http://cache.deadspin.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/deadspin.com.png http://deadspin.com/tag/premier league http://deadspin.com/tag/premier league

It's time for the 2012 Premier League Reading Stars program, in which England's schoolkids are encouraged to read by professional athletes pretending to love books. To kick off the program, 20 Premier Leaguers—one from each club—were asked to name their favorite adult and children's books. The results are in, and it's a dark day for literacy. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5879598&view=rss&microfeed=true

Illustration by Matthew Craven. Lots more on his website. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5877693&view=rss&microfeed=true

With a six-year, $18.5 million sponsorship deal coming to an end, everyone expected Liverpool to sign a new contract with Adidas, which has supplied the Reds since 1985. But Adidas was having none of it, claiming the numbers Liverpool asked for would be more in line with a club that has a few trophies with less than an inch of dust on them. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5877524&view=rss&microfeed=true

Did Anfield learn nothing from Luis Suarez's ban? Two Liverpool supporters (both wearing Suarez jerseys) yelled racial taunts at Oldham's Tom Adeyemi during today's FA Cup match. The game was interrupted as the fans were removed, and at least one of them has been arrested. [Mirror Football, Guardian] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5873869&view=rss&microfeed=true

It can be difficult to keep up with racism in the English Premier League, so here's a brief, handy roundup from this week's news: More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5870085&view=rss&microfeed=true

Balotelli was involved with a training spat with teammate Micah Richards today, his third practice scuffle since last year. City is addressing the problem: they're building a fence at the training ground so reporters can't see the fights. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5868486&view=rss&microfeed=true

Hey, it's Aaron Rodgers wearing a Man City jersey! Wow, it's awesome to find a longtime fan of the Blues in the NFL, and in Wisconsin of all places. Aaron, I totally love your respect for one of the more under-supported Premier League clubs, and I know you're a real devoted fan, not just some poser in a United or Liverpool shirt. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5868074&view=rss&microfeed=true

There exists a 43-slide slidehow entitled "The Complete History of Mario Balotelli's Shenanigans." Familiarize yourself if you need to. The man is a magnet for madness, but he has more of a childlike innocence than a malicious streak. He does what he does because he just doesn't conceive of doing it any other way. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5867379&view=rss&microfeed=true

When David Beckham left Real Madrid five years ago for what was billed as a "million-dollar-a-week" deal with the L.A. Galaxy, he said that he had two goals: He wanted to win an MLS championship, and he wanted to use his name to help raise the league's profile. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5861825&view=rss&microfeed=true

Man City's mercurial striker had one hell of a weekend. He set his rented $4.8 million house on fire after setting off fireworks in the bathroom. He scored the first two goals in a 6-1 thrashing of second place Manchester United at Old Trafford, Sir Alex's "worst ever" defeat. He drove through Manchester's City Centre, leaning out his Bentley convertible and high-fiving fans. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5852847&view=rss&microfeed=true

Could you tell it's nearly derby day? With City two points clear ahead of Sunday's showdown at Old Trafford, the watering holes of Manchester are taking sides. [Twitter] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5852187&view=rss&microfeed=true

It's been almost exactly one year since Henry's Fenway Sports Group purchased Liverpool, so to mark the occasion, Henry agreed to a rare lengthy interview with the Guardian. Both parts are well worth your time, but let's draw out the interesting stuff. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5849583&view=rss&microfeed=true

City closed the deal with their 40 million dollar man today, and to celebrate, they had EA Sports put together an image of Nasri scoring his first goal, using the upcoming FIFA 12. Nasri appears to have slipped past Vidic and a very out-of-position Rooney, and City fans probably cannot wait for this virtual scene to become reality. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5834082&view=rss&microfeed=true

Samuel Eto'o, the 30-year-old Cameroonian soccer player, is leaving the glitz and prestige of Serie A's Inter Milan to play "for an obscure club in the violence-wracked Caucasus region of Dagestan, Russia." From Milan, one of the world's fashion capitals, to Dagestan: the land of the mountains. This would be a very bad rap if it weren't for the fact that with the deal, Eto'o might just become the highest-paid professional athlete in the world. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5833936&view=rss&microfeed=true

"If you want a Savile Row suit, you pay Savile Row prices, but you can still put a suit on your back from Tesco's... It would be unfair to expect the Tesco man to look as good as the Savile Row man." [West Brom manager Roy Hodgson on the team's bankroll, via Yahoo! Sport] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5829997&view=rss&microfeed=true

We felt very bad last time. We hate blind items (though we did guess Ryan Giggs). But there's this thing in the UK where celebrities can get court-ordered injunctions against newspapers publishing items about their personal lives. They're called injunctions, and lots of celebrities have them, and together the whole thing is some big Super Injunction mystery. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5799946&view=rss&microfeed=true

That's referee Howard Webb over there. A photoshop of him actually, because he doesn't really wear a Manchester United kit while refereeing. He wears a referee's shirt. After a controversial FA Cup match in January, with some controversial decisions going United's way, Liverpool player Ryan Babel posted the photoshopped image to his Twitter. He was fined for it. Basically, everyone thinks Howard Webb is in the bag for their rival. Remember all this, it'll come up later. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5798155&view=rss&microfeed=true

You know what's hard to do? This. Clint Dempsey has never embraced the workmanlike Yankee style that many American players appear to have stuck in their chromosomes. The man takes risks. He's good at it. It's why he's good. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5796347&view=rss&microfeed=true

