Football

Lionel Messi was the world's highest-paid athlete over the last year, according to the annual Forbes list released on Wednesday that had the Paris Saint-Germain forward ahead of the NBA's LeBron James and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi earned $130 million, a figure which includes $55 million of endorsements, during the 12-month period ended May 1, 2022, to sit atop the list of the 10 highest-paid athletes a year after finishing second to Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor. Los Angeles Lakers forward James

Oleksandr Pikhalionok scored the winner as Ukraine beat Bundesliga side Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-1 in a friendly on Wednesday in the national team's first game since the country was invaded by Russia. The match at Borussia-Park was attended by over 20,000 spectators, with all proceeds going towards relief efforts in Ukraine. Players from both teams held up a "Stop War" banner before kick-off. It also doubled up as a warm-up match for Ukraine before their World Cup playoff semi-final against Scotland on June 1,

Sadio Mane headed the winner as Liverpool came from a goal down to edge Aston Villa 2-1 on Tuesday and keep alive their hopes of reclaiming the Premier League title from leaders Manchester City. The win moved Liverpool level with City on 86 points in the standings, but the champions have a game in hand which takes place on Wednesday when they travel to Wolverhampton Wanderers. Any hope of Villa coach Steven Gerrard giving his former club an easy ride was quickly dispelled

Manchester United are set to undergo major changes after another disappointing season but former midfielder David Beckham hopes Cristiano Ronaldo sticks around for at least another year. United's 4-0 hammering at Brighton & Hove Albion at the weekend means they cannot finish higher than sixth. The Old Trafford side have appointed Ajax Amsterdam manager Erik ten Hag to replace interim boss Ralf Rangnick from the end of the current campaign, with the Dutchman expected to revamp the squad during the close season. Ronaldo

Conor Coady struck deep into time added on to snatch a 2-2 draw for Wolverhampton Wanderers away at Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday, as the Londoners' prospective new owners looked on from the Stamford Bridge stands. Coady headed home a cross from substitute Chiquinho in the 97th minute -- almost the last action of the game --after Francisco Trincao had pulled a goal back following Romelu Lukaku's double strike for Chelsea. Todd Boehly, the man heading the consortium that has agreed

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp said his Liverpool side would still chase an unprecedented quadruple despite seeing their Premier League title hopes suffer a huge blow on Saturday. Klopp's side have already won the League Cup and are in the FA Cup and Champions League finals and victory over Tottenham on Saturday would have cranked up the pressure on Manchester City in the title race. But they could only draw 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur -- ending a run of 12 successive home league wins

With only six months to go until the first FIFA World Cup in the Middle East and Arab world, excitement for the tournament is reaching fever-pitch levels in Qatar and throughout the region. During the Eid holiday, fans in Qatar will be able to catch a glimpse of the famous FIFA World Cup Original Trophy from 5-10 May as it visits tourist hotspots including Aspire Park, Lusail Marina, Souq Waqif and Msheireb Downtown Doha. These events in Qatar will count as the send-off

John Lundstram struck 10 minutes from time to give Rangers a 3-1 win over RB Leipzig and send them into the Europa League final 3-2 on aggregate after a see-saw clash at a rocking Ibrox on Thursday. Goals from James Tavernier, Glen Kamara and Lundstram ensured Rangers moved to the final for the first time since 2008, where they will face Eintracht Frankfurt, bidding to win a second European trophy 50 years after the 1972 Winners' Cup. Captain Tavernier opened the scoring in

Real Madrid fought back from the brink of elimination to beat Manchester City 3-1 after extra time and 6-5 on aggregate in an enthralling and dramatic Champions League semi-final on Wednesday. City led 1-0 on the night and 5-3 on aggregate when Riyad Mahrez scored after 73 minutes but Real substitute Rodrygo equalised in the last minute of normal time and headed home one minute later to level the tie at 5-5. Five minutes into extra time Karim Benzema converted a penalty awarded

Liverpool survived a first-half scare to reach the Champions League final with a 3-2 win at Villarreal on Tuesday, for a 5-2 aggregate victory, after the night had threatened to turn sour for Juergen Klopp's side. The visitors fell 2-0 down with an insipid first-half performance before fighting back with three goals in a 12-minute spell after the break to advance to their third European Cup final in five seasons. The Premier League side had won 2-0 in England but looked in danger

