Soccer

Latest Stories

In this Tuesday, May 28, 2019, photo, Spain's women national soccer team train in Las Rozas, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain. Spain’s women players are hoping that a strong performance at the World Cup this month will give their sport a boost just at the moment when they are fighting for their basic rights as professional athletes. Women’s soccer has experienced massive growth since the 2015 World Cup. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Fighting for rights, Spain women aim for landmark tournament

By JOSEPH WILSON - Associated Press

France's Eugenie Le Sommer, right, celebrates with her teammates after scoring her side's opening goal during the Women's World Cup Group A soccer match between France and South Korea, at the Parc des Princes in Paris, Friday, June 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

France wins start amid World Cup cash, visibility issues

By ROB HARRIS - Associated Press

FILE - In this Feb. 2, 2018 file photo, Confederation of African Football president Ahmad Ahmad of Madagascar, right, and FIFA president Gianni Infantino attend the opening of the Confederation of African Football general assembly in Casablanca, Morocco. FIFA vice president Ahmad was detained by French authorities on Thursday June 6, 2019 in the latest criminal investigation to hit soccer's governing body. (AP Photo/Abdeljalil Bounhar, File)

FIFA vice president Ahmad questioned by French authorities

By ROB HARRIS - Associated Press

In this Sunday, May 26, 2019, file photo, fans hold up a banner in support of the United States women's national team before they compete in the Women's World Cup during an international friendly soccer match between the United States and Mexico in Harrison, N.J. The World Cup is not just about soccer for many of the players and teams in France. For the defending champion U.S. women’s team, that means focus on the fight for equal pay to the men’s national team.(AP Photo/Steve Luciano, File) **FILE**

Women’s World Cup becomes platform for social change

By Anne M. Peterson - Associated Press

FILE - In this May 23, 2019, file photo, Cristiano Ronaldo applauds fans at the pit line ahead of the second practice session at the Monaco racetrack, in Monaco. A civil lawsuit in Nevada accusing Cristiano Ronaldo of rape has been dropped by the woman who alleged last year that the soccer star paid her to keep quiet about the 2009 encounter in a Las Vegas hotel penthouse. A federal lawsuit filed in January by the woman’s attorneys is still active, and Las Vegas police say their investigation of the allegations remains open. An attorney in Las Vegas who represents the 34-year-old Ronaldo is declining to comment about the developments. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

The Latest: Lawyer says Ronaldo rape lawsuit is still on

Associated Press

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, right, and FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samba Diouf Samoura arrive for a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Tuesday, June 4, 2019. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

The Latest: Brazil soccer chief backs Neymar in rape case

Associated Press

Blockade doesn’t slow World Cup 2022 plans

By Staff

FILE - In this Friday, Feb. 26, 2016 file photo, newly elected FIFA president Gianni Infantino of Switzerland as he raises an arm during a press conference after the second election round during the extraordinary FIFA congress in Zurich, Switzerland. FIFA President Gianni Infantino this week gets a fresh four-year term to lead FIFA and world soccer in relative calm after years of turmoil. The 49-year-old Swiss-Italian lawyer’s rise still rankles with those who thought the FIFA presidency was their destiny. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)

Out of turmoil, Infantino set to lead FIFA into calmer era

By GRAHAM DUNBAR - Associated Press

Brazil's soccer player Neymar runs for the ball during a practice session at the Granja Comary training center ahead of the Copa America tournament, in Teresopolis, Brazil, Tuesday, May 28, 2019. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Woman accuses Neymar of rape, player says he was set up

By MAURICIO SAVARESE - Associated Press

FILE - In this file photo dated Feb. 18, 2014, former FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke speaks during a news conference for the 2014 World Cup in Florianopolis, Brazil. Switzerland’s supreme court says it rejected an appeal by former FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke against a 10-year ban from soccer duty for financial wrongdoing, it was reported on Friday, May 31, 2019. Federal judges dismissed arguments including that punishment for the 58-year-old Valcke was excessive, and that he was denied a fair trial at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. (AP Photo/Andre Penner, File)

