Controversial

A former referee has admitted to have spared Lionel Messi from a second yellow card in return for his match-worn shirt.

Chilean refereee, Carlos Chandía, has confessed to having purposefully avoided giving Messi a booking. And all in the plan to receive the Argentine’s jersey at the end of a match.

Chandía was in charge of the 2007 Copa America semifinal match between Argentina and Mexico, with the Albiceleste blowing past El Tri with a 3-0 scoreline. 20-year-old Messi scored a beautiful lob to seal his country’s spot in the final.

Cristiano Ronaldo created a firestorm on social media earlier in the week as he scored his 900th career goal, a milestone no player in history has reached before.

When being asked about the new landmark, Ronaldo spoke about the idea of playing in the 2026 World Cup and if he's motivated to play in one last World Cup.

"Portugal winning Euros is equivalent to winning a World Cup," Ronaldo said. "I've already won two trophies for Portugal that I really wanted. I'm not motivated by that. I'm motivated by enjoying football and the records come naturally."

Donovan had some interesting things to say about U.S. Soccer.

U.S. men’s national team legend, Landon Donovan, was invited as a guest on Alexi Lalas’ State of the Union Podcast, with the former U.S. goalscorer giving some pretty interesting takes on the state of the men’s national team, the possibility of coaching the United States, what we can expect from the extraofficial appointment of Mauricio Pochettino and the brewing problem of the USMNT — youth soccer.

The Declan Rice red card from Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Brighton on Saturday was one of the more bizarre moments you’ll see in a Premier League game.

Rice received his first yellow card in the 42nd minute for a tough challenge on Joël Veltman. Nothing crazy there.

It was the 25-year-old’s second yellow card that baffled fans everywhere.

In the 49th minute Rice fouled Veltman again deep in Brighton’s territory. The Arsenal man lingered around a little too long and when Veltman tried to take the free kick quickly he ended up cleaning out Rice.

Nashville’s Yazbek has been hit with an unprecedented suspension. And fans are not happy.

Nashville SC player Patrick Yazbek suspended for two games violation of the league's Non-Discrimination policy

Major League Soccer has suspended Nashville SC midfielder Patrick Yazbek for two games following a violation of the league's Non-Discrimination Policy during the Aug. 24 match between Nashville and Austin FC.

San Diego Wave FC President Jill Ellis filed a defamation suit on Monday against a former team employee who accused Ellis on social media of creating a harsh work environment.

Brittany Alvarado, previously a video and creative manager for the Wave, wrote in a July 3 social media post that the treatment she and her co-workers endured under Ellis "has been nothing short of life-altering and devastating to our mental health."

Defending champions Canada reached the quarter-finals of the women's Olympic football tournament on Wednesday thanks to a 1-0 win over Colombia in Nice hours after they had an appeal against their six-point deduction dismissed.

Colombia also booked their spot in the knockouts on Wednesday, along with France, Germany, Japan and Brazil, but Australia missed out.

Wednesday's results set up some tantalizing last-eight ties with Canada taking on Germany, the U.S. playing Japan, Spain facing Colombia and France playing Brazil, with the quarter-finals being held on Saturday.

Korbin Albert scored her first-ever international goal on Wednesday as the United States women’s national team defeated Australia 2-1 to make it a perfect nine points from the group stage.

One moment that fans will heavily discuss is the goal from Albert who came on as a second half substitute and scored a screamer from outside the box in the 77th minute to double the USWNT’s lead. 

Korbin Albert goal vs Australia