MANCHESTER, England Dec 31 : The following are three talking points from the weekend’s Premier League action:

MILAN, ITALY, Sept 23: FIFA president Gianni Infantino has urged Italian soccer authorities to hand out stadium bans for supporters guilty of racism after another incident in a Serie A match between Atalanta and Fiorentina on Sunday.

March 9: The U.S. women’s national soccer team sued the U.S. Soccer Federation on Friday with allegations of gender discrimination just three months before they open their World Cup title defence in France.

LIMA, Dec 7: The president of the Peruvian Football Federation (FPF), Edwin Oviedo, was arrested on Thursday in connection with an influence-peddling probe involving a former Supreme Court justice, a lead prosecutor said.

BLANTYRE, Aug 18: The Queen of Pop is also a soccer mom, and she’s getting ever more involved in the beautiful game.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has sent a letter to the head of the Football Association of Thailand with an official invitation to attend the 2018 FIFA World Cup Final Match in Moscow - if the boys are rescued in time.

Yousef Jabarin says game in Jerusalem 'sends a dangerous message that the world is ignoring Israel's gross violations of human rights'

GENEVA, March 27: European champions Portugal suffered a first-half collapse and had Joao Cancelo sent off just past the hour in an embarrassing 3-0 World Cup warm-up defeat by the Netherlands on Monday.

KATHMANDU, Mar 23: The national football squad is leaving for Doha of Qatar to play the Group 'F' final match under the AFC Asian Cup Qualifier.

Feb 2: Leicester City are well aware of the threat Swansea City pose in Saturday’s Premier League clash following their wins over Liverpool and Arsenal in their last two games, defender Ben Chilwell said.

RIYADH, Jan 12: Saudi women will be allowed for the first time to enter a sports stadium to watch a soccer match between two local teams, though they will be segregated from the male-only crowd with designated seating in the so-called “family section.”

NEW YORK, Nov 21: A government witness in the U.S. corruption trial related to soccer’s world-governing body FIFA testified on Monday about millions of dollars paid to former soccer officials in exchange for broadcasting and sponsorship rights for international tournaments, all logged in a secret spreadsheet.

MAIAMI, July 29: They have played Super Bowls, World Series and NBA championships in Miami but on Saturday, one of soccer's great rivalries will be the hot ticket when Real Madrid and Barcelona meet in a rare El Clasico away from Spanish soil.

NEW YORK, July 13: Chuck Blazer, the disgraced American soccer executive whose admissions of corruption set off a global scandal that ultimately toppled FIFA President Sepp Blatter, has died. He was 72.

ISTANBUL, Dec 11: Turkey said on Sunday that Kurdish militants may be responsible for the two bombs that killed 29 people and wounded 166 in an apparent coordinated attack on police outside a soccer stadium in Istanbul after a match between two top teams.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug 21: With a kiss of the ball and an unforgettable kick, Brazil's biggest soccer star gave the Olympic host its biggest moment of the games.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J, June 27: Lionel Messi tells Argentine network TYC Sports he is quitting national soccer team.

PARIS, June 18: UEFA formally opened a disciplinary case against the Croatian soccer federation on Saturday for racism and fan disorder at a European Championship match.

PARIS, June 14 : UEFA's disciplinary body says Russia will be disqualified from the European Championship if there is more fan violence inside stadiums in France.