DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo has left Manchester United with immediate effect. Where will he turn up next?
The Portugal star has put himself on the market with his explosive pre-World Cup interview that led to the termination of his contract on Tuesday.
DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Italian referee Daniele Orsato was chosen Friday to handle the opening game of the World Cup.
FIFA picked Orsato for Sunday's match between host Qatar and Ecuador, describing him as “one of Europe’s most experienced referees.” He turns 47 on Wednesday.
How things stand in Europe's top leagues ahead of the World Cup:
ENGLAND
Arsenal looks like the real deal after building a five-point lead atop of the Premier League. Few saw Mikel Arteta’s team as a credible title challenger before the season but 12 wins from 14 games have set a pace that even Manchester City cannot match.
Hoping to be the U.S. man of the hour, Christian Pulisic heads to the World Cup a man of few minutes.
He is the first American to play in and win a Champions League final and he was already a three-time U.S.
A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Wednesday:
ENGLAND
Liverpool begins its League Cup title defense with a home game against third-tier Derby County while Manchester City hosts Chelsea in the marquee match of the third round.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles FC’s victory over the Philadelphia Union on penalty kicks in the MLS Cup final was the second highest in the league's 27-year history for combined U.S. viewers.
Saturday's game averaged a combined 2.155 million viewers on Fox and Univision, a 38% increase from the 2021 final between NYCFC and the Portland Timbers, which also went to penalty kicks.
NYON, Switzerland (AP) — Real Madrid will play Liverpool, again. Bayern Munich will play Paris Saint-Germain, again.
Two rematches of recent Champions League finals were set up Monday by the draw for the round of 16 as some of Europe's top heavyweights were paired together.
MILAN (AP) — Olivier Giroud has a knack of delivering in big games.
He did it again on Wednesday with two goals and two assists as AC Milan beat Salzburg 4-0 to return to the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in nine years.
It took nine years for seven-time European champion AC Milan to finally win its way back into the Champions League knockout rounds with a 4-0 victory over Salzburg on Wednesday.
Paris Saint-Germain’s quest for a first European title got potentially tougher because it is now unseeded in the round of 16 draw Monday despite winning 2-1 at Juventus.
American defender Cameron Carter-Vickers missed Glasgow Celtic's Champions League match at Real Madrid on Wednesday, the latest injury concern for the U.S. team ahead of the World Cup.
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou said during a news conference Tuesday that Carter-Vickers was sore after playing 90 minutes during Sunday's 3-0 Scottish Premier League win at Livingston, which has an artificial turf surface.
Tottenham and Eintracht Frankfurt both came from behind to win their respective games and secure a place in the last 16 of the Champions League.
At halftime in the final round of group matches on Tuesday, Marseille and Sporting Lisbon were going through from Group D.
MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Tottenham advanced in the Champions League the hard way on Tuesday.
With manager Antonio Conte serving a suspension in the stands and one of its star players, Son Heung-min, forced off the field with a head injury, Tottenham was trailing 1-0 at halftime against Marseille and heading out of the competition.
PLZEN, Czech Republic (AP) — It was a meaningless win to close out a disappointing Champions League campaign for Barcelona.
Barcelona finished the group stage with a 4-2 win at Viktoria Plzen on Tuesday, a result that did little to cushion the blow of the Catalan club's second consecutive early exit in the European competition.
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Eintracht Frankfurt's fortunes changed in a matter of minutes in the Champions League on Tuesday.
At one moment it was finishing last in its group, the next it was qualifying to the knockout stage.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Rangers was left with an unwanted group-stage record in the Champions League after losing 3-1 at home to Ajax on Tuesday, which secured a place in the Europa League's qualifying playoffs.
MUNICH (AP) — Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting extended his rich scoring form for Bayern Munich as the German champion beat Inter Milan 2-0 on Tuesday to complete the Champions League group stage with a perfect record of six wins.
A look at what’s happening in the Champions League on Wednesday:
GROUP E
AC Milan hosts Salzburg with a spot in the last 16 up for grabs alongside Chelsea, which is already assured of winning the group ahead of its home match against Dinamo Zagreb.
PORTO, Portugal (AP) — After Porto lost its first two Champions League matches this season, few expected the Portuguese side to advance from a group in which Atlético Madrid was the heavy favorite.
A look at what’s happening in the Champions League on Tuesday:
GROUP A
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp would love to have the opportunity to rest his key players after a grueling run of matches that has stretched his injury-hit squad.
Lionel Messi is back in supreme form, just in time for the World Cup.
With 12 goals in his last 10 games for his club and his country, the Argentina forward is delivering his best run of performances since joining Paris Saint-Germain after an emotional departure from Barcelona in the offseason of 2021.
LONDON (AP) — The Champions League has reached the final round of group-stage matches, with four spots in the lineup for the last 16 still up for grabs.
MADRID (AP) — Real Madrid is suddenly showing some signs of weakness after a great start to the season.
Madrid was held by Girona to a 1-1 draw at home on Sunday in the Spanish league to follow up its first loss of the season in all competitions.
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona was on the brink of another setback when Robert Lewandowski stretched out his right boot and found the winner.
The Poland striker’s goal in stoppage time snatched a 1-0 victory at Valencia on Saturday, lifting Barcelona back to the top of the Spanish league standings level on points with Real Madrid.
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Different players, same results, but even more embarrassing.
For the second year in a row, Barcelona’s Champions League campaign ended in the group stage on Wednesday, and this year’s flop is much harder to deal with.
MADRID (AP) — It was a painful sequence of events for Atlético Madrid.
Yannick Carrasco’s last-gasp penalty kick was saved. Saúl Ñíguez’s header off the rebound hit the crossbar. Reinildo’s shot from the loose ball deflected off Carrasco near the goal line and went over the net.
