With President Vladimir Putin in attendance and 44,000 tickets sold, Saturday's Confederations Cup opener will give Russia the chance to show off its preparations for next year's World Cup despite concerns over stadium security and infrastructure. World Cup holders Germany and the six...

Cristiano Ronaldo reacted to accusations that he evaded paying taxes of 14.7 million euros ($16.4 million) by saying that remaining silent was the "best answer". "Sometimes the best answer it's to be quiet," the Real Madrid star forward said on Instagram with a photo of himself in a Portugal...

Chelsea will open the defense of their Premier League title at home to Burnley when the season kicks off on the weekend of Aug.12-13. The full list of fixtures was released on Wednesday with Antonio Conte's side also slated for a follow-up game at Tottenham Hotspur, who will play all their...

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo was on Tuesday accused of evading 14.7 million euros in tax through offshore companies, the latest footballer to fall foul of fiscal authorities in Spain. The 32-year-old -- the world's highest paid athlete according to Forbes magazine -- follows in the...

Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny wants to extend his stay at Roma after completing two loan spells at the club, President of the Serie A side James Palotta has said. Szczesny, who debuted for Arsenal in 2010, moved to Roma in 2015 and re-signed for another year after a successful first...

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Real Madrid beat Juventus 4-1 in a superb Champions League final full of attacking verve and brilliant goals on Saturday as the Spaniards won the title for the third time in four years and 12th in all. Ronaldo swept in a neat opener after 20 minutes but...

 Marc Bartra has opened up for the first time about the April 11 bomb attack which blasted the Borussia Dortmund team bus and left the defender with a fractured wrist. "There was a loud bang and I felt a warm wave of pressure, then a great pain in my arm," he told Sport Bild magazine...

Roland Garros opened its gates for the main tournament of the French Open amid tight security on a searing hot Sunday. World number one Angelique Kerber was practicing on a sunkissed Court Philippe Chatrier, which seemed to have been washed out by the early showers, before the start of play...

Gerard Pique wants Barcelona to reward outgoing coach Luis Enrique with a ninth trophy of his three-year spell in charge in Saturday's Copa del Rey final against Alaves. Victory would see Barca lift the Cup for the third straight season under Enrique, but unlike in the past two years it...

Spain's Supreme Court on Wednesday confirmed a 21-month jail sentence and 2.09-million-euro ($2.25 million) fine imposed on Lionel Messi for tax fraud, months after the Barcelona football star lodged an appeal. The Argentina international and his father Jorge Horacio Messi were in July 2016...

Liverpool had little time to celebrate the return of Champions League football to Anfield before the squad departed for Australia Monday to play in a post-season friendly linked to the club's 125th anniversary. Juergen Klopp's side, who finished fourth after beating Middlesbrough 3-0 in...

A top-flight football game in Sweden has been postponed after a player was offered a large sum of money to help fix the result of the match, Sweden's Football Association said on Thursday. The game between IFK Gothenburg and AIK, two of Sweden's biggest clubs, was set to be played later on...

 In-form striker Cristiano Ronaldo will try to take Real Madrid to the brink of the Spanish title Wednesday against Celta Vigo. Madrid would move three points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga with a victory in Galicia ahead of the season finale Sunday. The match at Balaidos...

( ESPN )- ON A COOL February afternoon, one of Syria's greatest soccer players sits outside a mall on the Persian Gulf, paralyzed by a decision that he fears could kill him. For five years, Firas al-Khatib has boycotted the Syrian national team to protest dictator Bashar al-Assad, who...

Rafael Nadal snapped a seven-match losing streak against Novak Djokovic in commanding fashion as he romped into the final of the Madrid Masters 6-2, 6-4 on Saturday. The Spaniard looks in ominous form with just over two weeks to go till the start of the French Open as he stretched his...

Ousted FIFA Ethics investigator Cornel Borbely said Wednesday his committee were looking into "several hundred" cases of possible wrongdoing, some involving senior officials. FIFA's ruling council decided Tuesday not to renew the mandate of Borbely and chief ethics judge Hans-Joachim Eckert,...

Lionel Messi's appeal against a four-match ban in World Cup qualifying for insulting a referee's assistant was being heard by FIFA Thursday. Messi, who was to testify by video, is not expected to get an immediate verdict. The FIFA appeals panel typically gives a detailed verdict within...

Atletico Madrid might not be able to rely on its mighty defense when it makes another run for the Champions League title. Atletico's back line has been depleted because of a series of injuries and coach Diego Simeone will have to improvise when his team takes on Real Madrid's powerful attack...

FIFA Council member Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad Al Sabah of Kuwait is resigning from his soccer roles under pressure from allegations in an American federal court that he bribed Asian officials. Sheikh Ahmad said Sunday in a statement he will withdraw from a May 8 election in Bahrain for the FIFA...

Asian Olympic leader Sheik Ahmad of Kuwait denies claims in a U.S. federal court that he bribed FIFA voters. Sheik Ahmad, a member of FIFA's ruling council, is "very surprised by such allegations and strongly denies any wrongdoing." The statement was published by the Olympic Council of...