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Tag: Soccer

  • Fans watch as Barcelona trains for first time at remodeled Camp Nou

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    BARCELONA, Spain — More than 20,000 Barcelona fans filled a part of the modernized Camp Nou stadium on Friday to watch the team practice there for the first time since it was closed for a major facelift over two years ago.

    Fans cheered as Lamine Yamal and teammates ran onto the field.

    Club president Joan Laporta said this week he hopes to have games at the stadium later this month. Barcelona last played at Camp Nou in May 2023.

    But it was also clear how much work is still left to be done before the new Camp Nou is entirely finished. The entire upper deck appears mostly a skeleton without any seats and massive cranes loomed overhead.

    Outside, the buzz among the excited fans made it feel like it was a matchday. Inside, people wearing Barça shirts sang songs and chanted for the players who kicked balls around on the bright green grass.

    Barcelona said it sold out the 23,000 tickets it had put on sale to witness the training session. They cost 5 euros ($6) for club members and 10 euros ($12) for the general public.

    Work began on upgrading Camp Nou in June 2023 to expand capacity in Europe’s largest soccer venue from just under 100,000 to 105,000.

    The highly indebted club secured 1.45 billion euros (then $1.6 billion) from multiple investors to undertake the remodeling project.

    Barcelona had originally planned to be back playing games at Camp Nou as early as November 2024 to coincide with the club’s 125th anniversary, but that deadline has been repeatedly pushed back. The team has played at the municipally owned 55,000-seat Olympic Stadium since the start of the 2023-24 season.

    Another delay this summer led to the club having to scramble and hold a Spanish league game at its 6,000-seat stadium located on its training grounds on the outskirts of the city in September.

    Hansi Flick’s side was practicing for Sunday’s La Liga game at Celta Vigo.

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • Infantino says ‘you will see’ at World Cup draw if Trump receives new FIFA peace prize

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    MIAMI (AP) — FIFA has announced the creation of a peace prize, which it plans to award for the first time at the draw for the World Cup on Dec. 5 in Washington.

    The award, called the FIFA Peace Prize, will “recognize exceptional actions for peace,” soccer’s governing body said Wednesday. But FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who has a close relationship with President Donald Trump, would not tip his hand Wednesday when asked if Trump will be the first recipient of the award.

    “On the 5th of December, you will see,” Infantino said. He was speaking at the America Business Forum in Miami, shortly after Trump addressed the same event.

    Infantino said earlier Wednesday that, “in an increasingly unsettled and divided world, it’s fundamental to recognize the outstanding contribution of those who work hard to end conflicts and bring people together in a spirit of peace.” FIFA said the award, which Infantino will present this year, will be bestowed annually “on behalf of fans from all around the world.”

    Trump was passed over for the Nobel Peace Prize last month despite lobbying from fellow Republicans, various world leaders and himself. And Infantino made no secret of the ties between himself, FIFA and Trump in his remarks Wednesday.

    “I’m really lucky. I have a great relationship with President Trump, who I consider really a close friend,” Infantino said. “Of course, he’s been very, very helpful in everything we do for the World Cup. … He has such an incredible energy and this is something that I really admire. He does things. He does what he says. He says what he thinks. He says, actually, what many people think as well, but maybe don’t dare to say. And that’s why he’s so successful.”

    FIFA recently added another link to Trump by appointing his daughter Ivanka to the board of a $100 million education project part-funded by 2026 World Cup ticket sales.

    The World Cup draw, and the awarding of the peace prize, is expected to draw about 1 billion viewers worldwide, Infantino said.

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • FIFA co-workers break Guinness World Record for most multinational soccer game

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    SALE, Morocco — FIFA staff have set a new Guinness World Record by bringing together players from the greatest number of nationalities ever to share the same field.

    The match on Wednesday, organized in Morocco, featured 69 FIFA employees from as many countries, each taking the field and playing for at least 10 minutes.

    Players said the game — which included a carousel of substitutions — captured the spirit of soccer, that it belongs to everyone everywhere. FIFA has more than 200 countries as members and distributes funds to federations throughout the world.

    “At the heart of it is the fact that we recognized we could do something that celebrates our diversity,” said Solomon Mudege, a Zimbabwe native who heads FIFA’s Development Programs for Africa.

    Men and women rotated steadily on and off the field, ensuring the game met the criteria for inclusion. Passports from across the globe lined the referee table, underscoring the organizers’ message that the world’s most popular sport knows no borders.

    The record beats the previous mark set in 2019 by the UK-based group Equal Playing Field.

    The match took place in Rabat, where FIFA is establishing a new regional hub ahead of the 2030 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Morocco has already built or renovated several stadiums and is expanding its transportation networks, hotels and other infrastructure as it gears up for the tournament.

    “Football involves the entire world,” said Fatou Camara, a Mali native working as development manager in FIFA’s Africa office.

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  • National Women’s Soccer League defends athlete who failed genetic sex test as players clash over gender rules

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    The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) put out a statement Tuesday addressing a sudden controversy involving a player who previously failed a genetic test. 

    The statement defended Orlando Pride striker Barbra Banda, who was ruled ineligible to compete for Zambia in a 2022 World Cup-qualifying tournament after a test revealed Banda’s natural testosterone levels were above those allowed by the Confederation of African Football.

    The statement also comes after Angel City FC’s Elizabeth Eddy published a New York Post op-ed last week calling for the NWSL to adopt a stricter gender eligibility policy. 

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    Barbra Banda of Zambia celebrates after scoring the team’s second goal from the penalty spot during the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 Group C match between Costa Rica and Zambia at Waikato Stadium on July 31, 2023, in Hamilton, New Zealand.  (Hannah Peters – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

    “Barbra Banda is a top player in the NWSL. Barbra’s selection to the FIFPRO World XI, a distinction voted on exclusively by her peers from across the global game, is a testament to her extraordinary talent, relentless work ethic, and impact on our sports and league,” the statement said. 

    “Her contributions to the Orlando Pride and NWSL have been transformative. Any harassment or hateful attacks toward Barbra are unacceptable and have no place in our sport, league or communities. We stand unequivocally with Barbra and with every NWSL player.” 

