Soccer

Tyrell Robinson -- a former winger for legendary soccer club Arsenal -- is now facing prison time after pleading guilty to allegations he performed sexual acts with a 14-year-old.

22-year-old Robinson, according to multiple reports, showed up to Bradford Crown Court in England on Tuesday to fess up to the charges.

The ex-Bradford City player reportedly admitted to engaging in sexual activities back in August 2018 with a 14-year-old ... while also admitting he made and distributed an indecent picture of a child as well.

It should be noted Robinson did DENY a charge in court that he distributed an indecent photo of a child back in 2017 ... and prosecutors are not moving forward with that charge.

But, a judge told him he now faces time behind bars over his guilty pleas ... saying incarceration will be on the table at a sentencing hearing at a later date.

Details surrounding the alleged 2018 incident with the 14-year-old are unclear ... but authorities said early in the case they were hitting Robinson with an "engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a child" charge.

Robinson, who will reportedly be on a sex offenders' registry after his guilty pleas, was seen leaving court in a black mask and red, puffy jacket.

The Premier League is finally back after 100 days off due to COVID-19 ... and the players made a profound statement at kick-off by taking a knee to honor George Floyd.

All players for Aston Villa and Sheffield United -- as well as the referees -- participated in the demonstration on Wednesday ... showing solidarity with the fight against police brutality and social injustice.

Along with taking a knee, all players are wearing "Black Lives Matter" on the back of their jerseys.

The EPL acknowledged the gesture on Twitter ... saying, "There is #NoRoomForRacism, anywhere."

The players made their intentions clear in a joint statement last week ... saying, "We, the Players, stand together with the singular objective of eradicating racial prejudice wherever it exists, to bring about a global society of inclusion, respect, and equal opportunities for All, regardless of their colour or creed."

Every team in the Premier League will wear "Black Lives Matter" threads when the season restarts ... with the powerful message replacing names on the back of players' shirts.

Check out one of the kits posted by Sheffield United on Tuesday ... the unis not only feature "BLM" on the nameplates, they also have a "Black Lives Matter" patch on the sleeve.

Players from all 20 teams came up with the idea to show solidarity with the movement earlier this month ... and will wear the special jerseys for the first 12 games once the season returns from COVID-19 suspension.

The players released a statement on the decision, saying, "We, the Players, stand together with the singular objective of eradicating racial prejudice wherever it exists, to bring about a global society of inclusion, respect, and equal opportunities for All, regardless of their colour or creed."

"This symbol is a sign of unity from all Players, all Staff, all Clubs, all Match Officials and the Premier League #blacklivesmatter #playerstogether."

Ben Carson believes President Donald Trump could soften his stance on athletes kneeling for the national anthem ... saying he'll "work with" POTUS to understand the message.

Of course, Trump has been one of the most outspoken critics against kneeling ... and recently said he'd stop watching soccer and football if protests continued.

POTUS also famously said to fire any "son of a bitch" who knelt, back in 2017.

Carson -- the Housing and Urban Development Secretary and the only black member of Trump's cabinet -- discussed the issue on the Hugh Hewitt Show ... saying he will try to get POTUS to understand the real reason behind the movement.

"Well, I don't think he has manifested as much animosity in that region lately," Carson said Monday. "And, I think we just continue to work with him. He'll get there."

The national anthem protest has become a major topic of discussion following the death of George Floyd ... with NFL names like Adrian Peterson, Baker Mayfield and Bill O'Brien saying they will kneel this upcoming season.

Add "team owner" to Kevin Durant's massive resume ... 'cause the NBA champ just bought a stake in the Philadelphia Union of the MLS!!

The Union announced the partnership on Monday ... saying KD bought 5% of the team ... with the option to take on another 5% down the road.

Durant's official title will be "investor and community partner" ... and the team will work with his Thirty Five Ventures on marketing and community outreach.

"I’m excited to partner with the Philadelphia Union for years to come," KD said in a statement. "My team and I connected instantly with the Union coaching staff and leadership, as well as the team’s story."

Durant says the team will work with his Kevin Durant Charity Foundation to make an impact in the communities surrounding Philadelphia as well.

Principal owner of the Union Jay Sugarman spoke about the new partnership, saying "The partnership between Kevin and the Philadelphia Union is based on a set of shared values and philosophies."

"We want to be known as an innovator in our league and a team that is never satisfied with the status quo. Kevin brings us unique perspectives as a person, as a champion, and as a sports icon."

"Combined with his competitive drive and forward-thinking mentality, we believe Kevin adds a key piece in reaching our ambitions for the club."

A teenage soccer player in Mexico allegedly murdered by police scored the final goal at his own funeral Friday ... and the video of it will bring you to tears.

The powerful scene all went down in Oaxaca ... where teammates decided to honor their fallen 16-year-old friend by setting him up for one last shot attempt.

Check out the clip, the boys positioned his casket so they could redirect a soccer ball off of it ... and when the ball slid past the keeper into the makeshift goal -- things got emotional.

All of his teammates surrounded the casket, hugged it and sobbed uncontrollably.

