Liverpool

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Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson says every game on the club's pre-season tour of the US will have its own significance as his side prepare to face Premier League opposition.

Parkinson's men face Leeds United in Tampa on Sunday, 26 July before facing Liverpool at the iconic Yankee Stadium in New York four days later.

Their final pre-season game is against Parkinson's former club Sunderland on Sunday, 2 August in Philadelphia, hometown of Wrexham co-owner Rob Mac.

Wrexham have never met Leeds United in a competitive game, with the clubs meeting only twice in pre-season matches in 1964.

"I think they've all got a special feel to it really," Parkinson said.

"It's quite amazing, really, when you think we've never met Leeds United in a competitive game. It's a brilliant club.

"Obviously going to New York to play Liverpool, an iconic stage and it's going to be something special.

"Then going to Philadelphia, a stadium we've been to before and a really good arena for football and playing against Sunderland.

"Obviously, me and Steve [Parkin] were there for a short period, but that's kind of irrelevant really.

"It's going to Rob's hometown and putting on a show for him and his family as well."

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We asked you to tell us one player you would like to move on this summer and one realistic target you want Liverpool to bring in before the transfer window shuts.

Here are some of your suggestions:

Kev: I think we should bring in Alex Scott and ship out Alexis Mac Allister.

Zaid: I think Cody Gakpo should leave because he won't play as much since we have Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike, but he will still go for a good £75m. I think Bradley Barcola on the left wing would be a good signing and we should try and get him for about £90m.

James: I believe we should move on and let Cody Gakpo go and we should go for Bradley Barcola after his amazing performances at the World Cup.

David: Whilst there is no doubt he is a very good player, Harvey Elliot has not fulfilled the expectations that Liverpool had for him when he signed for them. He should find a club where he can become a regular starter. Whilst young talent is great, in order to replace Mo Salah we require a tried and tested winger, and we should go all out for Bradley Barcola, and if necessary break the bank for him.

Finlay: Sell Jeremie Frimpong. He's not a proper right back and especially if Conor Bradley's not always going to be fit, Frimpong can't be our only other option. Sign Daniel Munoz from Crystal Palace, he's much better defensively but can still bomb forward and score goals. Low budget as well.

Jim: For me, although I hate to say it, I think we should let Joe Gomez go. His injury record is appalling, and I truly hoped he would establish himself in the team but it still doesn't look likely. For who should be bought, we obviously need a proven right winger but so many clubs are aware of that and using it to their advantage. Yan Diomande and Bradley Barcola are the obvious shouts but I suspect neither will happen in the immediate future.

Muhammad: Yan Diomande seems like the perfect option for Liverpool at the moment, and Cody Gakpo wasn't great for us last season, so I feel he has to go.

Dave: Mac Allister has to go, his legs went last year. Try and sign Bradley Barcola.

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Liverpool have teamed up with Merseyside Police to strengthen its ongoing mass ticket touting crackdown.

The club says the move comes "as more and more sophisticated and organised ways to defraud or extort fans continue to be discovered".

More than £1.2m worth of assets have been seized and over 400 lifetime bans have been issued so far, as the club's Investigations Team works with the police force's Economic Crime Team to "protect genuine fans from being exploited, ripped off or scammed".

The club also confirmed that two convictions have been made for ticket touting linked to Liverpool Football Club in the past 12 months, with several cases still active under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

A club statement read: "The police operation focuses on the laundering of criminal proceeds from illicit ticket sales and sits alongside the club's continuing crackdown on all forms of ticket touting, both online and on the ground."

Liverpool said it analysed nearly 700,000 ticket registrations last season alone, with 67,663 suspected fake accounts blocked or cancelled and a further 121,379 accounts currently under investigation.

The club also issued 432 lifetime bans and 115 indefinite suspensions across the 2025-26 season. A lifetime ban is a permanent ban, while an indefinite suspension has a minimum timeframe attached to it, which is typically three years, after which the account holder must apply for reinstatement.

