German Clubs

Investigating The Most Egregious Ballon d'Or Winners Of The Last 20 Years

After a decade-plus of domination by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, fans expected Ballon d'Or voting to bring some different results in 2021.

The obvious choice was Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, who was coming off a record-breaking 41-goal campaign in the Bundesliga. 

Instead it was Messi — seemingly entering the twilight of his career — who won the award for the seventh time. "Surely something must be done," the people exclaimed at this perceived injustice. "He still can't be the best player in the world."

Jesse Marsch And Leipzig Part Ways With Club Sitting 11th In The Bundesliga

RB Leipzig, last season's Bundesliga runners-up, have mutually agreed to part company with head coach Jesse Marsch after a poor start to the season, the German club said on Sunday.

Leipzig suffered a 2-1 defeat at Union Berlin on Friday, a third consecutive league loss that left them 11th in the standings and piled pressure on American Marsch who was not at the game due to being in COVID-19 quarantine.

Marsch, who joined this season to replace Bayern Munich-bound Julian Nagelsmann, has led his team to only five wins in 14 league games.

Lewandowski Doesn't Have A Ballon d'Or — But He Does Have The Game-Winner Vs. Dortmund

DORTMUND — Top scorer Robert Lewandowski scored twice, including a second-half penalty, to guide the German champions to a crucial 3-2 victory at title rivals Borussia Dortmund on Saturday and a four-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga.

The Pole opened his account in the ninth minute to level after Dortmund had taken an early lead through Julian Brandt, and then converted a 77th-minute spot kick to seal victory with his 16th goal of the campaign.

Fans Are Getting March 2020 Flashbacks As Germany Announces Limited Capacity For Bundesliga

BERLIN — Bundesliga matches can only have an attendance of up to 50% and up to a maximum of 15,000 spectators after the German government on Thursday reintroduced restrictions for sports events amid rising cases of COVID-19 infections.

Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel and her successor Olaf Scholz agreed with the leaders of Germany's 16 states on a number of measures, including the reduction of fans in outdoor and indoor sports events.

Canada’s Quinn, Alphonso Davies Named To Forbes’ 30 Under 30

Canadian soccer is on the rise — even Forbes is taking notice. Forbes unveiled its annual 30 Under 30 lists on Wednesday, with two Canadian national team players making the grade in the sports category: OL Reign’s Quinn and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies.

After Winning Seventh Ballon d’Or, Messi Admits Lewandowski Should’ve Won Last Year

Lionel Messi won his record-extending seventh men’s Ballon d’Or on Monday. Anyone who watched him carry both Argentina and Barcelona over the last year knows he absolutely deserved it. But even Messi admitted on Monday that Robert Lewandowski deserves the 2020 Ballon d’Or.

Ronaldo Finishes 6th In Ballon d’Or Voting, Doesn’t Attend Ceremony And Still Steals The Show

Lionel Messi edged Robert Lewandowski for the men’s 2021 Ballon d’Or, the Argentine’s record-extending seventh trophy as the best men’s player in the world. But Cristiano Ronaldo, who didn’t even attend the award show in Paris, still managed to make it all about him.

Messi, who this year helped Argentina win the 2021 Copa América and Barcelona win the Copa del Rey (lol), was also named the world’s best men’s player in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019. 

Erling Haaland Scores Flying Volley 7 Minutes Into His Return

WOLFSBURG, Germany — Borussia Dortmund top striker Erling Haaland scored on his comeback with a second-half volley as his team came from a goal down to beat VfL Wolfsburg 3-1 on Saturday and go provisionally top of the Bundesliga.

Bayern’s Trip To Snowy Kyiv Was Full Of Beauty, Pain

There’s something about snow that brings out both the beauty and the pain of this world. Few things in life are more beautiful than watching frozen water crystals fall to the Earth, transforming the landscape. Few things in life are more painful than taking a blow to the crotch in below-freezing weather, altering your entire world view. Few things in life are more beautiful than a perfectly executed bicycle kick; few things in life are more painful than a complete whiff by a goalkeeper. 

Bayern Munich Reduces Salaries Of Unvaccinated Players

Bayern Munich suffered a surprising 2-1 defeat to Augsburg on Friday, in part a result of the team’s lethargic performance but also because a growing number of players have been forced to quarantine under Covid-19 regulations. Now it seems unvaccinated Bayern players will be losing more than playing time.

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