Sports reporter Guillermo Schutz posted the vid to social media ... captioning it in Spanish, "In Oaxaca, this is how they bid Alexander a final goodbye, the 16-year-old teen murdered by municipal police. His friends honor him with one last goal. We're all crying."

The footage was so touching ... even former UCLA hoops star Lorenzo Mata had to share it on Twitter.

Powerful stuff.

MLS is taking a page from the NBA -- returning to play in July with a tournament at Disney World in Orlando ... and all 26 teams will participate.

Major League Soccer announced the plan Wednesday morning -- the Welcome Back Tournament -- a World Cup-style competition consisting of a group stage followed by knockout rounds.

After the tourney, the teams will play the rest of the 2020 MLS regular season ... but tourney games WILL count toward regular-season standings.

And, get this ... the winning team will earn a spot in the 2021 Concacaf Champions League tournament!

FYI, the CCL tourney is made up of the top teams in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

The Welcome Back tourney kicks off on July 8 -- with the Final set for August 11.

All games will take place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

MLS Commissioner Don Garber issued a statement saying, "The opportunity to have all 26 clubs in a controlled environment enables us to help protect the health of our players, coaches and staff as we return to play."

"We also recognize that the death of George Floyd and others has focused our country on issues of racial injustice, inequality and violence against black men and women."

MLS winger Aleksandar Katai's wife's disgusting comments about protesters just cost him his job with the LA Galaxy ... with the team deciding to part ways with the player due to her "racist and violent" words.

The 29-year-old Serbian met with the team earlier this week after Tea Katai called for people to kill protesters -- which she referred to as "disgusting cattle" -- on Instagram.

The Galaxy released a statement condemning Tea's since-deleted comments on Wednesday ... saying "Earlier today, the LA Galaxy were made aware of a series of racist and violent social media posts by Tea Katai, the wife of LA Galaxy midfielder Aleksandar Katai."

"The LA Galaxy stands firmly against racism of any kind, including that which suggests violence or seeks to demean the efforts of those in pursuit of racial equality."

The team decided the next step was to wash its hands of the Katais on Friday ... calling the move a mutual decision.

Aleksandar -- who joined the squad in December -- released a statement against his wife's comments earlier this week, saying "These views are not ones that I share and are not tolerated in my family."

"I strongly condemn white supremacy, racism and violence towards people of color. Black lives matter. This is a mistake from my family and I take full responsibility."

Liverpool F.C. players decided to team up and send a powerful sign of support on Monday ... with the whole team taking a knee together to honor George Floyd.

LFC shared the image of 29 players kneeling near the center of the field at the Anfield stadium ... featuring the words "Unity is strength. #BlackLivesMatter."

The players reportedly came up with the idea to kneel as a sign of support for the movement while training ... and several players like Virgil van Dijk, James Milner and Andy Robertson have also shared the impactful shot

The gesture adds to the global outcry for justice ... with celebrities and athletes coming together to protest following Floyd's death.

Jadon Sancho of Dortmund also dedicated one of his goals to Floyd over the weekend ... wearing a shirt that read "Justice for George Floyd."

Roger Federer is finally #1 on the Forbes Highest-Paid Athletes list -- but it's all because two superstars took a pay hit thanks to COVID.

The 38-year-old tennis superstar reportedly raked in $106.3 million from June 1, 2019 to June 1, 2020 (in pre-taxed earnings) from prize money and endorsements.

Federer earned $6.3 million in prize money -- but the bulk of his financial haul comes by way of endorsements ... $100 MILLION from deals with companies like Uniqlo, Credit Suisse, Mercedes-Benz, Rolex and more.

Cristiano Ronaldo clocks in at #2 ($105 million) and Lionel Messi is #3 ($104 million) ... but Forbes points out their take would have been higher if not for the coronavirus pandemic.

"The two soccer icons earned a combined $209 million during the past 12 months, a $28 million drop from 2019, due to salary reductions at many European soccer clubs when league play was halted in March," Forbes says.

Might not be a big deal to you ... but we know some athletes take the Forbes list VERY seriously -- remember when Conor McGregor told Ronaldo to his face that he was coming for that top spot?!

Rounding out the Top 5 is Neymar ($95.5 M) followed by LeBron James ($88.2 M).

Other notable athletes include Tiger Woods at #8 ($62.3 mil), Carson Wentz at #10 ($59.1 mil), Conor McGregor at #16 ($48 mil), Tom Brady at #21 ($45 mil) and Naomi Osaka at #29 ($37.4 mil).

2019 marks the second year in a row Floyd Mayweather's failed to make the list ... after being the highest-paid athlete of the decade.

GOOOOOOAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!!!!!

After a 3-month break, the English Premier League is finally set to return to the pitch ... with all clubs agreeing to continue the season on June 17, according to the BBC.

The plan is to pick things back up with fan-less games next month, starting with Aston Villa vs. Sheffield United and Manchester City vs. Arsenal.

The season has been suspended since March 13 due to COVID-19 ... and the league now has 92 match-ups to make up.

FYI -- there have reportedly been 12 positive coronavirus results within the league out of 2,752 administered tests ... and the plan is to continue testing all players and staff twice a week.

