WTF

HONG KONG — Chinese authorities have banned footballers from getting tattoos and instructed national team players who have been inked to remove or cover them up to set a "good example for society."

A growing number of high-profile Chinese players have been sporting tattoos, including international defender Zhang Linpeng, who has previously been told to cover up while appearing for both the national team and club side Guangzhou FC.

The FIFA rankings are nonsensical 75% of the time and only truly matter for seeding of group stages at the World Cup. Three out of every four years these rankings mean squat, but in 2022 they matter a whole lot. The top seven teams and host get the most favorable seeds during the World Cup draw. FIFA has released the December rankings and the USMNT sits at its highest ranking to end a calendar year since 2005.

The U.S. is ranked No. 11. One spot above Germany.

If you would like to learn how to alienate a club’s fanbase, perhaps irrevocably, you would struggle to find a better case study than the NWSL’s N.C. Courage this week. On Sunday, the club announced the signing of a player, Jaelene Daniels, antithetical to the vast majority of the team’s and league’s fans. After two full days of silence, the club put out a shockingly meek “apology” late Wednesday night, only further upsetting the once devoted fanbase. 

LONDON — Britain's advertising watchdog warned Arsenal on Wednesday over ads for its "fan tokens," a type of cryptocurrency embraced by soccer clubs this year as coronavirus pummelled their revenues.

Over the last five seasons in LaLiga, Sevilla has finished fourth three times — including last campaign with a club-record total of 77 points — without ever looking like a genuine title challenger. 

Heading into Tuesday's clash with struggling Barcelona at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán in Seville — where a win would cut Real Madrid's lead at the top to just three points — the club still refused to consider the possibility of a first LaLiga title since 1946. 

On Sunday afternoon, the N.C. Courage announced they had signed a one-year deal with retired fullback Jaelene Daniels, formerly known as Jaelene Hinkle. Now NWSL fans across the country — especially in North Carolina — are furious over the signing. On the other side of the continent, the Portland Thorns angered their fans for drafting a player with a history of horribly racist, homophobic and transphobic behavior on Twitter. 

This is not how the NWSL wanted to end what has already been a shit year for the league.