Real Madrid's incredible summer spending spree will go past $300 million this week as Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema sign on the dotted line at the Bernabeu.
On the face, the task for the U.S. national team is simple: Start off defense of your Gold Cup title with a Fourth of July match in Seattle against one of the smallest nations in CONCACAF. Except that things work differently in CONCACAF, and though the days of guest competitors from other confederations and the wrong national anthems being played are things of the past, hopefully, just a few days before the tournament began came news of a curious development.
English Premier League side Chelsea have confirmed a second offer from league rivals Manchester City for England and club captain John Terry has been turned down.
The United States almost provided one of football's biggest upsets when they were narrowly beaten by Brazil in the final of the Confederations Cup in South Africa.
Manchester United fans all around the world will be eagerly scouring for transfer news and gossip over the possible arrival of new players during the close season.
Former Italy captain Paolo Maldini has turned down an offer to become part of the Chelsea coaching staff under his former AC Milan supremo Carlo Ancelotti.
Real Madrid's incredible summer spending spree will go past $300 million this week as Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema sign on the dotted line at the Bernabeu.
On the face, the task for the U.S. national team is simple: Start off defense of your Gold Cup title with a Fourth of July match in Seattle against one of the smallest nations in CONCACAF. Except that things work differently in CONCACAF, and though the days of guest competitors from other confederations and the wrong national anthems being played are things of the past, hopefully, just a few days before the tournament began came news of a curious development.
English Premier League side Chelsea have confirmed a second offer from league rivals Manchester City for England and club captain John Terry has been turned down.
The United States almost provided one of football's biggest upsets when they were narrowly beaten by Brazil in the final of the Confederations Cup in South Africa.
Manchester United fans all around the world will be eagerly scouring for transfer news and gossip over the possible arrival of new players during the close season.
Former Italy captain Paolo Maldini has turned down an offer to become part of the Chelsea coaching staff under his former AC Milan supremo Carlo Ancelotti.
Samuel Eto'o looks set to snub Manchester City's "stratospheric" offer that could make him world football's top-paid player, the Cameroon striker's agent warned on Monday
European champions Spain edged out hosts South Africa 3-2 in extra-time to avoid a second embarrassing defeat and finish third at the Confederations Cup in Rustenburg on Sunday.
Big-spending English club Manchester City have made a "stratospheric" offer to Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o, according to Barcelona president Joan Laporta.
Cristiano Ronaldo will be unveiled as a Real Madrid player on July 6, having finally agreed terms over his world-record $130 million transfer from Manchester United.
Credit crunch and slow economy be damned, the soccer world is still spinning from the record-busting $131 million fee Real Madrid is on the verge of pumping into Manchester United's coffers for FIFA World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo. That's on top of the $92 million the mysteriously loaded Spaniards already paid for last year's World Player of the Year, Kaká. But there's far more to come in the transfer market. This week, we run through the English Premier League looking at possible transfer targets, and who might be heading for the exit door.
It's been a tough week for Europeans who hate America's growing influence in world soccer. First, ESPN acquired the rights to show some English Premier League games -- in England. Then, the U.S. men's national team outthought and outmuscled the world's top-ranked team, Spain, 2-0 in the semifinals of the Confederations Cup in South Africa.
Spain midfielder Cesc Fabregas has followed his country's surprise 2-0 Confederations Cup defeat to the United States by hinting he could be ready to leave English Premier League club Arsenal because of their limited success.
Espanyol have confirmed they have reached an agreement for Japanese international midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura to join the Primera Liga club on a two-year contract.
Roque Santa Cruz became big-spending Manchester City's second signing of the summer transfer window as he completed a reported $30 million move from Premier League rivals Blackburn.
Aside from transfer news and gossip, the close season is a time when many football fans are scrambling around to grab their beloved team's new playing kit before the new campaign begins.
Premier League side Arsenal have completed the signing of Belgium international defender Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax for an undisclosed fee on a long-term contract.
Just when MLS teams have hit their stride and have found some sort of cohesion, is it really a good time for a break? And not six weeks after the end of one season, Mexican league clubs are supposed to hit full throttle with new-look rosters?
There are some people who, I guess, are just not meant to be liked. Maybe they don't fit with what we expect, or perhaps there's something about them that prompts us to judge them more harshly than others. Or maybe they just don't look right.
There's only one Carlos Tévez. With a move away from Old Trafford now almost a formality, several clubs continue to fight for the striker's much sought-after signature, making it one of the most long-running transfer sagas in recent history. The biggest loser is Manchester United, which hesitated in offering the Argentine star a permanent deal because his $37.5 million buyout fee seemed excessive.
Didier Drogba has been handed a four-game ban from European club competition for his antics after Chelsea's Champions League semifinal defeat to Barcelona last month.
It's past midnight when Bora Milutinovic answers the phone in Qatar, but no matter what time, no matter where he happens to be, the Bora optimism prevails.
Love him or loathe him, the proposed world record $130m transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Real Madrid has ignited fervent interest from newspapers the world over.
English Premier League side Wigan Athletic have confirmed that negotiations over the transfer of winger Antonio Valencia to Manchester United are expected to start "very shortly".
There's cigar smoke and perfume in the evening air as the thronging masses head to Castle Limey for our annual awards ceremony. Only one man is headed the other way: a winking, temperamental, petulant, prima donna flagging down a lift to Madrid. Are you sitting comfortably now, the chilled Taittinger bubbling to perfection? Team Limey takes the stage.