According to the BBC, if any player were to test positive for COVID-19 after the season picks up, he must self-isolate for 7 days.

The decision to resume games comes one week after clubs resumed non-contact training ... and one day after agreeing to resume contact workouts.

Sports are slowly starting to come back ... with the UFC, pro wrestling and golf all hosting fan-less events.

Cristiano Ronaldo -- arguably the most manscaped athlete on the planet -- has let himself go.

... and it's not a bad look!!

The 35-year-old soccer superstar is usually ultra-concerned about his appearance ... never going out in public with a hair out of place or a blemish on his skin (see here, here and here).

But, in this weird COVID-19 world we're living in ... seems CR7 is dialing back the self-maintenance a bit.

No crazy tan. No over-the-top greasy hair product. Did he go a few hours without shaving his face? Wow!

The Juventus star ain't letting his skills slip -- in fact, Ronaldo hit a crazy trick shot using a soccer ball and a basketball hoop during training over the weekend.

If the whole soccer thing doesn't work out, maybe he can get a job at Dude Perfect!

As we previously reported, Ronaldo returned to the Juventus training facility in Italy last week after spending 10 weeks in his native Portugal during the coronavirus pandemic.

Once Ronaldo flew to Italy, he had to quarantine for 2 weeks before he was allowed to rejoin his team.

Megan Rapinoe says Donald Trump is a "white nationalist" who's screwed over his own supporters ... and admits she's considered running for office herself one day to help make things right.

"We have a white nationalist -- I think -- in the White House," Rapinoe told VICE TV's Anand Giridharadas.

"And, the spewing of hate and the other'ing of the rest of the country has only led to more rife between people and more despair and more anxiety and more fear going forward."

Rapinoe -- a very outspoken critic of POTUS since he took office in 2017 -- also says on VICE's "Seat At The Table" (airs Wednesday) that Trump is also hurting his own supporters.

"It's not like he's giving them a bunch of jobs. It's not like he's made life really better for them. He's just given them this false reason why maybe they're not happy with their lives. There's been no sort of path forward."

Rapinoe's public criticisms of Trump have caught his attention in the past -- most famously when she declared she was "not going to the f**king White House" if Team USA won the 2019 World Cup.

There are conflicting reports about whether Trump ever seriously invited the team -- but regardless, they didn't go.

But, get this ... Rapinoe was asked straight-up if she's ever considered getting into politics when her soccer career wraps up -- and it's clearly something she's thought about.

"I'm not totally shutting the door but it seems wild," Rapinoe says.

As for her dream political job, Megan admits, "President, of course."

"If I'm going to do it, I want the biggest, baddest post."

It's been 10 long weeks, but Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to the Juventus training facility in Italy ... and man, he looks STOKED!

CR7 was all smiles -- and even rolled down the tinted window on his Jeep to give a thumbs up -- on his way to the team facility in Turin Tuesday.

Inside, Ronaldo reportedly underwent medical testing so he could be cleared to return to training.

The soccer superstar had spent most of the COVID-19 pandemic at his estate in Portugal -- but returned to Italy 2 weeks ago to begin self-isolation so he could get back to work.

Now, he's good to go -- and his club is expecting (hoping for) a return to action by mid-June, though nothing is set in stone yet.

Juventus last played on March 8 -- when Ronaldo led his squad to a 2-0 victory over Inter Milan in a closed-door stadium with no fans.

No, you can not have sex with the female plastic dolls in the crowd at FC Seoul soccer games.

Sorry.

Still, the club is apologizing to fans anyway ... expressing "sincere remorse" after allegations they put sex dolls in the bleachers Sunday for a game at Seoul World Cup Stadium.

Here's the deal ... with no live fans allowed at games because of COVID-19, the South Korean soccer club put plastic butts in the seats instead as a funny way to make things look normal.

The team had contacted a company called Dalkom to get the dolls -- and since Dalkom also makes sex dolls, some fans thought the mannequins in the stands were plastic sex workers.

It's also worth noting that ALL of the mannequins in the stands were female.

But, FC Seoul claims the dolls are not actually bangable -- they're just normal, regular fashion mannequins ... and they've apologized for the controversy in the first place.

Unclear if the club will bring the non-sex dolls back for future games.

Hope Solo claims some gun-toting maniac shot one of her dogs Wednesday night -- but the good news, the pooch survived the attack.

It all went down North Carolina, where the former Team USA soccer superstar lives with her husband, ex-NFL player Jerramy Stevens.

"Our magnificent dog Conan (brown, on the far left) is in critical condition after being shot last night," Hope says.

"It’s hard news to share, but harder to make sense of this heinous act."

"Jerramy and I are shocked and heartbroken, but we want to say thank you to Wilkes Veterinary Hospital and their staff for rushing Conan into emergency care, as well as their COVID-19 care practices."

We're reaching out to police to find out what the hell happened and if they've identified a suspect.

In the meantime, Hope is optimistic about Conan's chances -- saying, "We‘ve heard that there are developments in canine prosthetics and would love any information about getting Conan a new front leg!"

Get well, Conan!!!!