With news of the European Super League dominating the global football conversation, Monday’s Premier League match between Liverpool and Leeds United felt entirely meaningless. Liverpool entered the match chasing the top four and Champions League football next season — something they’ll never have to concern themselves with again if the Super League moves forward.
The cat is out of the bag as 12 “leading European clubs” have thrown it all away in pursuit of securing the most gluttonous bag in the history of football. It’s difficult to see these historic institutions — Manchester United, Liverpool, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus and AC Milan among them — as football clubs at this point; they’re self-serving vehicles of greed that operate as welfare for billionaires. We should amend the “FC” abbreviation on these clubs’ names accordingly.
As Major League Soccer’s 26th season begins this weekend, a record 27 teams will compete for the MLS Cup. That number will expand to 29 by 2023, with a 30th club in the works. While there are plenty of critics who say expansion is diluting the quality on the pitch and merely enriching current owners’ pockets with expansion fees, I for one want to see MLS expansion continue well beyond 30 teams. If you’re going to go big, go really fucking big. I’m talking 40, 50, 60 teams even.
Porto scored the goal of the competition during Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League quarterfinal second leg. If you’re looking for the other Chelsea vs. Porto highlights, I’m afraid to tell you that there isn’t much to see.
The Blues advanced to their first Champions League semifinal in seven years despite Porto winning 1-0 on the night. Chelsea advanced 2-1 on aggregate.
To provide a taste of how riveting the affair was, here’s a highlight of the first shot on target … in the 64th minute.
“Banter club” is a common insult, but it’s 100 percent true for Tottenham Hotspur. How else do you explain the North London club’s recent acquisition of a paint sponsorship that’s already gone awry.
Spurs announced a new sponsorship deal on Thursday morning with paint company Dulux, the first official paint supplier of the Premier League club. Within hours Tottenham was forced to make fun of itself to save face after the new sponsor spent the morning making fun of Spurs on Twitter.
It’s always somewhat perplexing as to how streakers gain access to the field during professional sporting events.
But doing it when football matches are being played behind closed doors and with the security that entails? That’s outrageous. And doing it in an empty stadium when it’s the most important match in the home side’s 89-year history? Well that’s unbelievable.
And how about meeting all the above criteria but also doing it when your name around town is “The Nude Man of Granada”? That’s a miracle on grass.
Rio de Janeiro abandoned plans to rename its famous Maracanã Stadium in tribute to Pelé on Thursday after a widespread outcry from fans.
The official proposal to give Pelé’s name to the ground that hosted the final of the 2014 World Cup and the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games was vetoed by state governor Cláudio Castro.
MADRID - An Athletic Bilbao fan endured more than just heartbreak as his side were beaten 1-0 in last Saturday's rearranged Copa del Rey final by rivals Real Sociedad, with local media reporting he suffered a punctured lung after jumping off a traffic light pre-game.