Michel Platini, the president of the governing body for European football (UEFA), has hit out at the large fee offered by Real Madrid for the Portugal playmaker Cristiano Ronaldo.
Nine years ago, Florentino Pérez walked into the game and ushered in a new era. Call it "the Galáctico Age," call it "the Zidanes y Pavones experiment," call it the destruction of conventional wisdom, call it what you like.
Former Dutch international Clarence Seedorf has revealed he is flattered to be linked with a move to Premier League Chelsea but insists he will still be an AC Milan player next season.
Brazilian star Kaka expects to be joined by fellow world 'Galacticos' as Real Madrid president Florentino Perez constructs a Spanish Primera Liga side that he hopes will rule supreme.
Contrary to popular belief, there's a very good reason for U.S. coach Bob Bradley not to rely on every MLS player who might be playing well when it comes to assembling a squad for Hexagonal qualifiers. In many cases, they don't measure up.
For Europe's biggest leagues the football season has ended, the boring business of kicking a ball about is over, and now the real fun can begin as the transfer window opens.
As the season draws to a close across much of Europe there is a sense that the football landscape is changing, with a few unfamiliar names claiming silverware as champions of their respective leagues.
Not quite one-third of the way through the season, yet with a busy summer of international competitions and call-ups on the horizon, here are a few impressions about MLS:
European football clubs are bucking the trend of the worldwide recession, with England's Premier League leading the way after posting $3.4 billion in revenues for the 2007-08 season.
Chelsea recovered from falling behind to the fastest goal in FA Cup final history to beat Everton 2-1 at Wembley on Saturday in coach Guus Hiddink's final game in charge of the English club.
Brazilian star Kaka has agreed to join Real Madrid from Italy's AC Milan in a $92 million deal, the Spanish radio station Cadena Ser reported on Tuesday.
Germany captain Michael Ballack gave new Chelsea coach Carlos Ancelotti a boost on Tuesday when he signed up for another year at the Premier League Club.
England midfielder Gareth Barry has quit Aston Villa for Premier League rivals Manchester City in a $20 million deal after agreeing a five-year contract.
The summer transfer market is a few weeks away from opening and already the signs are that the global financial crisis is forcing clubs to rethink their annual spending.
Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini has been unveiled at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium as the new coach of Spanish giants Real Madrid, signing a two-year deal with the side.
Paolo Maldini and Luis Figo brought down the curtain on their remarkable careers as their Milan clubs both scored victories on the final day of the Serie A season.
AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti confirmed he will be leaving the Serie A giants after their 2-0 win over Fiorentina in the final match of the Italian season.
Everton goes into Saturday's FA Cup final as underdogs riding on a high. After claiming the scalps of two "Big Four" teams -- Manchester United and Liverpool -- en route to the final, it clinched fifth place in the Premier League for the second year running.
One is the kind of athlete you might design in a lab: tall, lean and muscular, with a seemingly inexhaustible arsenal of skills. The other is a throwback, a scrappy little player whose abilities are more difficult to pin down because they border on the metaphysical. At 6'1" and 172 pounds, Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo is soccer's Magic Johnson: a big man with skills usually associated with smaller players. At 5'7" and 148 pounds, Barcelona's Lionel Messi looks more like somebody's kid brother and plays like Pete Maravich, with an otherworldly touch that allows him to do the unthinkable with the ball.
Britain's Prince William is to attend tonight's Champions League final between Manchester United and Barcelona in Rome, in his capacity as President of the English Football Association (FA).
Germany international striker Mario Gomez has revealed his delight at his propective move to Bayern Munich, revealing that he chose the Bavarian giants despite receiving lucrative offers to move to the English Premier League.
Jose Mourinho has extended his contract at Serie A champions Inter Milan by 12 months until June 2012, killing off speculation that he could be on his way to Real Madrid.
It's safe to say Wednesday's Champions League final is the most anticipated title match since UEFA created the platinum edition of Europe's top tournament. From Rome to Rochester to Rangoon, everyone with even a modicum of soccer in his blood is planning on watching the game live, regardless if that requires skipping an important sales call at work or losing a few hours of sleep.
If you just look at the balance sheets of Europe's top football clubs, it's no surprise that Barcelona and Manchester United are in the Champions League final.
The most lucrative match in world football took place at Wembley Stadium on Monday -- with Burnley defeating Sheffield United 1-0 to collect a prize which is estimated to be worth nearly $100 million -- more than any Superbowl or World Cup final.
Switzerland's Massimo Busacca has been selected to referee Wednesday's Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United in Rome on Wednesday -- UEFA have confirmed on their official Web site UEFA.com
Veteran Manchester United defender Gary Neville has received a surprise England recall for the World Cup tie against Kazakhstan and Andorra next month.
Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola paid the price for fielding a team of reserves as his Primera Liga champions suffered a shock 1-0 home defeat to Osasuna on Saturday night.
Manchester City duo Elano and Robinho are among five British-based players named in the Brazil squad for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers and the Confederations Cup.
Shakhtar Donetsk became the third former Soviet club to win the UEFA Cup in the past five years, following CSKA Moscow in 2004-05 and Zenit St. Petersburg last season.
An extra time goal from Brazilian midfielder Jadson ensured Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk won the last ever UEFA Cup final with a 2-1 victory over Bundesliga side Werder Bremen in Istanbul.
Werder Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf has warned his Bundesliga side they have achieved nothing yet this season despite reaching the finals of both the UEFA Cup and DFB-Pokal.
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