Uefa has declared it has lost confidence in the Fifa leadership as president Gianni Infantino faces open revolt over his controversial scheme to sell stakes in the World Cup.

Fifa was forced to climb down on the plans to open the World Cup to private equity investors late on Friday night after backlash from multiple football federations including Uefa, which voted to boycott Fifa tournaments in protest, as well as from within the governing body itself.

Infantino’s long-term adviser Carlos Cordeiro, a key figure within Fifa, chose to quit in protest over the initial proposals, while Fifa’s chief operating officer said that Infantino “deceived” staff over his plans.

Infantino’s position remains under serious threat despite the climbdown, with Uefa announcing on Saturday that it had lost confidence in his leadership and slamming the “shabby, back room” deal.

“The current Fifa leadership has not only lost Uefa’s confidence but also that of many other members of the football family,” it said. Concacaf and the AFC also criticised the proposals, pitting a significant number of Fifa’s member associations in direct opposition to the governing body.

It quoted a speech Infantino made when he came to power a decade ago in a lengthy statement outlining its position.

The statement “welcomed” the decision to cancel the scheme, adding: “The proposal was unanimously rejected by Uefa’s national associations and by many other federations and confederations of all sizes around the world, whose job it is to protect football.

“Uefa thanks all the fans, leagues, clubs, players, individuals, associations and confederations that opposed the scheme, alongside the many Prime Ministers, Heads of State and commentators who have demonstrated to the Fifa President that football is not for sale.”

The UK’s new prime minister Andy Burnham was among those to condemn the plans, saying Infantino was the “wrong man” to lead football’s governing body.

Uefa’s statement continued: “We cannot keep going on like this with secret schemes on fast track timescales, cooked up by faceless individuals and of dubious benefit to the game. We must identify those responsible and hold them to account.

“It is right that, in the coming days and weeks, Uefa will work with its associations and in close cooperation with other confederations to reflect on how this happened and devise a plan to make sure that it cannot occur again. That review should be thorough and fundamental. No option should be off the table. The current Fifa leadership has not only lost Uefa’s confidence but also that of many other members of the football family.

“When Gianni Infantino asked for the trust and the votes of Fifa’s Member Associations to elect him as their President in 2016, he said, ‘Of course we have to be transparent. I have been this in the last 15 years of my life in Uefa. You will have to play a part every day in the life of Fifa,’ before telling the assembled stakeholders, ‘The money of Fifa is your money. It’s not the money of the Fifa president. It’s your money. You are the national associations and the money of Fifa has to serve for the development of football and not for anything else.’

“On both these promises, he has failed to deliver. The shabby, back room, opaque deal he hatched and tried to force through were anything but transparent.

“And with reserves standing at over $5bn, he has also failed to use associations’ money for the benefit of the game.

“Uefa will begin work immediately with partners and stakeholders all over the world and right across the game to propose a new way of distributing resources through the existing Fifa Forward programme.

“We must start to use some of that money that is sat idle in Fifa’s bank account to deliver the kick start that the grassroots and the wider game need in each of the 211 countries of Fifa. But we don’t need to sell off the family silver to pay for it.

“This is a victory for the whole game. But it must not be the end of the story. The proposal has gone. The task of rebuilding trust in Fifa has only just begun.”

Gee, what could this mean?

The New York Mets have scratched right-hander Freddy Peralta from his Friday night start against the Miami Marlins, according to the New York Post.

Peralta, a free agent at the end of the season, has reportedly garnered trade interest from the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays ahead of the Aug. 3 MLB trade deadline.

Peralta, a two-time All-Star, is in his first season with the Mets. Through 22 starts, the 30-year-old owns a 4.99 ERA, a 1.48 WHIP and an 83 ERA+, while totaling 113 strikeouts and -0.2 wins above replacement over 113 ⅔ innings pitched.

Last season, Peralta posted a career-best 2.70 ERA, 155 ERA+ and 5.5 wins above replacement with the Milwaukee Brewers — where he spent the first eight seasons of his MLB career (2018-25) — while posting 204 strikeouts and a 1.08 WHIP.

The Mets acquired Peralta and fellow right-hander Tobias Myers from the Brewers in June for infielder Jett Williams and right-hander Brandon Sproat. Williams was the No. 14 pick in the 2022 MLB Draft who’s now ranked as Milwaukee’s No. 5 prospect by MLB Pipeline, and Sproat was the No. 56 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, and has made 18 starts for the Brewers this season.

