• The Canadian Press

    Marseille hit by injuries ahead of biggest game of French soccer against bitter rival PSG

    MARSEILLE, France (AP) — For Jonathan Clauss, the France friendly against Chile this week was meant to be pure joy in front of his home crowd. It ended up as a sour 11-minute experience concluded by an injury that ruled out the defender from French soccer's biggest game this weekend. Clauss, who plays for Marseille, left the pitch with a torn left hamstring and was forced to watch his teammates' 3-2 win from the sidelines. The former Lens player is expected to be out of action for up to four wee

  • The Canadian Press

    Black coaches are rare in soccer. Is this because of a lack of diversity in the boardroom?

    MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Ricky Hill packed his bags and prepared to uproot his life again. Next stop: Chicago. The former England international soccer player is accustomed to making sacrifices and traveling far to build his coaching career, an effort he says has been stymied because he is Black. “It is something that I hate to do because home is where the heart is,” Hill said of leaving behind his wife of 38 years and his 99-year-old mother to chase a rare management opportunity. Racism has lo

  • The Canadian Press

    Big Mac attack: McDonald’s to become the Grand Fromage in French football

    PARIS — The crème de la crème of French soccer will become sponsored by fast-food big cheese. McDonald's signed on to be the title sponsor of the French top-flight from July for the next three seasons. “This partnership marks the coming together of two major institutions that are deeply rooted in the daily lives and collective imagination of the French people,” the league said on Thursday. McDonald's will be succeeding Uber Eats as the title sponsor of Ligue 1. Financial details of the deal were

  • The Canadian Press

    Lacazette and O'Brien on target for Lyon in exciting 3-2 win at Toulouse

    TOULOUSE, France (AP) — Irish defender Jake O’Brien scored a late winner for Lyon in a topsy-turvy 3-2 win at Toulouse in the French league on Friday. The victory opened a five-point gap between Lyon in 10th and Toulouse in 11th and extended Lyon’s recent fine run. It has won nine of its last 12 games under Pierre Sage, the coach who took over in November when the seven-time champion was on the bottom of the Ligue 1 table. The latest triumph was always in doubt in a thrilling end-to-end encounte