Stories related to: soccer

Fans of a Scottish soccer team rampaged in Manchester, England, last night, attacking the police and civilians after their team lost in the final of a European championship match played there. One fan of the winning Russian team was stabbed, the Times of London reports; police noted 52 assaults, and more than a dozen officers were treated for injuries. More »

Switzerland faces a potato shortage just weeks before hundreds of thousands of famished European soccer fans descend on the country expecting to snack on French fries. The nation, which is co-hosting the upcoming international soccer tournament Euro 2008, is mashing the pending crisis by lifting trade barriers to import 5,000 tons of extra spuds, reports Der Spiegel. More »

The May 21 Champions League soccer final in Moscow will feature two English powers—but cost might be the least of the worries for British fans hoping to make the trip. An overwhelmed Russian embassy is already farming out applications for visas, and demand was crashing Web sites even before Chelsea won today's semifinal to clinch a meeting with Manchester United for the title. More »

Soccer virtuoso Ronaldo was questioned by police in Rio de Janeiro yesterday after an altercation in a motel with transvestite prostitutes, Reuters reports. The star of AC Milan and the Brazilian national team took three call girls to the motel, only to discover that they were men in drag, according to cops. Ronaldo then offered them $600 each to close the affair, but one of them demanded $30,000 to keep the story from the media. More »

Scouts for the world's leading soccer teams spend millions every year trying to spot the next Ronaldo or David Beckham but they could soon be turning their attention to genetic tests as well as training grounds. DNA tests that identify genes associated with top athletic ability are already being marketed in Australia, the Guardian reports, raising no shortage of legal and ethical issues. More »

Seven Cuban soccer players defected from the national team over the last two days—five on Tuesday and two last night—slipping from their Tampa hotel after a game to seek asylum in the US, the Miami Herald reports. The first five have contacted a lawyer and are in discussions with a second-tier soccer team, Miami FC; they may start training as soon as today, Reuters reports. The loss of seven players could be the team’s downfall in Olympic trials. More »

The number of serious knee injuries that doctors once saw only in adults is skyrocketing among children as kid sports become increasingly demanding, reports the New York Times . Injuries such as a torn ACL—the major ligament that stabilizes the knee—require surgery that poses particular risks to children who are still growing, according to experts. As many as eight times as many girls suffer ACL tears than boys, physicians report. More »

Brian Howard scored in injury time as heavy underdog Barnsley shocked seven-time FA Cup champion Liverpool 2-1 today at Liverpool's Anfield Stadium home, reports the BBC. Liverpool is now out of both major UK cup competitions and out of contention for the English Premier League title. Barnsley plays in the lesser League Championship, a competitive level one step below the elite Premier League. More »

Viewers with weak hearts might want to stick to the commercials this Super Sunday, as a New England Journal of Medicine study shows a clear correlation between intense sports matches and spikes in heart attacks, the Los Angeles Times reports. In Germany during the 2006 World Cup, heart troubles jumped up to five times the average on big-game days. More »

David Beckham may bend it on the pitch; off it, he might have broken records with the largest carbon footprint ever, Fox Sports reports. British environmental group Carbon Trust analyzed the output of Becks' travel and homes, finding the soccer star responsible for 163 tons of carbon dioxide annually. The Carbon Trust puts an average Briton's yearly use at 9.4 tons. More »

Faced with an angry mob after he red-carded a soccer player, a Malaysian ref finally found an effective means of crowd control: He whipped out his gun,and fired a few rounds in the air. The part-time ref is also a cop, which might explain why he had a gun handy when several players rushed him, Reuters reports. More »

Brazilian soccer sensation Kaka is FIFA's World Player of the Year, the eighth time since 1991 a Brazilian player has claimed the honor. The 25-year-old midfielder led AC Milan to the title in the Champions league this year with 10 goals, the BBC reports. "It's really special for me—it was a dream for me just to play for Sao Paulo and one game for Brazil," he said. More »

The British Football Association may finally have found its head coach, as CEO Brian Barwick zeros in on Real Madrid's Fabio Capello. Pending likely approval from Capello's lawyers, Barwick will formally propose Capello to the FA board today. If appointed, Capello would coach England in the 2010 World Cup, with an option to stay until the 2012 European Championship. More »

World Cup finalists Italy and France will meet again: this time in Group C, the "Group of Death" of the Euro 2008 soccer championship. For Romania, it could be called "unluck of the draw" as it was selected for that group today along with another powerful squad, Holland, reports the Guardian . "I think there are coaches who are happier today," said France's manager. More »

Steve McClaren has been fired as coach of England's soccer team after their failure to qualify for Euro 2008, reports the Times of London.  England had been thrown a lifeline after Israel's surprise defeat of Russia, which gave them a chance to advance to the continental championships if they beat or drew with Croatia—but they slumped to a 3-2 defeat at Wembley. More »

Houston rallied to win their second straight MLS final, knocking off New England, 2-1. The Dynamo did its damage in the second half on goals by Joseph Ngwenya and finals MVP Dwayne De Rosario. De Rosario's cross set up Ngwenya's goal, which the striker hit after a mortifying whiff. De Rosario's score was a rare header. More »

The police shooting of an Italian soccer fan sparked riots and police clashes across the country today, the BBC reports. Hundreds in Rome torched a bus, smashed cop cars, and attacked a police barracks. In Milan, one game was stopped when angry fans tried to storm the field; more violence erupted in southern Italy at lower league games. "It was a tragic error," a police chief said of the killing. More »

In a demonstration of the high expectations of the U.S. women's soccer team, coach Greg Ryan was fired after his team crashed out in the semifinals of last month's World Cup. Ryan sustained just two losses in two and a half years, but his questionable handling of the goalkeeper position helped foment an ugly defeat to Brazil. More »

The United States soccer team had never defeated Switzerland in their previous six meetings, but the seventh proved lucky as they emerged victorious In Basel 1-0. The visiting Americans scored in the 86th minute when a confused Swiss defense left midfielder Michael Bradley unmarked, allowing him to find the net, according to Reuters. More »

Passion is an inherent part of soccer, but add in an escort service sponsoring an Italian soccer club, and you've got some local officials getting pretty hot. Trentino 1921 accepted 10,000 euros from Austrian escort agency Casa Bianca ("White House"), and now links to the service's website—after a screen warning that viewers must be at least 18 years old, Sky News reports. More »