Lionel Messi insists he has not yet given up on the dream of winning the World Cup despite the terrible defeat in the 2014 final.

The Barcelona star was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player at the tournament in Brazil five years ago after inspiring his side to the final, where they faced Germany.

However, the main prize eluded Messi and Argentina at the Maracana, as Mario Gotze s extra-time strike secured a 1-0 win for Joachim Low s side.

Argentina were again beaten by the eventual winners four years later, with France knocking them out 4-3 at the last-16 stage en route to winning the 2018 tournament in Russia.

But Messi is not discounting the idea of getting his hands on international football s top prize, even though he will be 35 by the time the …

Former England boss Steve McClaren was appointed manager of Dutch club FC Twente, on this day in 2008.

The then 47-year-old signed a two-year deal to return to management for the first time since he left his role as England boss, following their failure to reach the 2008 European Championship.

McClaren’s name was closely linked with the Blackburn job after Mark Hughes left Ewood Park to join Manchester City, before he chose to succeed Fred Rutten in the Twente hot seat.

On his arrival, McClaren said: “It will be a huge challenge for me to work in the Dutch league and in the Champions League with FC Twente, but I am excited by the prospect and believe we are feeling positive for the campaign ahead.

“My message to the club’s fans, supporters I have …

The Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants are headed in opposite directions in the NFL Week 12 rankings and clash in East Rutherford this Sunday.

The Eagles are 3.5-point NFL betting road favorites riding the momentum of a two-game streak – the first time this team has won consecutive games this season. The Giants, on the other hand, are playing on a short week after getting rolled at Tampa Bay on Monday and just fired offensive coordinator Jason Garrett after another lackluster effort on that side of the ball.

Check out our NFL free picks and predictions for Eagles at Giants on November 28.

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There’s a fascinating Sunday slate in store for NFL bettors this week, with four games featuring two winning teams, and 11 of 14 contests carrying a spread of four points or less. 

We’ve gone over each matchup on the slate with a fine-toothed comb, and have come up with our top two parlay plays for this Sunday, which we’ll lay out below. 

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Milestone and Alt Overs are a great way to find big plus-money plays. Whether you want a nobody to hit 25 yards or a stud to go off, every NFL odds market you’re looking for is available at bet365, and it’s a great way to find solid plus-money plays.  

When it comes to Week 13 odds, I’m continuing to pile on a Cleveland running back who will be the focal point of this week’s offense, banking on a speedy wideout to see more reps this week indoors, and getting on a quarterback rushing total for +320. 

Let’s get after it in my latest NFL picks. 

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The NFL Draft is one of the most unique betting experiences of the year. There are smokescreens and misinformation everywhere, and something as little as a Reddit post can have a major effect on the odds and NFL draft betting picks. 

The beauty is that outside of Caleb Williams going No. 1 to the Chicago Bears, no one really knows anything at this point.

I do my best to cut through that smoke and make plays that are the most logical for the 2024 NFL Draft betting odds. Here are my 2024 NFL Draft best bets that you can make right now where you can bet on the NFL draft. 

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Finding the best value on NFL odds has become just a little bit easier, as most sportsbooks routinely offer odds boosts and betting promotions on select betting markets.

These specially curated promos range from sportsbook to sportsbook, offering users enhanced prices on props, totals, futures, plus popular parlays — or enticing new users to create an account at a new sportsbook.

Boosts are often time-sensitive, with release times (and expiration dates) being quite spontaneous; it can be tedious to go to every different sportsbook and search for the best bonuses of the week, so we have you covered — we’ve compiled a list of the best Week 6 odds boosts for making your NFL picks!

The following promotions are available in eligible U.S. loc…

We made it to the 10th week of the NFL season, and rookie quarterbacks are always front and center, with some living up to the hype and others not as much. With that, let’s look at how the 2021 rookie class fared in Week 10. 6. Trey Lance source: Getty Images Another week, another DNP for Lance. The Niners did win, and if they continue to win, we might not see him much in this second half of his rookie year. We know Lance is the future in the Bay Area, but Jimmy Garoppolo is still the present, and he’s earned the right to keep the starting position for another week after beating up on the L.A. Rams, 31-10. 5. Zach Wilson source: Getty Images Zach Wilson is still out, but after Mike White’s four-interception   Sunday, all that talk about White pushing Wilson for starter snaps w…

The six English clubs who attempted to join the European Super League have agreed a settlement with the Premier League in which they will pay £22m between them to causes that support “the good of the game”. The sum is more than was agreed with Uefa in a similar act of contrition but still amounts to less per club than they would pay an average squad member in a year.

A further agreement was struck on new rules to prevent such a breakaway from happening again. In future each club agreeing to enter a competition without the consent of the league would pay a fine of £25m and receive a 30-point deduction. Under the terms of the ESL, the six – Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham – had planned to…

Jesse Marsch has called on his Leeds side to use their late escape from an embarrassing FA Cup defeat at 10-man Cardiff City as a “stepping stone”. Leeds were heading for a sixth successive third-round exit until the 18-year-old substitute Sonny Perkins scored his first professional goal to equalise deep into second-half stoppage time and earn a replay.

Leeds have won only two of their past 16 matches in all competitions and Marsch said they must heed the lessons of their late rally after conceding they were initially out of sync in south Wales. “As a manager I’ve never lost to a lower-division team in the cup and part of it is because I demand that the players take it seriously and we play with intensity as if it’s a first-divisio…