Football

9:00 AM ET The new season had not even begun before managers voiced concerns about the uniquely timed World Cup in Qatar this November and its impact on the transfer market. “The players are very focused on this World Cup already, which is a good thing because they come in in shape and take care

10:00 AM ET Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic and Sergino Dest play at three of the biggest clubs in Europe. Where else are Americans abroad plying their trade in 2022-23? Illustration by ESPN With the World Cup looming in November, never before has the start of a European club season been more important for players of the

4:42 AM ET Cristiano Ronaldo has said he keeps a notebook of what he says are “lies” from the media about his Manchester United future amid speculation over his potential departure. Ronaldo has made headlines this summer after requesting to leave Old Trafford to play in the Champions League, a year after he returned to

4:19 PM ET Rob Dawson Julien Laurens Manchester United have cooled their interest in Adrien Rabiot over what they believe are excessive wage demands and are instead exploring a move for Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro, sources have told ESPN. United have refused to meet Rabiot’s demands despite offering to make the French midfielder one of

5:00 AM ET When looking back over 30 years of the Premier League, it might feel as though transfers between the Big Six — Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur — are a rare occurrence, but they are not quite as rare as you might think. 2 Related Up to and including

3:30 AM ET Our first LaLiga Confidential focused on the players and their off-field pursuits. You’ll enjoy the results. Gabriel Meza The 2022-23 LaLiga season arrived on Friday (Stream LIVE games and replays on ESPN+ in the U.S.), so what better time to see how the players are feeling about soccer in Spain and much, much

1:21 PM ET Alaba, left, was Madrid’s hero on Sunday, though the credit should go to Ancelotti’s son, Davide, who had the perfect gameplan. JORGE GUERRERO/AFP via Getty Images When Real Madrid‘s second goal went in at Almeria on Sunday night, Davide Ancelotti was up and off the away team bench like an Olympic sprinter erupting

1:14 PM ET Watching Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel square off at the final whistle following Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Spurs on Sunday, the mind went back to another handshake gone bad involving Conte at Stamford Bridge. It was October 2016 and Conte was in charge of Chelsea, who had just thrashed Jose Mourinho’s Manchester

6:09 AM ET Thomas Tuchel is being investigated by the English Football Association (FA) over comments he made regarding referee Anthony Taylor after Chelsea’s 2-2 draw against Tottenham on Sunday. The Chelsea head coach suggested “maybe it would be better” if Taylor didn’t referee matches involving his team in the future as he vented his

7:32 PM ET With Spain’s LaLiga and Italy’s Serie A kicking off this weekend, all of Europe’s major football leagues are back in action. And even though the seasons are barely underway in leagues such as England’s Premier League and the Germany’s Bundesliga, there already has been plenty of drama and storylines. ESPN correspondents Rob

1:26 PM ET A fiercely contested London derby ended with Tottenham Hotspur scoring a last-gasp equaliser to salvage a 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Marc Cucurella marked his Chelsea debut with an assist as his corner was expertly volleyed home by centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly, who peeled away from his man at

3:20 PM ET Rob DawsonCorrespondent LONDON — After a 2-1 loss to Brighton in their opening match, Manchester United lost 4-0 away to Brentford, conceding all four in the first half of the game. Brentford played well, and United’s defensive errors, coupled with a lack of attacking conviction, gave the Bees their first win over

2:25 PM ET Manchester United slumped to the bottom of the early Premier League standings after a 4-0 thrashing at Brentford in what was Cristiano Ronaldo‘s first start of the 2022-23 season on Saturday. United’s calamitous afternoon began in typical fashion with David de Gea allowing Josh Dasilva‘s tame, low effort through his hands and

11:55 AM ET Manchester City eased past newly-promoted Bournemouth to claim a 4-0 win at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden scored in the first half while Jefferson Lerma scored an own goal near the end of the game. – Bernardo Silva speaks to ESPN about his future,

3:15 PM ET Lionel Messi has been left off the 30-man list of Ballon d’Or nominees for the first time since 2005 after the contenders were announced by France Football on Friday. Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema leads the nominees as he bids to win the first Ballon d’Or award of his career. Cristiano Ronaldo,

1:25 PM ET When the summer transfer window closed the night of Aug. 4, it concluded a stellar period of business for MLS. Some of the world’s biggest names moved to the league, including Gareth Bale and Giorgio Chiellini to LAFC. Then there were well-known international names like Hector Herrera joining the Houston Dynamo, and

6:29 AM ET Sam Marsden Moises Llorens Barcelona have sold a further 24.5% of Barca Studios to Orpheus Media for €100 million in a bid to register all their new signings for Saturday’s LaLiga game against Rayo Vallecano. Barca have seven players unregistered heading into the first game of the season, but sources say they

1:32 AM ET The U.S. Soccer Federation and players on the U.S. women’s national team moved one step closer to a final resolution of the equal pay lawsuit, with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granting preliminary approval to the settlement negotiated between the two sides back in February. Judge R.