"The vast majority of lifetime bans and indefinite suspensions were handed down for unauthorised selling of season ticket, membership tickets or hospitality tickets in breach of the club's terms and conditions," the statement continued.

"This reflects the club's zero-tolerance approach to all forms of the illegal sale of match tickets."

Liverpool also reminded supporters that the "only authorised way" to share general admission tickets is through the club's ticket forwarding service, and urged fans to not buy tickets from "unofficial online channels or sellers".

Supporters can also report unofficial ticket sales or fraudulent tickets directly to the club or to Crimestoppers.

Read more on the story

Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media in Chicago as the Reds begin their pre-season tour of the USA.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• On the importance of pre-season, Iraola said: "Pe-season is always the foundation of what's going to be a long season. When you arrive to a new club it's even more important because you don't have a lot of training sessions, you don't have a lot of even friendlies. It's massive because sometimes we lack days of training properly, of training with all the group of players, so everything that we can get from every friendly we play, we have to use it properly."

• Asked about his wishes for the remainder of the transfer window, he said: "I think it's difficult to say a number when the market is open, and you have to be always open to new options to improve the squad. A winger, for example – we definitely need to sign a winger. But there are other situations that we will have to analyse what the market gives you, what's the cost, how we also see the players we have. So, it will depend on a lot of things."

• Iraola was asked about goalkeeper Alisson's uncertain future: "I'm very happy with the situation we have right now in the goalkeeping area. We have Alisson, we have Giorgi [Mamardashvili]. We are going to send on loan, for example, Armin [Pecsi]. Alisson is someone also in a changing room that has lost some references in terms of experience, I think he's someone that definitely will help us in this process of adaptation of the new signings, of the new players, the young players."

• Is right-back an area to address?: "I think it depends on Conor's [Bradley] situation. At the end if you have a fully fit, healthy Conor Bradley, we are very happy, ready to go and we would not be asking ourselves these questions. I think it's a situation that is tricky, because we trust Conor in the long term, we know we want him to be our right-back but right now he is still, I would say, a little bit far from returning."

• On Dominik Szoboszlai's new contract: "I think this is one of the probably greatest news since I arrived, his commitment to this club, his contract renewal. Also, he has come in a great shape. He has been leading by example in training, he's pushing a lot. I think young players should be looking at him, the way he is training and he competes."

• Iraola said he will address the club's vice-captaincy later in pre-season, with the role vacant after the departure of Andy Robertson: "I still haven't met almost half of the squad, I still haven't seen them face-to-face. But I always say, you don't need to wear an armband to be a leader, to be a captain."

Got a question about Liverpool? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

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A consortium led by British-Indian millionaire businessman Amit Bhatia has expressed an interest in buying a minority stake in Liverpool.

The move prompted Wednesday's statement from Liverpool's owners Fenway Sports Group.

Bhatia is a former investment banker who worked for Morgan Stanley on Wall Street before becoming an entrepreneur.

He operates businesses in construction, real estate, and private equity.

The construction company he founded at 32 is now the largest independent building materials business in the UK with more than 5,000 employees, and his real estate firm builds homes, student housing and offices across the country.

Londoner Bhatia, 46, was awarded the young entrepreneur of the year award in 2013, and sits on the advisory board of the Saudi Arabian government's cultural affairs and international relations unit.

He was a director and co-owner of QPR before his unexpected departure on Tuesday, and a stand at Loftus Road bears his surname.

He married Vanisha Mittal Bhatia in 2004, in a six-day ceremony in France costing more than $55m (£41m), which at the time was recognised by Guinness World Records as the most expensive of all-time.

Vanisha is the daughter of Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, whose net worth has been estimated at more $30bn (£22bn).

Read more on Liverpool's potential investors

With the 2026 World Cup done and dusted, the return of club football is back on everyone's minds.

Pre-season preparations are under way and we want you to have a think about Liverpool's squad.

Tell us one player you would like to move on this summer and one realistic target you want the Reds to bring in before the transfer window shuts.

Get in touch with your views here

Now the dust has settled on the 2026 World Cup, you can officially review your Predictor results for the tournament.