    Meanwhile, the Orlando Pride put out a similar statement in defense of Banda at around the same time as the NWSL’s on Tuesday. 

    “Barbra Banda is a superb teammate, player and role model, and we are proud that she represents the Orlando Pride, our fans and our community. Both in Orlando and on the national stage, Barbra continues to shine, including most recently being named to her second-consecutive FIFPRO World 11, an award exclusively selected by her fellow peers across the globe,” the team said. 

    “We look forward to continuing to celebrate Barbra and her future accolades, and to supporting her journey as one of the many incredible athletes in our league.” 

    US OLYMPIAN OPENS UP ON LEADING LAWSUIT AGAINST GOVERNING BODY OVER TRANS ATHLETES IN WOMEN’S COMPETITION

    The statements incited mixed responses on social media. 

    Eddy’s op-ed sparked debate among fans and even garnered rebuke from her teammates. 

    Eddy argued in the article that the NWSL “must adopt a clear standard,” adding that only players “born with ovaries” should be allowed to play, following the standard in the Women’s Super League in the United Kingdom, or the league should adopt an SRY gene test, like World Athletics and World Boxing.

    “Fairness and inclusion are core American values. Reasonable people can disagree about where to draw lines, but avoiding the conversation altogether by shutting out diverse views does not serve us. In fact, we owe it to current and future female athletes to solve this,” the 11-year veteran wrote.

    Eddy’s Angel City FC teammates, Sarah Gorden and Angelina Anderson, addressed the op-ed in a press conference over the weekend. 

    “That article does not speak for this team in this locker room. I’ve had a lot of (conversations) with my teammates in the past few days and they are hurt and they are harmed by the article, and also, they are disgusted by some of the things that were said in the article and it’s really important for me to say that,” Gorden said on Friday.

    “We don’t agree with the things written for a plethora of reasons, but mostly the undertones come across as transphobic and racist as well. The article calls for genetic testing on certain players and it has a photo of an African player as a headline. That’s very harmful, and to me, it’s inherently racist because to single out this community based on them looking or being different is absolutely a problem. As a mixed woman, with a Black family, I’m devastated by the undertones of this article.”

    Anderson talked about what she believed the club stood for.

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    NWSL player Barbra Banda

    Barbra Banda of Orlando Pride looks on during the NWSL match between Portland Thorns and Orlando Pride at Providence Park on May 3, 2025, in Portland, Oregon.  (Soobum Im/NWSL via Getty Images)

    “For me personally, when I think of LA, and I think of Angel City, I think of a place that was founded upon inclusivity and love for all people – that’s what our locker room is, that what our staff is, that’s what our fan base is. Angel City is a place for everyone. It always will be. That’s how it was from the beginning, that’s how it will always be. Period,” she said.

    “I think this situation, there’s an element of timing to it where this feels like another really big challenge that we have to go through as a team on top of an already really challenging year. And it’s definitely not the note that we as a group want to end on, and so I just want everyone to know that we’re doing our best in the locker room to preserve respect and belonging on this team and we look forward to ending the season on as positive of a note as possible.”

    Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

    Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

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  • North Carolina FC to cease operations after 2025 season; apply for membership in new top league

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    North Carolina FC, a men’s soccer team in the United Soccer League’s Championship division, won’t field a team for the next two seasons as it applies for membership in a new USL Division One league.

    And tries to build a new 15,000-seat stadium.

    NCFC plays at First Horizon Stadium at the WakeMed Soccer Park complex in Cary. Steve Malik is the chairman of NCFC. He is also chairman of the National Women’s Soccer League’s NC Courage.

    NCFC’s franchise agreement ends at the conclusion of the 2025 season. The club, seeded third, hosts No. 6 seed Rhode Island FC in the Eastern Conference semifinals on Saturday at 7 p.m.

    USL announced in February that the new Division One league would launch for the 2027-28 season. It would have promotion and relegation, standard features in European soccer, with its lesser leagues.

    The USL is not affiliated with Major League Soccer. Charlotte FC plays in the MLS.

    Franchises in Division One must have a stadium with a minimum capacity of 15,000, an ownership group with a combined net worth of at least $70 million for financial viability, according to U.S. Soccer. 

    First Horizon Stadium holds 10,000. In 2019, Malik and John Kane of Kane Realty proposed a $2-billion entertainment district development project in downtown Raleigh. The project, which became known as Downtown South, would have featured a 20,00-seat open air stadium and nearly $2 billion in private development. It has never been built.

    But Malik hasn’t given up on the project.

    “This is a deeply difficult decision, one that comes after extensive thought and consideration of the future of professional soccer in our community, which has proven itself a major league sports market,” Malik said in a statement released by the team. “I love North Carolina FC and have been incredibly proud to see this club succeed on the field and serve our community. I am as invested in this team emotionally as I am financially. 

    “Right now, it’s essential that we focus our immediate resources and energy on strengthening the foundation for professional soccer in Raleigh by continuing to invest in the Courage and resetting our men’s strategy for the future. With the right infrastructure in place, Raleigh can become a world-class home for the sport for years to come. 

    “To our NCFC players, staff, and fans, thank you. You have been the heart and soul of this club, and your passion, loyalty, and belief have made North Carolina FC something truly special. This is not goodbye, but a step toward building an even brighter future for the sport we all love.” 

    Louisville City FC and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC have also applied to join, while Detroit City FC and Sacramento Republic FC have plans to expand their stadium capacity to meet Decision One standards.

    A club representative will contact NCFC season ticket holders.

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  • Bend a knee like Beckham: Soccer star is knighted by King Charles III

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    LONDON — When it came time to receive his knighthood, soccer great David Beckham knew what to do. He bent his knee like, well, Beckham.

    King Charles III tapped his shoulders with the blade of a sword and “Becks” was transformed to Sir David Beckham.

    “This is without doubt my proudest moment,” Beckham said after Tuesday’s ceremony at Windsor Castle. “I’ve been very obviously lucky in my career to have won what I’ve won and done what I’ve done, but to receive an honor like this, of a knight, is beyond anything that I ever thought that I would receive.”

