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Sports

Luis Paez-Pumar

Erik ten Hag, Manager of Manchester United, reacts during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC at Old Trafford on September 29, 2024 in Manchester, England.

Surely, Erik Ten Hag Can’t Survive Yet Another Horrendous Start … Right?

Karim Adeyemi of Borussia Dortmund celebrates the teams second on advertising band during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD6 match between Borussia Dortmund and Celtic FC at BVB Stadion Dortmund on October 1, 2024 in Dortmund, Germany.

Borussia Dortmund’s Newest Star Is Born


<p>Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99</p>


Diana Moskovitz

Then-head coach Rory Dames of Chicago Red Stars looks on against Washington Spirit during the NWSL Championship held at Lynn Family Stadium on November 20, 2021 in Louisville, Kentucky. (

Rory Dames Disappeared From The SafeSport Database And SafeSport Isn’t Saying Why

Billy Haisley

Lamine Yamal of FC Barcelona runs with the ball during the LaLiga match between Villarreal CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio de la Ceramica on September 22, 2024 in Villarreal, Spain.

Lamine Yamal Is Already On Top

Leandro Trossard of Arsenal leaves the pitch after being shown a red card during the Premier League match between Manchester City FC and Arsenal FC at Etihad Stadium on September 22, 2024 in Manchester, England.

Arsenal–Manchester City Clash Ruined By Premier League’s New Focus On Delays Of Game

Antonio Rüdiger of Real Madrid celebrates with team mates their team's third goal during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD1 match between Real Madrid CF and VfB Stuttgart at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on September 17, 2024 in Madrid, Spain.

Real Madrid Must Learn How To Walk Before It Can Run

Girona's Argentine goalkeeper #13 Paulo Gazzaniga (C) concedes Paris Saint-Germain's first goal during the UEFA Champions League 1st round day 1 football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Girona FC at the Parc des Princes Stadium, in Paris, on September 18, 2024.

Brutally Late Goalie Boner Costs Girona In Champions League Debut

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Alex Morgan of USA celebrates her first goal during the FIFA Women's World Cup Final match between Japan and USA at the FIFA World Cup stadium Frankfurt on July 17, 2011 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Defector Reads A Book

Find A Job You Enjoy, And You’ll Never Have A Day Off In Your Life

Callum Hudson-Odoi of Nottingham Forest celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 0-1 during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Nottingham Forest FC at Anfield on September 14, 2024 in Liverpool, England.

There’s Something Growing At Nottingham Forest

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<div>Abigail Segel is a contributing writer at Defector. She is also an editor for The IX Soccer and the Equalizer. Her work has been published in the Guardian and the Montreal Gazette.</div>
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Abigail Segel

in the FIFA Women's World Cup 2015 Round of 16 match at Commonwealth Stadium on June 22, 2015 in Edmonton, Canada.

Alex Morgan Knew How To Use The Spotlight

Alex Morgan #13 of San Diego Wave FC waves to the crowd after the game against the North Carolina Courage at Snapdragon Stadium on September 08, 2024 in San Diego, California. This was Morgan’s final NWSL game before her announced retirement.

Alex Morgan Conquered The World

Ray Ratto

Dante Rossi of San Marino and Ferhat Saglam of Liechtenstein compete for the ball during the UEFA Nations League 2024/2025 League D match

The World’s Worst Soccer Team Is Finally Something Else

Presentation by two secretaries of the typing robot at the exhibition 'Happiness in the office', in Paris, France, on October 13, 1960.

The Machines

ESPN Masks Cynical AI Pivot As Benevolent Coverage Of “Underserved” Sports

Raphinha of FC Barcelona celebrates after scoring his team's fifth goal during the LaLiga EA Sports match between FC Barcelona and Real Valladolid CF at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on August 31, 2024 in Barcelona, Spain.

Barcelona Finally Figured Out Raphinha

Joao Pedro of Brighton & Hove Albion celebrates scoring a goal to make the score 2-1 during the Premier League match between Brighton & Hove Albion FC and Manchester United FC at Amex Stadium on August 24, 2024 in Brighton, United Kingdom.

At Brighton, Life Is Still Like A Video Game

The official NWSL game ball sits on top of a pedestal with the NWSL Logo on it with the stadium behind the ball at the start of the National Women's Soccer League match between NJ/NY Gotham FC and North Carolina Courage at Red Bull Arena on May 4, 2024 in Harrison, New Jersey.

NWSL Throws The Draft In The Trash Where It Belongs

Patrick Redford

LEICESTER, ENGLAND - AUGUST 19: Jamie Vardy of Leicester City indicates to the Tottenham fans how many times they've won the Premier Leagu as he is substituted off during the Premier League match between Leicester City FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC at The King Power Stadium on August 19, 2024 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)

Old Man Jamie Vardy Is Back Scoring Goals And Chatting Shit

Italian Sports Journalist, Fabrizio Romano, looks on with his phone prior to the Emirates FA Cup Final match between Manchester City and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 25, 2024 in London, England.

Why Is Soccer’s Most Famous Scoopster Doing PR Work For Mason Greenwood?

Albert Burneko

Ilkay Gundogan and Vitor Roque of FC Barcelona during a training session before Barça's La Liga match against Valencia CF

Deadbeat Club At War With Its Own Players, Again

Tom Ley

Jhon Duran of Aston Villa celebrates scoring his team's second goal with teammate Morgan Rogers during the Premier League match between West Ham United FC and Aston Villa FC at London Stadium on August 17, 2024 in London, England.

Jhon Durán Picked The Funniest Time And Place To Score

The Premier League trophy during a pre-season friendly match between Manchester City and Celtic at Kenan Stadium, on July 23, 2024, in North Carolina, USA.

And Now, A Timely And Exhaustive Preview Of The 2024-25 Premier League Season

Mauricio Pochettino, Manager of World XI acknowledges the fans prior to Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2024 at Stamford Bridge.

With Mauricio Pochettino, USMNT Aims High And Scores For Once

Lauren Theisen

Naomi Girma #4 of Team United States celebrates victory in the Women's Gold Medal match

The USWNT Is As Golden As Ever

ans of Team Brazil hold a flag with a picture of Marta prior to the Women's Quarterfinal match between France and Brazil during the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

Marta’s Last Chance

US' forward #05 Trinity Rodman (L) and US' forward #09 Mallory Swanson (R) celebrate after US' forward #11 Sophia Smith (C) scored in the 95th minute during the women's semi-final football match between USA and Germany during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Lyon Stadium in Lyon on August 6, 2024.