If you played more than four rounds, BBC Sport has done a deep dive into your predictions, tournament performance and compared you to other players.

Don't worry, though, Predictor isn't stopping at international tournaments! Pre-season has kicked off and there are plenty of friendlies and European qualifiers to keep us occupied before the new season gets under way.

So how do you fancy your chances of correctly predicting the scores for our six selected matches every week?

BBC Sport has launched a new weekly Predictor game to cover the 2026-27 season, allowing users to pick what they think will be the result from six fixtures from across the leagues.

There will usually be a Friday deadline and the game will also feature streaks, so make sure to build it into your weekly football habits.

Lock in your first round of predictions before Friday, 24 July here

If you're wondering how to play, here are a few easy steps:

• Click on the link above to take you to the selections page.

• For every match, you either choose a winning team or select a draw - once your prediction has been submitted you won't be able to change it, so be sure to pick carefully.

• Then wait for the results to roll in to see how you have done.

• Share your results with your friends and family.

• Every consecutive round you play adds one to your streak, but if you miss a round then your streak will reset to zero.

Mohamed Moallim
BBC Sport Journalist

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The Premier League's financial landscape has changed dramatically over the past decade. Since 2016 total summer transfer spending has risen from £1.16bn to a record £3.19bn in 2025 – an increase of almost 175%.

On the surface, that suggests transfer figures are continuing to accelerate. Headline fees, though, tell only part of the story.

Research by Kieran Maguire and colleagues at the University of Liverpool suggests some of the Premier League's earlier record signings represented even greater investments when measured against clubs' buying power at the time.

Using Premier League broadcasting revenues as an index, Alan Shearer's £15m move from Blackburn Rovers to Newcastle United in 1996 remains the league's biggest transfer relative to clubs' spending power. Rio Ferdinand's £29.1m move to Manchester United in 2002 and Juan Sebastian Veron's £28.1m arrival at Old Trafford in 2001 also rank above any of this summer's blockbuster deals.

The same model suggests Trevor Francis' £1m move from Birmingham City to Forest in 1979 – English football's first £1m transfer – would equate to about £173m in today's market.

That does not mean the fees paid for Morgan Rogers, Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali were modest. Rather, it reflects how dramatically Premier League revenues have grown, allowing clubs to spend sums that would once have been unimaginable.

When Jack Grealish became Britain's first £100m footballer when joining City from Villa in 2021, the transfer marked another turning point in the evolution of the market.

Only five years later, nine-figure deals are no longer viewed as extraordinary. They have become a familiar feature of Premier League transfer windows.

The next milestone may not be far away.

While no Premier League club has yet paid £200m for a player, football's financial ceiling continues to rise and the first transfer of that magnitude no longer feels beyond the realms of possibility.

• Read more on transfer fee evolution

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport senior journalist

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FSG originally made clear in 2022 that it would be open to new investment in Liverpool, either from minority shareholders or a potential full sale.

It said at the time: "FSG has frequently received expressions of interest from third parties seeking to become shareholders in Liverpool.

"FSG has said before that under the right terms and conditions, we would consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club."

The full sale never materialised but the agreement with Dynasty in 2023 was valued at between £82m and £164m, and was hailed by FSG as helping offset bank debt accrued from infrastructure projects, including the redevelopments of the Main Stand, Anfield Road End and the club's Kirkby training ground.

At the time of that deal, FSG president Mike Gordon said: "Our long-term commitment to Liverpool remains as strong as ever. [We want] to further strengthen the club's financial position and sustain our ambitions for continued success on and off the pitch."

Since then, FSG has explored the possibility of purchasing a second club in continental Europe to add to its portfolio.

The multi-club model would have followed the examples of Chelsea and Manchester City, whose owners also operate clubs in other territories.

But after examining potential purchases, including Spanish sides Malaga and Getafe ,and French club Bordeaux, FSG did not proceed with any of the deals and is now understood to have moved away from the model.

