Informational/Did You Know

Spanish and Barcelona phenom Pedri can’t legally buy an alcoholic drink in the United States, but he can claim the title of having the highest release clause in all of soccer and Barcelona history.

Barcelona will be keeping Pedri until June 2026 after extending the Spaniard’s contract and setting his release clause at a whopping 1 billion euros ($1.16 billion). This ties him with Karim Benzema for the highest release clause in soccer.

Carli Lloyd’s playing career is coming to an end. But first, two final farewell matches later this month against South Korea. On Wednesday, coach Vlatko Andonovski named his USWNT roster for the upcoming friendlies, which are little more than a chance to send Lloyd off in style. 

Lloyd announced in August she will retire after the 2021 NWSL season, calling an end to an historic career.

Gianni Infantino, the ninth President of FIFA, has found himself increasingly in the news of late, which we’ve come to learn is never, ever a good sign when it comes to FIFA presidents. The 51-year-old’s latest fixation is a biennial World Cup that’s been panned by everyone with a genuine love for the game, so it’s only a matter of time before the plan becomes reality.

Across all competitions the United States men’s national team has hit over 40 goals for the calendar year of 2021. The 2-0 win against Jamaica in World Cup qualifying in October got the team over the mark. Rising star Ricardo Pepi got both goals, which put his total to three after his first two games. Pepi is near the top of the top USMNT goal scorers 2021 list, but who else sits up there with him?

The last time Belgium’s national team missed a major tournament was Euro 2012. Since then, the nation of 11.5 million has quickly become the best international team in the world per FIFA’s somewhat arbitrary ranking system. Despite the success, the last time Belgium was in a final was Euro 1980, losing to Germany 2-1.

Belgium’s chances of seeing a final for the first time in 41 years was blown spectacularly on Thursday when France came roaring back from two goals down to defeat the Belgians in the UEFA Nations League semifinals.

The Reggae Boyz knew they would be without some of the big names like Leon Bailey (Aston Villa), Michael Hector (Fulham), Amari’i Bell (Luton Town) and Cory Burke (Philadelphia Union) heading into the second window of Concacaf World Cup qualifying. However, another bombshell was dropped on Wednesday when Michail Antonio, the Premier League’s third highest goal scorer this season, announced he was withdrawing from Jamaica’s next three games.

The UEFA Women’s Champions League will for the first time feature a 16-team group stage this year, eschewing the old format of jumping right to a 32-team knockout tournament. With some mouthwatering matchups across four groups of four, here’s everything you need to know about how to watch Women's Champions League matches in the U.S. from the group stage forward. 

Ellen Fokkema found herself in an unfamiliar position when she came off the bench for Dutch side VV Foarut a few weekends ago. Not because she was the only woman on the pitch playing alongside 21 men, but because of the horde of cameras following her every move that September afternoon.

Fokkema has played for men's club VV Foarut since she was five, progressing all the way up to the club's U-19 side.