LONDON (AP) — Tottenham's bid to reach the Champions League knockout stage will go down to the last group-stage game after VAR denied Harry Kane a late winner against Sporting Lisbon on Wednesday.
GENEVA (AP) — Barcelona was eliminated from the Champions League on Wednesday even before enduring yet another 3-0 beating by Bayern Munich.
Atlético Madrid also went out following an extraordinary sequence around a penalty awarded by video review after the final whistle of its 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen.
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The game hadn't even kicked off yet and Barcelona had already lost.
Barcelona was eliminated in the group stage of the Champions League for the second consecutive season on Wednesday even before a 3-0 loss at home against Bayern Munich in a game that proved meaningless after Inter Milan defeated Viktoria Plzen 4-0 in the earlier game.
MADRID (AP) — Getting a penalty after the final whistle had blown wasn't enough to keep Atlético Madrid in the Champions League.
Yannick Carrasco missed a spot kick that was awarded following a VAR check after the referee had already signaled the game was over, which meant the Spanish club was eliminated following a frantic ending to a 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday.
One of soccer’s most meticulous and deep-thinking coaches, Pep Guardiola seemingly cannot come up with an answer to a big flaw hurting his Manchester City team.
The relatively simple task of converting a penalty.
LEIPZIG, Germany (AP) — Leipzig boosted its chances of advancing to the knockout stage of the Champions League by handing titleholder Real Madrid its first loss of the season on Tuesday.
The German club won 3-2 and now only needs to draw its last group match at Shakhtar Donetsk — which drew 1-1 at Celtic on Tuesday — to advance to the last 16.
His first goal was a nonchalant, outside-of-the-foot finish. His second was pretty much his trademark — fast feet outside the area and then a precise curler into the corner.
Lionel Messi kept up his stellar pre- World Cup form to help rampant Paris Saint-Germain become one of four teams to advance to the last 16 of the Champions League on Tuesday, along with Chelsea, Benfica and Borussia Dortmund.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Shakhtar Donetsk kept alive its hopes of advancing in the Champions League by recovering to draw 1-1 at Celtic on Tuesday as the Scottish champions were knocked out of European competition.
A look at what’s happening in the Champions League on Tuesday:
GROUP E
Chelsea hasn't failed to advance to the knockout stage since the 2012-13 season — when it was the defending champion — and would make it through to the last 16 again with a win at Salzburg.
ROME (AP) — It’s almost comical now looking back to mid-July when Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti told protesting fans to “shut up” as he presented the team at the opening of preseason training in the Italian Dolomites Range.
LONDON (AP) — The Champions League enters the next-to-last round of games, with five teams — Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Napoli and Club Brugge — already qualified for the last 16.
SALERNO, Italy (AP) — Former France winger Franck Ribéry announced his retirement on Friday because of insurmountable knee problems.
The 39-year-old Ribéry, who played for France in the 2006 World Cup final and won the Champions League with Bayern Munich in 2013, announced the decision in a video posted on social media, where the Salernitana player also thanked his family and fans.
PARIS (AP) — Karim Benzema won the men’s Ballon d’Or for the first time on Monday after a brilliant season with Real Madrid capped by the Champions League and Spanish league titles.
Spanish player Alexia Putellas won the women’s trophy for the second straight year following another standout season with Barcelona.
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said Liverpool fans needed to improve their aim after coins were allegedly thrown at him — and missed — during his team's 1-0 defeat at Anfield on Sunday.
MADRID (AP) — Carlo Ancelotti learned his lesson, and Real Madrid won the “clásico” on Sunday.
After an embarrassing 4-0 loss at home to Barcelona last season, the Madrid coach made sure he didn't try anything different with his team this time as Madrid won 3-1 to take the lead of the Spanish league.
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Jurgen Klopp’s trademark toothy grin has become somewhat of a rare sight in the Premier League this season.
More frequently, he has worn the look of a man with pressing concerns, perhaps having come to the crushing realization that even his special talents can only go so far.
ROME (AP) — All but eliminated from the Champions League. Struggling with only three wins in nine Serie A matches. Beset by injuries to three star players.
Not much more could go wrong for Juventus entering Saturday’s derby against Torino.
Having a crisis in autumn is kind of a tradition at Paris Saint-Germain, and this year is no exception.
The problem for PSG this season is that it's happening just before the game against rival Marseille, which looks rejuvenated under coach Igor Tudor and travels to the Parc des Princes on Sunday in good form.
GENEVA (AP) — Barcelona was twice dragged back from the precipice of a humiliating Champions League elimination by Robert Lewandowski’s late goals on Wednesday.
An instant classic at Camp Nou saw Barcelona draw 3-3 with Inter Milan and barely cling to a slim hope of advancing to the round of 16.
ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Salzburg kept its unbeaten run in the Champions League going with a 1-1 draw at Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday but relinquished the top spot in its group.
Midfielder Nicolas Seiwald gave the Austrian champion the lead in the 12th minute on the counterattack with his first Champions League goal.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Timo Werner scored his first Champions League goal since returning to Leipzig to help secure a 2-0 win at Celtic on Tuesday, strengthening his team’s chances of advancing to the last 16 and eliminating the Scottish champions from contention.
PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain can still count on Kylian Mbappé despite rumors he wants to leave the club.
MADRID (AP) — Barcelona needs to switch back into high gear.
The Catalan team got off to a strong start this season but has begun to struggle just before crucial matches against Inter Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday and Real Madrid in the Spanish league on Sunday.
NYON, Switzerland (AP) — Scottish champion Celtic was fined 15,000 euros ($14,600) because fans displayed an anti-monarchy banner at a Champions League game days after the death of Queen Elizabeth, UEFA said Tuesday.