That decision to eschew the approach led to the departure of Michael Edwards last month - the former Liverpool sporting director had been rehired by FSG in order to lead the multi-club project.

Current sporting director Richard Hughes is managing the club's transfer strategy this summer and has a contract lasting until summer 2027, but is believed to be open to a move to Saudi Arabia in the near future.

Liverpool principal owner John W Henry has taken a back seat on matters relating to the club in public since acknowledging and apologising for his role in the widely derided European Super League project in 2021.

Read more here

Former Liverpool striker David Fairclough says his 1970s team-mate Kevin Keegan "had time for everybody" throughout his playing career and beyond.

The pair played alongside each other for two seasons, from Fairclough's first-team debut in 1975 to Keegan's departure in 1977.

Keegan, who won seven major trophies including the European Cup and three first division titles at Liverpool, died weeks after revealing he had been diagnosed with stage four cancer.

"I remember going home after training, having been an apprentice, and telling my friends how close I had been to Kevin Keegan," Fairclough told BBC Radio Merseyside. "I would tell them about the fact he had even addressed me.

"As a young kid, it was so nice that he had noticed me. I remember my mates being gobsmacked about it because he was the top man at Liverpool at that time.

"Then I broke into the first team and got to play alongside him a year or so after joining the club. There were some incredible moments because just as I was breaking into the team, Peter Cormack was coming out of the team.

"He had been Kevin's regular roommate throughout the years, so Kevin had a spot free and I was paired with him for a few games. That was a fantastic experience.

"I remember being in London, playing against Tottenham, and Kevin saying to me: 'When people notice you in London, you know you've made it'. He wanted to buy a shirt so off we went to Harrods and I was just watching peoples' reactions as he walked through the doors.

"You know you've got fame when people are picking you out down south. He had time for everybody. I've never seen anybody in the game give as much time as he did. He never refused an autograph or a conversation with anybody.

"He just stood out. He bounced into Anfield. He was dressed differently to the other players. In the days of platform shoes and flares, he walked in like a model. He was always cheery. I never remember him coming in and being downhearted.

"It was a very good time for me to be around him because I was young and impressionable, so I looked up to people like him and I started to do things the Kevin Keegan way."

Listen to the full conversation above or on BBC Sounds

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Sir Kenny Dalglish says he is "very saddened" by the passing of former Liverpool forward Kevin Keegan in a personal tribute on Instagram.

"Kevin was one of the very best players of his generation and wore Liverpool's famous number seven shirt with great distinction," Dalglish wrote. "His achievements on the pitch were exceptional, but he was also a wonderful person and genuine gentleman.

"Kevin's qualities didn't stop when he finished playing. He went on to become an outstanding manager, and what he built at Newcastle United brought belief, excitement and pride back to the football club.

"He gave so many people wonderful memories and his teams played the game in a way that supporters loved to watch.

"Football has lost one of its true greats."

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Keegan's former Liverpool and England team-mate Phil Thompson echoed Dalglish's sentiment and said "it's a difficult time for everybody".

"When I first heard the news, I was absolutely devastated," Thompson said on BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast. "But I've been listening to all the tributes and love for Kevin, and about all the love that he gave to everybody else.

"He was a lovely man and that is above all his footballing exploits.

"Humility poured out of Kevin's veins. He was just such a nice guy.

"He never turned down an autograph or photograph. He was the best of all the people I have known in football and in sport.

"There was an honesty in everything about him. He didn't have the greatest ability in the world, but he made the best of what he had which drove him forward. He knew how good he was.

"Even as England manager, he knew his limitations and that is Kevin in a nutshell.

"When he came to Liverpool, he was a star waiting to happen. We got a superhero in 1971 and he was a revelation. He was inspirational.

"He hit it off with Bill Shankly and the two of them were inspired and it took us to new levels. He was the spark the football club needed at the time."

Listen to a special Football Daily podcast which reflects on the life and legacy of Kevin Keegan on BBC Sounds

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Thirty-four years ago a £13m transfer caused national outrage in Italy.

