Sports

US President Donald Trump at the World Cup draw in Washington, DC, on December 5, 2025. EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / REUTERS The French government is not in favor of boycotting this year's World Cup finals being co-hosted by the United States, France's sports minister said on Tuesday, January 21. US President Trump has targeted France among the eight European countries threatened with tariffs for their opposition to his drive to annex Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark. That prompted a senior leftist French politician, Eric Coquerel, to say the US should be stripped of co-hosting this year's football World Cup, with Canada and Mexico the other two hosts. "As it stands now, there is no desire from the ministry for a boycott o...

Sporting Lisbon's Colombian forward Luis Suarez celebrates scoring his second goal during the UEFA Champions League match between Sporting CP and PSG at Jose Alvalade stadium in Lisbon on January 20, 2026. PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA / AFP A last-gasp Luis Suárez header condemned Paris Saint-Germain to a 2-1 defeat at Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday, January 20, jeopardizing the Champions League titleholders' chances of a top eight finish and direct qualification for the last-16. Colombian striker Suarez struck twice for Sporting in the second half, sealing victory with a 90th-minute header after substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had equalized for PSG. Following victories for Real Madrid and Tottenham, PSG, with 13, points have droppe...

Claude Le Roy (center), on the sidelines of the AFCON match between Morocco and Comoros, at Prince Moulay-Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, December 21, 2025. MANTEY STEPHANE / PRESSE SPORTS After a suspenseful and chaotic final, the Senegal national team prevailed over Morocco in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final, held in Rabat on Sunday, January 18. The Lions of Teranga secured their second continental title thanks to a goal scored in the 94th minute, amid total confusion. Just minutes earlier, the players had left the field to protest the referee's decision to award a penalty to Morocco, which was ultimately missed by Brahim Diaz. This was unprecedented. It was Sadio Mané, the Senegalese captain, who convinced his teammates to return to the field, after q...

Retired French figure skater and Beijing 2022 Olympic champion Gabriella Papadakis poses for a photo session in Paris, on January 15, 2026. JOEL SAGET / AFP France's 2022 Olympic ice dance champion Gabriella Papadakis has spoken out about the world of figure skating, telling Agence France-Presse (AFP) that she found herself in "a dangerous situation for my physical and mental health." In a new book, she reflects on her relationship with Guillaume Cizeron, her partner at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, where they took silver, and also in Beijing four years later, where they claimed gold. She claims in the book Pour ne pas Disparaitre ("So as not to Disappear") that she was under Cizeron's "control" throughout their career together, recounting how s...

Paris Saint-Germain's #10 Ousmane Dembele (C) evades a tackle from Lille's #23 Aissa Mandi (L) during the French L1 football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Lille LOSC at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on January 16, 2026. ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT / AFP Ousmane Dembélé scored twice as champions Paris Saint-Germain climbed top of Ligue 1 on Friday, January 16, with a dominant 3-0 win over Lille at a rainy Parc des Princes. Surprise packages Lens could return to the summit on Saturday should they win at Auxerre, but PSG coach Luis Enrique will be buoyed by a return to form from his top striker. Dembélé won the Ballon d'Or last season but has suffered an injury-blighted season so far. His goals, including a st...

Gianni Infantino, FIFA president, on December 5, 2025, at the draw for the 2026 World Cup groups in Washington, United States. MANDEL NGAN / POOL VIA REUTERS In 10 years as the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino has become a wealthy man. His reign is set to reach its peak during the expanded 2026 World Cup, now featuring 48 teams and co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19. Since he was elected president of football's global governing body in February 2016, Infantino's earnings have soared at a remarkable rate. Evidence of this financial gain can be found in the "Form 990" tax declarations that FIFA, a Swiss-registered non-profit organization exempt from US taxes since June 1994, is requ...

France's Yannick Agnel in Bellerive-sur-Allier, France on July 3, 2016. THIERRY ZOCCOLAN / AFP French double Olympic swimming gold medallist Yannick Agnel will face trial on charges of rape and sexual assault after his appeal was rejected on Thursday, January 15. In May, the Frenchman's lawyers appealed the decision for the 33-year-old to face the charges but the appeals court in Colmar, northeastern France, turned down the claim and ordered the trial to proceed. Agnel, who won two golds at the 2012 London Games, is suspected of having had a relationship in 2016 with Naomé Horter, the daughter of his coach, who was 13 at the time. Agnel has always insisted the relationship was consensual and loving. According to prosecutors, ...

Nigeria's Akor Adams, left, and Morocco's Noussair Mazraoui fight for the ball during the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final match between Nigeria and Morocco in Rabat, Morocco, Wednesday, January 14, 2026. YOUSSEF LOULIDI / AP Youssef El-Nesyri scored the winning penalty and Yassine "Bono" Bounou saved two as Morocco advanced to the Africa Cup of Nations final with a 4-2 win on penalties over Nigeria on Wednesday, January 14. Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali saved one but was bettered by Bono in the shootout after the teams drew 0-0 with extra time in front of 65,458 mostly Morocco supporters in Rabat’s Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium. "We played with 12 (players)," Morocco coach Walid Regragui said of the fans. There were so...

France's Loïs Boisson at the French Open in Paris on June 5, 2025. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP French Open semifinalist Loïs Boisson has withdrawn from the Australian Open. "I tried everything to be ready on time," she said in a message posted on Instagram on Monday, January 12. "But I know that rushing can harm my body and my health in the long term especially." The 22-year-old Boisson has been struggling with injuries since a deep run at Roland-Garros last year in her Grand Slam main draw singles debut. She has not played since the end of September and the No. 35-ranked player said she took the decision to skip the Australian Open to be able to compete "at 100% for the rest of the season." In Paris, Boisson beat top-10 players Jessica Pegula ...

The portrait of Morocco's King Mohammed VI displayed during the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final match between Cameroon and Morocco in Rabat, January 9, 2026. MOSA'AB ELSHAMY / AP His absence has been particularly noticeable. Since the start of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which kicked off on December 21, 2025, for four weeks in Morocco, King Mohammed VI has not made any appearances at any of the six stadiums hosting the competition. During the tournament's opening ceremony, the host country's monarch did not kick off the 35th edition of AFCON. Rather, his eldest son, Moulay Al-Hassan, greeted the crowd with raised arms from the center circle of the main stadium in Rabat. At every pivotal moment in the Atlas Lions' journey, it was the 22-year-old c...