Marseille (AFP) – France captain Hugo Lloris said the team wants a better performance from star midfielder Paul Pogba if picked for their second Euro 2016 match against Albania on Wednesday. Juventus star Pogba came under fire for his poor display in France's opening 2-1 victory over Romania on Friday. "I don't have to say […]

Moscow (AFP) – Prison time and a Nazi salute photo are just two of the entries on the resume of Alexander Shprygin, the Russian football fan leader at the centre of controversy over Euro 2016 disturbances. Fan violence has marred the tournament in France and Russia was warned Tuesday that it faces expulsion from […]

Birmingham (United Kingdom) (AFP) – China's Tony Xia completed his takeover of relegated former Premier League side Aston Villa on Tuesday after passing the English Football League's owners and directors test. Xia, whose Chinese name is Xia Jiantong, purchased Villa last month for a reported $87 million (77.6 million euros) from American Randy Lerner and […]

Dinard (France) (AFP) – Wales star Gareth Bale does not care what the England camp think of his pre-match attacks and is only thinking about securing a famous victory over them Lens on Thursday. The 26-year-old Real Madrid forward lit the blue touch paper ahead of the Group B fixture when he claimed that Wales […]

After severe flooding wrecked ESPN's plans to use their primary studio set last week alongside the River Seine in France, the network has today been able to move back into the River Seine studio. The new set, which is the primary set ESPN will be using for the rest of the tournament, sits on the […]

Berlin (AFP) – Gambian refugee Bakery Jatta has signed a contract with German Bundesliga side Hamburg, the club said Tuesday, in what local media dubbed a "football fairytale". Jatta — who made the dangerous Mediterranean crossing from North Africa to Italy last year as a lone teenager — on Tuesday inked a 10,000 euro ($11,000) […]

Paris (AFP) – UEFA told Russia on Tuesday it would be kicked out of Euro 2016 if its fans cause more stadium trouble, while France expelled a group of Russian supporters. Europe's governing body declared Russia responsible for the fans who charged into a section occupied by England supporters at the Russia-England game in Marseille […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Slovakia coach Jan Kozak is looking for his team to get back on track at Euro 2016 following their opening defeat to Wales when they face Russia on Wednesday. The Slovaks come into their second Group B encounter at the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille in need of a positive result […]

Evian (France) (AFP) – Jerome Boateng insists it will be business as usual for Germany when they return to Stade de France on Thursday for the first time since last November's terror attacks in Paris. Die Mannschaft will play Poland in their second Group C game at Euro 2016 on their first return to the […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Russia striker Artem Dzyuba on Tuesday hit out at English fans following trouble in Marseille, saying that they were being depicted as "angels" and that there were political motivations for blaming Russian supporters. The Zenit St Petersburg forward spoke after UEFA warned Russia they would be kicked out of Euro 2016 […]

Chantilly (France) (AFP) – Exchanges this week between Wales star Gareth Bale and England manager Roy Hodgson represented the latest potshots in an uneven football rivalry that stretches back 137 years. Speaking ahead of his side's 2-1 win over Slovakia in their Euro 2016 opener, Bale said that England, who Wales face in Lens on […]

Moscow (AFP) – Russia on Tuesday accepted a UEFA ruling that it will be kicked out of Euro 2016 if there is new stadium unrest after the European governing body slapped the country with a fine and suspended disqualification. "We will comply with UEFA's decision. What other position can there be?" Sports Minister and Russian […]

Monday night in Lyon at the grand Stade des Lumieres was the stage Romelu Lukaku would have been itching to perform on for a long time. Having toiled at the point of an Everton team that had downed tools on its manager Roberto Martinez in the final weeks of the 2015-16 season, the Belgium international […]

Chantilly (France) (AFP) – England's players will find it "devastating" if they are thrown out of Euro 2016 due to fan violence, midfielder Adam Lallana said on Tuesday. European governing body UEFA has formally threatened to expel Russia after stadium violence in Marseille and put England on notice over its fans' behaviour. "It would be […]

When Everton looked set to miss out on Ronald Koeman, the man anointed as the club’s top target to fill the vacancy left by the dismissed Roberto Martinez, there would have been a collective shrug of the shoulders from the majority of those of a blue persuasion. This was, after all, adhering to the recent […]