Soccer

Kurt Warner is issuing a message to all 32 NFL general managers ... call Carli Lloyd and let her kick for your team!!!!

"Give her shot!" Warner says ... "Why not?!?"

The U.S. Women's National Team star has set the football world on fire ever since she booted a 55-yard field goal at Eagles practice last week ... with a bunch of people wondering if she truly could suit up for a team this year.

37-year-old Lloyd certainly seems to think so ... she told Fox Sports this week she's "seriously considering" it, adding, "it’s a challenge (and) I would probably enjoy it."

Of course, some have shot down the idea ... Chargers star Keenan Allen wrote on Twitter on Tuesday she'd get stampeded if she ever had a kick blocked.

But, Warner doesn't seem to share those same concerns at all, 'cause he's saying sign her up ASAP!!!

"We need more kickers in the game," the Hall of Fame QB says ... "If you can kick the ball through the goalpost, let's do it!!!"

Teams appear to be open to the idea ... Lloyd's longtime trainer, James Galanis, says she actually had an offer to kick for a team in a preseason game this week.

Keenan Allen is throwing a giant wet blanket on Carli Lloyd's football goals ... saying if the USWNT star ever got on an NFL field, she'd get run over like Mufasa in "The Lion King."

"Sound sweet til somebody block the kick and all of a sudden she on defense," the L.A. Chargers superstar said ... "Would be like the stampede scene in the lion king movie."

Lloyd says she is "seriously considering" a kicking career in the NFL after she was caught on camera drilling a 55-yarder at Philadelphia Eagles practice last week.

In fact, her longtime trainer, James Galanis, told Fox Sports a team was willing to put her on a roster and let her kick in a preseason game THIS WEEK ... but she declined because of her soccer obligations.

But, Allen clearly thinks that would have been a mistake ... tweeting Tuesday, Carli would get seriously hurt if she ever had to try to make a tackle in the league.

"She do got a boot tho!" Allen added.

For her part, Lloyd has yet to comment on how she'd handle the physicality of the sport ... but her trainer seems to think she'd have zero issues if a team were to sign her.

Could Carli Lloyd become the NFL's first female player?!

The soccer star says she's been getting "inquiries" from NFL teams after hitting a 55 yard field goal last week ... and she definitely sounds interested.

The Team USA stud went on "Planet Futbol TV" with Grant Wahl where she was asked straight-up if her phone has been ringing ever since she hit the kick.

"I definitely got some inquiries," Lloyd said without specifying a particular team ... "I've definitely got some people talking."

So, would Lloyd consider making a serious run at an NFL career? She ain't ruling it out.

"I think anything is possible. It's been really interesting because for me I'm just an athlete, I'm a competitor. But, for so many other people they're starting to think, will there ever be a female in the NFL at some point? And, I think we're kind of at that crossroads as far as equality and women empowerment."

"But, right now I'm definitely a soccer player and we'll see what he future holds."

In other words ... maybe!?

As we previously reported, ex-NFL kicker Martin Grammatica says he sees real NFL potential in Lloyd and has offered to coach her up if she wants the help!!!

Be afraid, NFL kickers ... Martin Gramatica says after USWNT star Carli Lloyd hit a 55-yarder at Eagles' practice Tuesday -- she can legitimately take someone's job and make a team's roster!!!

Oh, and the legendary kicker says he's willing to help her do it!!!

After Lloyd showed off her insane leg at Philly's workout this week ... we had to give Gramatica a call to get his thoughts on her giant boot -- and, no surprise, the guy was impressed.

In fact, 43-year-old Martin tells us, "If she put her mind to it and started training, I could see her going all the way."

Gramatica says he's seen Lloyd kick footballs before and was impressed with her ability back then ... but he had no idea she had a 55-yard range.

"55, that's impressive," Martin says ... "I think a lot of the NFL guys better be ready. Better watch their jobs. I know there's some openings, so be careful out there!"

