https://www.scmp.com/rss/322918/feed The Bundesliga is the top professional football division in German football. It was founded in 1963, but was preceded by the German football championship, which was established in 1903. It is contested by 18 teams. A total of 29 clubs have won the German championship since it was established. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Paul McNamara Paul McNamara The searing USA summer 32 years ago contributed to Stefan Effenberg getting so hot under the collar that he was sent home from the World Cup finals. Regardless of his own mixed memories from that tournament, however, the Champions League-winning former Germany midfielder believes the US, along with Mexico and Canada, will provide a fine stage for this year’s expanded 48-team competition. Substituted as Germany toiled during a 3-2 victory over South Korea back in 1994, Effenberg responded to... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3351463/world-cup-usa-gets-backing-germany-legend-despite-mixed-memories-1994-finals?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3351463/world-cup-usa-gets-backing-germany-legend-despite-mixed-memories-1994-finals?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:25 +0000 Reuters Reuters Real Madrid remained the biggest-earning club in world football ‍during the 2024-25 season while Liverpool for the first time generated the most revenues in the Premier League, according to an annual financial list published on Thursday. The Spanish club topped Deloitte’s Football Money League with €1.16 billion (US$1.36 billion) of revenue despite not winning either La Liga or the Champions League. The only club to make ⁠more than $1 billion in the past two seasons, Real Madrid benefited in... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3340890/real-madrid-footballs-biggest-earners-liverpool-top-epl-despite-mediocre-seasons?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3340890/real-madrid-footballs-biggest-earners-liverpool-top-epl-despite-mediocre-seasons?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 00:00:15 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Despite leaving Liverpool as one of the most highly regarded coaches in world football in 2024, Jurgen Klopp said he never thought of himself as among the game’s best. “I never considered myself a world-class coach,” Klopp said in an interview in Leipzig, Germany, “because I still had so many questions when I finished. “I was, like, ‘how can I be world-class with these questions still?’” After starting out at German club Mainz, where he took the club to the top flight for the first time, Klopp... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3340424/ex-liverpool-boss-jurgen-klopp-says-i-never-felt-world-class-coach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3340424/ex-liverpool-boss-jurgen-klopp-says-i-never-felt-world-class-coach?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 09:30:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A man whose gambling addiction had landed him in prison is taking on the sports-betting industry in Germany. Thomas Melchior goes to German football league matches holding a sign saying “lost a bet” while putting himself at the mercy of the home fans by wearing their hated rivals’ jerseys to get attention. Melchior wore a Hertha Berlin shirt to Union Berlin’s game in the top division (Bundesliga) on Sunday, an 1860 Munich jersey at Bayern Munich’s match on Saturday, and a Hamburger SV shirt at... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3327339/former-gambling-addict-risks-football-fans-ire-warn-against-sports-betting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3327339/former-gambling-addict-risks-football-fans-ire-warn-against-sports-betting?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse,Associated Press Agence France-Presse,Associated Press Bayer Leverkusen have sacked manager Erik Ten Hag after just two Bundesliga matches in charge, the club announced on Monday. Fired by Manchester United last October, Ten Hag joined Leverkusen as the successor to Xabi Alonso, who moved to Real Madrid. “This decision was not easy for us; nobody wanted to take this step,” sporting director Simon Rolfes said in a statement. “The past few weeks have shown that the steps to build a new and successful team have not been effective.” Club CEO Fernando... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3323944/bayer-leverkusen-sack-ex-manchester-united-boss-erik-ten-hag-after-2-league-matches?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3323944/bayer-leverkusen-sack-ex-manchester-united-boss-erik-ten-hag-after-2-league-matches?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Sep 2025 11:22:37 +0000 Agencies Agencies South Korea coach Hong Myung-bo on Monday called up former German youth international Jens Castrop for next month’s friendlies against World Cup co-hosts the United States and Mexico – the first time a foreign-born, mixed-heritage player has been included in the men’s national squad. Hong named the Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder in his 26-man squad as the Koreans begin preparations for next year’s World Cup. The 22-year-old Castrop, who was born to a German father and a South Korean mother,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3323095/south-korea-select-first-mens-player-mixed-heritage-pre-world-cup-friendlies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3323095/south-korea-select-first-mens-player-mixed-heritage-pre-world-cup-friendlies?