GM football fans. It’s Monday, August. 11 - La Liga is taking steps to host a domestic match in Miami, scammers are targeting fans with matchday tickets, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY RESULT
FA Community Shield: Crystal Palace 2-2 Liverpool (Palace win 3-2 on penalties). Palace, who had not won a major trophy in their history until this year, have now earned two in a matter of months at Wembley. They are also the first side to win the Community Shield on their debut in the match for 50 years, since Derby County in 1975. Positively for Liverpool, Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong both scored on their debut, while fellow debutant Florian Wirtz recorded an assist. Read the full match report here.
Results…
EFL Championship: Leicester 2-1 Sheffield Wednesday (Report)
Liga MX: Club America 1-0 Queretaro | Mazatlan 2-2 Tijuana | Atlas 0-3 Pachuca (Table)
Brazilian Serie A: Foraleza 0-5 Botafogo | Bahia 3-3 Fluminense | Palmeiras 2-1 Ceara | Vasco 1-1 Atletico MG (Table)
Scottish Premiership: Aberdeen 0-2 Celtic | Dundee Utd 2-3 Hearts | Hibernian 2-2 Kilmarnock (Table)
JOIN FPL MINI-LEAGUE
Join the Route One Daily Mini League for the 2025-26 Fantasy Premier League. It’s quick and easy to get started: just click the link below and you’ll be added automatically once you’ve entered the game. Prefer to join manually? Use league code: k016q6.
TOP TALKING POINTS
La Liga Matches in Miami
The Spanish football federation (RFEF) will begin formal steps on Monday to stage December’s La Liga fixture between Villarreal and Barcelona in Miami. If approved, it would be the first competitive league match in Europe’s top leagues played on foreign soil.
La Liga has sought to hold a match abroad since 2018, but the proposal was rejected by both the RFEF and Fifa. Since then, Fifa has dropped its opposition after it faced a lawsuit from Relevent Sports Group, the Spanish league's business partner in the US. Last season, La Liga abandoned plans to host a Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid match in Miami due to insufficient preparation time. World football’s governing body is now actively looking into the impact of hosting domestic league matches abroad.
Italy’s Serie A confirmed last month that AC Milan’s fixture against Como will be played in Perth, Australia, on 6 February, 8,500 miles from Milan. The switch is due to the San Siro hosting the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics that weekend.
Ticket Scams Rise
An estimated 12,000 fans in the UK have fallen victim to ticket scammers over the past two years, according to a new report. One UK-based bank estimates that fans have lost around £2.5m to ticket fraud, with its own customers losing around £500,000 during that period.
The ‘Stop! Think Fraud’ campaign says that more than three-quarters of football ticket scams last season began on social media. The offers are often pitched as ‘first come, first served’ promotions, typically for sold-out matches at discounted prices. New Premier League rules for the 2026-27 season require clubs to offer 70% of their tickets digitally, as it offers a greater defence to ticket touting.
Liverpool supporters were the most targeted, followed by fans of Arsenal, Manchester United, and Chelsea. Supporters aged 25-34 were the most frequent victims, making up 28% of reported cases.
Barcelona Corner Ter Stegen
Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen has authorised the club to send his medical report to La Liga, effectively allowing them to register new players. By previously refusing, the club had been unable to free up salary-cap space under La Liga's injury provision, which applies if a player is sidelined for at least four months.
The German goalkeeper was stripped of the captaincy on Thursday but, after resolving the dispute, the club has closed its disciplinary case and reinstated him as captain.
In a social media post on Friday, Ter Stegen said he was "fully willing to collaborate with the club's management to resolve this matter and to provide the requested authorisation.” He added that the suggestion that his injury absence was being used as a tool for Barcelona to register new players was "both unfair and inaccurate." Read his full statement here.
POLL
Do you think it's good for world football if some competitive league matches are played abroad?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Manchester United have confirmed the signing of striker Benjamin Sesko for £73.7m from RB Leipzig (More)
> Paris Saint-Germain have signed French goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier from fellow Ligue 1 club Lille on a contract until 2030 for around €40m (More)
> PSV began their Dutch league title defence with a 6-1 win over Sparta Rotterdam (More)
> Southampton scored twice in stoppage time to beat Wrexham 2-1 in their opening Championship fixture (More); see all Championship results (More) | Leicester City fans applaud Sheffield Wednesday supporters in solidarity amid the club’s ongoing financial struggles (Watch)
Americas
> Son Heung-min marked his LAFC debut as a second-half substitute, drawing a penalty that led to his team's equaliser against Chicago Fire (Watch Highlights); see all MLS results (More)
> Kansas City Current extended their NWSL lead following their 1-0 win over Utah Royals and second-place Orlando Pride’s 1-1 draw to Racing Louisville (More); see league standings (More)
> Pachuca remain undefeated in Liga MX after four matches following their 3-0 win over Atlas, retaining their lead at the top of the Apertura season (Standings)
> USL Championship Eastern Conference leaders Louisville City FC increase their three-point gap as they beat second-place Charleston Battery 4-1 (More); FC Tulsa lead the Western Conference by eight points following a 5-2 win over New Mexico United (More); see USL Championship standings (More)
Rest of the World
> African champions Pyramids of Egypt will begin the defence of their Champions League crown in the first round next month (More)
> Japan’s all-time top goalscorer Kunishige Kamamoto, who scored 75 goals in 76 games for the national team, has died aged 81 (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Friday’s Poll: Do you think the Ballon d’Or usually goes to the right player?
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 👏 Absolutely (25%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (70%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (5%)
Your punditry takes:
👏 V.P: “There’s always an argument that two or three players could win any year’s award, but in general, I think the right player gets it. The greatest player to play, Lionel Messi, holds the Ballon d’Or record, and the second greatest, Cristiano, has the second highest. Everyone else is up for subjective interpretation.”
🙅♂️ T.S.O: “Lately, there has been too much weight on championships and titles. My issue with that is they are team accomplishments, not individual accomplishments. I don't care whether the Ballon d'Or winner won anything. I care that the best player gets recognised. And there are many great players who don't win anything for a season or two. They should still be seriously considered.”
🙅♂️ G.T: “Too often, it appears many voters vote based on reputation (league, club and/or individual) or a strong performance in an international competition. This appears particularly egregious in Women’s football.”
EXTRA TIME
Every Premier League pre-season result.
How Porto pulled off a surprise transfer that shocked social media.
Does winning the Community Shield lead to a good season?
Nottingham Forest’s away kit is clean.
The best (and worst) transfer announcement this summer.
… and the most creative announcement so far.
What exactly is in player contracts?
The argument for the Championship being the most exciting in Europe.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Only three clubs have won the Community Shield and gone on to win the Premier League. Can you name them?
Bonus question: Can you name the years these clubs have secured the Premier League after winning the Community Shield?
Scroll below for the answer.
ON TODAY
Portuguese Primeira Liga
Estoril vs. Estrela (18:45)
Porto vs. Vitoria SC (20:45)
*All times in UK. ET -5. CDT -6. PDT -8. MDT -7. CET +1.
Answer
Manchester United (93-94, 96-97, 07-08, 08-09, 10-11), Chelsea (05-06, 09-10), Manchester City (18-19).
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
It’s fictional to me. It doesn’t reflect reality.
