London (AFP) – The chief executive of English football's lucrative Premier League believes the biggest danger to maintaining the sport's long-term popularity comes not from rival sports but social media and digital gaming. The growth of eSports, or competitive video gaming, has seen Premier League clubs such as West Ham United and Manchester City 'sign' […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has expressed "regret and guilt" at his side's failure to beat shock champions Leicester City to last season's Premier League title. Wenger's side finished runners-up, 10 points adrift of Leicester, who were 5,000/1 outsiders for the title at one stage. For many fans of Arsenal, it was yet […]

Berlin (AFP) – Germany defender Jerome Boateng took part in Bayern Munich training on Wednesday for the first time since tearing his right thigh against France in the semi-final defeat of Euro 2016. The centre-back managed some light running at Bayern's Saebener Strasse training ground. There is no date as to when he can return […]

Moscow (AFP) – The Russian authorities and FIFA are concerned over a dispute that has halted construction of a key World Cup 2018 stadium, Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said Wednesday. Work on the futuristic 68,000-seater arena in Saint Petersburg, Russia's second city, was frozen last month because of a contractual disagreement between local authorities and […]

London (AFP) – Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri has signed a new four-year deal that is set to keep him at the Premier League champions until June 2020, the club announced Wednesday. The 64-year-old Italian joined the Thai-owned Midlands side just prior to the start of last season after former manager Nigel Pearson was sacked. […]

London (AFP) – After writing the Premier League's greatest fairytale with their astonishing title triumph last season, Claudio Ranieri's side find themselves under siege from big-spending rivals determined to end their reign. Ranieri's men made a mockery of their status as 5,000-1 outsiders as Jamie Vardy, N'Golo Kante and Riyad Mahrez emerged as genuine stars […]

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – The USA women's football team's Olympic winning streak was ended by a horror show from controversial goalkeeper Hope Solo in a 2-2 draw with Colombia on Tuesday. Brazil's darling Marta only appeared as a second-half substitute as the hosts were also held 0-0 against South Africa to secure top spot for […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – With Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and Jose Mourinho at Manchester United, Manchester threatens to become the centre of the footballing universe during the new Premier League season. The cultured Catalan and provocative Portuguese contested a bitter rivalry during their time in Spain and with 44 top-level trophies between them, […]

Trondheim (Norway) (AFP) – Real Madrid beat Sevilla 3-2 in the European Supercup final in rainy Trondheim on Tuesday thanks to a brilliant individual last minute of extra-time clincher from Dani Carvajal. Sevilla had been on the verge of victory leading 2-1 deep into added time, before Sergio Ramos equalised in the 93rd minute with […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Brazil football legend Pele said Tuesday he will try to take part in the Olympics closing ceremony, after poor health stopped him from attending the opening gale. "I am continuing my physiotherapy and focused on joining you for the closing festivities on August 21. I love you!" Pele wrote on Twitter. […]

Monaco (AFP) – Former Porto, Real Madrid and Chelsea star Ricardo Carvalho has been told by Ligue 1 outfit Monaco he is surplus to requirements, the club said on Tuesday. The 38-year-old central defender won Euro 2016 with Portugal this summer, but Monaco are rebuilding and have decided against prolonging his three-year stay there. "Concerning […]

In a time when the regular going rate for a top quality central midfielder is around £30 million, Arsenal have somehow hit the jackpot when they pried Mohamed Elneny from Basel for just £6 million. When he arrived to north London in January, many Arsenal fans weren’t exactly thrilled to hear of the news. Despite […]

Berlin (AFP) – Manchester City's huge offer to buy Leroy Sane left Bundesliga side Schalke 04 with no choice but to sell their rising Germany star, according to his now ex-club. Sane, 20, moved for a reported £37 million ($48m, 43m euros) and signed a five-year deal with Pep Guardiola's side, who kick off the […]

Formerly known as the Capital One Cup, the newly named EFL Cup is shown exclusively in the US on beIN SPORTS. The English Football League Cup is played amongst the teams in the top four tiers of the English League. The First Round takes place August 9-11, 2016 and involves all the teams from League 1, League […]

Geneva (AFP) – Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter will appear in person at the Court of Arbitration for Sport for his August 25 appeal against his ban from football, his spokesman said Tuesday. "Mr. Blatter will go in person with his lawyer Lorenz Erni," Blatter spokesman Thomas Renggli told AFP. FIFA's ethics committee initially suspended […]