A group of US senators is asking FIFA to strip Russia of hosting the 2018 World Cup.
The bipartisan letter, dated March 31, was signed by 13 senators, including Robert Menendez, New Jersey Democrat, and Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Republican, and cites the Ukraine crisis as a reason to bar Russia from staging the global showpiece.
The letter was sent to FIFA boss Sepp Blatter, with a copy also forwarded to the US Soccer Federation.
With the goal of ending the crisis in Ukraine and ensuring a successful 2018 World Cup, we strongly encourage FIFA to deny the [Russian President Vladimir] Putin regime the privilege of hosting the 2018 World Cup and make preparations for an alternate host country, the senators wrote in a statement widely released to media outlet…
Gareth Southgate is yet to decide if Jack Grealish will make his final 26-man England squad for Euro 2024, pointing to the fierce competition for places out wide.
Grealish made 10 appearances in total at Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup, but nine of those came off the bench as he played the role of impact player.
All 35 of his England caps have come under Southgate, but a stop-start campaign with Manchester City has seen his place called into question ahead of the Euros.
Injuries and poor form limited Grealish to just 20 appearances across all competitions in 2023-24, after he provided five goals and seven assists as City won the treble in 2022-23.
Ahead of this week s warm-up friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland, Southgate said Grealish…
France and Portugal both won on Tuesday to secure qualification for next year s World Cup – but Netherlands will not be present at Russia 2018 after missing out on the play-offs.
Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud scored the goals as a nervy France defeated Belarus 2-1 in Paris to make sure of top spot in Group A.
Sweden finished second in the table despite losing 2-0 to the Netherlands, who needed to score at least seven goals and win by six to secure a top-two spot.
They managed to find the net only twice in Amsterdam, both from Arjen Robben in the first half, meaning they will miss a World Cup for the first time since 2002.
F R A N C E
— Equipe de France (@equipedefrance)
1986 The Netherlands have failed to qualify for consecut…
Frenkie de Jong says he is disappointed after being ruled out of Euro 2024 with an ankle injury.
Following the Netherlands 4-0 thrashing of Iceland on Monday, it was confirmed in a social media post that the midfielder would not recover in time to play in the tournament.
De Jong has not played since Barcelona s Clasico defeat to Real Madrid on April 21, though still got a place in Koeman’s final 26-man squad despite his injury.
He has emerged as a fixture in the Netherlands midfield since making his senior international debut in 2018, earning 54 caps and scoring two goals.
Following his withdrawal, De Jong said on Instagram: I m sad and disappointed that I won t make it to the European Championship.
We ve been doing a lot of it the past few wee…
Juventus are now very close to reaching a full agreement with Felipe Anderson over his proposed transfer from Lazio when his contract expires at the end of the season, according to Fabrizio Romano. Apparently, the negotiations are in the final stages with only minor details left to iron out, and the deal is expected to be completed very soon.
The 30-year-old winger is about to end his second spell with Lazio, having already played for the Biancocelesti between the summers of 2013 and 2018. Then he made his move to West Ham, failed to impress in the Premier League, and spent the 2020/21 season on loan with FC Porto before returning to Lazio, for less than 10% of what the Hammers paid for him in the first place.
Anderson s numbers this term haven t really caught the eye t…
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Having seen their long success streak halted during the group stage, Portugal will look to reaffirm their status as Euro 2024 contenders when they face Slovenia on Monday evening.
Conversely, Slovenia, entering uncharted territory in their inaugural knockout match at a major tournament, will compete in Frankfurt for a chance to face either France or Belgium in the quarterfinals.
Portugal
Despite clinching the top spot in Group F with a game to spare, Portugal s surprising loss to underdogs Georgia on Wednesday night cast a shadow over their otherwise strong Euro 2024 campaign.
Errors by Benfica centre-back Antonio Silva allowed the Georgians to score twice with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia netting a spectacular opener in the s…
Eder was Portugal s unlikely hero as his extra-time goal sealed a first major international honour for his country at the expense of Euro 2016 hosts France.
France dominated for much of the game, against a Portugal side shorn of talismanic captain Cristiano Ronaldo after he sustained a knee injury in the first half.
Tournament top scorer Antoine Griezmann headed over before substitute Andre-Pierre Gignac hit the post in stoppage time.
And Eder stepped up in the second period of extra time, holding off Laurent Koscielny before finding the bottom corner from 25 yards.
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Cristiano Ronaldo lives for goals and will soon find a return to form after a prolonged struggle for Portugal, says veteran team-mate Pepe.
The five-time Ballon d Or winner is yet to find the net at Euro 2024, failing to score in Portugal s first three Group F games as Roberto Martinez s side topped their pool.
Stretching further back, Ronaldo has not scored in any of his last seven appearances for Portugal at major tournaments, his longest such drought across the European Championship and World Cup.
The 39-year-old has had 19 shots across the two competitions since last scoring against Ghana at the 2022 World Cup.
However, Pepe – speaking ahead of the last-16 meeting with Slovenia on Monday – believes his team-mate will soon find his scoring touch.<…
Applications from 128 countries for 216,975 WC2010 tickets were received Saturday via the FIFA website 24 hours after the online tickets went on sale across the globe, FIFA officials said.
The figure excludes hard paper applications handed in by South African residents at the branches of a designated local bank, FIFA said in a statement.
The biggest number of orders came from South Africa, the host, followed by Britain, the United States, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Japan, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain and Argentina.
These are fantastic numbers, underlying yet again the fervour taking hold around the world for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first on the African continent, David Will, chairman of the FIFA ticketing sub-committee, said.
David Luiz emerged as a surprise signing for Arsenal as the Gunners completed a busy transfer window by adding a centre-back.
Not many Premier League teams were as active as Unai Emery s men, with Dani Ceballos, Nicolas Pepe and Kieran Tierney also arriving.
Chelsea s transfer ban hampered new boss Frank Lampard, who will need to lean on the younger players in his squad during the coming season.
Losing a trusty lieutenant like David Luiz to a rival in the battle for a top-four finish is hardly ideal and means there will be some last-minute tinkering needed from Chelsea legend Lampard.
Below we analyse how both teams may line up in 2019-20.
ARSENAL
4-3-3: Bernd Leno; Hector Bellerin, David Luiz, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Kieran Tierney; L…