    The distinction marks the pinnacle of Beckham’s effort to rehabilitate his image following events that at times alienated him from fans during a long and distinguished career. He also has had a very public persona as a fashion model, husband to Victoria “Posh” Beckham of the Spice Girls and “Bend it Like Beckham” movie muse.

    The 50-year-old was knighted for his services to sport and charity, having partnered with UNICEF, the U.N.’s children’s fund, for two decades and campaigned with a charity working to eradicate malaria. He also played a pivotal role in London being awarded the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

    Nobel Prize-winning novelist Kazuo Ishiguro, author of “The Remains of the Day” who previously was knighted, was recognized in Tuesday’s ceremony as a Companion of Honor for literature. Renowned musicals singer and actor Elaine Paige was given a damehood, the female equivalent of a knighthood.

    Beckham is the only English soccer player to score at three different World Cups, and his career included the triple-winning campaign of 1999, when Manchester United won the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Champions League.

    With 115 appearances for the England national team, Beckham is third on the all-time list. He also captained the side on 59 occasions.

    After leaving Manchester United in 2003 — a move that devastated fans — Beckham played for Real Madrid, Los Angeles Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain. He now co-owns the Major League Soccer team Inter Miami.

    His career hit a low point at the 1998 World Cup in France, where Beckham was widely vilified for his petulant kick of Argentina player Diego Simeone, which saw him sent off and left the team short a player. Many fans blamed him for England’s exit.

    In 2023’s Netflix documentary series “Beckham,” he described the abuse he experienced, which included an effigy of him hanging from a noose outside a London pub.

    “I knew it was bad at the time, but going over that whole thing was quite a tough one,” he told The Associated Press at the time.

    Beckham’s knighthood was announced in June during the king’s birthday honors list. The awards, which are also given out at New Year’s, recognize contributions to British life.

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  • Champions League table shows rich elite on top ahead of PSG-Bayern and Liverpool-Real Madrid clashes

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    Europe’s top teams appear to have finally come to grips with the new-look Champions League.

    The standings look very different heading into the fourth round of games compared to one year ago, when the new 36-team format debuted and the results were less predictable.

    The top end of the table before Tuesday’s games is a list of unbeaten, high-earning teams led by Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, who meet Tuesday in the standout game at Parc des Princes.

    A second blockbuster — fifth-place Real Madrid at 10th-place Liverpool — also opens the door slightly for teams outside the big five leagues to catch up.

    The first team from outside the wealthy elite is Sporting Lisbon, which is tied for 11th place before going to Juventus. Qarabag in 13th is the highest-ranked genuine outsider in the competition and hosts Chelsea.

    Some storied teams struggled in their first go at the expanded eight-game format that provides a broader range of opponents.

    After three rounds last year, Aston Villa was atop the league standings after returning to the competition for the first time 41 years, and unheralded French club Brest was fifth. Neither qualified for this edition. Sporting held eighth place — which gets direct entry to the round of 16 — before then-coach Ruben Amorim’s team routed Manchester City 4-1 last Nov. 5.

    One year ago, PSG was 19th and later risked elimination on the final matchday. Madrid was 12th having lost at Lille while Bayern was a shocking 23rd after back-to-back losses, at Villa then Barcelona.

    Today, PSG, Bayern and Madrid are joined by Arsenal and Inter Milan with three straight wins. Those five have combined to score 52 goals and concede just six so far.

    PSG-Bayern and Liverpool-Real Madrid were also fixtures last season, in the fifth round of games.

    Then, PSG did not look a future champion, losing 1-0 in Munich with future Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé sent off weeks after he was left out of a loss at Arsenal. Still, that was before Désiré Doué, now injured again, was established in the team and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia arrived in January from Napoli.

    If PSG has impressed this season – leading the French league, losing just one of 15 games in all competitions – Bayern is on a remarkable 15-game winning run, buoyed by Harry Kane scoring 22 of the team’s 54 goals.

    One year ago, Liverpool was already in imperious form. A 2-0 win at Anfield sent Real Madrid to a third loss in five Champions League games at the start of the Kylian Mbappé era.

    Now, it is Madrid with a clear lead in its domestic league with Mbappé scoring for fun, while Liverpool’s win over Aston Villa on Saturday was its first in England for more than a month.

    One intriguing sub-plot will be Liverpool fans’ reaction to the return of Trent Alexander-Arnold, their hometown favorite in the past eight seasons.

    The Diego Armando Maradona Stadium is a good place to start looking for goals in one of the early games Tuesday.

    Napoli returns home after taking a 6-2 beating at PSV Eindhoven two weeks ago. Eintracht Frankfurt has been reliably wild this season with all three Champions League games ending 5-1.

    Eintracht dominated Galatasaray by that score before heavy losses at Atletico Madrid and at home to Liverpool.

    There should at least be more goals than Eintracht fans in the stadium. Italian city authorities barred the German club from selling tickets to its fans to prevent expected crowd trouble.

    Erling Haaland has been mostly unstoppable while scoring 26 goals for Manchester City and Norway this season, and the challenge now falls to his former club Borussia Dortmund. Good luck with that.

    City has won the last 12 times it hosted German teams in the Champions League since 2014, including 2-1 against Dortmund in September 2022 in a game settled by Haaland’s acrobatic flicked volley high off the ground.

    Belgian clubs looked set to be overachievers this season after big opening day wins for Union Saint-Gilloise (3-1 at PSV) and Club Brugge (4-1 over Monaco).

    Each has had back-to-back defeats since then, with Champions League debutant Union losing 4-0 twice in its adopted home stadium belonging to Brussels rival Anderlecht.

    It gets no easier this week against Spanish opponents. Union goes to Atletico Madrid on Tuesday and Brugge hosts Barcelona on Wednesday.

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • Haaland double powers Man City to win after Donnarumma mistake

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    Erling Haaland’s latest double covered over a bad mistake from Gianluigi Donnarumma in Manchester City’s 3-1 win over Bournemouth that lifted the team into second place in the Premier League on Sunday.

    Haaland moved onto 13 goals for the campaign — more than twice any other player — by running clear from passes by the impressive Rayan Cherki to finish one-on-one chances in the 17th and 33rd minutes. Haaland pulled out a robot celebration after the first goal.