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Aug 2025 13:30:11 +0000 Paul McNamara Paul McNamara Hong Kong football chiefs look set to miss out on adding a gifted young attacker to the city’s representative team after he targeted playing in World Cups for his native Switzerland. Aaron Keller moved to Hong Kong when he was three months old because of his Swiss father’s instructor job with Cathay Pacific. At the age of 12, he left his family behind to follow his dream of becoming a professional footballer at the German Football Boarding School, where he was a teammate of Michael Udebuluzor –... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3310624/hong-kong-set-be-denied-young-talent-who-targeting-world-cup-homeland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3310624/hong-kong-set-be-denied-young-talent-who-targeting-world-cup-homeland?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 May 2025 07:47:26 +0000 Jurgen Klopp has defended his decision to head up Red Bull’s group of football clubs, saying he “didn’t want to step on anybody’s toes”, after his decision prompted a backlash from fans of his former teams in Germany. From January 1, 2025, Klopp is taking over as the drinks company’s head of global football in what was widely seen as a surprise move. He will oversee Red Bull’s football operations, which include RB Leipzig, Red Bull Salzburg and New York Red Bulls, among others. It will be his... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3284504/jurgen-klopp-defends-his-decision-join-red-bull-after-backlash-german-fans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3284504/jurgen-klopp-defends-his-decision-join-red-bull-after-backlash-german-fans?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Oct 2024 16:00:13 +0000 Chinese electronics manufacturer Hisense has signed on as the first official partner for next year’s Fifa Club World Cup, global soccer’s governing body said on Wednesday. Financial details of the partnership were not disclosed but Hisense will receive Video Assistant Referee (VAR) branding during the expanded 32-team competition set to take place in the United States from June 15 to July 13. Though no previous Fifa tournament has had a sponsor for video reviews since the technology was approved... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3284509/chinese-electronics-company-hisense-becomes-first-sponsor-fifas-club-world-cup-2025?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3284509/chinese-electronics-company-hisense-becomes-first-sponsor-fifas-club-world-cup-2025?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Oct 2024 14:00:11 +0000 Hong Kong is home to football fans from all over the world, a market that elite clubs have targeted to grow their fan bases. But which team has the most supporters in the city? The Post has trawled through the internet, looked at various supporters clubs and analysed Facebook pages to determine the No 1. So here’s a look at the full top 10 … and No 3 in particular might surprise you. 10. Liverpool 4,400 followers The Reds have a supporters group that is officially recognised on the club’s... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3278069/manchester-united-liverpool-real-madrid-which-most-supported-club-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3278069/manchester-united-liverpool-real-madrid-which-most-supported-club-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Sep 2024 04:30:08 +0000 Football is officially the most popular sport in the world, so it’s no surprise that some of the world’s top soccer players are paid millions for showing off their skills and athleticism. However, you don’t necessarily need to be on the field to make big bucks. Coaches and managers, whose team selections and strategies are partially responsible for how the team performs, are also locking in huge salaries. From legendary students of the game and master motivators, to players-turned-coaches, here... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/entertainment/article/3276403/8-richest-soccer-coaches-world-2024-net-worths-ranked-spains-pep-guardiola-and-portugals-jose?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/entertainment/article/3276403/8-richest-soccer-coaches-world-2024-net-worths-ranked-spains-pep-guardiola-and-portugals-jose?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Aug 2024 21:00:08 +0000 The best advice Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti can give his players as they prepare to face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final is to enjoy the moment, he said on Monday. Heading into his ninth Champions League final – his sixth as a manager and third with Real, who are bidding for a record-extending 15th European crown and sixth in 10 years – the 64-year-old Ancelotti believes his players have the experience to cope with the emotions. “It is a week to enjoy. The challenge, the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3264301/uefa-champions-league-final-days-final-are-be-enjoyed-real-madrid-manager-carlo-ancelotti-advises?