Lionel Messi did what Lionel Messi does.

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner scored from the right side of the box in the 56th minute to lift Inter Miami past Sporting Kansas City 1-0 on a bitterly cold Wednesday night in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup's first round.

Kylian Mbappé scored a hat trick, Erling Haaland stayed on the bench injured and Real Madrid dumped Manchester City out of the Champions League on Wednesday.

Mbappé's stellar trio of goals in the fourth, 33rd and 61st minutes in a 3-1 win gave Madrid a 6-3 victory on aggregate over the 2023 champion in their two-leg knockout playoff.

Are Liverpool showing cracks in its pursuit of the Premier League title?

Arne Slot doesn't think so.

Neymar, Memphis Depay and Thiago Silva are among the leading Brazilian footballers protesting against using artificial turf for league matches instead of natural grass.

They all campaigned online with the same message Tuesday highlighting their fear of increased injury risk for players on the artificial surfaces.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti is not buying Manchester City rival Pep Guardiola's suggestion that his own side has only a 1% chance of eliminating Real Madrid in the Champions League playoffs on Wednesday.

Madrid rallied late to win the first leg 3-2 last week in England to seize control ahead of its home match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

Rising tennis star João Fonseca finished "an unbelievable week" with a straight sets victory over Francisco Cerúndolo in the Argentina Open final on Sunday to claim his first tour-level title.

The 18-year-old Brazilian, who won the Next Gen ATP Finals last December, beat his Argentine opponent 6-4, 7-6 (1) on clay.

Liverpool continued its charge toward the Premier League title on Sunday with a 2-1 win against Wolverhampton. For Manchester United, it just keeps getting worse after a 1-0 loss at Tottenham.

The fortunes of England's two most successful teams could hardly be more contrasting.

Neymar scored his first goal for Santos since returning to Brazil when he converted a penalty Sunday in a 3-1 win over Sao Paulo-based Água Santa.

Finding the net from the spot in the 14th minute of the Sao Paulo state championship match will provide the 33-year-old star some relief after a tough restart.

Real Madrid once again twisted the knife into Pep Guardiola's Manchester City to compound a troubled season for the English champions and leave them on the brink of an early Champions League exit.

Carlo Ancelotti defended Real Madrid's decision to boycott last year's Ballon d'Or awards ahead of his team's Champions League playoff against Manchester City.

Madrid did not attend October's gala ceremony after Vinicius Junior was beaten to soccer's most prestigious individual prize by City midfielder Rodri.