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GM football fans. It’s Friday, Oct. 31 - Real Madrid are seeking €4bn for the Super League being blocked, MLS salaries have been revealed, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.

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KEY FIXTURES

Premier League MD10 (Nov 01): Burnley vs. Arsenal, 15:00 GMT / 11:00 ET. Arsenal have won 23 of their last 24 games against promoted sides, including each of the last 13. Meanwhile, Burnley are aiming to win three straight top-flight matches for the first time since April 2022. Tottenham Hotspur vs. Chelsea, 17:30 GMT / 13:30 ET. Chelsea have been good away from home, winning four of their last seven, while only three teams have collected fewer home points than Spurs’ four. Liverpool vs. Aston Villa, 20:00 GMT / 16:00 ET. Both teams enter this match on 15 points, having been 12 points apart as recently as Matchday 5. Liverpool could lose five consecutive league games for the first time since September 1953. See every Premier League MD10 fixture here.

Watch these matches on Fubo (US link / Canada link).*

Results…

  • CONMEBOL Libertadores semi-final, 2nd Leg: Racing Club 0-0 Flamengo (Agg 0-1)

  • MLS Cup: Los Angeles 2-1 Austin (Match Report)

TOP TALKING POINTS

Super League Compensation

Real Madrid is seeking more than €4bn in damages from Uefa, claiming losses caused by the governing body’s decision to block the European Super League. The case follows a new ruling consistent with the European Court of Justice’s December 2023 judgment, which found that Uefa had “seriously infringed EU competition law” by using its dominance to suppress the proposed breakaway league.

Madrid were part of 12 English, Spanish, and Italian clubs attempting to launch a new competition to rival the Champions League in 2021–read more here. The controversial plans collapsed after fan outrage and threats of heavy sanctions from Uefa. 

The Spanish football club believes it has lost out on revenues of between €4.5bn and €4.7bn since Uefa vetoed the league. This takes into account lost matchday, broadcast, and commercial revenues at Real Madrid, according to figures (paywall) seen by the Financial Times.

Tightest Title Race

After nine matchdays, there is still no clear front-runner in Italy's top flight as defending champions Napoli and Roma are level on points, three points ahead of the two Milan clubs. According to Opta’s prediction model, Inter are 41% favourites to win the league, followed by Napoli (24%), Roma (14%), and Milan (11%).

Sunday’s fixture between Milan and Roma at the San Siro could add some clarity to the title race. Napoli could be tested, too, with a visit by fifth-placed Como on Saturday.

Serie A has become Europe’s most unpredictable major league, producing four different champions in six years. Last season marked the second time in four years that the title was decided on the final day.

MLS Salaries Revealed

LAFC’s Son Heung-min has joined Lionel Messi as the only MLS player to make over $10m annually, the league’s latest salary figures have revealed. Son’s $11.2m guaranteed compensation is about half of Messi’s $20.4m, which is more than 20 clubs spend on their entire rosters.

Impressively, Supporters’ Shield winner Philadelphia Union pays out $13.34m in total, the third-lowest in the league. Western Conference runners-up Vancouver Whitecaps proved impressive on a $17.32m budget, although Thomas Muller receives $1.44m and will likely earn significantly more when he becomes a designated player in 2026. See a breakdown of salaries for every team here.

Meanwhile, Atlanta United paid out the third-highest in salaries ($28.8m), despite finishing second from bottom in the Eastern Conference. They also spent upwards of $45-50 million in transfer fees over last summer and this winter, the most of any MLS team over two transfer windows in league history.

POLL

Do you think Manchester United's good form will continue?

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ON THE BALL

Europe

> Manchester United have featured a homegrown player in every matchday squad for 88 years (More) | Paul Scholes says he quit football punditry to spend more time with his son Aiden, whose autism means he’s non-verbal (More)

> PSG forward Desire Doue faces several weeks on the sidelines after tearing a muscle in his right thigh (More)

> Frank Lampard’s Coventry City will look to maintain their unbeaten Championship record when they face Wrexham on Friday (More) | The FA Cup first round kicks off with Luton vs. Forest Green Rovers on Friday; see every fixture (More)

> The Scottish League Cup semi-final between Celtic and Rangers takes place on Sunday (Nov 2) at 14:00 GMT (More)

> England forward Michelle Agyemang has ruptured her anterior cruciate ligament and will miss the rest of the season (More)

Americas

> Los Angeles FC leads Austin after Game 1 in the MLS Cup play-offs following a 2-1 win (More); See the upcoming MLS Cup Game 2 fixtures (More)

> Kansas City Current vs. San Diego Wave kicks off the NWSL play-offs on Sunday (Nov 2) (More); See the full post-season schedule (More)

> The USL Championship play-offs begin on Saturday (Nov 1) with Pittsburgh Riverhounds vs. Hartford Athletic; see the full schedule (More); dive deeper into the opening weekend (Watch) and see the play-off bracket (More)

> Emma Sears scored a hat-trick in the U.S. women’s national team’s 6-0 victory over New Zealand in an international friendly (More)

Rest of the World

> The Women’s A-League 25-26 season starts on Friday (Nov 1) with Western Sydney Wanderers vs. Perth Glory (Fixtures) | Everything you need to know about the season, including fixtures, signings, kits (More)

ROUTERS’ VOICE

Yesterday’s Poll: Should VAR step in if a wrongly awarded corner leads to a goal?

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (49%)

🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 🙅‍♂️ Nope (48%)

🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)

Your punditry takes:

  • 👍 J.V: “The idea for video review is to eliminate wrong calls, so why would a team be allowed to benefit from a wrong call? They need to speed the review up and remember it’s a video review, not splitting atoms; the offside line drawing, for example, is absurd.”

  • 👍 X.P: “Yes, 100%. I think VAR should be used to check every decision that’s objective, and there’s usually a delay anyway before a corner is taken, allowing VAR to quickly check. It won’t cause the long delays of other VAR checks because checking which player the ball touched last is not up for interpretation most, if not all, of the time.”

  • 🙅‍♂️ M.M: “The decision must be to award or not award the corner kick. That's the VAR decision. To allow the corner to be played and then remove it after a goal is nonsense. If VAR doesn't override the corner before it is taken, it must be allowed to stand.”

EXTRA TIME

How Arsenal are looking to improve their atmosphere.

The first coach to admit to using ChatGPT for tactics.

Adidas to collab with ABBA for Sweden 2026 kit.

Why open-play goals are falling out of fashion.

Cristiano’s son debuted for Portugal Under-16s.

Vote for your Premier League POTM.

What it’s really like to buy World Cup tickets.

Why are USWNT players leaving the NWSL for Europe?

Every view of Harry Kane’s 180 finish.

GAME FACE ON

Question: What do the following players have in common?

Kevin De Bruyne, Arjen Robben, Alexis Sanchez, Claudio Pizarro, Bastian Schweinsteiger.

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.

❝

We don't have a big squad, as people might think. There was so much focus on the money we've spent.

Arne Slot

Answer

They’ve all been managed by Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho.

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