    Between those goals, Bournemouth equalized after Donnarumma attempted to punch clear an inswinging corner, only to misjudge it and pat the ball down in front of him. U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams swept home the loose ball for his first Premier League goal and Donnarumma was booked for complaining too stridently that he had been fouled.

    That mistake will only be a footnote in the latest Haaland show, with the Norway striker making it 26 goals in 16 games for club and country this season. He has scored two goals in each of his last four home appearances in the Premier League.

    “I try to help the team to win, that’s my goal,” Haaland said. “By scoring or helping by winning duels, doesn’t matter, as long as we win.”

    Locally born left back Nico O’Reilly drove home the third goal in the 60th minute for City, which replaced Bournemouth in second to become the nearest challenger to Arsenal.

    Arsenal, seeking a first league title since 2004, beat Burnley 2-0 on Saturday and now holds a six-point lead after 10 games.

    While Donnarumma has impressed with his shot-stopping since joining from Paris Saint-Germain, a weakness in the Italy international’s game might be his punching from crosses.

    In September, Donnarumma punched the ball into his own net when playing for Italy against Israel but that goal was ruled out after it was deemed an opposition player was fouling him.

    On Sunday, Bournemouth captain David Brooks initially had a hold of Donnarumma’s left arm but let go before the goalkeeper attempted his punch.

    City manager Pep Guardiola said it was “unbelievable” that the goal was allowed to stand.

    “There are sometimes things that are difficult to understand why it was not disallowed,” he said.

    West Ham’s fans had been waiting eight months for a home win in the Premier League.

    They finally got it after their embattled team rallied to beat Newcastle 3-1 for just a second victory this season.

    Jacob Murphy’s fourth-minute opener for Newcastle, which came seconds after Jarrod Bowen struck the post at the other end, failed to spark what proved to be a sluggish performance by the visitors.

    Instead, West Ham grew more into the game and after Lucas Paqueta equalized in the 35th minute with a long-range shot that crept inside the near post, Newcastle defender Sven Botman stretched to block a cross but only succeeded in turning the ball into his own net in first-half stoppage time.

    Substitute Tomas Soucek added a third for West Ham in second-half stoppage time.

    West Ham’s last home win was against Leicester on Feb. 27.

    The team stayed in the relegation zone but climbed above Nottingham Forest into third-to-last place. Forest was the only team West Ham had previously beaten this season.

    West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo had collected just one point from his first four games in charge after replacing Graham Potter.

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    Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • West Ham Rallies to Beat Newcastle for First Home Win in Eight Months

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    West Ham claimed only its second Premier League win of the season — and first at home in eight months — by rallying to beat Newcastle 3-1 on Sunday.

    Jacob Murphy’s fourth-minute opener for Newcastle, which came seconds after Jarrod Bowen struck the post at the other end, failed to spark what proved to be a sluggish performance by the visitors.

    Instead, West Ham grew more into the game and after Lucas Paqueta equalized in the 35th minute with a long-range shot that crept inside the near post, Newcastle defender Sven Botman stretched to block a cross but only succeeded in turning the ball into his own net in first-half stoppage time.

    Substitute Tomas Soucek added a third for West Ham in second-half stoppage time.

    West Ham, whose last home win was against Leicester on Feb. 27, stayed in the relegation zone but climbed above Nottingham Forest into third-to-last place. Forest was the only team West Ham had previously beaten this season.

    West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo had collected just one point from his first four games in charge after replacing Graham Potter.

    Newcastle stayed in 13th place in the 20-team league and is failing to reproduce its exploits in other competitions this season, having won two of its three Champions League matches and advanced to the quarterfinals of the English League Cup.

    Anthony Gordon and Nick Woltemade were withdrawn at halftime by Newcastle manager Eddie Howe after ineffective displays.

    Later, Manchester City hosts Bournemouth, with second place the prize for the winner.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – Oct. 2025

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  • How to Watch Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen: Live Stream Bundesliga, TV Channel

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    Bayern Munich will take on Bayer Leverkusen in this German Bundesliga matchup on Saturday at Allianz Arena, and you can catch all the action with ESPN Select.

    How to Watch Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen

    • Date: Saturday, November 1, 2025
    • Time: 1:30 AM ET
    • TV Channel: ESPN Select
    • Stream: ESPN (watch now)

    Bayern München will once again lean on the finishing prowess of Harry Kane, who continues to rack up goals at a striking rate and poses a constant threat in the final third. His movement and composure give Bayern a cutting edge in attack. Meanwhile, Leverkusen’s key man is Patrik Schick, whose recent form, especially in the Bundesliga, has shown him to be lethal when given space and service. In recent form, Bayern have been dominant at home and scoring freely, whereas Leverkusen have impressed with their pressing and positional discipline, even when not winning.

    In terms of head‐to‐head and team momentum, Bayern holds a historic edge in wins over Leverkusen. Still, interestingly, Leverkusen have often frustrated them in recent meetings and remain unbeaten in several of the latest clashes. Bayern are chasing consistency to reaffirm their status and will aim to start strong, dominating possession, while Leverkusen will look to stay compact and capitalize on counterattacks or exploit set pieces. The key will be whether Bayern can break down Leverkusen’s structure early, and whether Leverkusen can resist Bayern’s early surge before making their move.

    This is a great Bundesliga matchup that you will not want to miss; make sure to tune in and catch all the action.

    Live stream Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen with ESPN Select: Start your subscription now!

    ESPN+ offers a wide array of matches throughout the season, including every Bundesliga match during the 2025-26 season.

    Regional restrictions may apply. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

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  • New Zealand v England scorecard

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    New Zealand v England – third ODI: live scorecard and commentary

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  • Munich set to host Champions League final in 2028. Wembley and Camp Nou compete for 2029 final

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    NYON, Switzerland — Bayern Munich’s stadium is set to host another Champions League final in 2028, and staging the 2029 final is a contest between Wembley Stadium in London and Barcelona’s renovated Camp Nou.