Gramatica says he does see some flaws in her form that he's willing to help fix ... and he knows she'll have to adjust to learning how to kick with pads on.

But, Martin tells us if she truly devotes herself to the craft ... he could see her on a real NFL field someday.

Cristiano Ronaldo says 2018 was "probably my worst year ever" after publicly being accused of raping a woman more than 10 years ago in Las Vegas.

The soccer superstar was accused of sexual assault by Kathryn Mayorga in June 2009 after meeting her at a nightclub. She claims he took her back to his hotel room and raped her.

Cops opened an investigation last year and eventually decided that CR7 will NOT be charged in the case ... but Ronaldo says it was hard to have people question his character.

"When people question your honor, it hurts, it hurts a lot," Ronaldo told Portuguese television TVI.

Ronaldo did not address the case specifically, but really didn't need to. It's obvious he's referring to the allegation.

"When people attack your honor, it is difficult."

Carli Lloyd stays winning on the soccer pitch AND the football field ... the USWNT star buried a 55-yard field goal at Eagles' practice -- and Philly's kicker himself was impressed!!!

Lloyd was at Eagles' practice Tuesday to cheer on her favorite football team (she's from New Jersey) and she decided to take a few kicks with Eagles stud kicker Jake Elliott after the workout.

Turns out, Carli's soccer skills translate to the gridiron ... 'cause she was nailing field goals all over the place -- including one from 55 yards out!!!

Oh, AND it was on a goalpost WAAAAYYYY smaller than regulation size!!!

"Unreal stuff!" Elliott said after the kicks ... "@CarliLloyd is very much #ForTheBrand."

Carli seemed to enjoy the day as well, writing of the practice, "Thank you to the @Eagles for having me out! Thanks to @JustinTuck @jake_elliott22 @MayorRandyBrown for the good time and tips!"

So ... Steve Nash plays park soccer with former World Cup stars now -- and TMZ Sports has the video!

It's pretty amazing ... the 45-year-old ex-NBA superstar was playing some 5 on 5 (with a small goal) on Monday at an L.A. park with the likes of Team USA legend Cobi Jones!!!

Nash wasn't the most dominant guy on the field, but he certainly held his own ... which shouldn't be too big of a surprise considering he's a freak athlete who loves soccer.

In fact, Nash has a shrine in his L.A. home to some of his favorite soccer players ... so to get out there and ball out with Cobi Jones must've been awesome.

Of course, Jones is a Team USA soccer legend who played on the national team from 1992 to 2004 ... scoring 15 goals during his international career. He's the all-time leader in appearances for Team USA, with 164 caps.

Cristiano Ronaldo is publicly acknowledging he paid $375,000 in hush money to the woman who claims she was raped by the soccer star in 2009 -- but still adamantly denies wrongdoing ... and it's all spelled out in new legal docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

Kathryn Mayorga had claimed she took the money from CR7 back in 2010 as part of a private settlement -- and has previously said she signed a confidentiality agreement vowing to keep her mouth shut about the alleged incident.

As we previously reported, Mayorga claims she met Ronaldo at Rain Nightclub in the Palms hotel in June 2009 and went to party with him in his penthouse suite ... where he raped her.

She went to police, but never identified Ronaldo by name -- only describing him as a huge soccer star.

Back in 2018, she publicly ID'd Ronaldo and cops launched an investigation -- but officials ultimately decided NOT to bring charges against CR7 due to lack of evidence.

Ronaldo has adamantly denied the allegations.

Mayorga filed a civil lawsuit against Ronaldo -- and now, Ronaldo has filed new court docs asking a judge to throw out the case because they have a binding settlement agreement PLUS he claims the statute of limitations has LONG expired.

But, what's interesting ... in the same docs, Ronaldo finally acknowledges the amount paid to settle with Mayorga in 2010.

