INSIDER
Stadium tragedy exposes Indonesia's troubled soccer history
Gaining the right to host next year’s Under-20 World Cup was a major milestone in Indonesia’s soccer development that raised hopes of a turnaround to long-standing problems that have blighted the sport in this country of 277 million people.
Atalanta and Sassuolo inspired Italy's transformation
Italy's transformation from a team that failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup into an attack-minded juggernaut can be traced back to Serie A teams like Atalanta and Sassuolo.
EURO 2020: Pragmatism the key to success in pandemic soccer
The European Championship is the first major international soccer tournament to take place since the coronavirus outbreak and arrives at the end of the most condensed club season in history.
Madrid beats Alavs 2-0 for 8th straight win in title march
(AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)BARCELONA Karim Benzema helped Real Madrid move one step closer to dethroning Lionel Messis Barcelona on Friday. Benzema scored one goal and set up another to lead Madrid to beating Alavs 2-0 and restoring a four-point lead over Barcelona in the Spanish league with only three rounds left. Benzema scored a penalty kick in the 11th minute and assisted Marco Asensio in the 50th to ensure an eighth straight victory since La Liga resumed play after stopping for three months due to the pandemic. His 18th league goal of the season is second only to Messis 22. Madrid took full control just after halftime when Benzema broke Alavs offside trap to reach Rodrygos through-ball.