Sports
Transfer rumors, news: Liverpool look to Bayern’s Upamecano
Liverpool are looking to strengthen their defense with a move for Bayern Munich center back Dayot Upamecano, while Barcelona have added Borussia Dortmund striker Serhou Guirassy to their shortlist. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.
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TRENDING RUMORS
– Bild reports that Liverpool are lining up a move for Bayern Munich center back Dayot Upamecano. The Reds are exploring options as they look to reinforce their defense, and they could challenge Real Madrid in the race for the 26-year-old France international, who will soon enter the final six months of his contract at the Allianz Arena. The Bundesliga champions view Upamecano as a key player and are expected to begin contract talks amid hopes of signing him to an extension, but are aware clubs from outside Germany can negotiate a pre-contract agreement with him in January.
– Barcelona have added Borussia Dortmund striker Serhou Guirassy to their shortlist, according to Bild. The LaLiga club are reportedly exploring multiple options as they look for a long term successor to 37-year-old Robert Lewandowski, and Guirassy, 29, is the latest to be placed on their radar. Dortmund don’t want to part ways with their star forward, but reports have indicated that there may be a release clause in his contract that allows specific clubs to sign him for €70 million.
– Atletico Madrid midfielder Conor Gallagher will return to the Premier League if he leaves the LaLiga club, says TEAMtalk. Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have both been linked with the former Chelsea star, and the Red Devils are reported to have opted against a move for him at the end of the summer transfer window. Gallagher, 25, remains a regular for manager Diego Simeone, having made seven appearances across all competitions this season, but could choose to head back to England.
– Tottenham Hotspur are keen to sign on-loan Bayern Munich midfielder João Palhinha on a permanent deal, according to TalkSPORT, and are already inclined to activate the £27m option in his loan deal. Palhinha, 30, has been a standout performer for manager Thomas Frank, with two goals in seven appearances across all competitions this season, and has previous experience of the Premier League with Fulham.
– Chelsea are confident of signing AC Milan and France goalkeeper Mike Maignan, reports TEAMtalk. The Blues are reported to have decided against a move for Gianluigi Donnarumma, who joined Manchester City for €30m from PSG this summer, after placing Maignan at the top of their shortlist. Maignan, 30, will be able to sign a pre-contract agreement when he enters the final six months of his deal at San Siro in January, as the Rossoneri have not made progress over an extension.
EXPERT TAKE
ESPN’s Beth Lindop looks at a possible defensive move for Liverpool.
Liverpool’s need to sign a center back — either in January or next summer — is glaring.
The Premier League champions missed out on Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi when his £35m transfer collapsed at the 11th hour and there is an expectation they will revisit that deal in the near future. Guehi is available on a free transfer next summer, but an injury to new signing Giovanni Leoni might compel Liverpool to move for the England international in January.
Meanwhile, the future of Ibrahima Konate — who is also out of contract next summer — remains uncertain. With that in mind, Liverpool will be assessing the market for potential opportunities and Upamecano’s pedigree will likely place him on the club’s radar. He is a France international with his best years still ahead of him, however he will just be one of the many defenders Liverpool are monitoring ahead of next summer.
OTHER RUMORS
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Craig Burley did not hold back on Arsenal and Mikel Arteta’s comments following their 1-1 draw with Manchester City.
– A blast from the past, but Manchester United are once again being linked with Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, 28, despite the fact he is close to signing a new contract (Football Insider)
– United are looking to complete a move for Derby County goalkeeper Charlie Hardy. (Sun)
– And United have agreed a deal with Fortaleza midfielder Cristian Orozco, 17, to move once he turns 18 in July. (Athletic)
– Arsenal are working on reaching an agreement over a new contract for winger Bukayo Saka. (Ben Jacobs)
– Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga, 22, is considering his future and has been linked with a move to Newcastle. (Football Insider)
– An agreement is close to being finalized between Manchester City and winger Savinho over a new contract, after he was previously linked with Tottenham in the summer. (Fabrizio Romano)
– Contract talks are expected to take place soon between Manchester City and attacking midfielder Phil Foden. (TBR)
– Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali remains on the radar of Juventus. (Calciomercato)
– Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester City are among the sides watching the situation of Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate, though he is also being linked with Real Madrid. (TBR)
– Arsenal are looking at Juventus forward Kenan Yildiz, who was the subject of an €80m offer from Chelsea over the summer. (Radio Radio)
– Juventus have added Al-Ahli midfielder Franck Kessie to their shortlist as a potential signing in January. (Gazzetta dello Sport)
– Clubs in Europe are keeping tabs on Flamengo winger Everton. (Ekrem Konur)
– Several Championship clubs have made enquiries to Vitoria regarding striker Mario Gomes. (Rudy Galetti)
Sports
Catrick Mahomes to Cee Dee Little Lamb: Trending sports-related pet names of 2025
It has been quite a year for Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. He won his first MVP award in February and got married to actress and musician Hailee Steinfeld in May. Now, it’s time to add inspiration for trending sports-related cat names to his 2025 résumé.
“Josh Allen” was up 232% for sports-inspired cat names this year, according to a recent report by pet-sitting website Rover.
Allen is tied with “Jalen,” seemingly after Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, and “Manning,” presumably inspired by Texas quarterback Arch Manning — and Peyton and Eli perhaps — for the top spot.
“Luka,” after Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic, (up 51%) and “Marchy,” inspired by Florida Panthers star Brad Marchand, (up 32%) followed on the list.
Sports-related dog names followed a similar trend, with “Arch” (up 181%) leading the way followed by “Josh Allen” (also up 181%). Other athletes in the top five to inspire dog names are Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley at third (up 81%), Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg (up 31%) slotted in at four and golfer Scottie Scheffler (up 22%).