"Mr. Ronaldo paid Plaintiff the sum of $375,000 and both parties agreed to be bound by explicit confidentiality and non-disparagement obligations," the new court docs filed by Ronaldo state.

Several lines of the new court docs explaining the details of the settlement have been redacted -- but Ronaldo's point is clear.

He also says in the court docs the settlement money is NOT an admission of guilt ... but rather just the cost of keeping a legal dispute out of the media.

Equal pay mediation between the U.S. Women's national team and the U.S. Soccer Federation has gotten UGLY ... and now the dispute is likely heading to court.

Remember, the USWNT sued the Federation back in March for gender discrimination -- claiming,  "The female players have been consistently paid less money than their male counterparts."

The USWNT had agreed to meet with the USSF in New York City this week to discuss the heated issue ... but according to team spokesperson Molly Levinson, both sides remain far apart.

"We entered this week’s mediation with representatives of USSF full of hope," Levinson says. "Today we must conclude these meetings sorely disappointed in the Federation’s determination to perpetuate fundamentally discriminatory workplace conditions and behavior."

"It is clear that USSF, including its Board of Directors and President Carlos Cordeiro, fully intend to continue to compensate women players less than men. They will not succeed."

Of course ... Cordeiro made his stance very clear last month ... saying the women's team actually makes MORE than the men's team, despite bringing in a lot less.

He even provided a fact sheet to back up his claim.

Levinson continued ... "We want all of our fans, sponsors, peers around the world, and women everywhere to know we are undaunted and will eagerly look forward to a jury trial."

Cristiano Ronaldo wants his rape case to be taken out of the public eye ... the soccer superstar is asking a judge to force the civil case against him to go to a private forum.

It's all in new court docs, obtained by TMZ Sports ... which show Ronaldo wants his lawsuit with his rape accuser to move from federal court to a private, independent arbitrator.

Ronaldo says because Kathryn Mayorga agreed to a settlement and a non-disclosure agreement in 2010, after accusing him of rape in 2009 ... she should be compelled to at least try to litigate the dispute in arbitration -- not court.

Ronaldo is asking a judge to to put a hold on all proceedings in the case in the meantime.

As we previously reported, Mayorga says she met CR7 at Rain Nightclub in the Palms hotel in June 2009, and after he invited her up to his penthouse suite to party, she claims he raped her.

She reached a settlement with Ronaldo shortly after, accepting $375,000 in exchange for her silence -- but, last year, she announced she wanted that agreement voided, claiming she was in no mental state to make that deal.

Ronaldo is calling BS on that claim in his new court filings, saying she WAS in the proper state ... adding that her family accompanied her to mediation meetings, and saying she "undoubtedly understood she was free to leave at any time and settlement was optional."

Unclear when a judge will rule on Ronaldo's motion to move the case ... but it shouldn't be long.

For his part, Ronaldo has denied ever raping Mayorga, saying in a statement last year, "Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in."

Novak Djokovic doesn't need a racket to whoop you on the court .... he doesn't even need hands, 'cause the 32-year-old tennis superstar will beat you with his noggin and his feet!!!

The Joker showed off his insane coordination with an intense game of soccer tennis on Friday ... and the 45-second rally is really impressive.

In case you couldn't figure it out, "Soccer Tennis" is tennis where you can't use your hands. It's super hard and VERY impressive to watch.

The #1 ranked player in the world kills it with his skills ... trappin' and juggling the ball like he's Lionel Messi.

Huge development in the Neymar rape investigation in Brazil ... where cops have ended their probe into the soccer superstar due to "lack of evidence."

But, the 27-year-old isn't out of the woods yet ... cops are sending their findings over to the Sao Paulo Attorney General's Office which will have 15 days to decide if Neymar should be charged with a crime.

But, the fact cops haven't found overwhelming evidence against Neymar is a good indication that prosecutors will likely NOT move forward with the case.

As we previously reported, Brazilian model Najila Trindade had claimed Neymar sexually assaulted her back in May at a hotel in Paris.

