Ahead of the 20th MLS season, which starts on Friday, we take a look at the issues set to dominate the discussion.
Major League Soccer resumes on Friday when champions LA Galaxy face Chicago Fire at the StubHub Center, although the first game of their defence is far from the only talking point surrounding the competition s restart.
With former England internationals Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard set to join World Cup winners Kaka and David Villa in MLS along with two new clubs, there are plenty of things to watch out for.
A new Galaxy
Bruce Arena s LA Galaxy side begin their quest to defend the MLS Cup on Friday, but will do so without one of their key figures from recent years Landon Donovan who retired after helping to lift the title and later…
Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman insisted that travel delays experienced by his team will not affect them ahead of their Euro 2024 semi-final with England on Tuesday.
The Netherlands were due to travel from their tournament training base in Wolfsburg to Dortmund, but those plans were disrupted by a blockage on the route that caused their service to be cancelled.
Instead, Koeman and his squad flew to Dortmund, arriving at their hotel on Tuesday evening.
It was not a problem, we had a good rest this afternoon, we were on the plane for just 30 minutes, arrived at our hotel and we can have a good rest tonight,” Koeman said in an interview with UEFA after his scheduled pre-match press conference had to be cancelled because of the delay.
See you tomorro…
With a new year upon us, it s only natural to look ahead at the next 12 months and the footballers who could enjoy breakthroughs at the top level.
From one player who bears a striking resemblance to Diego Maradona, to another hoping to follow in the footsteps of Erling Haaland, Stats Perform has identified eight youngsters who could be worth keeping an eye on in 2023.
Gavin Bazunu – goalkeeper, 20, Southampton
It s been a difficult introduction to the Premier League for Bazunu. The Republic of Ireland international joined from Manchester City at the end of last season for a reported £12million, highlighting just how highly rated he is in the game.
But his 30 goals conceded (excluding own goals) have come from 21.3 expected goals on target (xGOT), which…
Manchester City were the highest earners in last season s Champions League, as UEFA confirmed record funds paid out to participants.
The Premier League leaders progressed to the semi-finals of the competition for the first time in 2015-16, where they fell 1-0 on aggregate to eventual winners Real Madrid.
But City earned a total of €83.8m from their Champions League participation, €3.8m more than Madrid, as UEFA shared more than €1.345billion between the 32 clubs that took part last term and the 10 knocked out in the play-off round – an increase in excess of €315m on the previous season.
Each club was entitled to a minimum payment for taking part in the Champions League after the 20 teams to contest the play-off phase shared €50m. Performance bonuses f…
It has been 10 years since Barcelona seemingly changed European football forever with a stunning 2-0 Champions League final win over holders Manchester United.
Samuel Eto o opened the scoring early on and Lionel Messi s 70th-minute header clinched a second Blaugrana triumph in four seasons.
This side were very different to the 2005-06 vintage, though, with new coach Pep Guardiola dictating an incredible passing style that quickly became the envy of their rivals.
They get you on that carousel and can leave you dizzy.
That was Alex Ferguson s description of Barca s approach and here we take a look at the 11 starters who subjected United to that punishment in Rome part of a historic treble.
VICTOR VALDES
Goalkeeper Valdes was per…
It looked like another lost season for the San Francisco 49ers and then Monday Night Football happened. A dominant 31-10 victory over their division-rival L.A. Rams has given them a glimmer of hope. They now face a Jacksonville Jaguars team who are steadily improving despite sitting on a 2-7 record.
Do Sunday right by reading our NFL picks and predictions for the San Francisco 49ers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars.
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The NFL season rolls on, as Week 3 brings us an assortment of big games, featuring the Bengals in a must-win game (against the Jets?!?), Patrick Mahomes against the Chiefs, Aaron Rodgers vs. Tom Brady.
Our two featured games for Week 3 odds include the most lopsided tickets and betting handles, as punters are hammering two certain teams in the early slate.
Additionally, make sure to check out our free NFL betting picks before you lay some action.
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We got the teaser train back on the tracks in Week 2 with the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers taking care of business, bringing the season’s teaser record to 1-1. We’ll look to get in the black in Week 3, with a handful of strong teaser options to choose from.
Once again, my weekly reminder as to how this article works: I rank my five favorite teaser legs of the week, and the top two represent my official teaser bet. I follow the basic teaser strategy of crossing as many key numbers as possible while never teasing through zero.
Let’s get into the Week 3 teaser action with my NFL picks! And be sure to check out our NFL Week 3 predictions for even more analysis ahead of kick off.
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It’s shaping up to be a soggy set of NFL Week 13 odds, with rain in the forecast for several outdoor games.
But don’t just throw on the raincoat and blindly bet the Under in your NFL picks for those wet Week 13 matchups.
The Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles were drenched to the bone last Sunday and finished with 62 points in regulation, which blew the total out of the water before a thrilling overtime finish.
I investigate the extended forecasts for this week’s schedule and highlight how wind, rain, and maybe snow could impact the NFL odds and outcomes.
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It was supposed to be a match made in heaven when the Denver Broncos acquired Russell Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a pirate’s ransom.
What transpired was two awful seasons — 11 wins in total — and Wilson being a healthy scratch for his team’s final two games of 2023-24, even though the Broncos had a sliver of hope to make the playoffs going into Week 17.
Fast forward to March 4, and the Broncos have officially released Wilson.
NFL odds have hit the board for Wilson’s next team. The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves as the frontrunners, but is there a team offering better value out there? Let’s start digging into the market.
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