    UEFA confirmed Friday the list of interested bidders from among its member associations, suggesting a long-speculated final in New York will not happen until at least 2030.

    “The declarations of interest are not binding, and the final proposals must be delivered with the bid dossiers by June 10,” UEFA said in a statement.

    Munich hosted the final last season and Wembley staged the previous final in 2024. Barcelona has not been the final venue since 1999.

    The UEFA executive committee is due to decide next September on hosts for all club competitions’ finals in 2028 and 2029.

    The Champions League final this season is at the Puskas Arena in Budapest — with a new early evening kickoff time in Europe — and the 2027 final is at Atletico Madrid’s stadium.

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • LSU athletic director Scott Woodward ousted, 4 days after the firing of football coach Brian Kelly

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    LSU athletic director Scott Woodward resigned under pressure from the post he’s held for six years on Thursday night, four days after the firing of football coach Brian Kelly and a day after Republican Gov. Jeff Landry said Woodward would not hire Kelly’s replacement.

    Woodward, a Baton Rouge native and LSU graduate, was hired as athletic director at his alma mater in April 2019. Since then, LSU has won national championships in football, baseball (twice), women’s basketball and gymnastics.

    “We thank Scott for the last six years of service as athletic director,” LSU Board of Supervisors chairman Scott Ballard said. “He had a lot of success at LSU.

    “Our focus now is on moving the athletic department forward and best positioning LSU to achieve its full potential.”

    Among the coaches hired by Woodward was Kim Mulkey, who led LSU to its first women’s basketball national title in 2023. Her team played an exhibition game on Thursday night, and Mulkey declined to attend a postgame news conference, sending assistant Bob Starkey instead.

    “She’s heartbroken,” Starkey told reporters.

    “In 40 years of coaching, I’ve worked with two phenomenal athletic directors,” Starkey added. “One was Skip Bertman (at LSU). The other one was Scott Woodward.”

    Verge Ausberry, LSU’s executive deputy athletic director, will replace Woodward on an interim basis and lead the search for a football coach, the university announced.

    In an open letter to LSU fans, Woodward said, “Our University will always hold a special place in my heart and I will never be too far from LSU.”

    “Others can recap or opine on my tenure and on my decisions over the last six years as Director of Athletics, but I will not,” Woodward said. “Rather, I will focus on the absolute joy that LSU Athletics brings to our state’s residents and to the Baton Rouge community.”

    When Woodward was hired in 2019, James Carville, a political pundit who graduated from LSU, taught there and was named to the university’s Manship School of Mass Communications’ Hall of Fame, hosted a welcome party for him at his house in New Orleans.

    In a phone interview with The Associated Press on Thursday night, Carville, a Democrat, expressed disgust at the circumstances surrounding Woodward’s sudden departure.

    “The Louisiana governor and the LSU board has damaged the reputation of our university,” Carville said. “Landry’s IQ is the equivalent of the temperature of dishwater.

    “The LSU board is weak and pathetic,” Carville added. “This is not about my politics. It’s about my university.”

    According to Woodward’s contract, he is owed more than $5 million through 2029. LSU has not yet announced the financial terms of his separation agreement.

    Landry on Wednesday was hosting a news conference about government matters not concerning LSU when he was asked about the Tigers’ coaching situation and asserted that Woodward would not be involved in the selection of the next coach.

    Under Woodward, the football program bought out former coach Ed Orgeron for about $17 million in 2021. The buyout for Kelly, whom Woodward signed to a 10-year contract worth about $100 million in December 2021, is about $53 million, which is among the largest in the history of college sports.

    Texas A&M’s $77 million buyout of former coach Jimbo Fisher, who was fired in 2023, is the largest.

    Woodward was Texas A&M’s athletic director when Fisher was hired to coach the Aggies in December 2017. But Woodward already had been at LSU for two years when A&M, in 2021, gave Fisher a contract extension that effectively doubled the cost of his buyout.

    Still, Landry assigned blame for Fisher’s buyout to Woodward.

    “This is a pattern,” Landry said. “Right now, we’ve got a $53 million liability. … We are not doing that again.”

    Kelly’s firing on Sunday came a day after LSU lost at home to Texas A&M, 49-25 — the Tigers’ third defeat in four games.

    Kelly went 34-14 at LSU, never reaching the College Football Playoff, which was expanded from four to 12 teams in 2024.

    LSU does not currently have a president. Its most recent president, William F. Tate IV, left to become president of Rutgers in July. The next president will be hired by the Board of Supervisors, whose members are appointed by the governor to six-year staggered terms.

    Since Landry took office in January 2024, he has appointed nine of the 18 board members, and will have the chance to appoint four more in 2026.

    The board has announced that it expects to select the next president on Tuesday.

    ___

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  • LSU Athletic Director Scott Woodward Resigns, 4 Days After the Firing of Football Coach Brian Kelly

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    LSU athletic director Scott Woodward resigned under pressure from the post he’s held for six years on Thursday night, four days after the firing of football coach Brian Kelly and a day after Republican Gov. Jeff Landry said Woodward would not hire Kelly’s replacement.

    Woodward, a Baton Rouge native and LSU graduate, was hired as athletic director at his alma mater in April 2019. Since then, LSU has won national championships in football, baseball (twice), women’s basketball and gymnastics.

    “We thank Scott for the last six years of service as athletic director,” LSU Board of Supervisors chairman Scott Ballard said. “He had a lot of success at LSU.

    “Our focus now is on moving the athletic department forward and best positioning LSU to achieve its full potential.”

    Verge Ausberry, LSU’s executive deputy athletic director, will replace Woodward on an interim basis and lead the search for a football coach, the university announced.

    In an open letter to LSU fans, Woodward said, “Our University will always hold a special place in my heart and I will never be too far from LSU.”

    “Others can recap or opine on my tenure and on my decisions over the last six years as Director of Athletics, but I will not,” Woodward said. “Rather, I will focus on the absolute joy that LSU Athletics brings to our state’s residents and to the Baton Rouge community.”

    When Woodward was hired in 2019, James Carville, a political pundit who graduated from LSU, taught there and was named to the university’s Manship School of Mass Communication’s Hall of Fame, hosted a welcome party for him at his house in New Orleans.

