Soccer

12:10 PM ET Are you ready for some fussball? The 2020-21 German Bundesliga season kicks off on Friday with serial champions (and winners of the last eight titles) Bayern Munich hosting Schalke — watch live in U.S., 2.30 p.m. ET, ESPN — and with that, plenty of anticipation for what promises to be an exceptional

3:53 AM ET Manchester United transfer news features in this week’s ESPN’s Insider Notebook. Plus: Why Arsenal fans had to wait so long for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s contract renewal. Jump to: Arsenal fans’ wait for Aubameyang | Real Madrid plot project Mbappe | Suarez rejected record MLS payday | La Liga’s football gaffe a pain for

9:18 AM ET It’s another leap into the unknown for Andrea Pirlo and for Juventus, who are entrusting their mega-investment in Cristiano Ronaldo — $375 million over four years in wages and transfer fee — and their perennial hunt for the Champions League to a new manager who, until last month, had coached zero minutes

3:27 AM ET Rob DawsonCorrespondent It has been anything but a summer of fun for Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Add up captain Harry Maguire getting arrested in Greece, Paul Pogba contracting the coronavirus, Mason Greenwood breaking COVID-19 regulations on England duty and being sent home, the failure to sign Jason Sancho and defeat

4:52 AM ET Liverpool are ready to fend off rival interest from Manchester United by stepping up their efforts to sign Bayern Munich star Thiago Alcantara after contacting the Champions League winners over a £27 million move for the midfielder, sources have told ESPN. Jurgen Klopp has been determined to add the former Barcelona player

3:42 PM ET French football authorities have opened an investigation into Neymar’s claims of racist abuse during a contentious loss to Marseille on Sunday and banned him two matches for fighting in that same game. – Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only) The Paris Saint-Germain star was sent off after a fight broke

10:10 AM ET Timo Werner has said he made the right decision to choose Chelsea over Liverpool as the two clubs prepare to face each other in the Premier League this weekend. Werner, 24, moved to Stamford Bridge this summer in a deal worth £47.6 million after months of speculation linking Werner with a move

3:38 AM ET Jose Mourinho has sanctioned Tottenham‘s attempt to re-sign Gareth Bale, despite being warned by former Real Madrid associates that the 31-year-old will struggle to meet expectations in the Premier League, sources have told ESPN. As reported by ESPN on Tuesday, Spurs have moved ahead of Manchester United in the race to sign

3:59 PM ET This weekend will see the start of the 2020-21 Bundesliga season and with that, a green light to start allowing fans back into the stadiums — home fans only, with plenty of caveats and regulations — for the first time since the initial shutdown in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. –

3:00 AM ET Generally speaking, German football is a reliable mirror of the most efficient and effective style of the day, which has meant a lot of different things through the years. In the 1970s, it meant building from the back and playing an approximation of Netherlands’ Total Football, only with a bit more physicality

1:51 PM ET Jeff Carlisle Close U.S. soccer correspondent Jeff Carlisle covers MLS and the U.S. national team for ESPN FC. Austin Lindberg We’ve enjoyed another week of frantic MLS action in a wildly condensed schedule, and another week in which Caleb Porter’s Columbus Crew demonstrate that they are the class of the league. Further

6:50 PM ET The subtext to Chelsea‘s £220 million summer spending spree is Frank Lampard’s judgement that many of his existing squad were not at the required level. Lampard will be satisfied the Blues started their much-anticipated Premier League campaign with a 3-1 win at Brighton, but if anything the players who have been asked

1:14 PM ET The Premier League is back! So is La Liga in Spain! And there were fireworks in France as Ligue 1 rivals clashed. It’s Monday, and Gab Marcotti reacts to the biggest moments in the sport of football from the past week. Jump to: Liverpool shouldn’t panic yet | Unpacking PSG-Marseille brawl |

7:15 PM ET Danny Lewis The coronavirus pandemic has made the transfer market uncertain — and you can find out when the windows open and close here — but here are the rumours floating around Europe’s big leagues and beyond. Plus, check out all the latest major completed transfers across Europe. Perisic among Man United’s

2:43 PM ET Tottenham and Everton were only separated by Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s 55th-minute goal at the Tottenham Stadium, but the game, which finished 1-0 to the visitors, suggested there is a bigger gulf in their respective searches for identity and improvement, and that should trouble home manager Jose Mourinho. The new Premier League campaign began

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12:35 AM ET Diego Rubio scored his first two goals of the season to fuel the Colorado Rapids to a 5-0 victory over Real Salt Lake in Sandy, Utah, on Saturday night. This marked the first win for Colorado in three meetings with their Rocky Mountain Cup rival this season. It also snapped a seven-game

4:33 PM ET LIVERPOOL, England — There are two ways to assess Liverpool‘s 4-3 victory against Leeds United on the opening day of the 2020-21 Premier League season. It was either a sensational showcase of everything that makes the Premier League the most box office competition in world football, or it was a game in