Soccer

2:05 PM ET Destiny is calling for Romelu Lukaku. The 28-year-old has completed a sensational return to Chelsea from Internazionale in a deal that fell just short of breaking the British transfer record for the second time in as many weeks, after Manchester City‘s £100 million signing of Jack Grealish. The financial effects of COVID-19

4:14 PM ET The Premier League, Bundesliga and LaLiga kick off this coming weekend, with Serie A starting on August 21. Ligue 1 is already in action, though the real show there has yet to begin (more on that later). – ESPN+ viewers’ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more Everywhere you look in Europe,

2:45 PM ET PARIS, France — Seb and Ben had been waiting since 5 a.m. They were the first ones to arrive, and the two hardcore Paris Saint-Germain fans, who have had season tickets for years, had an idea to kill two birds with one stone on the greatest day of their lives, as they

12:28 PM ET Sam Marsden Julien Laurens On Monday, Lionel Messi sat at his home in Castelldefels, a beach town in the Barcelona suburbs, waiting for his move to Paris Saint-Germain to develop. It was revealed last Thursday that he could not return to Barcelona — negotiations had been ongoing with the French club since

5:00 AM ET Lionel Messi spoke at his first news conference as a Paris Saint-Germain player on Wednesday and said after a “very hard” end to his Barcelona career, his target is to win the Champions League again. PSG announced Messi’s arrival on Tuesday with the former Barcelona player signing a two-year contract, with the

4:49 PM ET ESPN staff Lionel Messi‘s move to Paris Saint-Germain is complete, and it happened in a style befitting of his status as the world’s best player. Private jets. Crowded streets. Fans massing at the stadium. An elaborate reveal. – ESPN+ viewers’ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more– Stream ESPN FC Daily on

4:18 PM ET Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed the signing of Lionel Messi after the Argentina captain left Barcelona on a free transfer. Messi has signed a two-year contract with the Ligue 1 side, with the option of extending for a further year. – Messi’s tearful farewell on Barcelona’s day like no other– The definitive timeline

6:53 AM ET Sam Marsden Julien Laurens Lionel Messi is flying to Paris on Tuesday to finalise his move to Paris Saint-Germain, sources have told ESPN. The Argentina international is travelling to the French capital following Sunday’s emotional farewell to Barcelona at a news conference. Sources added that Messi has signed a two-year contract at

3:51 PM ET There has never, in the chequered history of Spanish football, been a prologue to a season like this one. Whether the next nine months of LaLiga — watch LIVE all season long on ESPN+ (U.S. only) — can produce drama that lives up to the last handful of weeks, I swear I

4:26 PM ET Euro 2020 ended barely five weeks ago, Copa America barely four. Hell, the Olympics ended last week, and now the new European club season is already here. Ligue 1 is already underway, and the rest of Europe’s Big Five leagues (German Bundesliga, English Premier League, Spanish LaLiga, Italian Serie A) will begin

7:51 PM ET Danny Lewis The summer transfer window is into its final month for the major European leagues, which means the biggest clubs are looking to make a splash in the market before the new season begins. Check out the latest gossip below, and see all official deals here. TOP STORY: Where to now

6:00 PM ET ESPN Facebook Twitter Facebook Messenger Pinterest Email From a tearful Lionel Messi bidding farewell to the only club he has ever known, to an emotional atmosphere at the annual Joan Gamper trophy clash — which just happened to be against Messi’s great rival Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus! — this was a day

9:25 AM ET Tottenham are pushing to complete a move for Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez after indicating they are willing to meet the club’s €71 million valuation, sources have told ESPN. Spurs and Arsenal are among the clubs tracking Martinez in hope of securing a deal with Inter, who are under pressure to offload

6:25 AM ET A tearful Lionel Messi has said his next move is not confirmed but he is talking about a lot of things, amid speculation he is set to join Paris Saint-Germain after leaving Barcelona. Barca announced on Thursday that Messi, a free agent since his contract expired in June, will not rejoin the

10:15 AM ET Caitlin Murray The U.S. women’s national team will leave the Tokyo Olympics with a bronze medal in hand, and a final performance that looked a bit more like what we all expected to see from the No. 1-ranked team in the world. The bronze medal game was the first in Japan in

3:53 PM ET LONDON — At the end of a week in which Manchester City broke the Premier League transfer record by making Jack Grealish England’s first £100 million player, Leicester City‘s 1-0 Community Shield victory over the champions at Wembley showed they may need to spend even more on Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane

10:05 AM ET Brazil needed an extra-time winner from Malcom to claim Olympic gold with a 2-1 win over Spain on Saturday. The game headed into extra-time when Mikel Oyarzabal ruled out Matheus Cunha‘s opener but former Barcelona man Malcom scored after 109 minutes to seal the win for Brazil. – Men’s Olympics soccer bracket

2:59 PM ET In a press conference on Friday, Barcelona president Joan Laporta reiterated what the club had announced on their website Thursday: after 21 years, Lionel Messi would not be returning to the club. You can read about the background here, but Laporta doubled down on blaming LaLiga’s financial restrictions and the disastrous finances