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3264301/uefa-champions-league-final-days-final-are-be-enjoyed-real-madrid-manager-carlo-ancelotti-advises?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 May 2024 14:00:28 +0000 Fifa moved on Wednesday towards ending decades of football tradition by reviewing the rules that currently block domestic league games being played in other countries. Fans are likely to object to their teams’ home matches potentially being moved thousands of kilometres away. The United States and Saudi Arabia are expected to be willing hosts to lure competitive games from top European countries, and Fifa recently agreed to withdraw from an ongoing court case in New York filed by promoter... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3262802/fifa-moves-towards-ending-decades-football-tradition-and-letting-league-games-be-staged-other?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3262802/fifa-moves-towards-ending-decades-football-tradition-and-letting-league-games-be-staged-other?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2024 13:00:19 +0000 Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso says his team deserve all three titles available to them this season after they qualified for the Europa League final by overcoming AS Roma on Thursday. Leverkusen, the Bundesliga champions who have also reached the May 25 German Cup final, played their 49th match without defeat in all competitions, surpassing Benfica’s long-standing European record set from 1963 to 1965. In typical Leverkusen fashion this season, they achieved the milestone after a late... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3262155/german-champs-bayer-leverkusen-save-unbeaten-run-make-europa-league-final-now-face-bochum-last-side?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3262155/german-champs-bayer-leverkusen-save-unbeaten-run-make-europa-league-final-now-face-bochum-last-side?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 May 2024 08:00:18 +0000 Paris Saint-Germain forward Lee Kang-in is aiming to become just the second Asian man to win a Uefa Champions League medal as the South Korea forward prepares for a semi-final against Borussia Dortmund. The newly crowned French champions are heavy favourites to reach the showpiece at Wembley next month at the expense of the German side, which is languishing in fifth place in the Bundesliga. But unlike their opponents, PSG have never won the competition – though they have reached one final, back... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3261065/psgs-lee-kang-aims-become-only-second-asian-uefa-champions-league-winner-could-meet-fellow-south?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3261065/psgs-lee-kang-aims-become-only-second-asian-uefa-champions-league-winner-could-meet-fellow-south?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 May 2024 10:30:11 +0000 What does Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min have to do with Bayer Leverkusen’s maiden Bundesliga triumph? Leverkusen finally won the German league title for the first time in their 120-year history on Sunday, ending the “curse” that had seen them fall short so often. Following the 5-0 victory over Werder Bremen that confirmed their status as champions, manager Xabi Alonso, the mastermind behind the success, dedicated the triumph to those who had come before him. “This title also belongs to... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3259048/son-heung-min-why-some-fans-wore-south-koreans-shirt-bayer-leverkusen-celebrated-first-ever?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3259048/son-heung-min-why-some-fans-wore-south-koreans-shirt-bayer-leverkusen-celebrated-first-ever?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Apr 2024 09:23:48 +0000 The German fan alliance Unsere Kurve will recognise Bayer Leverkusen’s achievement to end Bayern Munich’s reign if they claim the Bundesliga title this season, but stressed it will leave a “bitter taste”. “Bayer Leverkusen have had a marvellous season. It’s right to recognise this achievement,” the alliance said when asked about their views on the potential title for Leverkusen. The team led by Xabi Alonso can claim the league title at the weekend, putting an end to Bayern’s run of 11... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3258400/bayer-leverkusen-bundesliga-title-win-would-be-marvellous-feat-leaves-bitter-taste-says-german-fan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3258400/bayer-leverkusen-bundesliga-title-win-would-be-marvellous-feat-leaves-bitter-taste-says-german-fan?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Apr 2024 14:00:20 +0000 Franz Beckenbauer, who left a unique imprint on German football as player, captain and coach, has died at the age of 78, the German football association (DFB) said on Monday. “Franz Beckenbauer was definitely the biggest German footballer of all time, and above all one of the greatest men who I have known,” said DFB vice-president Hans-Joachim Watzke. Beckenbauer, one of only three men to win the World Cup as player and as a coach, died on Sunday, the DFB said. Tributes poured in for the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3247727/tributes-pour-franz-beckenbauer-after-german-football-legend-dies-age-78?