USA

Borussia Dortmund’s 2020-21 campaign began in earnest today with a DFB-Pokal first round match against third division side MSV Duisburg. Dortmund fielded a strong starting 11, but there was also room for a pair of teenagers in Giovanni Reyna and Jude Bellingham (both 17).

Dortmund got things started in the 14th-minute with Jadon Sancho converting from the penalty spot, and then Bellingham marked his competitive Dortmund debut with a goal following an excellent backheel from Thorgan Hazard.

I will admit it — I tend to get so caught up in the Christian Pulisic and Gio Reyna hype-train that I sometimes overlook the other talented members on the USMNT. Well, New Zealand-born American winger Tyler Boyd just gave me the antidote with a magnificent goal for Besiktas. I will be googling “Tyler Boyd goal vs Trabzonspor” for some time to come.

Sit back, relax and watch an American give one of Turkey’s biggest clubs something to cheer about in its season opener.

Ahead of opening its Serie A campaign next weekend, Juventus played a friendly against third division side Novara at the club’s training center on Sunday morning. As the first friendly of preseason, the match served as a debut for 22-year-old American Weston McKennie following his year-long loan to the club from Schalke.

In a matchup of the last two NWSL clubs to lift a trophy, the N.C. Courage once again showed they’re the best in the league. The 2019 NWSL champions rallied late to beat the Challenge Cup winners 4-3 in a match that actually upstaged the Liverpool-Leeds game as the most entertaining 90 minutes of action on Saturday.

Houston led 2-1 at halftime thanks to a pair of assists from Challenge Cup final MVP Shea Groom, but Debinha took over the second half with two incredible goals.

USWNT superstar and global icon Alex Morgan signed with Tottenham Hotspurs of the FA Women’s Super League on Saturday. It’s a sentence so weird, even Alex Morgan herself can’t believe it.

2020 is the year of the unexpected, but next up — the first stamp on Charlie's passport. #COYS @SpursWomen pic.twitter.com/EkGnmFaQBN

Japan's Olympic Minister insists the rearranged Tokyo 2020 Games must be held "at any cost,” while the International Olympic Committee says only that it is committed to delivering a safe event.

But with less than a year before the July 23-Aug. 8 Games are due to start, the hugest of question marks remains over whether they can ever take place. With neither partner seemingly willing to consider scrapping the event as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc globally, we consider the options available, and possible scenarios:

Raúl Ruidíaz and Joevin Jones each had two goals and two assists and the defending MLS Cup champion Seattle Sounders scored four times in the opening 20 minutes en route to a 7-1 victory against the visiting San Jose Earthquakes on Thursday night.

Jordan Morris had a goal and three assists, and Kelvin Leerdam and João Paulo also scored for the Sounders (5-2-3, 18 points), who moved into first place in the Western Conference. Seattle extended its unbeaten streak against San Jose to 11 consecutive regular-season matches (6-0-5) dating to 2015.

The sale of the Real Salt Lake soccer team, Rio Tinto Stadium and associated properties is expected to bring at least $500 million, the Sports Business Journal reported Thursday.

Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen announced Aug. 30 that he is seeking to sell Utah Soccer Holdings, which owns the Major League Soccer club, the Utah Royals FC of the National Women's Soccer League, Real Monarchs of the United Soccer League and the 20,200-seat venue in Sandy, Utah.

Yūki Nagasato has done just about everything. She’s won a Women’s World Cup, an Olympic silver medal and a UEFA Champions League title. She’s played club ball in her home country of Japan, Germany, England, the U.S. and Australia, winning league titles in Japan and England. 

Now Nagasato’s aiming for something a little different: playing for a men’s team.