World Football

Fenway Sports Group, the investment consortium that includes NBA star LeBron James, is considering selling Premier League team Liverpool.

"There have been a number of recent changes of ownership and rumors of changes in ownership at EPL clubs, and inevitably we are asked regularly about Fenway Sports Group's ownership in Liverpool," FSG told David Ornstein of The Athletic.

"FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool. FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club.

"FSG remains fully committed to the success of Liverpool, both on and off the pitch."

The group, which also owns MLB's Boston Red Sox and the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins, purchased Liverpool in 2010. A sale has been explored in the past, but no deal came to fruition.

Led by majority investors John Henry and Tom Werner, Fenway Sports Group's ownership tenure of Liverpool began with an extended whimper but has been strong of late. After finishing inside the Premier League top four just once from 2010-11 to 2015-16, the club has been no worse than fourth each of the past six seasons.

Liverpool won the Champions League in 2019 and followed it up with a Premier League title in 2019-20. The club was the runner-up in UCL earlier this year.

It's been a struggle for the club to live up to expectations this season, as they're currently sitting a disappointing eighth in the table.

Fenway Sports Group also owns Anfield, Liverpool's home stadium, which would almost certainly be part of any sale agreement.

Forbes currently values Liverpool at $4.45 billion.

For the first time in club history, Los Angeles FC are winners of the MLS Cup after defeating the Philadelphia Union 3-0 on penalty kicks Saturday in front of their home crowd at Banc of California Stadium.

With the match tied 3-3 through extra time, it was sent to penalty kicks to determine a winner, and Denis Bouanga, Ryan Hollingshead and Ilie Sánchez all made their kicks to power the Black and Gold to victory.

John McCarthy, who came on in relief of an injured Maxime Crépeau in extra time, was also brilliant in stopping all of Philadelphia's penalties. He went on to be named MLS Cup MVP.

LAFC kicked things off early, taking a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute on a free kick just outside the penalty area.

The Black and Gold were awarded the free kick after Union midfielder José Martínez was whistled for a foul, and Kellyn Acosta sent a shot into the bottom left corner of the goal to give LAFC a 1-0 lead.

LAFC took a 1-0 lead into the locker room at halftime, but the Philadelphia Union were quick to respond in the second half when Dániel Gazdag found the back of the net from inside the penalty area in the 59th minute, making it a 1-1 game.

LAFC were in good position to win the game in 90 minutes when Jesús Murillo broke the tie in the 83rd minute on a header off a corner kick that sailed past Union goalkeeper Andre Blake.

However, Philadelphia fought back again to tie the game 2-2 in the 85th minute when Jack Elliott scored on a header inside the box off a free kick that was awarded after LAFC's José Cifuentes was whistled for a foul.

With the game tied 2-2, it went to extra time, where chaos ensued in the 110th minute as LAFC goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau collided with Cory Burke while rushing out of the net to prevent a goal.

Crépeau was initially given a yellow card before being shown the red card in the 116th minute. He was carted off the field because of injury, and the Black and Gold were forced to play down a man for the remainder of the match.

John McCarthy came on in relief of Crépeau.

Burke was also subbed off in the 120th minute because of injury. He was replaced by Chris Donovan.

The Union went on to score the tiebreaker in the 124th minute when Elliott scored his second of the game following a corner kick. It looked like Elliott's goal was going to be the game winner—then Gareth Bale happened.

Bale, who was subbed on in extra time, tied the game 3-3 for LAFC in the 128th minute on a brilliant header from inside the box. His goal sent the game to penalty kicks.

LAFC's win on penalty kicks capped off an impressive 2022 season that saw them finish first in the Western Conference with a 21-4-9 record, tying the Union for the most points in MLS with 67.

Zlatan Ibrahimović believes Kylian Mbappé made the wrong decision in re-signing with Paris Saint-Germain after a long pursuit by Real Madrid.

"He made the right choice for Paris not for himself," Ibrahimović told Canal Plus (translated by ESPN). "Because he put himself in a situation where he is more important than the club. And the club gave him the keys for that. But you are never bigger than a club."

Mbappé had been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid before making a surprising switch in May to remain with PSG. His new contract makes him the highest-paid player in the world with an estimated $128 million salary for 2022-23, per Justin Birnbaum of Forbes.

There were reports Mbappé changed his mind and wanted a transfer in the next window, but he denied those rumors.

"I never asked for my departure in January," he told reporters.

Mbappé remains the focal point on a star-studded PSG squad that also features Lionel Messi and Neymar. He finished last season with 28 goals and 17 assists in Ligue 1, helping win the club's fourth title in five years.

Now in his sixth season with the club, Mbappé is trying to help Paris Saint-Germain finally take home a Champions League trophy. The squad has secured a spot in the round of 16 after finishing second in Group H.

