GM football fans. It’s Monday, July. 28 - Lucas Paqueta is expected to be cleared on his spot-fixing case, Inter Miami question Messi’s suspension, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
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KEY RESULTS
UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 Final: England 1-1 Spain AET (England win 3-1 on penalties). England are the second team to retain the Uefa Women’s European Championship, after Germany, and become the first English side to win a major trophy on foreign soil. Manager Sarina Wiegman has also won her third successive European title, achieved with two countries. England won despite leading for just four minutes and 52 seconds in the knockout stage of the tournament—the fewest a title-winning side has led in the knockout rounds of either the Euros or the Fifa Women’s World Cup. Read the full match report here.
More results…
TOP TALKING POINTS
Paqueta Betting Trial
The FA is set to formally deliver its verdict on West Ham midfielder Lucas Paqueta’s spot-fixing case. While the final decision is imminent, credible sources say Paqueta will receive a favourable verdict. Another source told the BBC that the final decision is largely in Paqueta's favour and that the Brazil international is effectively "in the clear".
The governing body, which could be forced to pay Paqueta’s £1m legal fees, had been pushing for the 27-year-old to face a lifetime ban after being charged with four counts of deliberately getting himself booked to influence betting markets for the benefit of his friends and family. The charges led to Manchester City withdrawing from an expected move to activate an £85m release clause in his contract.
“I am extremely surprised and upset that the FA has decided to charge me,” Paqueta said upon hearing of the charges in May last year. “I deny the charges in their entirety and will fight with every breath to clear my name.” West Ham, who bought the midfielder for £51m in 2022, have supported Paqueta throughout.
Pep, Xavi Email Hoax
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has said applications for the national team's vacant head coach role, which claimed to be from Pep Guardiola and Xavi, were "not genuine.” Last week, reports in the Spanish and Indian press claimed that India’s technical director had acknowledged Xavi’s interest in the position.
However, on Saturday, the AIFF published a statement saying they had received hoax applications. Reports suggest that a 19-year-old student at Vellore Institute of Technology, a university in Tamil Nadu, used ChatGPT to write the email—see here. Xavi has not coached since leaving Barcelona in May 2024, while Guardiola's contract at Manchester City runs until June 2027.
In related news, Cameroon’s head coach Marc Brys has denied resigning, even though the country’s FA confirmed his departure after an email from his account stated his resignation. Brys claims that his email was likely hacked, and a false resignation note was sent. He will remain in his position.
Messi Suspension Questioned
The managing owner of Inter Miami Jorge Mas called MLS’s suspension of Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba for missing the All-Star Game a “draconian” punishment. Both players were ineligible for Miami’s home match against Cincinnati on Saturday, which ended in a goalless draw.
Mas, who says it was the club’s decision not to let the players feature in the exhibition match, claims the suspension will impact Messi’s perception of the league and that the Argentine is “extremely upset” with the decision. MLS rules state that any player who does not participate in the All-Star Game without prior approval from the league is ineligible to compete in his club’s next match. Messi, 38, was resting after playing nine matches in 35 days, while Alba, 36, was managing a prior injury.
Excluding Messi from MLS matches can prove costly for clubs. Los Angeles FC earned nearly $17.3m by hosting Messi twice, while CF Montreal earned over $8m from a single game. In total, MLS clubs have collectively earned more than $83m in additional revenue from away games against Inter Miami with Messi in the squad.
POLL
Do you think this will go down as one of the best transfer windows ever?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Arsenal have completed the signing of striker Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting CP in a deal worth £64m plus add-ons (More); dive deeper into analysis of Gyokeres (More) | Morgan Gibbs-White has signed a new three-year deal with Nottingham Forest (More)
> Bayern Munich have agreed a deal to buy Luis Diaz from Liverpool for £65.5m, and the player has permission to leave the club’s Asia tour (More)
> Marcus Rashford featured for Barcelona for the first time in their 3-1 win over Vissel Kobe in a pre-season friendly (Match Report)
> With 623,088 spectators, the Women’s Euros 2025 was the most attended in the competition’s history—surpassing the 574,875 milestone set in 2022 (More)
Americas
> In the opening games of the Premier League Summer Series, hosted in New Jersey, Chicago, and Atlanta, Manchester United beat West Ham 2-1, and Bournemouth beat Everton 3-0 (More) | The attendance for Manchester United vs. West Ham at MetLife Stadium was 82,566, beating the Club World Cup final’s 81,118 (More)
> Thomas Muller has confirmed he is moving to the U.S. and will play in MLS, with Vancouver Whitecaps in pole position to sign him (More) | Rodrigo De Paul has signed for Inter Miami on loan from Atletico Madrid, with an option to make the move permanent (More)
> The quarter-finals of the 2025 USL Cup have been confirmed following the last round of the group stage (More); see group stage results (More)
Rest of the World
> Nigeria beat hosts Morocco 3-2 to seal its record-extending 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title (More)
> Al-Nassr have signed Joao Felix for £44m from Chelsea (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Friday’s Poll: Are MLS’s proposed changes (calendar shift, changes to roster strategy, format changes) enough to make it a competitive league?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👏 Absolutely (49%)
🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (46%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (5%)
Your punditry takes:
👏 M.N: “The roster strategy is the biggest holdback to the league. Open it up and get as much talent as possible.”
👏 V: “This would be a step in the right direction. I would also like to see movement towards a relegation format for the MLS.”
🙅♂️ T.S: “They will definitely help, but they need to start a top-down approach to the entire system. If the top clubs aren't sponsoring and providing the lower levels (semi to youth) with support, we're never going to be as competitive as the rest of the world…”
🙅♂️ M.L: “Changes need to be made at every level of play–youth through pro. Most importantly, the top players need to be steered away from college soccer and onto Division 2 and 3 pro teams around the world. Player development is not the primary goal in college soccer–winning at all costs is–and that changes everything, from player selection to game strategy.”
✍️ T.T: “While the Apple TV deal is great for the league's bottom line, it has hurt their exposure in their own country. The league will never get another casual viewer again if they don't have at least a few more matches on broadcast TV.”
EXTRA TIME
Do Liga Portugal strikers thrive in England?
New penalty rule used in Women’s Euro final shootout. (U.S. link)
The internet’s biggest star eyes MLS investment.
… and MLS teams are losing their home advantage—here’s why.
How England’s No.1 defied the odds to become a goalkeeper.
Barca’s new home kit takes inspo from the Lakers.
A Bend It Like Beckham sequel is underway.
GAME FACE ON
Name the common club among the three players:
Viktor Gyokeres, Pervis Estupinan, Evan Ferguson.
Emre Can, Wojciech Szczesny, Adrien Rabiot.
Achraf Hakimi, Martin Odegaard, Danilo.
Scroll below for the answer.
ON TODAY
Brazilian Serie A
Flamengo vs. Atletico MG (00:30)
*All times in UK. ET -5. CDT -6. PDT -8. MDT -7. CET +1.
Answer
Brighton. Juventus. Real Madrid.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I was cool, I was composed and I knew I'd hit the back of the net.
