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Going to a baseball game or a cricket game, a soccer game or basketball game, used to be part of the experience of growing up as a child not only in America, but in many parts of Asia since the 1950's. Sports organizers are failing the public and the Nation, many nations, when they let prices keep out the vast majority of the young people from sports games. This is true of the New York Knicks games in 2026 with the San Antonio Spurs, with tickets transport, everything going up. Here DW.com asks important questions about the FIFA World Cup. Most of America's younger generation, the vast majority of children will be excluded from these games. DW.com writes about the cheapest ticket listed on the FIFA website at $8625 and one ticket listed for $690,000. When told the cheapest ticket for the first Paraguay US game was $1000 US president DJT said it was "ridiculous," that he woudn't pay that either, and expressed real disappointment. DW.com raises other questions about the sudden 50% increase in teams and 60% increase in games for the World Cup in 2026. Teams suddenly up from 32 to 48, and games from 64 to 104. If more smaller football associations or countries were to be added, would it have been better to try this out in smaller steps? Has this diluted the sporting quality of individual games. If more games why would prices jump this much? Last World Cup the average price of a ticket was the same as the list price and no resale markets to create artificially high prices in the stratosphere driving out most buyers. ESPN looks at he process that set these prices in the adjoining piece. ...

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India begins preparations for the Women's Under 17 FIFA Women's World Cup soccer games. A new effort will be laid on developing soccer in India with focus on infrastructure, grassroots, and women's soccer. The games will kick off on October 11 to go to Oct. 30. The All India Football federation and the Government of India have identified 40 cities, and areas where games can take place.

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Barcelona football club faces police investigation relating to a smear campaign in 2020 against current and former players critical of the club, according to this report in FR24. Barcelona club's reputation has suffered in recent years.

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The "floaters and anchors concept" for football of Coach Luis Enrique at Paris St Germain that makes rotating movements possible with centre backs playing up front and those playing forward pulling back. This fluidity makes this team one of the best in football. It now plays Bayern in the semifinals of Champions League 2026. Nuno Mendes is agood example of this rotation. BBC Sports explains with detailed pictures how this style of play is done by Luis Enrique.

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Raphael Varane of France announces his retirement from soccer at 29 years of age, saying that- "right now we have overloaded schedules, and I feel that I am suffocating, that the player is gobbling up the man." Real Madrid's Courtois, and other players from Manchester City, Manchester United, feel the same way. FIFPRO world players' union general secretary, Baer Hoffman, says the volume of games today is putting too much pressure on the physical and mental well being of players. No one is thinking of us players says one player. Australian coaching mentor Royle, says it is the dehumanization of human endeavor. Players and coaches are stepping away and Jonathan Harding in the DW.com asks if the price they are asked to pay is too high. Is it time for the football league managers to listen.

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The fallout from the collapse of plans for a Super League is leading the British government to consider fan ownership of clubs as a possibility. This happens as the government reviews current football structures for changes. A Liverpool billionaire apologizes for his support of the Super League. Coaches Simone and Klopp opposed the idea for a sport built on fan support.

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Chloe Kelly, English soccer player Interview in The Times- Kelly scored the winning penalty against Spain in 2025. She also scored the decider against Germany in Euro Cup 2022. She whopped off her shirt to celebrate in a Nike Sports bra, says The Times about the event in 2022.  

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Leah Williamson is the author of the new book You Have the Power with Guardian football writer Suzanne Wrack. It is a motivational story of England's European cup soccer winning team from 2022 for girls ages 10 to 14 years. Its subtitle is Find Your Strength and Believe You Can. Leah says this is the age group that struggles the most in terms of who we want to be as young women. It is also the age when young girls decide to drop out of sport. What has made a difference for Leah is that her mother was a footballer playing for Milton Keynes and her grandmother played badminton competitively. She remembers going to Arsenal for games with her mom and grandmother at an early age. By age 7 she was playing competitively and she was scouted for Arsenal girls. She has played for Arsenal since then. She started on boys team when there were no teams for girls. A confident attitude came naturally to her and once she decided to play soccer competitively it did not matter that professional soccer for women did not exist when she joined Arsenal girls. ...

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Pope Francis recalls his days as a boy playing soccer on the streets outside his home in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with a rag ball because they did not always have a leather ball. "There was not always someone with a leather ball so we played with a ball made of rags, a pelota de trapo." Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio to Italian immigrants in Argentina. He calls it a great school of life for him being the goalie and having to take all the shots taken at him. His leadership has shown concern for the marginalized and the poor through the repeated economic crises and the current pandemic. In his talks with world leaders including Trump, Biden, and recently Modi of India he has shown the importance of taking good care of the environment, the downtrodden and the marginalized in society. 

Some of the influences in his life come from his father, an accountant from Asti in northwest Italy, who loved reading to the children and had a library.

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The way people in England have responded to England's win over Norway 8-0 and Sweden 4-0 is transforming English women's soccer and women's soccer around the world. England is now headed to the final with Germany at Wembley stadium in London with a worldwide audience of soccer fans.

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In something new for women's soccer England win their opener with Austria in front of 69,000 cheering fans at Old Trafford. More people are watching women's soccer and more fans are at the games than ever.

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Shane Tamura mental health issues, football injuries that may have resulted in mental health issues for a star high school football player Tamura, and the Blackstone shooting in Manhattan.