Fifa is to consider a proposal to expand the 2030 men’s World Cup to 64 teams, an adjustment that would mean more than a quarter of its 211 member associations would take part. The idea was raised at a meeting of the Fifa council on Wednesday as part of any other business. According to reporting … Read more
A Berlin nightclub habitué of my acquaintance has admonished me, more than once, not to go to concerts or parties without earplugs; too many D.J.s now crank to dangerous decibels, so have your fun and save your hearing. I forgot his advice ahead of “Doom: House of Hope,” an evening-length spectacle of attitude and abjection … Read more
The Los Angeles Chargers released Joey Bosa on Wednesday night, ending the linebacker’s nine-season tenure with the franchise. The move, which came less than a week before the start of the new league year, was expected due to Bosa’s large salary cap number and injury history. Bosa had a cap number of $36.47m for the … Read more
Going up? Arsenal If their stalled Premier League challenge has been a disappointment, then a first-ever Champions League title for Arsenal would make up for it. A 7-1 win at PSV may end up being the high point of the season, reminding us of the attacking quality Mikel Arteta can still deploy even without Bukayo … Read more
Since Donald Trump took office for his second term, he has taken a blowtorch to America. He has pardoned January 6 rioters, started the gutting of the federal government, eliminated diversity, equity and inclusion programs, insulted who we thought were the country’s allies, and vilified immigrants. Etan Thomas While there have been voices of dissent … Read more
Rob Key has said he would be “stupid” not to consider Ben Stokes taking on the captaincy of at least one of England’s white-ball teams as he and Brendon McCullum attempt to right the ship after the recent Champions Trophy blowout. Speaking at Lord’s on Thursday, less than a week since the last of England’s … Read more
The favourites for the Championship title meet in the south of France on Saturday evening. It would be a surprise if the match between Toulouse Olympique and Bradford Bulls is not repeated at the end of the campaign in the Championship Grand Final. But what the 13 teams in the second tier are playing for … Read more
The Gambling Commission, the government’s betting watchdog, is understood to have launched a review of the Tote’s betting activity. The former state-owned betting operator is under scrutiny over whether it is fulfilling its obligation in its pools to make it “clear to customers in plain language” that they could in effect be betting against the … Read more
It all started as a bit of a joke, just not a funny one. Now infamous enough to be known as ‘the chant’ or ‘the p-word’ even in English, historical accounts say the homophobic chant that has remained persistent in Mexican soccer began in Guadalajara. Atlas fans were infuriated by goalkeeper Oswaldo Sánchez’s departure from … Read more
Winning the Europa League will not magically resolve Manchester United’s problems, Ruben Amorim said on Wednesday after travelling to Spain with a squad of just 18 players to face Real Sociedad in the first leg of the sides’ last-16 tie. The Portuguese coach admitted that silverware would strengthen his position as well as that of … Read more