    In a phone interview with The Associated Press on Thursday night, Carville, a Democrat, expressed disgust at the circumstances surrounding Woodward’s sudden departure.

    “The Louisiana governor and the LSU board has damaged the reputation of our university,” Carville said. “Landry’s IQ is the equivalent of the temperature of dishwater.

    “The LSU board is weak and pathetic,” Carville added. “This is not about my politics. It’s about my university.”

    Landry on Wednesday was hosting a news conference about government matters not concerning LSU when he was asked about the LSU coaching situation and asserted that Woodward would not be involved in the selection of the next coach.

    Under Woodward, the football program bought out former coach Ed Orgeron for about $17 million in 2021, and it now must pay Kelly’s buyout of about $53 million, which is among the largest in the history of college sports.

    Texas A&M’s $77 million buyout of former coach Jimbo Fisher, who was fired in 2023, is the largest.

    Woodward was Texas A&M’s athletic director when Fisher was hired to coach the Aggies in December 2017. But Woodward already had been at LSU for two years when A&M, in 2021, gave Fisher a contract extension that effectively doubled the cost of his buyout.

    Still, Landry assigned blame for Fisher’s buyout to Woodward.

    “This is a pattern,” Landry said. “Right now, we’ve got a $53 million liability. … We are not doing that again.”

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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  • Emma Sears Has a Hat Trick in a 6-0 USWNT Victory Over New Zealand

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    KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Emma Sears scored three goals and Catarina Macario added twp as the U.S. women’s national team routed New Zealand 6-0 on Wednesday night.

    It was the most goals scored by the United States in a match under coach Emma Hayes. Michelle Cooper had two assists.

    Cooper sent Lily Yohannes’ backheel pass over to Sears, who scored her first goal in the eighth minute to give the U.S. the early lead.

    Macario, who plays for Chelsea, doubled the lead with her first goal in the 34th minute and Rose Lavelle scored a curling shot into the side netting from distance to make it 3-0 before halftime. It was Lavelle’s 27th career goal.

    Sears, who plays for Racing Louisville in the National Women’s Soccer League, scored her second in the 55th, again with an assist from Cooper. Macario added her second in the 66th to make it 5-0. Macario has four two-goal games for the United States.

    Sears got her third in the 84th, for the national team’s first hat trick since Sophia Wilson did it against Uzbekistan in 2022.

    “Honestly, I want to give a lot of credit to my teammates. I felt like, especially with that first goal, Michelle served it on a platter for me to just tap it in,” Sears said. “And the goals following, I felt like it was good to carry on that momentum throughout the game and ultimately get the win.”

    Defender Kennedy Wesley started in her debut, becoming the 25th player to earn her first cap under Hayes. The backline of Wednesday’s starting lineup had just 11 combined appearances for the national team.

    It was the team’s third match of the international window. The United States had 113 days off before falling to Portugal 2-1 in the opener last week in Pennsylvania then won 3-1 in the second match in East Hartford, Connecticut, on Sunday. The loss in the first match to Portugal was just the team’s third under Hayes.

    “I think it’s exciting to see the future of this team,” Cooper said. “Obviously our first game didn’t go as we wanted to, but to be able to have multiple players change our starting lineup and still be able to raise the level and get a win out of that, and then continue that momentum into this last game, that really speaks to the future of this team and what Emma has done here.”

    New Zealand lost both of its friendly games during the international window, both to Mexico.

    The match was played at CPKC stadium, the first purpose-built women’s soccer stadium in the world, which is home to the NWSL’s Kansas City Current. Cooper plays for the Current.

    Before the game the New Zealand squad honored former captain Ali Riley, who has retired from professional soccer. Riley played 163 matches for the team.

    The United States has played without many of the stars that won the gold medal at the Olympics. Trinity Rodman has a right MCL injury, while Wilson and Mallory Swanson are on maternity leave.

    The United States went into the match with a 19-1-1 record against New Zealand. The two teams last met ahead of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, with the U.S. winning both in Auckland.

    The United States plays its final matches of the year against Italy on Nov. 28 in Orlando, Florida, and on Dec. 1 in Fort Lauderdale.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – Oct. 2025

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  • League Cup: Liverpool’s woes grow with 3-0 loss to Palace. Arsenal, City and Chelsea advance

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    Liverpool fielded a weakened team and got duly punished in a 3-0 loss to Crystal Palace in the League Cup on Wednesday, the latest setback to strike the beleaguered English champions.

    Ismaila Sarr scored two first-half goals at Anfield and Yeremy Pino added a third for Palace, which consigned Liverpool to a sixth defeat in its last seven games in all competitions.

    Also advancing to the quarterfinals were Premier League leader Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea.

    After four straight losses in its tottering Premier League title defense, Liverpool is now out of one of the two domestic cups in what is proving to be an unexpectedly poor start to the season.

    This latest loss can at least be explained by manager Arne Slot resting most of his top players — like Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak — and not even putting them on the bench.

    A team filled mostly with youngsters was cut apart by Sarr, who scored in the 41st and 45th minutes to add to his goals for Palace in victories over Liverpool in the Community Shield — in a penalty shootout — and the Premier League already this season.

    Amara Nallo, an 18-year-old defender, came on as a 67th-minute substitute for Liverpool and was sent off 12 minutes later for committing a foul as the last defender. In his only other appearance for the Reds — in the Champions League in January — Nallo was also red-carded four minutes after coming on as a sub.

    Pino scored Palace’s third goal in the 88th.

    Max Dowman became Arsenal’s youngest-ever starter, at 15 years, 302 days, in the team’s 2-0 win over Brighton.

    The league leaders also played a weakened team but that didn’t affect them, with Ethan Nwaneri and Bukayo Saka — on as a substitute for Dowman — netting the goals.

    Man City came from behind to beat second-tier Swansea 3-1, with Jeremy Doku, Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki scoring.

    Prolific City striker Erling Haaland was rested completely, not even making it onto the bench.

    Chelsea beat Wolverhampton 4-3, after going 3-0 up by halftime. Liam Delap made his comeback from injury for Chelsea and was sent off in the 86th.