New York traded left-hander David Peterson to the Chicago Cubs in June and sent reliever A.J. Minter to the Minnesota Twins early Friday morning. Elsewhere, relievers Luke Weaver, Huascar Brazobán and Devin Williams, starting pitcher Clay Holmes — who hasn’t pitched since May due to a fractured fibula — and outfielder Luis Robert Jr. have been among the many Mets players who have been mentioned in persistent trade rumors.

The Mets are 47-63, good for last place in the National League East and 14th in the NL altogether.

NYON, Switzerland (AP) — UEFA says it has lost confidence in FIFA President Gianni Infantino and that “no option should be off the table” as it will pursue a full review of his now abandoned plan to sell stakes of the World Cup to private equity investors.

Infantino was forced to scrap the plan early Saturday after his senior adviser who sat on a White House panel resigned and Asia’s soccer body joined Europe and North America in opposing it.

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Infantino had proposed creating a $20 billion company to run the World Cup with private investors, but drew backlash that grew every day since Tuesday’s announcement.

“We must identify those responsible and hold them to account,” UEFA said in a statement on Saturday. “No option should be off the table. The current FIFA leadership has not only lost UEFA’s confidence but also that of many other members of the football family.”

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and AP World Cup coverage

Alzarri Joseph and Daren Sammy (Agency Image)

West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph has responded to head coach Daren Sammy’s comments regarding his absence from the ongoing home Test series against Pakistan, insisting that the public narrative surrounding his decision lacked important context.When Cricket West Indies announced the squad for the two-match series, the board stated that Joseph would miss the matches due to personal reasons. However, Sammy later told reporters that the pacer had been selected but chose not to accept the call-up, saying Joseph had “declined selection.”Speaking on the Antigua Observer’s Good Morning Jojo Sports Show, Joseph said Sammy’s remarks created an unnecessary perception about his commitment to the team.“We had a chat, myself and the head coach. I’ve also had a chat with CWI, and if you realise the statement CWI released said personal reasons. Mr Sammy, being around for a long time, he knows exactly what that statement would have done so, to be honest, I have nothing to say to Mr Sammy in terms of his statement,” Joseph said.“As I said, he knows exactly what that statement would have done and the narrative it would have pushed in the public. Obviously, I’ve been out for an entire year. I haven’t played at international intensity for so long after having a second stress fracture,” Joseph added.The 29-year-old explained that his decision was influenced by concerns over his physical condition after recently returning from a lengthy injury layoff.“We spoke about me playing the two Test matches here, playing five back-to-back ODIs [against New Zealand earlier this month], and how my body was feeling, and I knew to myself, my body was not ready to go into another Test series. So, the statement in itself is controversial, without context,” he said.Joseph spent close to a year on the sidelines after suffering a second stress fracture in his lower back, an injury that ruled him out of the West Indies’ tours of India and New Zealand. He only returned to international cricket during the Test series against Sri Lanka earlier this year.Having only recently resumed playing at the highest level, the right-arm quick said he wanted to carefully manage his workload to avoid another setback.The contrasting explanations from Joseph and Sammy have also sparked discussion over the state of their relationship. The fast bowler, however, insisted that personal equations would not affect his commitment to representing the West Indies.“I’m a professional, so I’m going to go to work. I am representing the West Indies. I’m not representing Daren Sammy, so for me, I’m neither here nor there in terms of a relationship,” Joseph said.“I don’t go there to make friends. I go there to work and do a job and represent the people of the West Indies,” he added.

The Tampa Bay Rays announced Friday that they’ve placed ace Shane McClanahan on the 15-day injured list after the left-hander experienced lower back pain during his Thursday outing against the Texas Rangers.

Rays president Erik Neander expressed in an interview on 95.7 WDAE & AM620 that McClanahan’s injury is “pretty minor” and the two-time All-Star should only miss “two starts.”

Right-hander Alex Cook was called up from the Triple-A Durham Bulls to take McClanahan’s roster spot. In Triple A, Cook, who’s yet to pitch in MLB, has recorded a 3.78 ERA over 33 ⅓ innings this season, managing to strike out 28.5% of the batters he’s faced. Cook is expected to provide bullpen depth, as opposed to simply filling McClanahan’s rotation spot.

