SOCCER

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Cristiano Ronaldo has fully backed Kylian Mbappe, predicting that the French forward will thrive at Real Madrid despite a slow start. Ronaldo, who enjoyed nine trophy-filled seasons with Los Blancos, believes Mbappe will find his footing even though he initially struggled to make an impact in La Liga.

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Germany won their opening game of a UEFA Nations League (UNL) campaign for the first time ever thanks to a 5-0 victory over Hungary in Dusseldorf. After coming out 2-0 victors at UEFA EURO 2024, Germany and Hungary locked horns again, with the Germans hoping for a similar outcome to kick-start their UNL campaign.

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France bounced back to ensure they remain unbeaten against Belgium in competitive international football, notching a 2-0 victory that throws League A Group 1 of the UEFA Nations League wide open.

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Georgia followed up a dream summer by starting their UEFA Nations League Group B1 campaign with an emphatic 4-1 victory over the Czech Republic, mere months after the nations drew in their first head-to-head.

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Italy extended their unbeaten record to six matches against Israel (W5, D1) after a 2-1 away day success at the Bozsik Arena in Budapest. Having only lost once across their previous 13 UEFA Nations League group-stage encounters (W7, D5), Italy unsurprisingly threatened first in the Hungarian capital.

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Photo Nigeria striker Ademola Lookman continued his outstanding year with two goals to help his country to a 3-0 home win over neighbors Benin in their opening 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Saturday.

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Canada scored their first away win over the United States in 67 years on Saturday with a 2-1 friendly international victory over their North American rivals in Kansas City. Goals from Jacob Shaffelburg and Jonathan David handed the Canadians their first win over the Americans on US soil since a 3-2 World Cup qualifying win in St. Louis in 1957.

Kylian Mbappe

PSG to Real Madrid - no transfer fee

Although Kylian Mbappe did not cost the Spanish record champions Real a transfer fee, Los Blancos had to dig deep into their pockets to lure the French superstar to Madrid. Mbappe will receive an annual net salary of 15 million euros for the next five years, and the Madridistas also had to fork out a hand money of 150 million euros.