In early June, Neymar published a 7-minute video professing his innocence -- and showing WhatsApp messages between the two in an effort to prove that "nothing really happened."

Neymar also claimed he was being extorted by the woman.

For her part, she has accused the Brazilian police of being corrupt and helping to cover up evidence ... saying, "The police are bought, aren't they? Or am I crazy?"

The President of the U.S. Soccer Federation is responding to the pay gap lawsuit filed by the U.S. Women's National Team ... saying he has proof the women actually make MORE than the men despite bringing in WAYYY less money.

Remember, the USWNT sued the Federation back in March for gender discrimination -- claiming,  "The female players have been consistently paid less money than their male counterparts."

Now, U.S. Soccer Federation president Carlos Cordeiro is responding in an open letter ... essentially saying he hears what the women are saying -- but the numbers don't back up their claim.

"U.S. Soccer has, over the past decade, paid our Women’s National Team more than our Men’s National Team in salaries and game bonuses, and we continue to make unprecedented investments in our women’s program," Cordeiro wrote.

Cordeiro included a "fact sheet" that spells out his case and explains ...

"From 2010 through 2018, U.S. Soccer paid our women $34.1 million in salaries and game bonuses and we paid our men $26.4 million -- not counting the significant additional value of various benefits that our women’s players receive but which our men do not."

Cordeiro says the Men and Women have different pay structures based on how they negotiated their Collective Bargaining Agreements ... including more guaranteed pay salary for the women and different ("more robust") benefits packages.

The men CAN earn larger bonuses ... but they're guaranteed nothing, according to Cordeiro.

Corderio also says when you break down the revenue generated by each team, the men come out on top ... by far.

"From 2009 through 2019 -- a timeframe that includes two Women’s World Cup championships -- the Women’s National Team has earned gross revenue of $101.3 million over 238 games, for an average of $425,446 per game, and the Men’s National Team has earned gross revenue of $185.7 million over 191 games, for an average of $972,147 per game."

"More specifically, WNT games have generated a net profit (ticket revenues minus event expenses) in only two years (2016 and 2017). Across the entire 11-year period, WNT games generated a net loss of $27.5 million."

Still, Cordeiro says, "U.S. Soccer does not view these as losses, but rather as an important investment in our Women’s National Team and in the long-term growth of women’s soccer."

Molly Levinson -- a spokesperson for the U.S. Women's National Team -- is responding to the letter ... essentially saying it's a crock of BS.

"The numbers USSF uses are utterly false which, among other things, inappropriately include the NWSL salaries of the players to inflate the women’s players compensation."

She adds, "Any apples to apples comparison shows that the men earn far more than the women. The fact is the women’s team requested the same compensation structure as the men have, so they would be paid equally for equal performance."

"The USSF fact sheet is not a 'clarification.' It is a ruse."

"Here is what they cannot deny. For every game a man plays on the MNT he makes a higher base salary payment than a woman on the WNT. For every comparable win or tie, his bonus is higher. That is the very definition of gender discrimination. For the USSF to believe otherwise, is disheartening but it only increases our determination to obtain true equal pay."

A World Cup trophy wasn't enough bling for Ashlyn Harris ... the USWNT stud decided to get iced out to celebrate the championship too -- coppin' $40,000 worth of diamonds!!!

TMZ Sports has learned the goalkeeper hit up Greg Yuna at their NYC Diamond District store after winning the World Cup earlier this month to get some drip.

We're told Ashlyn came away with two pieces -- a gold diamond Cuban necklace and a matching bracelet -- and they're AWESOME!!!

The necklace has 200 grams of gold with 25ct diamonds. In the bracelet, we're told there's 100 grams of gold and 15ct diamonds.

All total, the bill was $40k ... but, don't worry, Ashlyn can afford it -- reports say she earned more than $100K for the World Cup run ... and got $23,000 more kicked in thanks to Secret's donation!!!

