Central & South America
Chile’s 2021 Copa América Jersey Is An Instant Classic
With the 2021 Copa América approaching (it's September?), we can finally start to dream about the return of international play with its accompanying displays of passion, history and fantasy.
Few sides stir the imagination like two-time Copa winner Chile, with stalwarts like Alexis Sánchez, Arturo Vidal, Gary Medel and Eduardo Vargas encapsulating an approach that can kill you in all manner of ways — just ask Messi.
Lionel Messi Helps Again During Pandemic With Huge Donation
Argentina's health system is on the verge of collapse as the country is overwhelmed by coronavirus cases. Hospitals are running out of space and resources are few and far between. The country has recorded 246,499 total cases and 4,634 deaths because of the virus. On the whole, South America is at its worst moment yet with the virus.
Ronaldinho To Be Released After Four-Month House Arrest Inside Paraguayan Hotel
Former World Cup winner Ronaldinho moved a step closer to ending his Paraguayan ordeal on Friday when prosecutors said they would not oppose a "conditional suspension" of the case that would allow him to return to Brazil.
The twice World Player of the Year was arrested on March 6 along with his brother and business manager Roberto Assis after they tried to enter Paraguay with adulterated Paraguayan passports.
Rodrygo Was Almost Certainly The Greatest Youth Futsal Player Of All-Time
The fastest LaLiga debut goal for Real Madrid since Ronaldo (and a brilliant one at that). A hat-trick on his second Champions League appearance. That ridiculous outside-of-the-foot volley against Club Brugge.
CONCACAF Unveils Restructured Qualifying Format For 2022 World Cup
CONCACAF has unveiled a new qualification format for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after COVID-19 forced a rejig of the usual system, the governing body for soccer in North and Central America and the Caribbean said on Monday.
The new format, which will feature all 35 of the region's members, has been split into three rounds with the first being played in October and November with teams ranked from No. 6 to No. 35 in CONCACAF as of July 16 drawn into six groups of five.
Brazilian Player Goes Full Nigel De Jong Into The Face Of An Opponent
Apart from Zinedine Zidane’s masterful headbutt on Marco Materazzi, the most infamous foul in 21st century World Cup finals is certainly Nigel de Jong’s hatchet man kung fu kick into the chest of Xabi Alonso.
It should’ve been a straight red — even referee Howard Webb admitted as much later — but it takes some cojones to effectively end the World Cup final after only 28 minutes.
Bolivian Football Federation President Dies From COVID-19
The Bolivian Football Federation (FBF) suffered the loss of its president on Sunday due to complications from COVID-19. Cesar Salinas was 58 years old and had served as president since 2018. He had been hospitalized with the novel coronavirus earlier in July.
The federation, CONMEBOL and Bolivia's president Jeanine Áñez all sent out messages of condolence to Salinas’ family following his passing.
Miguel Almirón Is Now Treating The Premier League Like MLS
Newcastle United twice came back from a goal down as they grabbed a 2-2 Premier League draw with West Ham United on Sunday, robbing the visitors of the chance to put some more daylight between themselves and the relegation zone.
Having lost their previous seven away league games, West Ham started the day three points above the drop zone, and they got off to the perfect start when Michail Antonio opened the scoring after four minutes following a mistake by Jamaal Lascelles.
Argentina Turns To ‘Metegol Humano’ For Football Under Social Distancing
Soccer-mad Argentines in the country's farm belt city of Pergamino have devised a clever way to keep playing while avoiding risk of spreading COVID-19: a human foosball pitch with zones for each player to avoid physical contact.
The innovative approach has captured the imagination in the South American nation famed for producing soccer legends Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona, even as the country has seen cases of the novel coronavirus spike in recent weeks.