THE OLYMPIC football tournaments have got underway, with more than a hint of controversy at the Argentina v Morocco game in Saint-Étienne, which was held up due to prolonged crowd trouble. Morocco won 2-1, much to the disgust of the Argentinian camp. There was also fighting at the Israel versus Mali men’s game in Paris ..read more

THE SECOND qualifying round of the Champions League takes place this week with the third qualifying round drawn on July 22. There are some notable teams in 2QR. Ukrainians Dynamo Kyiv play Serbia’s Partizan Belgrade, while Ferencvaros of Hungary meet The New Saints. José Mourinho’s Fenerbahce are up against Lugano, whole Shamrock Rovers, the Irish champions, play Sparta Prague. In the third qualifying round, interesting ties include the winners of the Dynamo Kyiv-Partizan tie playing Rangers while Slavia Prague meet Union Saint-Gilloise of Belgium and RB Salzburg play Twente. The Europa League ..read more

THE popular, and sometimes misguided, opinion of footballers is that most are not the brightest lamps in the street. Sadly, Chelsea’s Enzo Fernández seems to be doing his best to fuel that belief. His post-match celebrations after Argentina had won the Copa America included some racist chants that were aimed at France’s footballers. Why the Argentine dressing room should choose to insult France after a Latin American championship is a mystery, but it would appear there’s some bad blood going back to the 2022 World Cup.  And now, just a week after that triumph, Fernández returned to his ol ..read more

AFTER winning the European Cup in 1968, Manchester United began a six-season decline that culminated in relegation to the second division. The team aged, various key players became less effective, there were a series of unconvincing management changes and the weight of past achievements simply became difficult to carry. United was the most talked about club in the country, from the problems surrounding succession to Sir Matt Busby to the wayward behaviour of George Best and hooligan fans. United could never quietly rebuild or regroup because they were constantly in the spotlight. They were als ..read more

REAL Madrid are not only the current European champions, they also have the most valuable and strongest brand in football. This won’t surprise many people, but what is very evident is the power of Spain’s leading club, who have emerged from the pandemic years possibly even stronger than they were before.  According to Brand Finance, Real Madrid’s brand is valued at € 1.7 billion which represents a 16% rise on a year ago. Their long-time rivals, Barcelona, are the third most valuable at € 1.5 billion, with Manchester City pushed into second place with a value of € 1.6 billion. Barca’s ..read more

MANCHESTER United have been busy in the transfer market, signing 18 year-old French central defender Leny Yoro from Lille for € 62 million. He has joined on a five-year contract. Yoro played 32 Ligue 1 games last season and played 60 games in his time with Lille. He has been capped at under-21 level for France. Yoro’s arrival comes shortly after United acquired striker Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna for the equivalent of £ 36 million. Zirkzee scored 14 goals in 58 games over the last two seasons for the Italian club. He has been capped twice for the Netherlands and made his international debut in ..read more

MEXICO’s position as CONCACAF’s prominent nation is under threat. The displays of El Tri at the recent Copa America – in a group that included Ecuador, Venezuela and Jamaica – were below expectations and resulted in them flying home early. With the 2026 World Cup, in which Mexico is a co-host, just two years away, the need to build a competitive team to avoid humiliation on home soil is of paramount importance. Currently ranked 15th by FIFA, Mexico will be kicking themselves for failing to take advantage of a clear opportunity in the Copa America, their first since 2016. Their d ..read more

GARETH Southgate, as expected, has resigned as England manager, just 48 hours after his team lost the 2024 European Championship final. Southgate had his critics, but nobody can deny that he improved the reputation and image of the England team. Two finals, one semi and a quarter represents the most consistent performance by any England side but sadly, they failed to deliver at the crucial stage of major competitions. So, who next? For the next few weeks, everyone will be playing a game of “predict the manager”, with names like Eddie Howe, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard, Jürgen Klopp and under-2 ..read more

ALMOST annually, there seems to be a major football event that experiences issues around crowd control. Hordes of football supporters in transit are a problem even when they are well behaved, not always because of their actions, but because vast crowds represent an organic body that is difficult to manage. Since the pandemic, many people are nervous about crowds – being among them, seeing them move through towns and cities, and joining them to gain entry to an event. The traffic of human beings is one of the great debates of our time; whether it be refugees, migrants or travellers of no fixed ..read more

FOLLOWING England’s 2-1 European Championship final defeat, news reports suggest that the Football Association wants coach Gareth Southgate to remain in charge of the national team. This can be interpreted in several ways, but it does imply that the FA are wholly satisfied with the performance of England and Southgate. But does it also create the impression that the FA is rather weak by pushing the decision in the hands of the coach. Is this because they fear making a choice that heaps criticism upon them? Or is it they rate Southgate so highly they feel beholden to him? Perhaps this is shapin ..read more