This little piggy ... is putting Lionel Messi in the middle of a huge controversy involving Dolce & Gabbana and the country of China!!!!

The soccer superstar was rocking a $500 Dolce & Gabbana t-shirt Friday as he touched down in Barcelona for some vacation time with his family ... but he might not know that his shirt has some Chinese people very upset.

Long story short ... Dolce got in major hot water in China in Nov. 2018 for an ad campaign featuring a Chinese model bungling an attempt to eat Italian food with chopsticks.

The campaign was almost immediately deemed offensive by the masses in China and Dolce pulled it from Chinese social media in 24 hours. People were pissed and Dolce & Gabbana issued a video apology.

There's more ... Stefano Gabbana appeared to trash China in social media posts -- using the poop emoji to describe the country. He later claimed his account was hacked. But, most people weren't buying the excuse.

Fast forward to Feb. 2019 ... when Dolce & Gabbana releases new shirts celebrating the "Year of the Pig" in Chinese culture.

After the previous controversy, there was renewed outrage from Chinese consumers over the pig shirts ... with some people feeling the designs were offensive. One site explained Chinese consumers felt the designs depicted Chinese people as "pigs with money." Multiple fashion outlets (see here and here) covered the situation.

Prosecutors have announced they will NOT file criminal charges against soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo for an alleged sexual assault from 2009.

As we previously reported, Kathryn Mayorga claims Ronaldo raped her in a Las Vegas hotel room back in 2009.

She claims she met CR7 at Rain Nightclub in the Palms hotel in June 2009 and he invited her up to his penthouse suite to party and hot tub. There are photos of Mayorga and Ronaldo hanging out at the nightclub together that evening.

She had initially filed a police report describing the alleged crime -- but didn't identify Ronaldo by name.

Mayorga sued Ronaldo claiming she later accepted a $375,000 payment in exchange for her silence -- but recently announced she wants that agreement voided and went to cops to pursue a criminal case against Ronaldo.

In court documents, Mayorga described the alleged attack ... saying while changing her clothes in the penthouse suite, "Ronaldo entered the bathroom, exposed his erect penis and asked [her] to perform fellatio."

Mayorga claimed she refused and wanted to leave -- but Ronaldo "pulled [her] into a bedroom and onto a bed and attempted to engage in sexual intercourse."

Mayorga claims she tried to fight Ronaldo off -- but he turned her onto her side and sodomized her while she screamed "no, no, no."

Ronaldo had adamantly denied the allegations -- and said, "Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in."

Now, the Clark County District Attorney’s Office has made a decision to NOT prosecute -- claiming "the allegations of sexual assault against Cristiano Ronaldo cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt."

Prosecutors described the situation in detail ...

"On June 13, 2009, a female victim ('V') placed a call to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and reported that she had been the victim of sexual assault.  Members of law enforcement responded to her location to take a crime report.  Police transported V to the hospital so that a sexual assault examination could be conducted."

"A short time later, sexual assault detectives arrived at the hospital and made contact with V.  Although she knew who the person was who assaulted her, V refused to identify him or disclose where the crime occurred.  As a result, the police were unable to follow investigative protocols for sexual assault cases or to conduct any meaningful investigation.  Without knowing the identity of the perpetrator or the location of the crime, detectives were unable to search for and impound vital forensic evidence.  In addition, video evidence, showing interactions between the victim and perpetrator before and after the alleged crime, was lost.  The criminal investigation was closed."

"V and Cristiano Ronaldo, through their respective attorneys, eventually reached a civil settlement related to this matter in 2010.  For the next eight years, law enforcement heard nothing more from V regarding the crime or the perpetrator."

"On August 28, 2018, V contacted the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, asking that her sexual assault investigation be reopened, naming Cristiano Ronaldo as the offender.  In spite of the passage of over nine years, Metro investigated her allegations."