South America

Own goals are the most cringeworthy moments in football. A player inadvertently turns the ball into his or her own net and gifts the opposing team a goal. Sometimes they’re down to the attacking team putting too much pressure on the defense; sometimes they’re down to horrible back-passes or lapses in concentration. Rarely do we see an own goal from the halfway line, which is exactly what happened on Saturday in Uruguay. Was it the worst own goal ever?

Former World Cup winner Ronaldinho moved a step closer to ending his Paraguayan ordeal on Friday when prosecutors said they would not oppose a "conditional suspension" of the case that would allow him to return to Brazil.

The twice World Player of the Year was arrested on March 6 along with his brother and business manager Roberto Assis after they tried to enter Paraguay with adulterated Paraguayan passports.

Apart from Zinedine Zidane’s masterful headbutt on Marco Materazzi, the most infamous foul in 21st century World Cup finals is certainly Nigel de Jong’s hatchet man kung fu kick into the chest of Xabi Alonso.

It should’ve been a straight red — even referee Howard Webb admitted as much later — but it takes some cojones to effectively end the World Cup final after only 28 minutes. 

The Bolivian Football Federation (FBF) suffered the loss of its president on Sunday due to complications from COVID-19. Cesar Salinas was 58 years old and had served as president since 2018. He had been hospitalized with the novel coronavirus earlier in July.

The federation, CONMEBOL and Bolivia's president Jeanine Áñez all sent out messages of condolence to Salinas’ family following his passing.

With the 2019-20 Ligue 1 season cancelled and PSG declared champion for the seventh time in eight years, the club has turned to friendlies to stay sharp with participation in the Coupe de France final (July 24 vs. Saint-Étienne), Coupe de la Ligue final (July 31 vs. Lyon) and Champions League quarterfinals (Aug. 12 vs. Atalanta) still to come.

Substitute Luis Muriel rifled in two long-range goals as irrepressible Atalanta beat Udinese 3-2 away on Sunday for their third straight win since restarting the Serie A campaign.

The league's most prolific team took their tally to 80 goals in 28 games, including 10 in three matches since the resumption, as they stayed fourth and on course for a Champions League spot.

The Rio de Janeiro state championship restarted once again on Sunday as Botafogo — one of the clubs opposed to what they see as a premature resumption of top-level football —— took the field with a banner protesting the decision.

The move to get back underway in Rio has focused attention on the wider confusion surrounding football's stop-start status in the South American nation. Although many clubs are back in training, only Rio has restarted its state league as the daily number of dead and infected due to the new coronavirus remains high.