he has the midas touch for Poland as the Borussia Dortmund winger gave his side a first-half lead in the last-16 clash. […]

Lyon (AFP) – France coach Didier Deschamps has called on star midfielder Paul Pogba to concentrate for his country ahead of their Euro 2016 second round clash with the Republic of Ireland on Sunday. The Juventus player was lambasted after France's first match against Romania, was kept on the bench for the second and made […]

As was the case last summer at the 2015 Gold Cup, the US finds itself in the third place game. Unlike last summer however, the US’ defeat in the semi-finals was not a shock result, but an expected drubbing at the hands (or in this case feet) of the best team in the world. Now […]