It has been a long wait to hear from Sonia Bompastor. The new Chelsea manager was announced as Emma Hayes’ successor in June, confirming one of the worst-kept secrets in women’s football. Two months on, with some fans joking she must be swimming from France to England, she has finally spoken publicly.

The anticipation about what she would say and what she might bring is understandable. For a significant proportion of people following the Women’s Super League (WSL), this is the first time they have known Chelsea Women without Hayes in the dugout. One of Bompastor’s first challenges will be putting her own stamp on a club so inextricably linked with the now-USWNT manager.

“I am a completely different person from Emma,” she said at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday. “I have a different vision and philosophy.

“For me, it is really important to come to this club, respect everything that was built before and build my own vision. I think with my background and experience, I can support the players and the club to achieve their goals.

“I feel so lucky to have this opportunity after Emma and to show who I am as a manager and a person. The pressure is something I really like because it makes me better. I already told everyone, I am here to win every single title and every…

The Premier League, EFL, FA, and Women’s Super League (WSL) have announced a new code of conduct for gambling-related agreements in football.

The code, which will be implemented at the start of the 2024-25 season, is designed to regulate gambling sponsorships across the professional game, emphasising four key principles: protection, social responsibility, reinvestment, and integrity.

A key aspect of the code is its emphasis on reinvestment. Revenue generated from gambling sponsorships must be redirected into football-related infrastructure and community programmes. This includes improvements to stadiums and training facilities, as well as investments in grassroots football and local community participation.

Under the new code, gambling sponsorships will also be required to target their marketing efforts more carefully to avoid reaching children and individuals at risk of gambling-related harm. Additionally, any gambling-related sponsorship must include educational initiatives and awareness campaigns designed to promote responsible gambling practices.

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‘Some players bet on football – they know it’s breaking the rules but still do it’

The importance of maintaining the integrity of football competitions is also stressed in the code, adding that gambling sponsorships must…

The French Football Federation (FFF) says Chelsea have recalled Lesley Ugochukwu from his participation with the France Olympic squad.

Ugochukwu was named in Thierry Henry’s preliminary selection for the under-23 tournament in his home country in June but missed out on a place in the condensed 18-man squad earlier this month.

However, Olympic football rules allow teams to take up to four replacements that can come in for any injured players in the initial selection at any time during the tournament, and then return to replacement status if the player returns to fitness. U.S. women’s head coach Emma Hayes said last week she sees it as a 22-player squad. As the Olympics is not a tournament within a FIFA window, club sides are allowed to block their players from participating.

Ugochukwu joined Chelsea from Rennes for around £23.5million ($30.3m) last summer. The 19-year-old featured regularly as a rotation option in the first half of the season but suffered a hamstring injury that saw him miss most of the second half of the campaign, ending with 15 appearances across competitions.

The Athletic reported earlier this month that Chelsea were reviewing loan options for Ugochukwu, with the club’s priority that the midfielder spends the season at another Premier League team….

New Jersey governor Phil Murphy says he “would die” to bring Premier League matches to the United States, explaining that he believes it is in the competition’s “enlightened self-interest” to do so.

Murphy, 66, has been involved in football for several decades, including serving on the board of U.S. Soccer and co-owning the NWSL team NJ/NY Gotham FC.

MetLife Stadium, the 82,500-capacity arena situated in New Jersey, will be the venue for the 2026 World Cup final and hosted a friendly between Manchester United and Arsenal last year, as well as three games — two group fixtures and a semi-final — at the Copa America this summer. Real Madrid and Barcelona will play a Clasico pre-season friendly there on August 3.

Asked whether he envisaged these matches becoming competitive fixtures, Murphy replied: “I would die for that. And by the way, the exhibitions — we will have Real and Barcelona on August 3, we’ll have to shrink our capacity a little bit for FIFA — every ticket was sold and the game didn’t count. I would love to — I would die — to see what happens in a game that counts. It would sell every ticket and then some.”

Leading executives at NBC Sports, the American broadcaster that spent $2.7billion (£2.2bn) on a six-year Premier League deal, have been…

Chelsea have hired an independent law firm to investigate after a female employee made an allegation of sexual harassment against a male counterpart.

The alleged incident took place in May 2022, before the ownership group led by Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly assumed control of the club from Roman Abramovich.

Both individuals concerned have since left Chelsea, who launched an internal investigation into the matter in 2023 which concluded earlier this year.

The woman subsequently resigned and launched an appeal, which is ongoing and will now be reviewed by external lawyers.

Chelsea declined to comment.

(Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Chelsea have completed the signing of France forward Sandy Baltimore on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain.

The 24-year-old has signed a four-year deal with the Women’s Super League champions to keep her at the club until 2028, as reported by The Athletic last month.