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3247727/tributes-pour-franz-beckenbauer-after-german-football-legend-dies-age-78?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Jan 2024 19:12:23 +0000 England striker Harry Kane admitted to being “nervous” on his Bayern Munich debut, after scoring one and setting up another as his side won 4-0 at Werder Bremen in the season opener on Friday. Kane, who arrived in Germany on Saturday after a €100 million (US$109 million) move from Premier League side Tottenham, played a part in Leroy Sane’s opener just three minutes in, before scoring midway through the second half. Billed as the missing link one year after the German champions lost forward... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3231633/nervous-kane-scores-bundesliga-debut-bayern-munich-beat-werder-bremen-season-opener?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3231633/nervous-kane-scores-bundesliga-debut-bayern-munich-beat-werder-bremen-season-opener?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Aug 2023 05:00:26 +0000 At the time of writing, we are still waiting to see which nation will win the 2022 World Cup, but this year’s tournament has already given us quite a few upsets during the group stage. Japan unexpectedly beat both Germany and Spain, two of the strongest national teams in recent football history. South Korea beating Portugal 2:1 in Group H was equally sensational to football fans. While Japan and South Korea’s runs in the World Cup have ended, after losing to Croatia and Brazil respectively in... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/article/3203264/5-asias-best-players-qatar-2022-world-cup-koreas-premier-league-star-and-burberry-ambassador-son?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/article/3203264/5-asias-best-players-qatar-2022-world-cup-koreas-premier-league-star-and-burberry-ambassador-son?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Dec 2022 08:03:42 +0000 Hong Kong teenager Michael Udebuluzor has his sights set on the Bundesliga after signing for German side FC Ingolstadt. The former Kitchee prospect has spent the past four years working his way through the ranks of German football, studying and training at the famed football academy DFI. Before his 18th birthday on April 1, Udebuluzor was fielding offers from the likes of RB Salzburg, Leverkusen and 1860 Munich. But he has settled on Ingolstadt, in Germany’s second tier – although they will play... https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3177378/bundesliga-beckons-hong-kong-teen-michael-udebuluzor-after-move?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3177378/bundesliga-beckons-hong-kong-teen-michael-udebuluzor-after-move?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 May 2022 00:30:14 +0000 The top flight of German football concludes this weekend, and the final games of the Bundesliga season will all kick-off at the same time on Sunday. With champions Bayern Munich unreachable at the top, attention will focus on the battle for European places, the fight to avoid relegation, and regional bragging rights. And with nine games to keep track of, supporters will invariably be flicking through different television channels and streaming sites to keep up with all the action, as it... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3177275/bundesligas-new-ai-takes-fan-first-approach-whole-new-level-putting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3177275/bundesligas-new-ai-takes-fan-first-approach-whole-new-level-putting?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 May 2022 04:30:12 +0000 Germany’s top football league targets physical events back in Hong Kong and China “at the earliest possible window”, says Bundesliga Asia-Pacific head Kevin Sim. Whereas the region would normally be rife with marquee name visits, exhibition matches and fan activations, the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions have forced a digital-heavy manoeuvre that will hopefully balance out sooner rather than later. Bundesliga’s APAC head office was established in Singapore a decade ago this year – the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3174350/bundesligas-head-asia-pacific-kevin-sim-wants-unearth-hong-kong-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3174350/bundesligas-head-asia-pacific-kevin-sim-wants-unearth-hong-kong-and?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Apr 2022 02:24:57 +0000 Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United has also seen him return to the No 1 spot on the Forbes list of football’s highest earners ahead of long-time rival Lionel Messi, with wages increasing for top players despite the financial impact of Covid-19. The Portuguese forward, who has recently become the top scorer in men’s international football, will earn a reported US$125 million this year – US$70 million from the Old Trafford side and US$50 million from his commercial... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3149651/cristiano-ronaldo-beats-lionel-messi-footballs-rich-list-andres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3149651/cristiano-ronaldo-beats-lionel-messi-footballs-rich-list-andres?