Ibrahimović has taken a different path, never staying in the same place for more than four years at a time. He won four Ligue 1 titles with PSG from 2012 to 2016 but moved to Manchester United the next season.

The Swedish star also won trophies with Ajax, Juventus, Inter, Barcelona and AC Milan.

Zlatan believes it's important to challenge yourself and not be "satisfied" with your current situation.

"When you lose discipline, you lose your identity," he said.

The NWSL is planning to add two expansion teams to its 12-club roster by the 2024 season, and there is reportedly a surplus of interested investors.

According to Abigail Gentrup of Front Office Sports, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said recently that she expects to receive "five-to-10 official bids" prior to the Nov. 4 deadline following interest from "82 groups."

Gentrup noted that a frontrunner appears to have already emerged.

"When David Blitzer and Ryan Smith purchased MLS’ Real Salt Lake earlier this year—reportedly for nearly $400 million—the deal included a reported $2 million option to revive the Utah Royals, which dissolved in 2020," Gentrup wrote.

An official decision on expansion franchises is expected to be announced in early 2023. Per Gentrup, Kansas City Current owner Angie Long recently said the next owners to join the NWSL could end up paying "upwards of $50 million" in expansion fees.

The NWSL is as popular as it's ever been, as the league's 10th season in 2022 saw multiple attendance records throughout the year. This past Saturday's championship match between the Current and the Portland Thorns was the league's first prime-time title game, and it drew a record 915,000 viewers, which was a 71 percent increase from last year.

Earlier in October, an independent investigation found that the NWSL was a league "in which abuse and misconduct—verbal and emotional abuse and sexual misconduct—had become systemic, spanning multiple teams, coaches, and victims." However, Berman said that the findings from the investigation have not affected interest from investors for potential expansion teams.

"We need people around the table who are willing to face down the challenges that women face in society and are willing to do the hard work to solve those challenges in the NWSL," she said.

Major League Soccer's Inter Miami has emerged as the front-runner to sign superstar Lionel Messi when his PSG contract expires in the summer of 2023, according to a report from The Athletic's David Ornstein.

Per Ornstein, signing with the MLS club is the "most advanced" of Messi's potential options, "to the extent that the Major League Soccer franchise now expect Messi to arrive and hope he will sign in the coming months. Discussions between the two parties have been going on for a couple of years and there is increasing confidence that the proposed transfer will materialise."

Ornstein also noted that PSG will "push hard" to sign Messi to a contract extension, while a return to his first club, Barcelona, is also a possibility.

But Inter Miami may have the inside track. As Ornstein reported, the city of Miami remains a "source of attraction for Messi's family, who already own a property there. Miami's community links with South America are strong, too."

Attracting arguably the greatest player who ever lived to MLS would be a huge coup for the American league, which has attracted major stars in the past like Zlatan Ibrahimović, David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Wayne Rooney, among others, but always late in their careers. The cliche has been that football stars go to MLS for one last big payday.

Messi would be in a similar situation, though he continues to play at an incredible level with seven goals and 10 assists through 12 Ligue 1 appearances this season.

Going from PSG's wealth of talent to Inter Miami would be an enormous adjustment. There is no comparison to superstars like Kylian Mbappé or Neymar in MLS.

But there have also been rumors that Messi may take an ownership stake in Inter Miami upon joining the club, though his agent denied them in May.

Regardless, it's a situation worth monitoring. Landing the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner would be an enormous moment for both Inter Miami and MLS in general and a major blow for European powers like PSG and Barcelona. It promises to be a fascinating storyline heading into the summer.

Five years after joining MLS as an expansion team, Los Angeles FC clinched a spot in the MLS Cup final for the first time in franchise history with a dominant 3-0 win over Austin FC in Sunday's Western Conference final at Banc of California Stadium.

LAFC's leading scorer, Cristian Arango, opened the scoring with a header in the 29th minute. Austin was doomed by an own goal by Maximiliano Urruti in the 62nd minute. LAFC substitute Kwadwo Opoku added a dagger in the 81st minute to seal the win.

The win continues a fairytale year for the Black and Gold in Steve Cherundolo's first season as head coach. LAFC earned this year's Supporters' Shield and the top seed in the 2022 playoffs after finishing with a 21-9-4 record in the regular season.

LAFC joined MLS in 2018 and previously finished no better than the Western Conference semifinals. The team did not qualify for the playoffs last season after going 12-13-9, illustrating the quick turnaround under Cherundolo since he was hired on Jan. 3.

The Black and Gold will be joined in the MLS Cup final by the Philadelphia Union, who defeated New York City FC 3-1 in the Eastern Conference final Sunday. It was a revenge win for the Union, which fell to NYCFC in last year's conference final.

