Soccer

Thousands of emotional fans packed the Arena Conda stadium in Chapeco, Brazil Wednesday night to pay tribute to the soccer players killed in the Colombia plane crash ... with flags, drums and fireworks.

71 people were killed -- including most of the Chapecoense Real soccer team -- when their flight crashed into the mountains in northwestern Colombia earlier this week.

The tribute at the team's home stadium was beautiful.

R.I.P.

Cristiano Ronaldo has called in the big guns to increase his already blazing speed -- a guy nicknamed "King Feet" ... and the video is insane.

His name is Luis Badillo Jr. -- and he's said to have the quickest feet on the planet. He's worked with pro athletes from the NFL and the NBA ... and even world-class sprinters like Asafa Powell.

Now, CR7 has called for his services -- and the two have been jamming out speed drills all day long.

It's insanely impressive ... and no, the videos aren't sped up ... it's all real time.

One of the survivors of the Colombian plane crash Instagrammed shortly before boarding the plane that went down -- showing him smiling and laughing with a soccer teammate before the unthinkable occurred.

The man with the beard is Alan Ruschel -- a defender on the Chapecoense soccer team, based out of Brazil. The team was set to play in the finals of the Copa Sudamericana on Wednesday.

Ruschel Instagrammed with his teammate, Danilo Padilha, while aboard the first leg of their trip -- before they got on the charter flight that crashed en route to Medellín, Colombia.

Padilha survived the initial crash, but later died at a nearby hospital.

Ruschel reportedly suffered head injuries in the crash -- but is said to be alive.

The plane, which took off from Bolivia, contained 81 passengers -- including players, journalists and others. It reportedly suffered electrical failure just before it was supposed to land near the airport in Medellin, Colombia.

Miraculously, rescuers found 6 survivors in the wreckage -- 3 players, 2 crewman and 1 journalist. 71 people have been confirmed dead.

According to reports, Lionel Messi and the Argentina national soccer team flew on the exact same plane just 20 days ago to travel to a match in Brazil.

Story developing ...

Well, that was quick ...

Just weeks after announcing her split, Abby Wambach and Sarah Huffman have already barreled through the divorce process ... and are officially dunzo.

Prosecutors in Spain are gunning to lock up Neymar -- claiming the Brazilian soccer star needs to be punished harshly for his alleged role in a multi-million dollar soccer corruption case.

The story is long and complicated but basically boils down to this -- officials believe Neymar and his family hid money in his $105 MILLION transfer fee deal from Santos to Barcelona in 2013.

For his part, Neymar has denied any wrongdoing -- and according to reports, he'll have the chance to prove it when the case goes to trial.

Well ... it's officially official.

After weeks of speculation, Bruce Arena has been named the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Soccer team ... the squad announced Tuesday morning.

Arena replaces recently sacked Jurgen Klinsmann ... who lasted 5 years with the organization.

“Any time you get the opportunity to coach the National Team it’s an honor,” Arena said.

"Working as a team, I’m confident that we’ll take the right steps forward to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.”

Arena is the most accomplished coach in U.S. soccer history, so hopefully he can turn things around.

It doesn't matter who takes over the USA men's soccer team -- a World Cup victory just ain't in the cards for America ... EVER ... so says Dominic Monaghan.

The German-born, English-raised 'Lord of the Rings' star is a HUGE soccer fan -- so we hit him up for his thoughts on the firing of Jurgen Klinsmann.

And that's when Dom hit us with some straight talk saying Team USA will NEVER win.

It's over for Jurgen Klinsmann ... he's just been fired as the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team.

U.S. Soccer Prez Sunil Gulati just issued a statement ...

"Today we made the difficult decision of parting ways with Jurgen Klinsmann, our head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team and Technical Director."

"We want to thank Jurgen for his hard work and commitment during these last five years. He took pride in having the responsibility of steering the program, and there were considerable achievements along the way."

"While we remain confident that we have quality players to help us advance to Russia 2018, the form and growth of the team up to this point left us convinced that we need to go in a different direction."

Bend it like ... Bieber?!?

Justin Bieber put on his electric green cleats and hit the pitch with Neymar at FC Barcelona's training facility ... and wound up in a penalty shootout with one of the best players in the world.

