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GM football fans. It’s Friday, Dec. 5 - The World Cup draw takes place today, top-flight German women’s clubs have voted to split from the country’s FA, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURES
Premier League MD15 (Saturday, Dec 6): Aston Villa vs. Arsenal, 12:30 GMT / 7:30 ET. Arsenal are already in double digits for victories this campaign, and the only team yet to concede 10 goals (7). Meanwhile, Villa manager Unai Emery reunites with his former club with his side on an eight-match victorious streak on their own turf. Manchester City vs. Sunderland, 15:00 GMT / 10:00 ET. The two teams meet for the first time since March 2017, when City secured a 2-0 top-flight victory at the Stadium of Light. If Sunderland lose, it will be their 300th defeat in 623 Premier League games. Leeds vs. Liverpool, 17:30 GMT / 12:30 ET. If Liverpool avoid defeat, it will be the first time since September they have gone unbeaten in three straight matches. Despite losing four consecutive top-flight matches, Leeds stunned Chelsea on Wednesday with a 3-1 home victory. See every Premier League fixture here.
Results…
Premier League: Manchester United 1-1 West Ham (Table)
Spanish Copa Del Rey, 2nd Round (All Results)
Copa Italia, last 16: Bologna 2-1 Parma | Lazio 1-0 AC Milan
TOP TALKING POINTS
World Cup Draw Today
The World Cup draw will get underway on Friday (5 Dec) at 12:00 ET / 17:00 GMT in Washington, DC. Rio Ferdinand will conduct the draw alongside Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Aaron Judge, and Shaquille O’Neal.
The 48 teams have been divided into four pots containing 12 teams each. Pot 1 consists of the three co-hosts – USA, Mexico, and Canada – along with the nine top teams in the current Fifa rankings – see the pots here. The 12 groups will then be formed by one team from each pot, except that only one nation from each confederation is allowed in each group — except Europe, which can have two. Host nations have been pre-assigned to their pots to ensure they play all group games in their home country.
Once a team has been drawn, they will go into the first available group, adhering to the draw constraints, in alphabetical order. Fixture positions are pre-set rather than drawn. Nations will know their opponents and match dates on Friday, with venues and kick-off times announced 24 hours later.
See a stunning guide on every stadium hosting World Cup matches here.
Bundesliga Breakaway
Fourteen top-flight clubs in German women’s football have decided to split from the German FA (DFB) and form an independent league body after a breakdown in negotiations over future investment and governance. The move comes just one day after Germany was awarded hosting rights for the 2029 Women’s European Championship. It marks one of the most significant structural changes in the league’s history.
The split from DFB, which currently runs the league, follows recent talks for the federation to invest around €100m ($117m) in the league over eight years. However, club executives accused the DFB of backtracking on previously agreed terms. Bayern Munich CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen said he was surprised that “the cornerstones negotiated are now being called into question,” while Eintracht Frankfurt board spokesman Axel Hellmann said he was “disappointed” that key points had not been reflected in draft contracts.
Across Europe, women’s leagues are increasingly moving out of legacy federation control. England’s top two tiers transitioned away from the English FA in 2024–25 to a new independent company, Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL), designed to accelerate commercial growth.
MLS Cup Final
The 2025 MLS Cup will conclude on Saturday (Dec. 6) as Inter Miami host Vancouver Whitecaps, with kick-off at 14:30 ET (11:30 PT / 19:30 GMT). Both teams are making their first final appearance, guaranteeing a first-time MLS champion in the league’s 30th season. Miami will have home advantage after finishing the regular season with 65 points, compared to Vancouver’s 63.
Despite Vancouver beating Miami 5–1 on aggregate in the Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final in April, markets still list Miami as narrow favourites. Javier Mascherano’s side have outscored opponents 17–4 in the post-season and have been dominant at Chase Stadium throughout the campaign.
Lionel Messi enters the final with a record 13 goal contributions in this year’s playoffs — six goals and seven assists — meaning he has been involved in 76% of Miami’s post-season goals.
Dive deeper into the tactical analysis of the final here.
POLL
Do you think the expanded 48-team World Cup is a good idea?
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ON THE BALL
Europe
> Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to be out for two months with a quad injury (More)
> Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti returns to Napoli on Sunday (Dec 7) for the first time since leading the club to its first Serie A title in more than 30 years (More)
> Bayern Munich remains unbeaten in 15 league and cup games against German opposition this season; they face Stuttgart in the Bundesliga on Saturday (More)
> Newcastle United’s new chief executive claims that the club will be the world’s best by 2030 (More)
Americas
> Neymar scored a hat-trick, despite carrying a knee injury, to lift Santos clear of the relegation zone in Brazil's Serie A (More)
> An Iranian delegation will attend Friday's 2026 World Cup draw after initially saying they would boycott the ceremony over visa issues (More)
Rest of the World
> Palestine came back from being two goals down against Tunisia to draw 2-2 in the Arab Cup; the result puts Palestine at the top of the group, while Tunisia earned their first point, and sit in third (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Will you be watching AFCON this year?
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 📺 Yes (20%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (73%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (7%)
Your punditry takes:
📺 K.T: “Absolutely! The last tournament was one of the best Afcons in years. The atmosphere was unreal, and I find that the storylines are more unpredictable, both on and off the pitch.”
🙅♂️ P.F: “There are just so many Premier League matches during this period that I don’t think I’ll get the time to watch Afcon. As much as I love every and any game I can get my hands on, it’s also a very busy period.”
🙅♂️ G.B: “I don’t like international football at the best of times, so I become particularly disinterested when national teams I have no link to are playing. I’m glad Afcon does not stop the league matches in Europe.”
EXTRA TIME
Lionel Messi’s interview with ESPN. (English subtitles)
Every kit designed by Puma for the World Cup.
… and why Spain are favourites to win the tournament.
Who has the most gruelling December fixture list?
The 100 best female footballers in the world.
Can anyone stop Lampard's Coventry winning the Championship?
Fluminense and Sao Paolo take dogs onto the field as mascots.
GAME FACE ON
Question: What do the following players have in common?
Alejandro Garnacho. Erik Lamela. Olivier Giroud. James Rodriguez. Son Heung-min.
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.
He cannot kick with his left foot, he cannot head a ball, he cannot tackle and he doesn't score many goals. Apart from that he's alright.
Answer
They’ve all won the Puskas award. Watch every Puskas award-winning goal here.
