When Neymar made his record-breaking transfer from Barcelona to PSG, his former Brazilian club Santos, with which he played from the age of 11, received a windfall of nearly $16 million as a solidarity payment.
They say money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you the existential dread of being a football fan, if these English Premier League cash figures are any indication.
It’s not hard to figure out that the Premier League is the best in the world at generating and spending money. And while it’s also not hard to argue that other leagues or teams are better on the pitch, when it comes to finances, there’s only one king.
According to the latest reports, 10-year-old Barcelona phenom Michal Zuk has signed a brand ambassador contract with adidas.
The numbers are in — and they’re quite impressive. Those wondering how many people watch World Cup matches have their answers: about half the world’s population.
The 2018 World Cup in Russia was a thrilling month-long ode to the world’s game. About five months after France lifted the World Cup in Moscow, FIFA released the complete TV viewership numbers on Friday.
In all, FIFA said 51.3 percent of the world’s population watched the World Cup at some point.
While most of Texas was focused on national signing day for college football, another sport made big news in Austin, the largest U.S. city without a top-level professional sports team. The city of Austin and Precourt Sports Ventures announced a landmark $225 million Austin FC stadium deal on Wednesday morning.
According to Showbuzz Daily, the 2018 MLS Cup Final averaged 1.5 million viewers on FOX, making it the second-most-watched final in league history behind MLS Cup ’97 (which garnered an audience of 2.2 million people thirsting for Marcelo Balboa). Atlanta United beat Portland 2-0 in front of a record crowd for an MLS match on Saturday.
This is the best. This is just the best. After a year dictated by the scummy musings of Anthony Precourt and the Columbus Crew moving to Austin, we finally saw the fruits of the #SaveTheCrew movement and the long-term vision of soon-to-be owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam (the owners of the Cleveland Browns) today. The Crew buyers are pledging an investment of $645 million in the club, a gobsmacking total which includes the cost of a $230 million stadium in Columbus’ downtown Arena District.
Inter Miami is still about 16 months from playing its first match in Major League Soccer but has been one of most drawn-out sagas in U.S. soccer history. It even makes this epic search for a new USMNT coach seem simple and short. However, the last 12 months have finally given the club a full ownership group, an official name, a crest and colors.
Just in time for the Major League Soccer playoffs to take a two-week break, Forbes released its list of most valuable MLS teams on Wednesday, and there’s a new team at the top.
The LA Galaxy and Seattle Sounders were No. 1 and No. 2 in Forbes’ ranking of most valuable MLS teams in 2017. This season, one of the new kids on the block bumped them from their perch.
The Seattle Sounders 2018 MLS campaign came to a cruel end on Thursday night. Not just because it was via their rivals the Portland Timbers. Not just because it came through penalties after an incredible 4-4 aggregate score across two legs. Not just because they were forced to play most of the two legs without two of their best players, Chad Marshall and Christian Roldan, lost early in leg one to injury.