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Good morning football fans. It’s Monday, 27. July - The Premier League could vote on a New Deal proposal for the EFL, Jurgen Klopp issues a warning to German media, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
TOP TALKING POINTS
Premier League Vote
On Thursday, Premier League clubs aim to vote on a landmark 10-year deal to provide around £1.5bn in additional funding for the lower leagues, per Sky News. Specifically, the vote will be on whether the Premier League should give an extra £150m per season on average to English Football League (EFL) clubs as part of negotiations to reform and increase the money flowing from the top-flight. If the vote takes place, it will require 14 of the 20 clubs to vote in favour before the deal is formally proposed to the EFL.
While EFL clubs already receive money from the Premier League, the current system has been criticised for giving especially large payments to clubs relegated from the top flight—known as parachute payments. The proposed deal would reform this system by gradually reducing those payments and directing more funding across the wider EFL. It would therefore aim to increase the overall amount of money flowing to the lower leagues while reducing the financial gap between recently relegated clubs and their competitors.
The proposal would also create a £20m lifeboat fund to assist any EFL club that falls into administration and require EFL clubs to spend 20% of the funding they receive under the deal on infrastructure investment.
Talks over a new deal have taken place on and off for more than three years. The Independent Football Regulator, which was established in law in July 2025, has backstop powers to impose a financial redistribution settlement on the Premier League and the EFL as a last resort if they are unable to reach an agreement.
Broadcast Ambition
Major League Soccer is seeking broadcast rights fees between $400m and $500m when its exclusive deal with Apple expires after the 2028-29 season as the league looks to capitalise on post-World Cup interest. Currently, Apple pays $250m annually to broadcast MLS matches under a 10-year deal that began in 2022, but both parties agreed to end the contract three years early as the league announced plans to change its calendar.
MLS faces immense competition for attention from European leagues. NBC reportedly pays around $450m per season to broadcast Premier League matches in the United States, which draws an average audience of 1.2 million per match. Despite MLS reporting impressive overall viewership growth, Fox’s Friday primetime doubleheader did not see a big bump from pre-World Cup viewership. Nashville vs Atlanta was the most-watched regular-season match on Fox since 2020, with an average of 587,000 viewers, but it was only slightly higher than Inter Miami vs Philadelphia Union (578,000) in May.
Further, while Apple TV viewers are not included in Fox’s figures, the league also faces competition in the domestic market. A USL Championship match averaged 453,000 viewers on CBS on the day England faced France in the World Cup third-place play-off, a figure comparable to the audiences for Fox’s primetime doubleheader.
Klopp’s Media Warning
Jurgen Klopp has been named Germany’s new national team manager on a four-year deal, replacing Julian Nagelsmann. During this first press conference, the 59-year-old former Liverpool manager issued a warning, threatening to stand down if his family are hounded by the media. See the full press conference here (w/ English dubbing).
"If you behave badly and don't leave my family in peace then I'll be gone, I'll just turn away," Klopp said. "I'm not doing this job for myself, I'm doing it for you. I'm taking this job even though I've seen how you've treated Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Tuchel. I love this job, but I am always ready to call it quits if need be." Klopp also used the press conference to apologise again for a comment about Nagelsmann during the World Cup that was interpreted as hinting that he might succeed him as manager. During a broadcast on German TV, Klopp said that Nagelsmann “still” got to choose the national team’s starting line-up.
Klopp’s first game in charge will be against the Netherlands in a Nations League group-stage match on 24 September. His contract will see him lead the national team through the 2030 World Cup, co-hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco. The 2028 European Championship will take place before that, co-hosted by England, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Dive deeper: read Philipp Lahm’s op-ed in The Guardian on how Germany’s national team can turn their fortunes around (Read)
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POLL
Do you think Jurgen Klopp will succeed as an international manager?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Arsenal are exploring a move to sign Brazil winger Vinicius Jr if the 26-year-old does not extend his contract with Real Madrid (More); reports say Vinicius is demanding €30m a year, with Real Madrid committing to €20m, up from his current €15m net per year (More/paywall) | Paris Saint-Germain’s Bradley Barcola is not extending his contract, and the club values him at €170m, based on recent transfer activity (More) | Real Madrid have reached an agreement to sign in-demand winger Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig for a package worth €120m (More)
> Pep Guardiola has rejected the opportunity to become Italy’s national team manager as he intends to take at least a year out of the game (More)
> Serie A’s Como has become the first club to ban headers in their youth academy following guidance from former player and board member Raphael Varane (More)
> Jermain Defoe reportedly didn't turn up for a meeting and training amid "growing concerns" within Woking before his departure after just four months, the club’s director of football said (More)
Americas
> Lionel Messi is one of four players to have been ruled out of Wednesday’s MLS All-Star Game at Charlotte, N.C., as he recovers from the World Cup (More); everything you need to know about the All-Star game (More) | The New England Revolution have signed winger Jack Harrison from Leeds United as a Designated Player (More) | Vancouver lead the Western Conference and Nashville are top of the Eastern Conference; see MLS results (More) and Conference Standings (More)
> Gotham FC are top of the NWSL standings despite dropping points in a 2-2 draw with Portland Thorns (More); Washington Spirit could regain top spot as they face Denver Summit; result to conclude shortly after publication (Live Result); see NWSL Standings (More)
> Players from two Liga de Expansion teams refuse to play for the first minute following the removal of promotion and relegation from Mexican football (More/watch)
> Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha, who amassed over 20 million followers on Instagram during the World Cup, has an agreement in place to join Chilean club Colo-Colo (More)
> Tampa Bay Rowdies extended their USL Championship Eastern Conference lead to eight points, while Orange County SC maintained their Western Conference lead; see USL Championship results (More) and Conference Standings (More)
Rest of the World
> The Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) has got underway; everything you need to know about the 34-match tournament (More) | The 2025 AFCON winner will be confirmed after a hearing on October 8 by the Court of Arbitration for Sport after the Senegal FA appealed a decision that retrospectively awarded Morocco the win (More)
> The oldest professional in the world, 59-year-old Kazuyoshi Miura, scored his first competitive goal in nearly four years for Fukushima United (More)
> The International Olympic Committee says it will not investigate Gianni Infantino as a complaint about the Fifa president is outside its scope (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Did you feel there was less time-wasting at this year's World Cup?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (78%)
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (18%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (4%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 J.H: “Yes! The matches flowed much, much better, and there was a lot less rolling around on the floor, too. With the one-minute sideline requirement, if a player received treatment, players quickly found out that the game would go on without them, so it didn't take long for them to get the message to get up, shake it off, and get on with it!”
👍 D.S: “I think they did a great job in creating the new rules and enforcing them in a fair and equitable manner across the board. It's challenging to be successful with new rules straight away.”
🙅♂️ L.P: “Overall, with the hydration breaks, the matches were turned into four quarters. That felt like time-wasting.”
EXTRA TIME
Premier League club-by-club transfer analysis.
… and one position each team needs to make a signing for.
Ranking every World Cup from 1930 and 2026.
Arsenal unveil new away kit.
Why do so many footballers tape their wrists?
Haaland reacts to his funniest memes.
The forgotten Silver Goal experiment.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Which manager was the first to be sacked in the 2025-26 Premier League season?
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I’m not really into expressions and catchphrases like ‘tiki-taka.’ I understand why people use them, but I don’t like them. I think ‘combination football’ sounds better.
Answer
Nuno Espirito Santo, Nottingham Forest.