The Guardian

Maja Göthberg lost contract after disclosing pregnancy First successful Cas case under Fifa maternity regulations Lazio Women unlawfully ended the Swedish footballer Maja Göthberg’s time at the club because of her pregnancy, the court of arbitration for sport (Cas) has ruled, ordering the Italian club to pay compensation. The landmark case revolved around Fifa’s maternity regulations, which were …

Debate is raging back home about whether Neymar, Casemiro, Endrick – and others – should be in the World Cup team against the Tartan Army The big stars have turned up for the 2026 World Cup. Lamine Yamal returned to the Spain team to help them thump Saudi Arabia. Lionel Messi is the tournament’s top scorer, giving Argentina hope of pinning “ la cuarta estrella ” to their shirts. And Kylian Mbappé…

Teenage sensation to abide by safeguarding rules T20 series begins in Durham next Wednesday India’s teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be required to use his own changing room for safeguarding reasons on his first international tour in England this summer. The 15-year-old is expected to make history by becoming India’s youngest international cricketer on Friday in a T20 international aga…

Canny seamers such as Matt Henry are thriving from the pressure that having a keeper right behind the stumps can apply on batters They say the best wicketkeeping performance is the one you don’t notice. But that’s not entirely true. Take Tom Blundell’s masterclass at the Oval this past week. Standing up to the stumps against New Zealand’s opening bowler Matt Henry, the Black Caps gloveman was imp…

Alex Freeman has impressed from right-back while Eli Just is catching the eye with his body swerves and goal threat It is not difficult to see why this old head on young shoulders is destined for a big career. In a Morocco team conditioned to play first-time passes, he sets the tone with his instant decisions. Bouaddi is in essence the deepest of the midfield three and he not only plays quickly b…

With the group stage hurtling towards its end we look at who needs what to make the knockout phase Teams level on points are separated, in order, by head-to-head points; head-to-head goal difference; head-to-head goals scored; overall goal difference; overall goals scored; disciplinary points; Fifa ranking. Continue reading...

For years the United States sought a single soccer identity. Instead, its best team emerged from a patchwork of backgrounds, cultures and development paths In 1993, the United States Soccer Federation handed a contract to Rinus Michels. But the Dutch godfather of Total Football, operationalized through his on-field avatar Johan Cruyff, was not hired to coach the national team, or to coach anybody…

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning , Lars Sivertsen , Mark Langdon and Jacob Steinberg as England fail to break down Ghana Continue reading...

⚽ All the latest news on a day packed with six matches ⚽ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Mail Daniel This “I’m back” situation, though; it’ll take more than bagging a brace against Uzbekistan for that to be so. Roberto Martínez has options, too. He could play a wide player up front – Pedro Neto has done it for Chelsea – or Goncalo Ramos, who’s a striker. Continue reading...

Plus: is Dick Advocaat unique among coaches, long waits between World Cups and Dave Beasant revisionism Mail us with your all of your questions and answers “Sweden’s Yasin Ayari has a Tunisian father and chose not to celebrate his first goal against Tunisia (he couldn’t resist celebrating when he scored later, though). Declan Rice did something similar after scoring against the Republic of Irelan…

BYU freshman tops draft after scoring spree Wizards land first No 1 pick since Wall Dybantsa joins rebuilding Washington AJ Dybantsa is on his way to Washington and ready to start working as soon as he gets there. That’s not until Wednesday. Tuesday was a night for the NBA‘s No 1 draft pick to party. Continue reading...

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! In 10 of the past 12 World Cups, six goals has been the standard to bag yourself the Golden Boot. Usually a goal per game will suffice. In fact, on two occasions (in 2006 and 2010) a mere five strikes has been enough. Yet a quick glance at the current 2026 Geopolitics World Cup Golden Boot standings after most teams have played two games sees Li…

41-year-old heavily criticised after DR Congo draw ‘It felt like I’d already retired from football,’ he adds Cristiano Ronaldo savoured the end of a “difficult, dark week” after scoring twice in Portugal’s 5-0 rout of Uzbekistan and becoming the first player to find the net in six World Cups. Ronaldo and Portugal had come under heavy criticism after a flat draw against Democratic Republic of the …