The move will see Baltimore link up with new Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor after the former Lyon boss was confirmed as Emma Hayes’ successor last month. Chelsea, however, had been keeping tabs on the talented winger way before the appointment of compatriot Bompastor.

Baltimore, who has made over 200 appearances for PSG and has a fair amount of Champions League experience, is a versatile attacking midfielder who can play on either wing. As a left-footed player, she will provide more balance to the squad.

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“I’m very happy to join Chelsea,” said Baltimore. “It feels incredible. I have always wanted to play for Chelsea and now look, it has happened!”

General manager Paul Green added: “Sandy has gained a wealth of experience in France including within the UEFA…

Brighton are set to sign England international Fran Kirby on a free transfer.

The 31-year-old is poised to join the club after her contract with Women’s Super League (WSL) champions Chelsea expired.

Kirby, who is widely considered one of England’s greatest female players, won five consecutive WSL titles with Chelsea before her departure.

It was announced in May that Kirby would leave Chelsea following a nine-year stint at the west London side.

She joined Chelsea from Reading in 2015 and went on to score 63 goals in 114 WSL appearances for the club.

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Fran Kirby is part of Chelsea’s fabric. Her departure marks the end of a most glorious era

She was instrumental in Chelsea’s recent domestic success, securing 15 major trophies over her nine years. Her accolades include six WSL titles and a Champions League final appearance in 2021.

Kirby missed most of the 2019-20 season due to pericarditis, a heart condition, and was absent during the final stages of the 2021-22 campaign due to fatigue.

Her appearances in the 2022-23 season were limited by a knee injury, but she featured in 21 WSL matches last season.

On the international stage, Kirby has been a standout for England, scoring 19 goals in 72 caps for the Lionesses.

She played in every match at the European Championship,…

Chelsea’s Sam Kerr has signed a two-year contract extension with the club, ending speculation over her future.

The Athletic reported in January there was an agreement in principle between Chelsea and the Australia striker but the lack of confirmation had created uncertainty, with Kerr’s existing deal due to run out at the end of the month.

Chelsea and Kerr played on that with their announcement, leaving fans in limbo for 20 minutes after posting a video that implied Kerr was leaving. It was her idea to make Chelsea fans sweat before announcing she was committing to the club until 2026.

A message from @SamKerr1… pic.twitter.com/14c1BEzzOZ

— Chelsea FC Women (@ChelseaFCW) June 13, 2024

It is obvious why Chelsea would want to keep hold of Kerr. When fit, she is one of the best strikers in the world, having scored 99 goals in 128 games for the club. Beyond her on-pitch ability, she has become an important figurehead for Chelsea as one of the most recognisable female footballers in the world.

But with manager Emma Hayes having left at the end of the season, Chelsea have found themselves in uncharted territory. Hayes had been in position for 12 years and was a key figure in both the recruitment and development of the squad. For Kerr to choose to stay signals her own…

Dear readers,

The Premier League and Champions League are over for another season but the summer of 2024 is packed full of live action and transfer fun and games — and we’ll cover it all in detail on The Athletic.

From Europe’s major clubs travelling across the world (and to the United States in particular) to all the moves (and nearly moves) of the summer transfer window, plus two major international tournaments, Emma Hayes starting her reign as USWNT head coach and the Olympics, our team of reporters will bring you in-depth coverage of the things you care about.

We’ll be on the ground in Germany for Euro 2024; across the U.S. for Copa America, MLS, NWSL and Premier League pre-season; in Paris, France for the summer Olympic Games’ football action, and everywhere in between — ensuring you don’t miss a thing when it comes to the beautiful game.

The club content you know and love won’t stop either. Our trusted team of reporters will hit the phones to bring you the latest moves in the transfer window as we embark on an ambitious project to cover the summer ins and outs like never before.

And it doesn’t stop there.

You might already follow our NFL, NBA or NHL coverage, but did you know we also cover a range of other sports, including golf, Formula 1 and tennis? Mark out…

It has been an open secret for months that Chelsea would appoint Sonia Bompastor as the new manager of their women’s team and, finally, that news has been announced officially. The Lyon head coach was offered the job in February but the parties agreed the move would only be made public once the 2023-24 season had concluded for both clubs.

Even when asked about her future after Lyon’s Champions League final defeat by Barcelona on Saturday — her final game in charge of the French side — Bompastor said: “It’s not the right moment to talk about it. I’m really disappointed (with the result against Barca) and that’s the main thing. It’s not the question tonight.”

It was always going to be a long, drawn-out process, especially given Chelsea announced Emma Hayes’ departure seven months ago, on November 4. The Athletic reported shortly after that she was to take the U.S. women’s national team job.

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Her decision came as a shock to senior members at Chelsea, the team’s staff and players, and there was no succession plan in place for a manager who had been in the job since 2012.

Chelsea found themselves in an odd and rare position of having so much time to…