soccer Page 134 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Can Defending World Cup Champions Japan Shock The World Again?

It’s been a heady time to be a fan of reigning world champions Japan these past few years. After starting the World Cup era as an international fixture, usually present but never too threatening at the major tournaments, Japan are now recognized as one of the sport’s dominant greats, thanks to a his...

Switzerland: World Cup Prodigies, Or Untested Posers?

Usually, you’d think you’d know about a team after a long World Cup qualifying campaign, especially one that traversed the oft-difficult UEFA gauntlet. But one question still engulfs Switzerland as they head to Canada: are they any good?...

FIFA Paid Ireland Not To Sue Over Thierry Henry's Handball

Thierry Henry’s uncalled handball in a World Cup play-off was a major reason France qualified for the 2010 tournament instead of Ireland. Today, the head of the Football Association of Ireland confirmed that FIFA paid off the FAI to avoid legal action....

Indicted Official On National TV Broadcast: FIFA Funded 2010 Elections

Former FIFA official Jack Warner bought airtime on some of Trinidad’s biggest TV networks in primetime tonight to air his own “The Gloves Are Off” political message, claiming he had proof FIFA money influenced the 2010 Trinidad & Tobago national election....

The Washington Post has a nice profile of Andrew Jennings, a British investigative reporter who first started digging into FIFA 15 years ago. “‘These scum have stolen the people’s sport. They’ve stolen it, the cynical thieving bastards,’ [Jennings] said. ‘So, yes, it’s nice to see the fear on their ...

Women's World Cup Group A Preview: Canada Got This (This Is Not A Jinx)

Here’s a roundup of all our Group A previews of the day. You can check those and our group prediction out below, and talk about how you see things shaping up in the comments....

Can Thailand Take Advantage Of Their Lucky Break?

Thailand’s journey to the World Cup was a strange one, and they had to take advantage of a unique set of circumstances to get here. In 2009, FIFA decided to bump up the number of teams in the 2015 World Cup from 16 to 24, which increased the amount of bids for Asian teams from three to five. And in ...

World Cup Debutantes Côte d'Ivoire Will Be Here For Years To Come

When Côte d’Ivoire take the field against Germany on June 7, how they will play will be a mystery. Not because they have ginned up some tactics in secret—though maybe they have!—but because they have only played a single match in the past seven months. While the Côte d’Ivoire men’s team is known for...

Norway's Brute Force Past Meets Soccer's Future

Two decades ago Norway were a soccer power, finishing second at the 1991 World Cup and winning it all in 1995. But recent years have seen a tactically naïve Norway surpassed, or at least equaled, by nations that got a later jump on women’s soccer, like France, England, and Spain. While they should h...

Germany Are A Steamroller, And They Expect To Win It All

Germany have historically been one of the best teams in women’s soccer, and they go into the 2015 World Cup like they go into every tournament: with the expectation of winning. They won the World Cup in 2003 and 2007, finished runner-up in 1995, and have won every Women’s Euro since 1995. They went ...

The Once Great, Now Unknown China Women's National Team

There was once a time when China were one of the biggest names in women’s soccer. A time when, come a World Cup, you could pencil the then-giants of Asia into the knockout rounds and rightly expect them to make a run. That time has passed. Now, no one really knows what to expect from this team....

Will Canada Earn The Right To Get Knocked Out By The USWNT Again?

The stage is set. Fresh off of their best-ever result in a major tournament (a bronze in the 2012 London Olympics) that climaxed with probably the sport’s greatest-ever game, Canada enter this summer’s World Cup on home soil turf with, as Beatrix Kiddo would say, some unfinished business. Unfortunat...

How Much Is FIFA Like <i>The Godfather</i>? ESPN And ABC Count The Ways

Josh Margolin with ABC News is reporting today that Sepp Blatter is a target of the federal investigation unveiled last week, which included the indictment of 14 international soccer leaders and businessmen. Those charges included some old-school classics familiar to anyone to who loves a good organ...

These Degenerate Emailers Want The Full Soccer Player Orgy Video, Please

Since we wrote on Sunday about the orgy in Thailand involving three Leicester City players, we’ve received a few requests for the full video, as if Deadspin is a subscription service hoarding soccer player orgies unless contacted by email. The inquiries:...

Sepp Blatter Will Resign

Sepp Blatter is no longer the president of everybody. The scandal-wracked FIFA head has announced he will resign, and a special session of congress will be held to elect his successor....

Arrested Ex-FIFA VP Cites <i>The Onion</i> In Strange Self-Defense Video

Today in Dumb FIFA Man, arrested ex-VP Jack Warner tried to thank his supporters and clear his name during a strange Facebook video in which he cites a report from The Onion to prove FIFA’s generosity. ...

Leicester City Stars Film "Depraved" Orgy Featuring Racial Slurs [NSFW]

Leicester City players James Pearson, Tom Hopper, and Adam Smith are under fire after video of a strange orgy during the team’s recent end-of-season trip to Thailand has made its way public....

Messi Opens Copa Del Rey Final Scoring With Marvelous Goal

Messi is unstoppable. There’s really no other words for this feat that put Barça up 1-0 on Athletic Bilbao in today’s Copa Del Rey final. ...

Alexis Sánchez Puts Arsenal Up 2-0 With Unreal Strike

This really is as stunning as it looked live. Arsenal are on their way to claiming the FA Cup today as Alexis Sánchez has put the Gunners up 2-0 with this absolutely ridiculous strike:...

FIFA Sponsors Double Down On Endorsement Of Slavery

If you expected this week’s sham re-election of Sepp Blatter after a massive federal corruption takedown to be the final straw in corporate slave sponsors’ relationship with FIFA, you have far too optimistic a view of the world. McDonald’s, Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, Visa, and other FIFA sponsors ar...