When AC Milan signed Gianluigi Lentini from Torino in 1992 for a then world record fee, newspapers called the deal "obscene", while the Vatican's official newspaper described it as "an offence against the dignity of work".

Today that fee would barely register among the Premier League's biggest transfers.

This summer alone Chelsea have agreed a club record £117m deal for Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers, Manchester City paid Nottingham Forest £116m for Elliot Anderson, and Tottenham spent a club record £100m on Sandro Tonali.

These are not the only major deals. Tottenham also agreed an £85m move for West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes, Barcelona paid £69m to sign Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United, and Manchester United spent £50m on Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos.

It is the first transfer window in Premier League history to produce three £100m-plus signings - and there are still weeks to go before deadline day on 1 September.

During the 2025 summer window English top-flight clubs spent a record £3bn.

So why are transfer fees continuing to climb? Why are clubs paying record sums for players already playing in England? And why are more clubs willing to sell some of their biggest stars?

Read more here on the big spending taking place in the Premier League

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We asked for your memories of Liverpool legend Kevin Keegan after the sad news of his passing was announced on Monday.

Here are some of your replies and stories:

Mike: Our student flat was opposite the digs where Kevin Keegan lodged when he first arrived in Liverpool. He had a metallic green Ford Capri and I'd bump into him at the shops down the road (literally, as he only came up to my chin). Then on a Saturday we'd stand on the Kop and watch him dazzle - heady days!

Mark: My first memory of football was Kevin Keegan scoring twice in the 1974 cup final against Newcastle. Hooked from that day forward. Absolutely gutted when he left Liverpool.

John: A true Liverpool legend. Always gave 100% for club and country. He will be sorely missed.

Andrew: I met Kevin at Liverpool FC when he was visiting with Newcastle. I was working for Liverpool's sponsors at the time. He came briefly into the hospitality suite but was mobbed by all and quickly left. We followed him out as he made his way to the Newcastle team bus and had to push his way through a massive crowd of home supporters, all asking for his autograph. He ignored most of these requests. One supporter stopped him in his tracks with the comment: "Kevin please sign my programme, you're my hero… I even named my dog after you", he duly stopped and laughing signed the programme and climbed on board the coach. A true legend who will be sadly missed by all football supporters. RIP Kevin.

Rachel: Kevin Keegan was the reason I started supporting Liverpool from 1975 to the present date. He was always my number one player. A sad day.

Jamie: Mine is a childhood memory of Kevin Keegan training in his kit at his farm in North Wales. Used to see him regularly out practicing as I was too young at the time to go to Anfield. It's something I will never forget as the red kit stood out a mile.

Tim: My Dad is Greek and he meet Kevin Keegan in Athens in 1972 when Liverpool played AEK Athens in the Uefa Cup. Kevin stopped and asked my Dad for directions in Athens and he helped him and another player get where they wanted. Kevin said thanks and even got him a ticket for the game. A true great man, on and off the field.

Sam: In 2011 at 14-years-old, I won an EFL competition to be a pundit for a day. My pundit mentor was Kevin Keegan, a dream for any LFC fan. He never once judged my shoddy haircut or terrible jumper, and instead was a gentleman throughout the entire day, doing everything he could to encourage me and make the day magical. He will always be something pretty special to me.

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Legendary former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson has paid tribute to Kevin Keegan, who has died at the age of 75.

Lawrenson worked as a coach under Keegan during his time as Newcastle boss.

"He had time for everybody," Lawrenson told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"You wouldn't say in terms of football that he was completely gifted, but he worked like stink to get himself even better and quicker and everything.

"Just such a lovely lovely man who had time for everybody. It's a very, very sad afternoon.

"What is quite unusual is opposition supporters would actually clap when he came onto the pitch, which they very, very seldom do.

"The way he made himself into a top player was great for all people to see.

"He went to Liverpool. At the start of the season you have a game between potential first-team and the team who will play against them.

"He played in that game against the first team and at the end, Bill Shankly put him in the team and Kevin basically never got out of the team. He got better and better and he was a top footballer, he really was.