Ex-Team USA soccer player Ella Masar says she was NEVER serious about boycotting the U.S. now that Donald Trump has been elected president ... claiming she made a joke in a Swedish interview that was taken out of context.

Masar -- who currently plays for FC Rosengard in Sweden -- reportedly said she asked team honchos for a 4 year extension with the club "so I do not have to go back to the U.S. with Donald Trump as president."

But TMZ Sports just spoke with Masar ... who says the report is just plain wrong.

Masar does acknowledge she was talking about the election in the interview -- and made a joke about staying in Sweden for another 4 years ... but NOT because of Trump.

"No, I'm not staying out of America for 4 years ... I can't wait to go back in a week."

Nothing brings warring factions together like a good ol' soccer match -- just ask Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen ... who finally got on the same side to cheer up the Sevilla soccer team.

Tennis star James Blake is PROUD of his alma mater Harvard for taking swift action against the men's soccer team -- saying he's glad the school didn't go the Penn State route and try to cover it up.

Harvard's Dean cancelled the rest of the season after it was revealed players had compiled sexual "scouting reports" on incoming female soccer recruits -- complete with bang-ability ratings.

But Blake -- who attended Harvard in the early 2000s -- says the University had a choice on how they wanted to handle it ... and made the right decision by "outing themselves."

Harvard University has suspended the men's soccer team for the remainder of the season after officials found that players had been creating detailed reports on women they'd like to bang.

An investigation was launched into the program over allegations the 2012 team had created a ranking system for Harvard's female soccer recruits -- detailing who they'd like to bang and why.

Officials say there was essentially a "scouting report" in which the women were rated on a number scale and assigned a hypothetical sexual position.

The school says the investigation showed the "report" wasn't limited to 2012 -- and continued into 2016.

So, Harvard's Dean, Drew Faust, dropped the hammer on team -- which is currently ranked #1 in the Ivy League -- canceling the final 2 games of the season and banning them from the NCAA tourney.

Turns out J.J. Watt is getting some action this season after all ... 'cause he's officially dating pro soccer star Kealia Ohai!!!

FYI, Ohai is a 24-year-old forward on the Houston Dash. She was a stud in college -- leading North Carolina to a national championship in 2012.

She was also the #2 overall pick in the 2014 National Women's Soccer League college draft.

Kealia also happens to be Brian Cushing's sister-in-law.

The rumors about their secret relationship has been floating around for months -- but now Ohai has finally confirmed it on the 2 Up Front podcast.

"The rumors are true. We are dating," Ohai said.

"I've known J.J. for a really long time, and we've always been really great friends, and yeah, I'm really proud of him for everything he's been going through, but it's been pretty crazy with all the rumors."

Congrats!

Forget Bo Jackson ... who cares about Deion Sanders ... Tim Tebow? PLEASE ... There's a new 2 sport athlete on the horizon ... Chad Johnson's daughter, Cha'iel ... who just picked up soccer.

AND SHE'S FREAKIN' GOOD.

You've heard Cha'iel's name before ... she's an absolute PHENOM on the track, having won a gold medal in the 800 meters at the Junior Olympics this past August.

Well, now she's trying soccer ... and from the looks of the video her dad posted to Instagram just now ... the domination shall continue ... you gotta watch as she torches the whole team and scores.

She's admitted to years of alcohol and Rx drug abuse -- but Abby Wambach is staying mum when it comes to the mysterious 2014 car wreck in which she flipped an SUV and fled the scene.

We broke the story ... Wambach flipped her Range Rover just after midnight on June 28th, 2014. The car landed on a residential property -- causing damage to the front lawn.

Moments after the crash, a passerby who came upon the flipped car called 911 and said the driver had already left the scene. Abby told cops she walked home because she didn't have her cell phone and wanted to call a tow truck.

Unclear why she didn't flag down a motorist or knock on the door of the home where she flipped.

Despite the severity of the crash and the curious fact she left the scene -- cops say they had no reason to believe Abby was impaired and did not administer a DUI test of any kind.

But now with Abby admitting her life was out of control with booze and prescription drugs -- we had to ask her straight up ... were you intoxicated on the night of the crash?