The top seed in the Eastern Conference after finishing with a 19-5-10 record in the regular season, Philadelphia is also competing for the MLS Cup title for the first time in franchise history. The Union joined MLS in 2010 as an expansion team.

After a scoreless first half, Maxi Morález got NYCFC on the board in the 57th minute. However, the Union answered with three consecutive goals to earn the win. Julián Carranza and Dániel Gazdag found the back of the net in the 65th and 67th minute, respectively. Cory Burke put the nail in the coffin with a goal in the 76th minute.

NYCFC had won the 2021 MLS Cup and was looking to become the first team to win back-to-back titles since the Houston Dynamo in 2006 and 2007.

Instead, we'll have a first-time champion when LAFC and Philadelphia next Saturday in Los Angeles at 4 p.m. ET.

Neymar has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the investigation of fraud and corruption charges in Spain related to his 2013 transfer from Santos to Barcelona.

According to Reuters, prosecutors dropped all of the chargers against the Paris Saint-Germain star after all defendants testified.

"There is not the slightest hint of crime," prosecutor Luis Garcia Canton said of the decision.

Citing a source close to the Neymar family, Reuters reported their legal representatives "would claim costs against the private prosecution for what they consider recklessness, acting in poor faith and for abuse of process" and reserve the right to claim for damages.

In 2014, Spanish authorities opened an investigation into alleged tax fraud of 9.1 million euros into Barcelona related to Neymar's transfer.

Per ESPN's Dermot Corrigan, the issue appeared to be related to two payments made in 2011 and 2013 totaling 37.9 million euros that went to a Brazilian-based company controlled by Neymar's father that should have been considered taxable income.

Neymar was named in a separate fraud lawsuit in June 2015 filed by Brazilian investment fund DIS, which owned 40 percent of his transfer rights, related to the move.

Barcelona were originally reported to have signed Neymar for $65 million in 2013, but investigators alleged the club paid a much higher price while only declaring the reported amount.

Barcelona denied any wrongdoing throughout the investigation. The trial for Neymar and eight others began in Barcelona on Oct. 17.

Prosecutors were seeking a two-year prison term and $9.8 million fine for Neymar. They also wanted former Barca president Sandro Rosell to receive five years in prison and for the club to be fined.

Reuters noted at the start of the trial that DIS was demanding five years in jail for Neymar and a fine of 149 million euros for the defendants.

Neymar began his senior career with Santos in 2009. The Brazilian star then spent four years with Barcelona before moving to PSG in August 2017.

Arsenal defender Pablo Marí, currently on loan at Serie A club Monza, was one of at least five people stabbed at a shopping market in the Assago area of Milan, according to Adam Crafton of The Athletic.

He is not believed to have suffered serious injuries.

"I just found out," Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told reporters on Thursday after his club's 2-0 loss to PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League. "I know [Arsenal technical director] Edu has been in touch with his relatives. He's in hospital but he seems to be OK."

According to Sky Sports, one man in his 30s died from stab wounds suffered in the attack. Per that report, a total of at least six people were attacked, but one did not require hospitalization.

A 46-year-old male suspect has been detained by police.

"We are all shocked to hear the dreadful news about the stabbing in Italy, which has put a number of people in hospital including our on-loan centre-back Pablo Mari," Arsenal said in a club statement. "We have been in contact with Pablo's agent who has told us he's in hospital and is not seriously hurt. Our thoughts are with Pablo and the other victims of this dreadful incident."

"Dear Pablo, we are all here close to you and your family, we love you, keep fighting as you know how to do, you are a warrior and you will get well soon," Monza CEO Adriano Galliani added in a tweet (h/t BBC News).

Mari, 29, joined Arsenal in Jan. 2020 on loan with an option to make the deal permanent that summer. Arsenal exercised that option and he's remained with the club since, though he was sent out on loan to Udinese in Jan. 2022 and Monza this season.

He's made 14 Premier League appearances for Arsenal in his career.

Premier League club Bournemouth is the latest group to cut ties with Kanye West.

The Cherries said Thursday they will no longer play West's 2010 song "Power" before matches at Vitality Stadium as they previously did for the past few years, per Ahmed Shooble of The Athletic.

The change comes after West's recent antisemitic comments, tweeting that he would "go death con 3 on Jewish people" in a since-deleted post.

The rapper also revealed more "hate speech and extremely dangerous stereotypes" during an episode of The Shop that was pulled from air.

The comments have led to significant backlash against West, losing his partnerships with Adidas, Gap and Foot Locker.

"Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech," the shoe company said in a statement. "Ye's recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company's values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness."

Athletes Aaron Donald and Jaylen Brown left Ye's Donda Sports after joining the sports marketing agency earlier this year.

West said on Instagram that he lost $2 billion in one day.

Bournemouth has not yet named a replacement song, but the club is set to host Tottenham on Saturday.