Because we don't know. (We're pretty sure it's Giggs, but that's not the point.) And we may never know, as a British judge granted an injunction against a newspaper to prevent it from revealing the details of the player's affair with Imogen Thomas. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5792399&view=rss&microfeed=true

Premier League justice is worse than Sheriff Goodell's. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5788693&view=rss&microfeed=true

Qatar 2022 will undoubtedly see at least 15 times more pissing and moaning than we had to endure during the South African World Cup last year, but if even half the technology proposed for the games comes to light, it'll remain a fantastic spectacle. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5785058&view=rss&microfeed=true

The top of the Premier League ain't that exciting. Arsenal will fall away, Chelsea will come back into it and push Man Utd for a bit before dropping out to leave Fergie and his phone to win it with two games to spare. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5784591&view=rss&microfeed=true

Fulham seems safe from relegation for now, but that doesn't mean they can't be a laughingstock. The club has announced it will unveil a statue of Michael Jackson at Craven Cottage, all because he was good friends with their Chairman. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5782559&view=rss&microfeed=true

Goal-line technology could be getting its first major test in the Premier League next season, and be on its way to FIFA-wide use. It's long overdue, and yet they're even screwing this step up. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5782078&view=rss&microfeed=true

With Torres headed to Chelsea for a record $80 million, you know who's got to be steamed? The Liverpool fan who legally changed his name to "Fernando Torres" last month. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5748970&view=rss&microfeed=true

Someone's trying to blackmail a Premier League player with video and photos of his Las Vegas tryst with three Swedish blondes. And he wants this covered up...why? [Daily Mail] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5731757&view=rss&microfeed=true

Soccer players: they're just like us! Liverpool's Ryan Babel could face discipline for Tweeting this photoshopped picture of the ref wearing a Manchester United jersey after a controversial FA Cup match yesterday. He should be suspended, if only for using "SMH." [Guardian] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5729732&view=rss&microfeed=true

As is tradition, The Spoiler shall start with the bad news — only ONE player from our "Predicted Team of the Season" compiled in early August looks set to make the XI once the league is done and dusted. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5716956&view=rss&microfeed=true

Arsene Wenger thinks the Premier League offseason should be in the winter rather than the summer. Well, it'd do wonders for Blackpool's tourist-heavy attendance. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5716139&view=rss&microfeed=true

The poor bastard made one little mistake in his Premier League match that was slightly similar to his cock-up against the US, and immediately, everywhere, it's "Robert Green will never recover from the World Cup." More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5636770&view=rss&microfeed=true SkyTV's Chris Kamara had one job at this weekend's Portsmouth-Blackburn match: Watch the game. And maybe try to pay attention to what happens. He failed miserably on both counts. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5510839&view=rss&microfeed=true

Sick of foreign businessmen and oil magnates buying up the Premiership's best, then driving them into the ground, the government has proposed some ways to put teams back in the hands of the fans. They're all unworkable. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5504921&view=rss&microfeed=true

ESPN is creating a new UK-based channel in order to broadcast the live Premier League matches they now own the rights to. If "First Take" ends up on the schedule, this could destroy the NATO alliance. [Guardian, via Sports Hernia] More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5310258&view=rss&microfeed=true

Manchester United won the Carling Cup last weekend in a dramatic(?) penalty shootout, but it turns out that goalie Ben Foster may have had some technological assistance. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5164867&view=rss&microfeed=true

The English are legendary for their politeness, but this is ridiculous—below is a real letter that was sent by Middlesbrough FC to their own fans, scolding them for being too darn loud. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5158738&view=rss&microfeed=true

There have been plenty of profanity-laced coaching tirades in American sports, but until you've seen soccer coaches go at it with the British press, you really haven't seen anything. Here's Newcastle United interim head coach Joe Kinnear, exchanging pleasantries with some newspaper writers during his first press conference on Thursday. Yes, his first press conference. The Daily Mirror estimated that Kinnear swore 52 times in a five-minute span, a feat which I'm afraid even Tommy Lasorda or Jim Mora would have trouble matching. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5058577&view=rss&microfeed=true

Manchester United dominated West Ham en route to a 4-1 victory, holding off Chelsea for another week. Ronaldo netted a double for the Red Devils before his countryman Nani received a red card for a blatant headbutt to Lucas Neill's nose. Now Nani will be forced to sit out the final match of the season against Wigan. A win there for United and there will be nothing Chelsea can do to overcome the gap. Dean Ashton of West Ham had the most stylish goal of the match, while my boy Carlos Tevez added an absolute rocket to shut the door on the Hammers. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=386855&view=rss&microfeed=true Cristiano Ronaldo had an impressive back-heel goal in Man U's 4-0 rout of Aston Villa yesterday. In other news, I just tripped over my mouse. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=373828&view=rss&microfeed=true

For some reason, great teams always play with more fervor after a loss. We can all assume the New England Patriots will win the Super Bowl if they fall in Week 17, or that Duke basketball will win the Final Four if they trip up in the ACC tournament. But this isn't the case over in England. Instead, the teams over there play with fervour, which is not actually a brand of alcohol, but actually holds the same definition as "fervor." And this is where Arsenal comes in. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=328834&view=rss&microfeed=true

• Wigan 1-1 Birmingham. Birmingham plays a quality second half, earning a point against Wigan and keeping themselves out of the league's bottom three. The more I follow soccer, the more I like this relegation idea. Some American sports should really look into it. More »
]]> http://deadspin.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=166014&view=rss&microfeed=true