The Guardian

France’s captain has played with a sense of unfinished business but he will be 31 when the next World Cup begins It was only last month that Kylian Mbappé suggested all roads may lead to Florida. He was in sufficiently mischievous mood to reveal David Beckham had been chewing his ear off about a move to Major League Soccer, dangling the prospect of a reunion with Lionel Messi at Inter Miami. “We …

Luis de la Fuente’s final-bound team have been fuelled by togetherness and a commitment to each other that goes back a long way On the way out of the dressing room in Arlington, Luis de la Fuente gathered his “family” and delivered one last message before the World Cup semi-final against France . He had long known what he was going to say, if not exactly how – it’s what he has been saying for 50 …

Broadcasters expect to have time to analyse the game Channels planning for break to last 25 to 30 minutes ITV and BBC are planning to screen Fifa’s controversial half-time show in full from Sunday’s final at the New York New Jersey Stadium, but remain in the dark over how long it will last. The Guardian revealed last month that there were concerns among broadcasters at the length of the half-time…

Plus: back-to-back heavy wins and defeats, and an unsurprising challenger to a Lionel Messi record Mail us with your all of your questions and answers “The top four teams in the Fifa rankings are also the four semi-finalists at the World Cup,” writes Henry Conroy. “Has this happened before?” The men’s rankings have updated after every match of the World Cup, and Fifa surely missed a trick by not …

Fee for forward could be as high as £850,000 The 26-year-old has one year remaining on contract Chelsea are closing in on a deal to sign the France forward Melvine Malard from Manchester United for a fee that would be a club-record sale. It is understood the transfer fee could be as high as approximately £850,000, although some sources have suggested the deal will be closer to £750,000. The discu…

England World Cup winner died in 2020 but his death was never reported by authorities to the coroner’s office England World Cup winner Nobby Stiles died with a brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, a coroner has ruled. Stiles, a tenacious, tough-tackling midfielder described by Geoff Hurst as the “heart and soul” of the 1966 World Cup-winning team , died in 2020 but his death w…

⚽ Kick-off in Atlanta is 3pm EST/8pm BST/5am AEST ⚽ Golden Boot | Player guide | And get Football Daily Wednesday night, Atlanta Stadium, 101 games down, three left to play, and finally it makes sense. Bring on The Countdown, that moment just before kick-off in every one of those quietly fascinating World Cup matches where suddenly the world’s most excited man is bellowing over the PA system in a…

Alaphilippe gets in breakaway before being reeled in Pidcock’s rollercoaster ride continues on return to Tour The records keep tumbling in the Tour de France. After race leader Tadej Pogacar shattered the record for the fastest climb of the Col du Tourmalet, Norwegian sprinter Søren Wærenskjold won the fastest-ever road stage, in a frenzied sprint into Nevers. The Uno-X Mobility rider took the 11…

West Ham winger available for right price after relegation Rashford has two years remaining on United contract Manchester United will target Crysencio Summerville should Marcus Rashford leave this summer, with the West Ham winger’s potential fee around £30m. Summerville is viewed as having the right profile in regards to a left-sided forward to replace the England international. After West Ham’s …

Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Fitzpatrick and others seek first home win in England since Tony Jacklin in 1969 The last time an English golfer won the Open Championship in England, Harold Wilson was the prime minister, the Beatles and Elvis Presley were around the top of the charts and Neil Armstrong was still eight days away from becoming the first man to walk on the moon. Incredibly you have to go all …

Victoria’s rural-urban drift has forced mortal sporting enemies to join forces in Ouyen, diluting proud identities in the gradual contraction of rural football Norm Vallance is having a day out at Ouyen’s Blackburn Park in north-west Victoria during Heritage Round – held every season to honour one of the clubs in Ouyen United’s creation story. The 101-year-old moves through the crowd, resplendent…

Fifa did not appear before court in Frankfurt Governing body receives 15% commission from buyer and seller Fifa has been hit with an injunction by a German court ordering it to stop “manipulative processes” in the sale of World Cup tickets. The Frankfurt regional court has granted a request for a preliminary injunction from Ticombo, an online ticket resale site based in Germany, which has instruc…

ICC reveals shape of expanded 2027 14-team tournament Only one of three lowest-ranked teams would advance The men’s Cricket World Cup will undergo yet another revamp when it takes place in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia next year. A convoluted 14-team format has been officially confirmed by the International Cricket Council (ICC), albeit one that trims the competing nations to 12 almost immed…

Many are in awe of the investment that Michele Kang is making into the women’s game. Others, though, are baffled There is one team whose transfer activity this summer has captured everyone’s attention. London City Lionesses, a club who finished in the bottom half of the second tier a little over two years ago, have stunned the women’s game by signing a flurry of big names, including the Spain sta…

An unlikely match ‘like a World Cup final’ was for some first proof of Yorkshire immigrant community’s love of cricket On 30 June 1986 the Yorkshire Post printed an invitation to a pre-match reception at the Majestic hotel. “Meet cricket club celebrities,” the invite read. “Auction, £10 (including buffet) .” But these were not just any old cricket celebrities, this was India and Pakistan, led by …