McClanahan’s injury comes against the backdrop of him not pitching for the Rays since 2023 prior to this season. In 2023, McClanahan underwent Tommy John surgery, which ultimately sidelined him for the entirety of the 2024 season. Then, prior to 2025 spring training, McClanahan experienced nerve irritation in his triceps, causing him to undergo surgery that August, as well.

Through 20 starts this season, McClanahan owns a 3.09 ERA and a 9-6 record across 99.0 innings pitched. Overall, he has a career 3.04 ERA across four major-league seasons.

Could the Rays make a trade for a pitcher in the wake of McClanahan’s injury? They’ve been mentioned in trade rumors for Detroit Tigers superstar left-hander Tarik Skubal and New York Mets right-hander Freddy Peralta. The trade deadline is Aug. 3 at 6 p.m. ET. 

As we count down to the first college football game of the 2026 season, we continue our new series: The records of each top CFB program in the West against all the others in the region.

Some schools have met many times over the years, while others are beginning new rivalries in the wake of recent realignment.

For each opponent in the table below, we provide the total games played, wins, losses, ties, winning percentage, first year played, and most recent contest.

We continue with Stanford, which has played 878 games against regional foes, winning 471, losing 378, and recording 29 ties, for a winning percentage of 553.

The Cardinal have recorded the most wins (66), played the most games (129) against Cal, and has lost the most games (66) against USC.

Here is a breakdown of Cardinal’s records vs. the region’s teams.

Our writers have had their say on how United should line up today:

Tyrone Marshall

It feels like this is about partnerships at the moment for United and I would keep to the script on that front in a lot of positions, although I would give Heaton the start this week. He will be around longer than Vitek.

Yoro has started twice at right-back and it feels like that is worth sticking with, although I would want to see him at centre-back from next week onwards. Being able to do a job at right-back is just a bonus.

Santos and Mount have developed a good understanding in midfield and they can play again and ideally get more than an hour in the tank next to each other. Lacey did a good job as the No.10 last week and deserves another chance to shine in a strong team.

It’s too soon for Amad so Mbeumo starts on the right and Dorgu can continue on the left. Zirkzee can go through the middle again in what is the same team that started last week. I’d be bringing JJ Gabriel on for the last 20 minutes at least.

Read the rest here >>>

Goalkeepers: Marcus Bettinelli, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Jack Wint, Max Chabot

Defenders: Rayan Ait-Nouri, Vitor Reis, Josko Gvardiol, Abdukodir Khusanov, Kaden Braithwaite, Max Alleyne, Rico Lewis, Matty Henderson-Hall, Stephen Mfuni

Midfielders: Tijjani Reijnders, Mateo Kovacic, Nico Gonzalez, Claudio Echeverri, Floyd Samba, Jaden Heskey, Xavier Parker

Forwards: Savinho, Jeremy Monga, Antoine Semenyo, Phil Foden, Ryan McAidoo, Divine Mukasa, Divin Mubama, Mahamadou Sangare

Read more about the selections and who had missed out here>>>

Magnolia Hotshots’ Zavier Lucero during a game vs Ran or Shine Elasto Painters in the 2026 PBA Governors’ Cup. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Magnolia forward Zavier Lucero was humble in defeat in the Hotshots’ heartbreaking 98-97 loss to Rain or Shine in the 2026 PBA Governors’ Cup at Mall of Asia Arena on Friday.

Instead of playing the blame game, Lucero owned up to his mistakes and said he could’ve done better to help quell the Elasto Painters’ fourth-quarter rally.

“Today, I feel like I let the guys down a little bit,” he told the Inquirer. “I didn’t produce as much as I hoped I would.”

“My role in this team is to defend… Tonight, I don’t think I did too good of a job but that’s basketball.”

Lucero finished with a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, along with a steal and a block.

However, he couldn’t help stop not one, but two clutch baskets from Adrian Nocum in the paint that ultimately spelled doom for the Hotshots.

Still, Lucero vowed to learn from the loss while tipping his hat to import KJ Buffen, who picked up the slack offensively.

“He draws so much attention as expected, he’s the import. He’s a really good player,” he said of Buffen, who also ended up with a double-double of 31 points and 17 rebounds.

“He’s really good and I’m just trying to pick up the pieces.”

Lucero looks to bounce back on Sunday when Magnolia takes on Barangay Ginebra in the newest chapter of the “Manila Clasico” rivalry at Araneta Coliseum.