UEFA has banned Russia from the Women's European Championship in July and from participating in qualifying for next year's World Cup following the country's invasion of Ukraine, European soccer's governing body said on Monday. Portugal will replace Russia for the July 6-31 tournament in England, having lost to them in the qualifying play-offs. They will join the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland in Group C. UEFA also ruled Russia's bid to host the men's Euros in 2028 and 2032 ineligible, which means Britain and

Defender Raphael Varane scored his first Premier League goal as Manchester United returned to winning ways with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Brentford on a night of potential farewells at Old Trafford. Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo, the latter with a penalty, also netted on Monday, which is the last home fixture of a difficult campaign for United. Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic were given starts by departing coach Ralf Rangnick in what is likely their final season with the club, while Edinson

Real Madrid's triumphant 2021-22 LaLiga campaign will be remembered for the exploits of striker Karim Benzema. The marauding French international scored his 26th goal in 30 league games on Saturday, sealing Real's 4-0 home win over Espanyol that secured a record-extending 35th Spanish league title with four games to spare. It has been a stellar season that took some time to arrive for the 34-year-old French striker, who took his place as the undisputed leader and most influential player in a team that

An own goal and a Sadio Mane strike earned Liverpool a 2-0 victory in their Champions League semi-final first-leg against Villarreal on Wednesday, putting Juergen Klopp's side on course for their third European Cup final in five seasons. After the drama of Tuesday's other semi-final, which saw Manchester City beat Real Madrid 4-3 at the Etihad, it was never going to be easy for this game to compete in the entertainment stakes. But Liverpool did enough to build themselves a solid lead for

After one of the greatest of Champions League semi-final clashes, Manchester City will take a 4-3 lead into the second leg of their tie against Real Madrid following an extraordinary encounter at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday. A breathtaking and relentlessly fast game, packed with chances, moments of individual brilliance and a smattering of defensive lapses, was a treat for the spectators but leaves City, who had the better of the game, with the slenderest of leads to defend at the Santiago Bernabeu

Leeds United coach Jesse Marsch is hoping for a better result when he comes up against Manchester City for a second time this season after his former side RB Leipzig lost a nine-goal Champions League thriller last year. Marsch was in charge of Leipzig when they were lost 6-3 to City in a group stage match in September before he parted ways with the Bundesliga club at the end of the year. Leeds, who drew 0-0 at Crystal Palace in the Premier League

Everton slipped into the relegation zone with Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Liverpool but manager Frank Lampard said the game had left him "more positive" about the club's chances of Premier League survival. Everton are now 18th and trail Burnley, who have played one game more, by two points. Despite the defeat, Lampard said he was delighted with the attitude of his players and that he was "more positive" about their chances of staying up. "I was pleased with the way we competed in

Bayern Munich eased past title rivals Borussia Dortmund 3-1 on Saturday to secure their 10th consecutive Bundesliga crown in front of a sold-out home crowd and with three games to spare. First-half goals from Serge Gnabry and Robert Lewandowski put the hosts 2-0 up before Emre Can cut the deficit with a 52nd-minute penalty. Jamal Musiala got Bayern's third goal seven minutes from the end Bayern, 12 points clear of second-placed Dortmund, have now won 31 Bundesliga titles since the introduction of the

Paris St Germain secured a record-equalling 10th French top flight title after stuttering to a 1-1 draw against 10-man RC Lens but the celebrations were rather muted as frustrated fans headed for the Parc des Princes exit immediately after Saturday's final whistle. Lionel Messi's goal was cancelled out by Corentin Jean as PSG were left on 78 points, 16 ahead of second-placed Olympique de Marseille who will play their game in hand at Stade de Reims on Sunday. PSG have now won eight

Mohamed Salah scored twice as Liverpool thumped old rivals Manchester United 4-0 at Anfield on Tuesday to move top of the Premier League, for 24 hours at least. After a 5-0 win at Old Trafford in October, this was another humiliation of United by Juergen Klopp's team, who were barely threatened by their lifeless opponents. Liverpool moved to 76 points from 32 games with title rivals Manchester City on 74 points from one game fewer, with Pep Guardiola's side hosting Brighton and Hove