"He was then a really good manager. Newcastle really love and loved him. He went there at the right time and he was just great with everybody.

"Keegan did fab at Newcastle. He was just fun as well."

Phil McNulty
Chief football writer

Kevin Keegan was the spearhead of Bill Shankly's second great side, in total winning three league titles, the European Cup, FA Cup and the Uefa Cup twice under his Scottish mentor and then his successor Bob Paisley.

He was instrumental in all of those triumphs, scoring twice in the 3-0 victory against Newcastle in the 1974 FA Cup final. His first prompted the famous line from BBC commentator David Coleman: "Goals pay the rent - and Keegan does his share."

In the subsequent Charity Shield against league champions Leeds United, Keegan was sent off after a flare-up with Billy Bremner, who was also dismissed, with both leaving the Wembley pitch shirtless. Johnny Giles had been the instigator, landing a blatant right hook on the Liverpool player, but was not sent off.

In the 1972-73 Uefa Cup final against Borussia Monchengladbach, Keegan scored twice in the first leg at Anfield, a game played at the second attempt after a thunderstorm 24 hours earlier caused the match to be abandoned after 27 minutes.

The rearrangement allowed Shankly to recall John Toshack, who had been left out of the initial match, and he and Keegan tormented the Germans in a 3-0 victory, Liverpool subsequently winning 3-2 on aggregate.

When the trophy was won once more against Club Brugge three years later, this time under Paisley, Keegan scored a vital goal in Belgium, the second leg finishing 1-1 to ensure a 4-3 aggregate victory.

Ever ambitious and eager to test new horizons, Keegan announced midway through the 1976-77 season that he would leave Liverpool at the end of the campaign.

It brought some criticism from supporters, but was another example of deception never being part of Keegan's character, allowing Liverpool time to line up Kenny Dalglish as his replacement.

He went out on the highest high in his final game, running the great German defender Berti Vogts ragged as Liverpool won the European Cup for the first time, beating Borussia Monchengladbach 3-1 in Rome.

Keegan left having scored 100 goals in 323 appearances.

Read more on Keegan's life and career here following his death at the age of 75

Phil McNulty
Chief football writer

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Kevin Keegan, who has died aged 75, was one of football's most charismatic and influential figures in a career of many chapters that took him from superstar player to elite manager.

While some may remember him best for his ill-fated reign as England manager, he will rightly be much more celebrated as a world-class player at Liverpool and Hamburg, captaining England, and shining latterly at Southampton and Newcastle United, before becoming arguably the most beloved figure in the Tyneside club's history.

Keegan's career was a reflection of himself.

He was hugely gifted, honest, decent, hard-working and emotional. There were highs and lows, but the positivity and vibrancy he brought made him a cherished figure.

Born in Armthorpe near Doncaster, Keegan came to Liverpool manager Bill Shankly's attention when playing more than 100 games for Scunthorpe United, sitting on a bin outside Anfield while the Iron's legendary Scottish boss Ron Ashman finalised one of the all-time great bargains as the 20-year-old was transferred for £35,000 in 1971.

Keegan was regarded by some observers as simply a hard-working player who made himself great through sheer grit and determination. The initial assertion was correct, but he was much more than that.

Shankly, not one to knowingly undersell his players, told Keegan within a fortnight of arriving at Liverpool that he would play for England.

The new signing scored on his Liverpool debut on the opening day of the 1971-72 season against Nottingham Forest at Anfield, a scruffy finish set up by John Toshack. It was the start of a beautiful football relationship with Liverpool as well as with the Welshman.

Their almost telepathic partnership - a classic "big man, little man" combination - was even put to the test on television.

They gelled to such an extent that Granada TV's groundbreaking Friday magazine show Kick Off had Keegan and Toshack sitting back to back, trying to guess the colour and shape of a card the other was holding.

Such was their success rate some thought telepathy actually was at work - but the pair later revealed there was a mirror in the studio and they could see the other's cards.

Read Keegan's obituary here