Paris (AFP) – West Ham's mercurial playmaker Dimitri Payet edged out Manchester United's Anthony Martial to start France's Euro 2016 opener against Romania in Paris on Friday. Payet crowned a series of impressive displays since earning a recall to the French team in March with a stunning last minute free-kick to beat Cameroon 3-2 in […]

Saint-Martin-de-Ré (France) (AFP) – Manchester United and Spain goalkeeper David De Gea on Friday dismissed as "a lie" claims that he organised a party at which women were forced to have sex with footballers. "I am the first one to be surprised by this report. I deny it, it is false and nothing more, it […]

Bordeaux (AFP) – Gareth Bale can handle the huge focus on his performances for Wales at Euro 2016, manager Chris Coleman declared on Friday on the eve of their opening match against Slovakia. Bale, 26, is tipped to be one of the stars of the tournament in France, having scored seven of Wales's 11 goals […]

Paris (AFP) – Thousands of police surrounded the Stade de France on Friday ahead of the European Championship gala opener between the host country and Romania amid widespread security fears. While the French and Romanian teams sought to avoid the state of emergency fallout, terror concerns and widespread strikes have cast a shadow over the […]

From June 10 to July 10, ESPN will be televising all 51 matches of Euro 2016 live across television to sports fans across the United States. That's all well and good if you subscribe to ESPN. But if you don't or your TV provider doesn't offer access to WatchESPN, you can watch every single game […]

ESPN’s Euro 2016 Preview, which aired Thursday night on the main ESPN network, reminded English-language dominant American viewers what a top serious soccer production looks like around a major international tournament. ESPN’s serious preview involved no less than a dozen commentators on site in Paris, a mixture of analysts from different countries and backgrounds as […]

Saint-Georges-de-Reneins (France) (AFP) – Northern Ireland's hot-shot striker Kyle Lafferty is fit to face Poland on Sunday at Euro 2016 having come through an injury scare in training — perhaps after some divine intervention. The 28-year-old Norwich City forward went down clutching his groin in training on Tuesday, but took part in training on Friday […]

Bordeaux (AFP) – Slovakia coach Jan Kozak and star player Marek Hamsik lauded Gareth Bale as "one of the best players in the world" on Friday, but warned against focusing only on him. Real Madrid forward Bale, the world's most expensive player, will be the centre of attention at Stadium Bordeaux on Saturday when Wales […]

Pérols (France) (AFP) – Italy winger Lorenzo Insigne called on his teammates to exploit a Belgium defence riddled by injuries when the sides meet in their opening match at Euro 2016 on Monday. "If I was the coach I would play on the attack because their defence isn't very solid," Insigne said at Friday's Italian […]

Marcoussis (France) (AFP) – Portugal defender Cedric Soares hailed team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo as the "best in the world" on Friday as the Real Madrid superstar aims to become the leading scorer in European Championship history. "Cristiano is the best in the world, he's shown that many times," said Southampton defender Cedric, with Portugal kicking off […]

You can pardon Antonio Conte for not focusing all of his attention on Italy's Euro 2016 campaign. With his Chelsea position made even more challenging by having Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho joining the Premier League, his new job would require full time attention in any situation. Yet the manager who theoretically should have nothing […]

Mumbai (AFP) – France legend Zinedine Zidane on Friday tipped Belgium to impress at Euro 2016 but dismissed any suggestion that his countrymen were under added pressure as hosts. Belgium, ranked second in the FIFA world rankings, open their Group E campaign on Monday against Italy in Lyon, before also facing Sweden and the Republic […]

Evian (France) (AFP) – Germany are hoping centre-back Mats Hummels could be fit to face Ukraine when the world champions open their Euro 2016 campaign on Sunday. Hummels has been out since tearing his calf in the German Cup final on May 21, playing for former club Borussia Dortmund against new employers Bayern Munich, but […]

Bordeaux (AFP) – For the thousands of long-suffering Wales supporters excitedly travelling to France this week, the road to Euro 2016 has been perilous and, at times, seemingly never-ending. Gareth Bale and his team-mates face off against Slovakia in their Group B opener in Bordeaux on Saturday, after the minnows secured a place at a […]

Saint-Martin-de-Ré (France) (AFP) – Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke believes Spain have the perfect blend of youth and experience to win an unprecedented third consecutive European Championship in France. La Roja's run of three consecutive major tournament triumphs came to an end in spectacular fashion as they crashed out of the World Cup after just two […]