New dog names include Barkley Saquon, Cee Dee Little Lamb (Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb) and Nacua (Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua). For cats, new names featured are Catrick Mahomes (Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes), Travis Kelce, Ja’Marr (Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase) and Scottie Scheffler.
This year, Rover also highlighted city-by-city trends for sports-inspired pet names.
Even though the Mavericks traded Doncic in a blockbuster in February, he still remains popular for Dallas cat owners — “Luka” increased 139%.
Chicago showed love to Sky forward Angel Reese, with “Angel” leading the way in the Windy City for cat (up 243%) and dog (up 84%) names.
San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama saw massive gains as an inspiration for pet names last season. But the focus this year shifted toward the Spurs’ legendary big three of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.
“Tony” (up 629%) and “Manu” (up 229%) led the way for dog names, while Duncan (up 239%) dominated for cats.
Sports
USA Gymnastics looks to soccer executive as its next leader
Kyle Albrecht, MLS Next general manager, takes over the organization with the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on the horizon.
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Sports
NCAA settles with unpaid coaches for $303M
The NCAA has agreed to pay $303 million to settle a class action antitrust lawsuit representing about 7,700 volunteer college coaches who alleged the organization engaged in illegal wage fixing under a rule that prohibited schools from paying them.
On average, a coach from Monday’s proposed settlement would receive about $39,200 before expenses and fees, based on the school, sport and years worked, according to the proposed settlement, which is awaiting approval by Judge William B. Shubb in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.
From 1992 to July 2023, the NCAA and its schools agreed to cap the number of paid coaches for Division I sports. Certain sports teams were allowed one “volunteer coach” who would not be paid and who was restricted from receiving other benefits. The NCAA punished schools that violated that rule.
The lawsuit claimed those actions were examples of wage-fixing and “unlawful agreements in restraint of the trade and commerce,” referring to the NCAA in the complaint as a “cartel.”
“This combination and conspiracy by the NCAA and its members schools (which possess a dominant position in the relevant market) has resulted in, and will until restrained continue to result in, anti-competitive effects,” including fixing compensation “at the artificially low level of zero” and eliminating or suppressing competition for skilled labor in the market, the lawsuit states.
The proposed settlement agreement noted that “many class members will receive a six-figure amount.” The class includes volunteer coaches who, at any point from March 17, 2019, to June 20, 2023, worked for an NCAA Division I athletic program other than baseball.
Baseball coaches filed a similar lawsuit in November 2022 and reached a settlement with the NCAA for $49.25 million, with $33 million going specifically to about 1,000 coaches. Judge Shubb, who is also overseeing the current lawsuit, signed off in September. In response to that case, the NCAA dropped the rule limiting the number of paid coaches across all sports in July 2023, and coaches who had previously been designated “volunteer” could now be paid.
The second lawsuit, filed in March 2023, initially represented five former volunteer coaches as named plaintiffs, who worked in sports such as swimming, track and field, volleyball, and softball. (Volunteer coaches were not allowed in football or basketball.) One of those was Katherine Sebbane, who coached softball at the University of Pittsburgh from 2019 until 2021.
Sebbane was paid about $25,000 to run the university’s youth camps, clinics and recruiting events. But she also worked about 40 hours a week as an assistant coach, for which she was not paid. As a volunteer coach, she was also not allowed to receive other benefits, including meals and even medical care from athletic trainers.
“There was an instance where the team was catered Chick-fil-A and [a] compliance [official] was down the hall… I was verbatim told, ‘Hey, don’t go out there to grab a sandwich. Compliance is down there.’ Like, you’re not supposed to be eating with the team,” she told ESPN. “And I’m like, I’m the one who can’t afford groceries.”
While Sebbane said she willingly took the job knowing she wouldn’t be paid, she said there was an understanding in coaching circles that doing so was almost a requirement to get to the next stage and climb the ladder to a paid position. The lawsuit stated that many other volunteer coaches felt similarly.
Sebbane said she finally had to give up the job and left coaching. “There’s a lot of people that have suffered financially, and, you know, two years of financial distress, that takes, like, 10 years to catch up. I believe all of us should be compensated for our time that we put in,” she said.
In July 2023, Judge Shubb denied the NCAA’s motion to dismiss, noting that “plaintiffs have alleged facts sufficient to show a violation” of the Sherman Antitrust Act. He wrote, “it is not implausible that plaintiffs would have been paid a salary above $0 but for the NCAA’s adoption of the bylaw.”
After the settlement agreement, plaintiffs’ attorneys Dennis Stewart, Michael Lieberman and Bob Gralewski said in an emailed statement, “We are incredibly proud of this settlement which, if approved, will provide significant and meaningful compensation to thousands of hard-working coaches…We look forward to the approval process and are committed to ensuring that these funds are distributed to coaches in a fair and efficient manner.”
This was the latest in a series of lawsuits alleging antitrust behavior by the NCAA, including the recent $2.8 billion settlement agreement to compensate athletes for lost opportunities to benefit from their name, image and likeness, and to allow schools to share revenue with athletes.
NCAA president Charlie Baker addressed the volunteer coaches settlement in a memo sent to members Monday, noting the dispute with the volunteer coaches “is one of the largest remaining lawsuits we face and resolving it provides certainty and clarity for the association and our members.”
He noted that the settlement will be funded by the Division I membership and the national office, and payments likely wouldn’t start until after next summer.
“While this settlement represents a substantial financial commitment, it closes the door on claims related to volunteer coach bylaws, which were effective until June 30, 2023. It also ensures that Division I conferences and member schools are released from any claims for unpaid wages, benefits, or related damages during the Class Period,” Baker wrote.
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