MLS has announced an overhaul of its playoff system that will see more teams involved and a single-leg elimination format introduced from the 2019 season.

Fourteen teams will make up the revised postseason field, up from 12 this year in a nod to the league s continued expansion – Los Angeles FC joined the league in 2018 and Cincinnati will compete for the first time next term.

The top seed from each conference will get a bye in the first round and will face the winner of the clash between the fourth and fifth seeds in the conference semi-finals.

Teams will not be re-seeded based on upsets during postseason matches, as they have in the past, and the higher seed will be the host in each round, offering a greater reward for their regular-season performance.

…

South Africa s 2010 World Cup preparations have been hit by overruns in stadium construction costs, but all venues are on track to be completed on time, a government official said Wednesday.

Stadium construction costs have ballooned from 7.8 billion rand (985 million dollars, 660 million euros) in 2004 to 9.2 billion.

There has been cost overruns in a number of stadiums currently built around the country, but all will be ready in time for the World Cup, Deputy Minister of Finance Jabu Moleketi said.

A government report indicated that the stadiums being built from scratch will be ready before the December 2009 FIFA deadline.

Moleketi emphasised that Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Port Elizabeth, which was recently excluded from hosting the Confederatio…

Florian Kohfeldt has signed a new four-year contract at Werder Bremen, the club announced on Tuesday.

Kohfeldt has transformed Werder s fortunes since his appointment in October 2017, initially on a temporary basis, steering them away from Bundesliga relegation danger that season and earning a deal until 2021.

After Werder finished eighth and narrowly missed out on European qualification in 2018-19, Kohfeldt has again been rewarded with fresh terms.

I got a chance here as a young coach in very difficult times and am pleased that we have laid a good foundation in the past two years, said the 36-year-old. 

I m convinced this is just the beginning for the club. I m pleased to continue my work with the coaching team.

— SV Werder Br…

The 2015 Masters Tournament is the first major golf event of the year and is taking place at the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia from 9th April to 12th April, with all the star players making their appearance at the PGA tournament.

Rory McIlroy has been made the number one favourite for the coveted trophy, with Bubba Watson at close second, but there will be quite a few punters backing Tiger Woods at odds of 40/1 to win outright. And if you are looking to place outright bets on the 2015 Masters, you should definitely do it at Coral, who has trebled the odds on all players.

In order to qualify for the enhanced price promo, and place your first bet on any player in the US masters. If your bet wins, the profit will be trebled and added in real cash to your account.<…

Arsenal and Liverpool go head to head on Wednesday in a crucial game for both sides

There is a whole programme of Premier League games over the next two nights.

This evening there are four games and tomorrow six.

The action all kicks-off on Tuesday night with Aston Villa facing Newcastle at Villa Park in a crucial bottom of the table clash.

Both teams are just outside the relegation zone. Villa are outside the relegation zone by a point, while Newcastle are just one better off.

Villa are on a poor run of form and exited the FA Cup to Championship Millwall at the weekend.

Newcastle are not in much better shape either. However, the Magpies have been busy strengthening their squad in the January window and have signed four players in the pas…

Gianni Infantino believes the 2022 World Cup has been a fantastic success , boosted by the best group stage in the history of the tournament.

FIFA president Infantino was under pressure as Qatar 2022 began following an extraordinary opening address in which he dismissed various criticisms and controversies around the finals.

Such episodes have continued throughout the tournament, notably with the dispute around the OneLove campaign, but Infantino believes the product on the pitch has scaled new heights.

No team achieved nine points from a possible nine in the group stage as there were a number of upsets, most notably Argentina s loss to Saudi Arabia and Germany s first-round elimination.

Those shocks have continued into the last 16, with Morocco dumping o…

Liverpool lost to Sevilla in the Europa League final on this day in 2016 as Jurgen Klopp’s hopes of a first trophy on Merseyside were ended.

Daniel Sturridge fired Liverpool ahead on 35 minutes in Basle but the Spanish outfit rallied after the break to win 3-1 and secure a third successive triumph in the competition.

Kevin Gameiro began the fightback just 17 seconds into the second half before a double from Coke completed the turnaround for Unai Emery’s team.

Liverpool had strong claims for a penalty turned down in the first period after Daniel Carrico appeared to handle as Roberto Firmino attempted to take the ball past him.

They went in front when Sturridge flicked a fine shot beyond David Soria with the outside of his left boot.

Sevilla fou…

We have an exciting quarterback battle on deck for Thursday Night Football, as the defending champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers pay a visit to the Philadelphia Eagles.

The GOAT, Tom Brady, will be picking the Eagles apart from the pocket as he meets a dynamic sophomore in Jalen Hurts, in what is quite a contrast of styles.

Tampa Bay is giving nearly a touchdown as NFL betting favorites after bouncing back from a sloppy game in New England to destroy the Dolphins last week, while Philly was able to stop a three-game losing streak against the Panthers.

Is the second-year QB Hurts good enough to help the Eagles cover as home underdogs? Find out with our free NFL picks and predictions for Bu…

The Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts face off on Saturday in the second week of NFL preseason action. These teams have been holding joint practices with each other this week, which gives us plenty of matchups to look forward to with players fighting for roster spots. 

Here are our best free NFL picks and predictions for Lions vs. Colts in Week 2 of the preseason.

…

Spring is in the air, the grass is growing, the leaves are budding, and the birds and bees are getting busy. A perfect time to start thinking about fall football.

The NFL dropped the 2023 regular season schedule Thursday with the hype and excitement of a Taylor Swift-Beyonce combo album, and with it came the rollout of 2023 NFL odds.

There used to be a time when a select handful of sportsbooks would open NFL spreads for every game on the schedule, but now, just about every mainstream operator is posting lines from Week 1 to Week 18 (which is madness).

Even with Opening Night still 100+ days away, I can’t help but look ahead to the Week 1 odds as well as the first three weeks …