Soccer

Lionel Messi hit the 50-goal mark for club and country in 2018 after scoring his 43rd career hat trick for Barcelona on Sunday. Messi's brilliance powered Barcelona to a 5-0 victory at Levante and kept the defending champions three points ahead of Sevilla and Atletico ...

Nicknamed "The Klopp of the Alps," new Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuettl showed why he has been compared to Liverpool's eccentric boss by running onto the field and leaping into the air in delight after ending Arsenal's long unbeaten run on Sunday. Charlie Austin's 85th-minute goal ...

Former Japan captain Makoto Hasebe has signed a contract extension to remain with Eintracht Frankfurt for another season, the German first-division club announced Sunday. Hasebe, 34, retired from international football this summer after captaining the Samurai Blue to the last 16 at the World Cup ...

Kashima Antlers advanced to the semifinals of the FIFA Club World Cup, and a showdown with Spanish giant Real Madrid, after outlasting Mexican powerhouse Guadalajara 3-2 on Saturday. The semifinal against the Spanish power will be a rematch of the 2016 Club World Cup final, ...

Following a turbulent year that brought joy and heartbreak, the Japan men's national team will head to the Asian Cup full of optimism, with a new core of emerging players. The Samurai Blue will kick off the Jan. 5 to Feb. 1 tournament in the ...

Captain Kostas Fortounis scored late from the penalty spot to help Olympiakos defeat AC Milan 3-1 on Thursday and knock the seven-time European champion out of the Europa League. Sevilla, Villarreal, Genk, Celtic, Rapid Vienna, Malmo, Krasnodar, Rennes, BATE and Slavia Prague also qualified for ...

Miguel Angel Lotina, whose contract as head coach of J. League second-division side Tokyo Verdy expired after two seasons, has been appointed manager of Cerezo Osaka, the team announced Friday. The 61-year-old Basque joined Verdy as manager in 2017 after stints with clubs including Spanish ...

Kashiwa Reysol, who were recently relegated to the J. League second division, announced Thursday that former manager Nelsinho will take the helm for the second time starting next season. Nelsinho, who left the club in 2014 to manage Vissel Kobe, guided Reysol back to the ...

Manchester United missed the chance to finish top of its Champions League group as an understrength team lost 2-1 at Valencia on Wednesday, with an embarrassing own goal by Phil Jones proving decisive. With first-place Juventus losing 2-1 at Young Boys, United could have jumped ...