Fans

PARIS - Chaotic scenes at the French national stadium before and during Saturday night's Champions League final were branded a national embarrassment, while French ministers blamed Liverpool fans for the trouble.

The final between Liverpool and Real Madrid kicked off with a 35-minute delay after police tried to hold back people attempting to force their way into the Stade de France without tickets, while some ticket holders complained they were not let in.

The 2022 Champions League Final — the most anticipated match of the year featuring Real Madrid and Liverpool, two of the world's most-followed clubs — was delayed 36 minutes after chaos outside the Stade de France in Paris resulted in the closure of gates and the slow filtering of supporters into the Liverpool end.

The original postponement was for 15 minutes, although an additional 15 was later added, as UEFA initially blamed the late arrival of Liverpool fans for the delay.

MILAN — Liverpool FC's planned victory parade on Sunday has stirred unease for a representative of victims of the Heysel stadium disaster as it coincides with the 37th anniversary of the tragedy.

Liverpool, who play Real Madrid in the Champions League final on Saturday, plan a celebration in their home city after a season in which they have already won the two main domestic cup competitions in England and finished runners-up in the Premier League.

Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira will not be charged by England's Football Association (FA) following his altercation with a fan amid a pitch invasion at Goodison Park last week.

Vieira was confronted by the supporter after his team's 3-2 defeat by Everton and the Frenchman appeared to kick the fan to the ground before being led away.

For years, N.C. Courage attendance numbers were some of the best in the NWSL. In 2022, no one wants to go see the Courage play, even when it’s the Challenge Cup final. 

The reasons are pretty obvious. Well, they’re obvious to everyone but the owners, it seems.

For the last few years (discounting the pandemic season of 2020), North Carolina has averaged more than 5,000 fans per game, always in the top half of the NWSL attendance rankings. It wasn’t hard to see why: The Courage won three NWSL Shields and two NWSL Championships from 2017-19. 

As most Manchester City supporters revelled in another Premier League title on Sunday, one of their most famous fans Noel Gallagher was receiving stitches in his face after being accidentally head-butted by Ruben Dias's father.

The former Oasis rock star said he was "covered in blood" moments after Pep Guardiola's side fought back from 2-0 down against Aston Villa to win 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium in a dramatic final game of the season.