USA

FIFA is to introduce new regulations to protect the rights of women players, including mandatory maternity leave, world soccer's governing body said on Thursday.

The reforms have been put forward by FIFA's Football Stakeholders Committee (FSC) and will go to FIFA's Council next month for approval.

While many players in Europe are already protected by employment law in their given countries, FIFA says its aim is to create "new global minimum standards" for female players all over the world, given the rapid emergence of new clubs and leagues globally.

The latest meeting between the Montreal Impact and the New England Revolution will carry the highest stakes yet when the Revolution host the Impact on Friday in a winner-take-all MLS Cup Playoffs play-in game.

Due to the pandemic-influenced nature of the 2020 MLS schedule, the Impact and Revolution played four times at four different venues during the regular season. The Revolution went 3-1-0, winning each of the past three meetings.

Alex Morgan just started getting into the squad at Tottenham following her return to fitness after giving birth to her first child in May. Now she’ll have to impress a new boss after Spurs’ two co-head coaches were fired on Thursday.

The Seattle Sounders are slight favorites to repeat as MLS Cup champions, but several teams are considered strong contenders with the playoffs set to begin Friday.

The Sounders tied with Sporting Kansas City atop the Western Conference standings with 39 points, although Seattle played one more game. Sporting KC open the playoffs being offered at 8-1 to win the MLS Cup by SportsBetting.com.

Los Angeles FC star Diego Rossi tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the team's playoff game against the Seattle Sounders.

The forward was tested following Uruguay's loss to Brazil in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. He did not appear in the game.

Rossi is the third LAFC player to test positive while playing with his national team in the past week. Midfielder Jose Cifuentes and defender Diego Palacios, members of Ecuador's team, also tested positive and likely will miss the playoff opener on Nov. 24 in Seattle, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) will bring back the Challenge Cup before moving forward with a 24-game regular season beginning in May next year, the league said on Wednesday.

Players will report to camp on Feb. 1 for the month-long Challenge Cup, which was introduced in June as the NWSL became the first major North American league to return to action amid the coronavirus outbreak, held in a quarantined setting in suburban Salt Lake City, Utah.

Looking forward to 2021 

      

Seattle baseball icon Ken Griffey Jr. is now a part-owner of Seattle Sounders FC, the club announced Tuesday.

Griffey spent 13 of his 22 big league seasons with the Mariners and remains among the most popular athletes in the city's history.

The Houston Dash of the NWSL and Dynamo of MLS took a massive step in their club’s history on Tuesday with a rebrand featuring new logos. The new Houston Dynamo logo has strayed far away from the original badge the club donned in its inaugural 2006 season. The Dash logo took a similar approach as well.

We grind. We shine. We are Houston.

H-Town #HoldItDown pic.twitter.com/M2Jm2GUXsn

The FIFA Club World Cup, originally planned for December, will now be held from Feb. 1 to Feb. 11 in Doha, Qatar, organizers FIFA said on Tuesday.

The tournament brings together the six continental champions from across the world, with European Champions League winners Bayern Munich the first to have qualified. Last season's tournament ended with Liverpool beating Brazilian club Flamengo in the final.