The Guardian

The competition returned after the international break as the reigning champions put on a devastating display and Italy looked for its next savior Famous faces in the crowd for English teams’ home matches on Wednesday. While Prince William delighted in his beloved Aston Villa’s 6-0 romp over Fenerbahce , Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City homecoming was spoiled by Paris Saint-Germain showing they st…

Kalyn Ponga stars for New Zealand but Australia edge Sydney clash as tournament promises fireworks on the pitch as well as off Under new rules introduced for this World Cup, nation-swapping is not only possible, it is virtually encouraged. And like the cheeseburger spring rolls at Allianz Stadium on Thursday night, it’s a culture clash that delights as many people as it offends. But based on the …

Luis Enrique admits ‘luck was on our side’ in 4-2 win Maresca denies players were affected by guilty verdicts Enzo Maresca felt Manchester City proved they were close to the level of Paris Saint-Germain after losing out to them in a Champions League thriller at the Etihad Stadium. City trailed 3-0 at half-time against the defending champions and the damage might have been heavier. But they threw …

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning , Nick Ames and Nicky Bandini as PSG thrash Manchester City in their first home game since the Premier League’s guilty verdict Continue reading...

A famous name and record attendances have given FCK a platform but a difficult start in Denmark’s top-flight shows success on the pitch is not guaranteed On an August day in 2024, 5,165 fans gathered at Vanløse Idrætspark to watch FC Copenhagen (FCK) take on B73 Slagelse in their first league match. For Denmark’s most successful men’s club, with 16 league titles, it marked the realisation of thei…

Expenditure rises to £564,000 in 2025-26 season Cost of hosting FA Council meetings also almost doubles The Football Association spent 25% more on Wembley hospitality and freebies for FA Council members last season, the Guardian can reveal. Latest accounts show expenditure on tickets and hospitality rose from £452,300 in the 2024-25 season to £564,400 in 2025-26. While fans across the country hav…

Mourinho’s side score three late goals from 3-1 deficit Dortmund latest team beaten in Norway by Bodø/Glimt José Mourinho enjoyed a Roma reunion to remember as Real Madrid completed an astonishing comeback by scoring three late goals to claim a 4-3 away win in the Champions League on Wednesday. Marten de Roon gave the hosts a deserved opener before Kylian Mbappé struck back on his 100th Champions…

Former England manager last went to game in May 2025 He says he got only brief enjoyment from wins by the end Gareth Southgate has all but ruled out a return to Premier League management and revealed he “didn’t even enjoy the wins” for more than a couple of minutes towards the end of his time in charge of England. Southgate, who has moved away from football since stepping down as the manager of t…

Fifa president hoping to be re-elected in March Opponent may declare hand at last minute European football leaders are increasingly confident they will find a candidate to stand against Gianni Infantino in next year’s Fifa presidential election. One European football association head told the Guardian they were “positive” that Infantino will face an opponent in March, a sentiment echoed by senior…

With the season approaching its climax, we look at the players who have perfected the art of smack talking through the years Today, even the most casual of WNBA fans have watched some of the league’s biggest stars talking trash on the court. But while the snarling convos look heated, most of the time, they are good-natured, competitive fun. Still, we wondered, who are the best trash talkers in th…

‘Miro’, now in charge at Nürnberg, knows the value of consistency and identity in an era of tinkering coaches who did not play professionally You learn the most from the best. The Champions League winners are Paris Saint-Germain, and they could achieve a historic hat-trick this season. Since the tournament’s rebrand in 1992, they would be only the second club to accomplish this feat, after Real M…

Defender may not be blameless in team’s struggles but his criticism goes to the heart of what has gone wrong at the club Heartbreaking: the worst defender you know just made a great point. And no, nobody would describe Lisandro Martínez as the ideal person to scrutinise Manchester United’s indifferent start to the season , given that his high-profile defensive errors against Fulham and Tottenham …

Declan Meredith plays with Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson out New Zealand make three changes to starting XV for Sydney clash Australia coach Les Kiss has named Declan Meredith as starting flyhalf and uncapped playmaker Harry McLaughlin-Phillips ⁠as back-up for Saturday’s second Bledisloe Cup Test against New Zealand in Sydney. Kiss suffered the first defeat of his reign ⁠as coach in the ⁠thumpin…

This is by far the most interesting this club have ever been and they faced PSG, a kind of twin entity in all this as oil state glove puppets Another day, another note of unreality; another vivid and brilliant spectacle that feels as though it has been whipped together out of meringue and burnt sugar. Time flies when the world is closing in. Two weeks on, this was Manchester City’s first home gam…

It may be a bit early for the pantomime season but the Holte End enjoyed acclaiming their heroes and villains as Aston Villa won at home for the first time this season in some style with their biggest European victory. Every touch for Mason Greenwood, playing his first game in England in nearly five years, was booed, but even louder applause was reserved however for Aston Villa’s new-look attack.…