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Sep 2021 05:37:14 +0000 Most of us will put 2020 down as a year to forget, with the sporting world ravaged by Covid-19 just like everything else. Tokyo 2020 was the biggest casualty. The distraction of sport turned to concern for the teams and leagues that we love being able to survive the pandemic’s financial impact. Those that did go ahead did so in bizarre circumstances and sometimes in the face of widespread criticism, while many athletes chose to sit it out, reasonably citing Covid-19 concerns. As with any year,... https://www.scmp.com/sport/other-sport/article/3114999/best-2020-naomi-osaka-son-heung-min-lewis-hamilton-and-other?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/other-sport/article/3114999/best-2020-naomi-osaka-son-heung-min-lewis-hamilton-and-other?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Dec 2020 01:00:06 +0000 It will be remembered as the strangest of Uefa Champions League seasons but it has ended with a familiar name on the trophy after Bayern Munich got the better of Paris Saint-Germain in Sunday’s final in Lisbon, with their deserved success the result of the remarkable job done by coach Hansi Flick. There was ticker-tape at the trophy ceremony and the usual celebratory songs playing over the loudspeakers at the Estadio da Luz as the Bayern players savoured the moment after Kingsley Coman’s goal... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3098541/brilliant-bayern-munich-worthy-winners-strangest-champions-league?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3098541/brilliant-bayern-munich-worthy-winners-strangest-champions-league?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Aug 2020 03:20:18 +0000 Bayern Munich head into Sunday’s Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain in extraordinarily dominant form and with a real chance to become the first team to win the competition with a 100 per cent record. The 3-0 win over Olympique Lyonnais on Wednesday wasn’t a perfect performance, with the French side surely given too many chances for coach Hansi Flick’s liking, but the outcome was never truly in doubt. In fact, “doubt” is a word that hardly seems applicable to Bayern this season –... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3098091/champions-league-hansi-flicks-bayern-bulldozer-ploughs-back-final?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3098091/champions-league-hansi-flicks-bayern-bulldozer-ploughs-back-final?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Aug 2020 04:24:35 +0000 Brazilian maestro Phillipe Coutinho shuffled off the pitch after scoring a hat-trick against Werder Bremen last December. The Bayern Munich number 10 – on loan from Barcelona – was making way for substitute and senior team debutant Sarpreet Singh, who would become the first footballer of Indian descent to play in the German top flight. New Zealand-born forward Singh, also the first Kiwi to play in the Bundesliga since Wynton Rufer in 1997, conceded there were a couple of jitters as he took to... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3096926/bayern-munichs-sarpreet-singh-learning-robert-lewandowski-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3096926/bayern-munichs-sarpreet-singh-learning-robert-lewandowski-and?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Aug 2020 00:00:23 +0000 “I think we are definitely looking at a future Ballon d’Or winner,” Louis Lancaster said of Jadon Sancho, “100 per cent.” Many rate the England international winger highly after his stand-out season with Borussia Dortmund and he has been strongly linked with Manchester United, but Lancaster has done so ever since he first coached Sancho at Watford. “I had Jadon when he was 13 and my first interaction with Jadon was in a summer programme,” Lancaster said. “With many players away on holiday those... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3096440/jadon-sancho-future-ballon-dor-winner-says-his-former-youth-coach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3096440/jadon-sancho-future-ballon-dor-winner-says-his-former-youth-coach?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Aug 2020 09:00:05 +0000 The “Chinese dream” is an idea that has come to embody Xi Jinping’s time at the helm. Essentially, “the American dream with Chinese characteristics”, it has been synonymous with the expansion of the country’s middle class over the last decade. Social transformation and economic progress has been the hallmark of the last few decades of China and it is no coincidence that the dispersal of disposable income has seen the rapid rise of interest from Western sports leagues and their individual... https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3095689/nba-not-only-ones-looking-next-yao-ming-other-sports-still-hope-cash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/china/article/3095689/nba-not-only-ones-looking-next-yao-ming-other-sports-still-hope-cash?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 02 Aug 2020 07:00:08 +0000 Rumours of a giant bet on Wigan Athletic’s relegation placed in the Philippines as a reason for the club’s plummet into administration put football’s relationship with Asian gambling markets back in the headlines last month, but a new report warns of a different danger. Asia-facing gambling companies are a potential threat to the integrity of European football, according to a new report by the Global Lottery Management System (GLMS). The transnational alliance of lotteries against sporting... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3095259/asian-facing-betting-sponsors-putting-european-football-risk-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3095259/asian-facing-betting-sponsors-putting-european-football-risk-report?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Jul 2020 02:00:26 +0000 Bayern Munich want Chinese footballers, the German giants’ Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has told China’s Xinhua news agency. “We are ready to sign players from China and are very much looking forward to it,” the 64-year-old told them despite past searches for talent coming up short. The Bavarians, who extended their Bundesliga run to eight in a row and a record 30 this season, have long courted the Chinese market and a player would help their quest for success. That courtship has all come under... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3095017/bayern-munich-still-looking-first-chinese-player-says-karl-heinz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3095017/bayern-munich-still-looking-first-chinese-player-says-karl-heinz?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Jul 2020 09:40:43 +0000 “I ask you, can you get any more Belizean than that?” That’s the punchline to a sketch on BBC Radio 4 comedy John Finnemore’s Souvenir Programme, where two football commentators describe the action from a penalty shoot-out defining each participant by their nationalities. Northern Europeans are all clinical efficiency – “standing still now with all the clinical efficiency of a particularly efficient clinic” – while Italians and South Americans are flamboyant and passionate – “not quite as... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3091229/pfa-study-finds-racial-bias-football-commentary-time-kick-it-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3091229/pfa-study-finds-racial-bias-football-commentary-time-kick-it-out?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Jul 2020 09:00:18 +0000 In the eight weeks since Germany became the largest European Union country to begin easing Covid-19 lockdown restrictions, the nation that has emerged as a case study for how to handle the virus has managed to build upon its early success despite some regional setbacks. Having flattened the curve with rates of new infections and deaths now a mere fraction of their peaks in early April, Germany has become a poster child for how a major Western nation can deal with the public-health crisis. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3091151/germany-world-leader-coronavirus-war-far-mission-accomplished?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3091151/germany-world-leader-coronavirus-war-far-mission-accomplished?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Jun 2020 04:57:36 +0000 There’s something unusual about the English Premier League being slow to return to action. Normally, while the stars of Spain and Germany are still enjoying preseason, their counterparts in England are several weeks into the new season. The coronavirus pandemic has changed many things about football, that much we have seen from what little action there has been since La Liga and the Bundesliga returned. That will change on Wednesday with Aston Villa playing Sheffield United and it is fitting... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3089353/english-premier-leagues-project-restart-football-back-not-we-know-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3089353/english-premier-leagues-project-restart-football-back-not-we-know-it?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Jun 2020 03:14:26 +0000 Germany striker Timo Werner could be headed to Chelsea from Leipzig. The Premier League club reportedly agreed to a deal in principle to sign Werner after meeting his release clause of around €60 million (US$68 million), which expires on June 15. The 24-year-old Werner has also been linked with a move to Liverpool. He has scored 31 goals in all competitions this season for Leipzig, who have reached the Champions League quarter-finals. Werner, who moved to Leipzig from Stuttgart in 2016, will... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3087643/germany-striker-timo-werner-close-joining-chelsea-rb-leipzig?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3087643/germany-striker-timo-werner-close-joining-chelsea-rb-leipzig?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Jun 2020 02:27:09 +0000 There was controversy in the stands at the NRL game between the Penrith Panthers and Newcastle Knights on Sunday despite the game being played behind closed doors in the Sydney suburb. A cardboard cut-out of notorious British killer Harold Shipman was spotted in the stands. The GP, known as “Doctor Death”, was charged with murdering 15 patients under his care in 2000 but is believed to have been involved in potentially hundreds more deaths. Eagle eyed fans spotted Shipman’s image among the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3086989/harold-shipman-nrl-game-fan-stands-scheme-abused?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/rugby/article/3086989/harold-shipman-nrl-game-fan-stands-scheme-abused?