    Defending champion Newcastle was playing Tottenham in a late kickoff.

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    Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80

    ___

    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • Budweiser brewer AB InBev set to replace Heineken as Champions League beer sponsor

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    GENEVA — Budweiser brewer AB InBev is set to end Heineken’s three-decade-long run as the official beer sponsor of soccer’s Champions League in a statement deal for the competition’s new global sales agent Relevent.

    Exclusive talks with AB InBev will begin for a six-year deal starting in 2027, said UC3, the joint business venture between Champions League organizer UEFA and the increasingly influential European Football Clubs (EFC) group.

    The potential deal would be global and cover all UEFA men’s club competitions for six seasons, UC3 said in a statement. It would likely be worth close to 200 million euros ($232 million) each season.

    “Our selection by UC3 reflects our commitment to football and our mega-platform strategy,” AB InBev said in a statement. “We look forward to becoming a great partner to UC3 for years to come.”

    It’s the first major deal lined up by Relevent since it was picked this year by the EFC group and UEFA to drive up the value of commercial deals and raise prize money for hundreds of clubs who enter the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League each season.

    The target is at least 5 billion euros ($5.8 billion) in gross revenue each season from 2027. Current gross revenue is at least 4.4 billion euros ($5.1 billion), which pays almost 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion) into the prize fund shared by the 36 Champions League teams.

    AB InBev sealing a Champions League deal would add soccer’s prized club competition to its longstanding World Cup partnership with FIFA and a three-Olympics deal with the IOC that started last year in Paris and runs through the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games.

    Heineken’s beer brands have had exclusive Champions League rights since 1994 and the Netherlands brewer’s latest renewal expires in 2027. It was closely tied to UEFA’s longtime Switzerland-based sales agency TEAM Marketing which has been dropped in favor of Relevent.

    The influential clubs group rebranded this month as EFC was known to want a more dynamic commercial program and for Relevent to drive higher value deals that would help pay clubs more.

    Still, Heineken has a reputation as one of the more lucrative Champions League deals, likely paying more than 100 million euros ($115 million) per season.

    Dropping Heineken from the competition would seem to send a clear message to other long-term Champions League backers, which include Sony, PepsiCo and Mastercard.

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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  • Better than gold? $100,000 for US athletes who make the Winter Olympics and Paralympics

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    NEW YORK — The stakes for all these U.S. skiers, skaters, snowboarders and sliders over the next 100 days could not be more clear.

    A chance for Olympic glory.

    A chance to compete for a gold medal.

    And this year, for the first time, a chance to make $100,000.

    Thanks to a recent record $100 million donation to the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Foundation, athletes who make the U.S. Olympic or Paralympic teams starting next year in Milan-Cortina will be eligible to receive a $100,000 award when they retire.

    It’s a game-changing piece of news for Olympic athletes, most of whom toil in obscurity outside of the two weeks the lights go on at the Games, and many of whom live in or near poverty: According to the foundation, some 57% of U.S. athletes earn $50,000 or less a year.

    “At the age of 25, 26, I definitely was like: ‘I can’t do this to (my family) anymore. I can’t continue living in my car. I have student loans. I have to get on with my life,’” said biathlete Deedra Irwin, who is now 33 and has made ends meet by everything from dog sitting to joining the Vermont National Guard.

    Though Wednesday marked the 100-days-out point on the Olympic calendar, only a small slice of the approximately 225 Olympic and 65 Paralympic spots on Team USA in Italy have been locked up.

    The majority of those spots will be earned based on athletes’ finishes in upcoming World Cup events being held across the globe over the next few months.

    So, while many of these athletes have heard the stories about how the Olympics can change their lives — usually through sponsorships, speaking engagements and talk-show appearances that spring from inspiring performances — never before has the promise of cold hard cash been dangled quite like this.

    “As an athlete, you don’t put into a 401K,” Paralympian Oksana Masters said. “We don’t have those traditional jobs of paying into that kind of stuff. It’s about time that we’ve done this.”

    There are a few catches, mostly that the money will be divided into four payments and won’t go into bank accounts until 20 years after the athletes retire, or when they reach 45 — whichever comes later. (The math is interesting for snowboarder Nick Baumgartner, who will be 44 next year and hopes to extend his career through Salt Lake City in 2034.)

    The grant also funds a $100,000 life insurance policy for a beneficiary.

    Both the award and the insurance are accrued each time an athlete makes the Olympics, meaning, for instance, someone who makes it three times would receive $600,000 in total benefits.

    “We’ve received other transformational gifts, but this has reflected a shift in how we’re able to holistically care for our athletes,” USOPF president Christine Walshe said.

    The $100 million came from Ross Stevens, the founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Holdings Group, a finance firm that focuses on “nontraditional” investment options such as crypto and fine art.

    It was the biggest single donation to the USOPF, which started operation in 2013 — the brainchild of former Olympic leader Peter Ueberroth, who helped turn the Olympics into a moneymaker, in part out of necessity because the U.S. government does not fund its Olympic athletes.

    With most of the next decade’s TV and sponsorship dollars accounted for, the foundation will need to bankroll improvements in athlete benefits for the foreseeable future. Walshe said the charitable arm is projecting to account for 27% of the USOPC’s revenue this Olympic cycle, compared to 12% from 2021-24.

    The foundation’s contributions are directed toward athlete-centered programs that focus on performance and innovation, health and wellness, and career placement and economic mobility. Never before has the economic mobility part looked as simple as this: Make the Olympics, get $100,000.

    “The $100,000 definitely motivates all of us to make that team,” cross-country skier Gus Schumacher said. “Cross-country isn’t generally huge money, and $100,000, especially for the people that maybe are on the edge of the team, is going to be a lot.”

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    AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

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  • From Milan to Cortina, a glance at the 2026 Winter Olympics venues

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    MILAN — With 100 days to go, northern Italy is gearing up to host the Milan-Cortina Olympics, the most spread-out Winter Games in history.

    The two main clusters of the Games are Milan — the beating heart of Italy’s industrial north — and Cortina d’Ampezzo, an upscale winter resort in the Dolomites mountain range. Visitors should expect a full day of travel between the two locations, which are more than 400 kilometers (250) miles apart by road.