Swiss supreme court dismisses Valcke’s FIFA ban appeal

By GRAHAM DUNBAR - Associated Press

In this April 13, 2019, photo, Las Vegas Lights FC fans celebrate the team's goal against the Tacoma Defiance in a soccer match at Cashman Field in Las Vegas. Lights goalie Thomas Olsen is at center. Las Vegas is considering a deal with a developer to reshape a downtown stadium area to boost a bid for a Major League Soccer expansion franchise. The City Council plans a vote next week to give The Renaissance Companies Inc. six months to come up with a plan involving the aging Cashman Field baseball stadium, now home to the minor-league Las Vegas Lights. (Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Vegas considers stadium-area plan, bid for MLS soccer team

Associated Press

Feds: Man threatened to kill athletes over gambling losses

Associated Press

Spanish police arrest soccer players for match-fixing

By TALES AZZONI and JOSEPH WILSON - Associated Press

United States forward Tobin Heath, right, steals the ball from Mexico defender Rebeca Bernal before scoring a goal during the first half of an international friendly soccer match, Sunday, May 26, 2019, in Harrison, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

U.S. women beat Mexico 3-0 before starting title defense

By Ronald Blum - Associated Press

FILE - In this Aug. 19, 2016, file photo, Brazil's Marta, left, dribbles past Canada's Jessie Fleming during the bronze medal women' soccer match at the summer Olympic's at the Arena Corinthians stadium in Sao Paulo. (AP Photo/Nelson Antoine, File)

Coach says ‘Marta is still Marta’ as World Cup nears

By MAURICIO SAVARESE - Associated Press

Ada Hegerberg of Lyon celebrates her goal during the women's soccer UEFA Champions League final match between Olympique Lyon and FC Barcelona at the Groupama Arena in Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, May 18, 2019. (Balazs Czagany/MTI via AP)

Seeking more respect, superstar Hegerberg out of World Cup

By STEVE DOUGLAS - Associated Press

Former youth coach found guilty of 45 charges of sex abuse

Associated Press

FILE - In this July 5, 2015, file photo, United States goalkeeper Hope Solo hoists the trophy as she and her teammates celebrate defeating Japan to win the FIFA Women's World Cup soccer championship in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Solo was in goal four years ago in Canada when the United States won soccer’s most prestigious tournament. She has no regrets about her acrimonious breakup with the team, which will seek to defend its title at the Women’s World Cup in France. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

Hope Solo: Moving on after both success and controversy

By ANNE M. PETERSON - Associated Press

FILE - In this Sunday, April 21, 2019 file photo, Lyon's Delphine Cascarino, center, celebrates with Ada Hegerberg, right, and Lucy Bronze after scoring against Chelsea during the Women's Champions League semifinal soccer match in Decines, France. UEFA launched its five-year development plan for women’s soccer Friday May 17, 2019, in a breakthrough season leading to the World Cup in France. The strategy document, Time for Action, sets out how the European soccer body aims to double the number of women and girls playing, and change perceptions of their game. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani, File)

UEFA launch women’s soccer strategy plan ahead of World Cup

By GRAHAM DUNBAR - Associated Press

In this Saturday, May 4, 2019, Francis Kalombo from Congo, right, shakes hands with players of Cosmos FC at a soccer field, in Moria village, on the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos, Greece. A 10-minute walk from Europe’s largest refugee camp sits a nondescript yet remarkable soccer field. It’s a place where residents of the Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos can briefly forget about their tiny container-homes and crowded tents and instead worry about corner kicks and throw-ins. And it’s the place where 15-year-old Francis Kalombo became the first refugee to sign for a professional Greek soccer club. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Migrants on the island of Lesbos find refuge on soccer field

By DEREK GATOPOULOS and THANASSIS STAVRAKIS - Associated Press