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Jun 2020 09:23:13 +0000 The football season in China remains on pause. Clubs are training awaiting news on when the new season, originally expected to begin in February, will kick off and what it might look like. That’s not to say that nothing is happening in the meantime. Clubs are pulling out of the league or going bust. There have been 14 so far with Chinese Super League side Tianjin Tianhai the most high profile and Liaoning FC the most historic. Tianhai, who were known as Quanjian a couple of years back, reached... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3085908/can-european-and-chinese-football-clubs-both-win-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3085908/can-european-and-chinese-football-clubs-both-win-china?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 May 2020 06:02:23 +0000 The German Bundesliga is getting a lot of attention globally now it is the biggest football league to resume amid the global coronavirus pandemic. As the J.League tweeted from their official account “Bundesliga is giving the world some football. The game is back!” That is harsh on their near neighbours South Korea whose own K League kicked off last weekend to unprecedented global interest, but also a hint of the esteem in which German football is held in Japan. That could easily be the attitude... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084826/bundesligas-son-heung-min-cha-bum-kun-and-yasuhiko-okudera-among-40?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084826/bundesligas-son-heung-min-cha-bum-kun-and-yasuhiko-okudera-among-40?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 May 2020 04:23:47 +0000 Uwe Kemmer, an elected board member at Bundesliga giants Schalke 04, was being shown around Old Trafford by Bobby Charlton before their 2011 Uefa Champions League semi-final against Manchester United. “Can I just thank your club for the two best minutes in sports history when you beat Bayern Munich in the Champions League final,” he said to the United legend. Schalke reached the semi-finals that season with Raul and Manuel Neuer in their team, but, despite their vast size and 61,000 average... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084616/bundesliga-restart-provides-bliss-starved-football-fans-schalke?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084616/bundesliga-restart-provides-bliss-starved-football-fans-schalke?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 May 2020 10:21:15 +0000 The global sporting calendar has been on pause during the coronavirus pandemic but there are signs of a comeback, especially in football South Korea’s K-League returned last week to follow Belarus, Burundi, Nicaragua, Tajikistan and the Taiwan Premier League in giving football fans live matches. Now the first of Europe’s “Big Five” leagues is set to make its comeback, with the German Bundesliga expected to kick off this weekend amid coronavirus control measures. The English Premier League and... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084022/how-watch-bundesliga-hong-kong-channel-and-times-footballs-return?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3084022/how-watch-bundesliga-hong-kong-channel-and-times-footballs-return?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2020 08:58:53 +0000 The Bundesliga returns on Saturday in empty stadiums, but German fans are being warned to stay away and authorities have warned matches could be halted if too many supporters gather outside the grounds. German football will be blazing a trail among Europe’s top leagues by resuming two months after it was halted by the spread of coronavirus, but its strategy is fraught with risks. In a football-mad country which boasts the highest average attendances in the world, will supporters banished from... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3083961/german-football-fans-warned-stay-away-ahead-bundesliga-restart?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3083961/german-football-fans-warned-stay-away-ahead-bundesliga-restart?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2020 05:20:59 +0000 Football leagues across Europe have been suspended since March because of the coronavirus pandemic which has claimed over 130,000 lives throughout the continent. Lockdown restrictions are in effect worldwide although some countries are cautiously beginning to ease stay-at-home orders. English Premier League chiefs are targeting a return in June and several clubs have reopened their training grounds this week as they work on “Project Restart”. The English top flight is understood to be aiming to... https://www.scmp.com/sport/article/3082245/english-premier-league-la-liga-and-bundesliga-european-football-eyes-end?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/article/3082245/english-premier-league-la-liga-and-bundesliga-european-football-eyes-end?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Apr 2020 02:42:23 +0000 When is sport coming back? That has been the question on a lot of lips over the last few weeks. Sooner rather than later it would seem. The answer, at least for the German Bundelsiga and South Korea’s K-League is inside the next two weeks. Other leagues across the sporting world from the NBA and NHL to the Chinese Basketball Association and Chinese Super League are plotting their comebacks too. Italy’s Series A will start with opening club training grounds for individual sessions from May 4 and... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3081733/sport-set-end-coronavirus-suspension-should-we-be-rushing-it-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3081733/sport-set-end-coronavirus-suspension-should-we-be-rushing-it-back?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2020 12:00:17 +0000 Borussia Dortmund’s English winger Jadon Sancho is likely to cost more than any other footballer in the close season – whenever that is. The Londoner who turned 20 last week can play on the left or right, has been a success at Dortmund’s football factory where they buy emerging talents, give them plenty of games at a high level in front of the world’s highest average league crowds of 80,000 and then sell them for a vast profit. “We don’t buy superstars, we make them,” Dortmund’s youth... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3077711/race-jadon-sanchos-signature-may-have-few-runners-manchester-united?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3077711/race-jadon-sanchos-signature-may-have-few-runners-manchester-united?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2020 06:28:32 +0000 “Football is a business,” said Manchester United manager Matt Busby in an interview not long after the Munich air disaster. “It used to be a sport, now it’s a business.” It was telling for one of the game’s great romantics to think that, and as early as 1958. He would let his revelation guide the decision to expand the club’s Old Trafford stadium on his return from a trip to the US, while the club’s souvenir shop was originally registered to him as part of his retirement. Busby set the club on... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3077687/coronavirus-exposes-footballs-underlying-health-concerns-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3077687/coronavirus-exposes-footballs-underlying-health-concerns-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2020 03:57:28 +0000 Football fans have long memories and that is no different on the mainland. For the China national team, the “May 19 Incident” still looms large, when lowly Hong Kong beat “Big Brother” in their own backyard. The visitors’ shock 2-1 win on that day in 1985 stopped China from making it to the Mexico ’86 Fifa World Cup. Fast forward almost 20 years and another loss in the Workers’ Stadium in Beijing lives on in football’s collective memory. In the final of the 2004 AFC Asian Cup on August 7, the... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3076265/let-liverpool-become-premier-league-champions-china-while?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3076265/let-liverpool-become-premier-league-champions-china-while?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2020 07:54:25 +0000 The Premier League could be forced into lockdown after Arsenal’s match at Brighton was postponed when Gunners manager Mikel Arteta contracted the coronavirus on Thursday. Arsenal’s training ground has been closed and their players and staff have gone into self-isolation following Arteta’s shock positive test. Less than an hour after Arsenal revealed Arteta’s illness, Brighton announced that their scheduled clash at the Amex Stadium had been cancelled. “It’s absolutely essential the health and... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3075016/coronavirus-could-put-premier-league-schedule-doubt-after-mikel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3075016/coronavirus-could-put-premier-league-schedule-doubt-after-mikel?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2020 01:20:27 +0000 The referee stopped the game and the public address system broadcast that the attendance figure was 81,365, the biggest in the world that weekend. Bigger even than the 80,000 who watched Sunday’s clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Bundesligachasing Borussia Dortmund were leading against Freiburg when the referee told both captains that he was stopping the game. The request for fans to stop singing insulting songs went out as players stood around looking unsure. Meanwhile Dortmund’s ultra... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3064570/germanys-ultra-fans-are-fighting-future-bundesliga-clubs-and-against?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3064570/germanys-ultra-fans-are-fighting-future-bundesliga-clubs-and-against?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2020 05:16:08 +0000 South Korean superstar Son Heung-min showed his worth to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday with two goals in a 3-2 English Premier League win over Aston Villa. The next 10 weeks might prove his real value to Jose Mourinho’s side. Spurs announced on Monday that the forward will have surgery on a broken arm, an injury he picked up in the opening minute of Sunday’s game. He played through it and deep in second-half injury time he was racing away to score the winner, a sixth goal in the last five... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3051384/son-heung-mins-spurs-record?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3051384/son-heung-mins-spurs-record?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Feb 2020 09:00:17 +0000