    In addition, athletes will compete in three other mountain clusters, while the closing ceremony will be held in Verona, the largest city in the northeastern Veneto region.

    The games will mostly make use of existing infrastructure, though some venues are being renovated or built from scratch. Here’s a closer look at the venues:

    SAN SIRO STADIUM: The opening ceremony will be held in Milan’s iconic 80,000-seat San Siro stadium, home of the city’s two famous soccer teams — AC Milan and Inter Milan. It will be a last hurrah for the historic venue, which is set to be demolished and replaced by a new teams-owned stadium after the games.

    SANTAGIULIA ICE HOCKEY ARENA: The timeline is tight for the new 16,000-seat arena that will serve as the main hockey venue for the games. A test event scheduled for December had to be moved, but organisers are confident that it will be completed by the end of the year. New test events have been set for Jan. 9-11 — less than a month before the first puck is dropped at the Olympics. The multipurpose facility, which is being built by private investors, is slated to become Italy’s largest indoor arena and is a majestic sight to those arriving into the southeastern periphery of Milan.

    ICE PARK: While the ice hockey finals will be held in the Santagiulia Arena, some matches will take place in the Fiera Milano exhibition venue, which will also host the speed skating. The trade fair complex, which opened in 2005 in the northwest of Milan, will use temporary structures for the games. The so-called Ice Park will occupy four pavilions of the huge exhibition center and comprise the Speed Skating Stadium and the Rho Ice Hockey Arena, which still needs to be completed. The Speed Skating Stadium was delivered in August and the work to lay down the ice was set to start on Wednesday.

    ICE SKATING ARENA: Short-track speed skating and figure skating events will take place in the Forum di Milano, a multipurpose facility that is mainly used for basketball, ice hockey and tennis as well as live concerts. The 12,500-capacity venue in the southwestern outskirts of Milan was opened in 1990 and renovated in 2017, the year before it hosted the figure skating world championships.

    TOFANE ALPINE SKIING CENTER: Regularly referred to as the queen or the pearl of the Dolomites, Cortina hosted the Winter Olympics in 1956. The Olympia delle Tofane course will be the site of the women’s Alpine skiing next year. The iconic slope is a regular stop on the women’s World Cup circuit and also held the world championships in 2021.

    CURLING OLYMPIC STADIUM: Curling will take place in the Olympic Ice Stadium, one of the legacies of the 1956 Games, when it also hosted the opening ceremony. The arena — and Cortina in general — also served as a filming location for the 1981 James Bond film “For Your Eyes Only,” starring Roger Moore.

    CORTINA SLIDING CENTER: The century-old sliding center in Cortina has been completely rebuilt for the 2026 Games at a cost of 118 million euros ($123 million) amid staunch opposition from the International Olympic Committee. The timeframe was so tight that it necessitated a Plan B option that would have required moving bobsled, luge and skeleton events all the way to Lake Placid, New York. However, it appears the gamble has paid off with the IOC even saying recently that the venue has “surpassed expectations.” The track secured preliminary certification in March and test events are taking place through November. Completion of the roofing and all the facilities next to the track is scheduled for Nov. 5.

    The men’s Alpine skiing will take place on the fearsome Stelvio course in Bormio, a renowned fixture on the World Cup circuit. Veteran Italian skier Christof Innerhofer told The Associated Press that he can’t remember a tougher course at the Olympics in the past 30 years. The Stelvio Ski Center will also be the venue for ski mountaineering, which will be making its Olympic debut. Bormio is about 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Milan.

    Livigno, about an hour’s drive north of Bormio, will host the sports that are perhaps most popular among young people. Snowboarding and freestyle skiing will be held at Livigno Snow Park and Livigno Aerials and Moguls Park, with 26 medals awarded. The small town in Valtellina, near the border with Switzerland, proudly unveiled the Aerials and Moguls Park last December, boasting that it had delivered the first 2026 Olympic venue.

    Surrounded by the peaks of the Dolomites, Predazzo will be a stunning setting for the ski jumping events. Predazzo, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of Cortina, is the most populated municipality in Val di Fiemme, an area which has a rich history of hosting Nordic skiing world championships and World Cup races. The ski jumping facility spans an area of 3,000 square meters (32,000 square feet) and consists of two main ramps for international competitions as well as training ramps and other equipped spaces for athletes.

    Tesero, less than 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Predazzo, will host the cross-country skiing events. The cross-country skiing stadium was opened in 1990, the year before the area hosted the Nordic World Ski Championships for the first time.

    The biathlon competition will be held in Anterselva, nestled in the South Tyrol mountains and with 60 kilometers (40 miles) of tracks. The Anterselva Biathlon Arena has a rich history with the sport, having hosted the world championships multiple times since the 1970s. It also hosts World Cup races every year. The town itself, which is near the border with Austria, has a unique cultural heritage: more than 98% of the population speak German as their mother tongue.

    The closing ceremony will take place at the historic Verona Arena, a large Roman amphitheater built almost 2,000 years ago that is mainly used to host large-scale opera performances. It is an imposing presence in the main piazza of Verona, which is a UNESCO world heritage city. Originally built to host 30,000 spectators in ancient Roman times, it currently has a capacity of around half that for its world-famous summer festival. About 15,000 spectators will be allowed for the closing ceremony on Feb. 22.

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  • NYCFC beats Charlotte 1-0 to begin best-of-3 series

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    CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Alonso Martínez scored in the 34th minute to end a three-match scoreless run and New York City FC beat Charlotte 1-0 on Tuesday night to begin a best-of-three series.

    New York City became the first away team to win in the 2025 MLS playoffs after the first eight squads lost. NYCFC will host Charlotte on Saturday in Game 2.

    Martínez, who had 17 goals during the regular season, collected a headed pass from Andrés Perea and dribbled to the top of the 18-yard box before slicing through Charlotte’s backline for a calm shot under Kristijan Kahlina.

    Matt Freese, who had eight clean sheets during the regular season, made four saves.

    Charlotte was without forward Wilfried Zaha due to a red card suspension.

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