International Football

Brazil’s bid to stage the 2027 Women’s World Cup has been rated higher than the rival joint-bid from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany (BNG) in a new FIFA report evaluating the options. Football’s world governing body delivered the assessment as part of a World Cup bid evaluation report published on Tuesday. Brazil scored higher on a number of key technical scores, including stadiums, accommodation, fan zones and transport infrastructure. A summary from the report said: “The Brazilian Football Association and the Brazilian government have shown support for the bid...

Walter Domínguez, who has scored a record number of goals, is more than a pub-league player

Penalty misses and quickfire doubles, epic comebacks, and 'that night in Barcelona' – what are the most exciting two minutes in football?

England fans travelling to Germany for the men’s European Championship this summer should be “judged on their behaviour, not reputation”, according to chief constable Mark Roberts, head of the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU). Roberts was speaking at a briefing ahead of the tournament, which will be the first major men’s tournament in Germany since the 2006 World Cup. After only a small number of England fans travelled to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, it will also be the most accessible tournament for supporters since the trouble at the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium. An...

Three top-flight clubs in Brazil will not play football for three weeks after the country’s football federation (CBF) agreed to postpone their matches due to serious flooding. Internacional, Gremio and Juventude — who all play in Brazil’s Serie A — are based in the nation’s southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, which has been hit by serious flooding. A statement from the CBF on Tuesday confirmed that all clubs from the region would not have to play again until May 27 due to the circumstances, a period which covers three rounds of league matches and the third round of...

Troyes, the Ligue 2 club owned by the City Football Group, saw their home league match against Valenciennes abandoned following supporter unrest with the club on the brink of their second successive relegation. The game was paused in the 89th minute with the match poised at 1-1, after a number of flares and smokebombs were thrown onto the pitch from a section of the home supporters. It was subsequently abandoned by match officials. Troyes — who were relegated from Ligue 1 last season — are on the brink of their second successive demotion; the abandoning of this match leaves them seven...

Borussia Dortmund attacking midfielder Marco Reus will leave the club at the end of the season. The Bundesliga side said in a statement it has been mutually agreed that the 34-year-old’s contract, which expires in June, will not be renewed. His departure will conclude a 12-year spell at Dortmund, who he rejoined from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2012. Reus said: “I am incredibly grateful and proud for this special time at my club Borussia Dortmund. I spent more than half of my life in this club and enjoyed every day, although there were of course difficult moments. “I already know...

Following the men's tournament in 2026 in North America seemed a good idea at first but things have changed

Ralf Rangnick will remain as head coach of the Austria men’s national team and not take over at Bayern Munich. Rangnick previously said he was in talks with Bayern over succeeding Thomas Tuchel, who is to leave the Bundesliga side at the end of this season. However, the 65-year-old confirmed on Thursday that he will remain with Austria with Bayern left surprised by Rangnick’s decision after believing they could deliver what he was looking for in his next role. “I am the Austrian team boss with all my heart,” Rangnick said. “I really enjoy this task and am determined to...

USMNT defender Sergino Dest is out of the Copa America after confirming he has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Dest, 23, suffered the set-back during a training session in April with PSV Eindhoven, where he is on loan from Barcelona. How to follow the Copa America on The Athletic… Copa America news and features Copa America fixtures and schedule The right-back — who has been capped 33 times by the USMNT — will now miss this summer’s tournament in the United States and he could be sidelined for up to nine months. In a video posted on his social media,...

Zambia’s women’s soccer team are facing being prevented from participating at this summer’s Olympic Games due to an ongoing political crisis within the country’s football association. FIFA, world football’s governing body, has said the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) faces being suspended — and therefore Zambian teams prevented from featuring at international tournaments — following “undue influence by third parties” in FAZ. Zambia’s High Court issued an injunction preventing FAZ’s annual general meeting (AGM) from taking place as...

Manchester United would consider selling Marcus Rashford if a substantial offer arrives and he tells the club he wants to leave. However, the Premier League club are not proactively looking to sell the England international, who has more than four years remaining on his contract at Old Trafford. United’s preference is to keep the 26-year-old and work with him to get him back to his best and help him return to the form of previous years. Rashford signed a new five-year contract at United last July which runs until June 2028. That followed his most successful scoring season as a...

Liverpool fully expect Mohamed Salah to stay this summer and are planning on the basis of him being part of their squad for next season. The 31-year-old attacker is approaching the final 12 months of his contract and there has been increased speculation that he will leave. But Salah has given no indication of wanting to exit, which marries with Liverpool’s desire, and it is anticipated he will remain at Anfield. The Egypt international has continued to be linked with a move to Saudi Arabia after Al Ittihad’s pursuit last summer, but the view in the Saudi Pro League (SPL) hierarchy is that...

Warren Zaire-Emery has signed a new Paris Saint-Germain contract to keep him at the club until 2029. The Athletic reported in February Zaire-Emery was expected to sign a new long-term deal, and he has now officially committed his future to the club. The 18-year-old’s existing deal had been set to expire in 2025. “I’m so proud and happy to continue my adventure with the club I’ve been with since the start — Paris Saint-Germain — my boyhood club,” Zaire-Emery said. “I would like to thank the President Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who has been with me here since I started,...

South American fans in particular may not receive visas in time to travel to the U.S. and there are calls for a more unified approach