Liverpool to begin Premier League title defence against Leeds

Manchester City and Manchester United will not participate in the compeukspition until Sept. 19, after they were guaranteed 30 days of rest following the end of their European seasons.

* Harris English, enjoying one of his most consistent years since joining the PGA Tour in 2012, grabbed a share of the lead at the Northern Trust in Norton, Massachusetts, on Thursday as Tiger Woods lurked four shots back in the FedExCup playoffs opener. English mixed an eagle with seven birdies and two bogeys for a seven-under-par 64 to sit tied with Kevin Streelman, Cameron Davis and Russell Henley after the first round.

* England defender Lucy Bronze, her country's female player of the year for 2019, said on Thursday (Aug 20) she would be leaving French side Olympique Lyonnais when her contract expires at the end of the month. The right back, who helped England reach the women's World Cup semi-finals in France last year, has been linked to a move back to her former club Manchester City.

* Novak Djokovic decided to travel to New York for the US Open amid the COVID-19 pandemic because the 17-times Grand Slam champion did not want to pass up on the opportunity to close in on Roger Federer's record tally of 20.

* Kosovan soccer club FC Prishtina have taken the unprecedented step of signing players on loan from rival teams for one match in order to contest a Europa League qualifier, the club and the national federation have confirmed. Prishtina's preliminary-round qualifier away to Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar, scheduled for last Tuesday, was postponed after eight players tested positive for the coronavirus upon arrival in Gibraltar.

* The World Cup alpine skiing circuit will skip its traditional swing through North America in late November because of the coronavirus pandemic, the international ski federation (FIS) announced Thursday (Aug 20). The events will now be staged in the French resorts of Val d'Isere and Courchevel, and St Moritz in Switzerland, with the adapted calendars to be approved in late September.

* Barcelona's Guinea-Bissau-born teenager Ansu Fati has been named in Spain's senior squad for the first time, coach Luis Enrique said on Thursday (Aug 20). Fati, 17, has been called up for September's Nations League games against Germany and Ukraine after scoring eight goals in 33 matches for the Catalan club last season.

* Argentina's Guido Pella and Hugo Dellien of Bolivia are in risk of missing the US Open, which begins on Aug. 31, after they were put in quarantine for 14 days due to their fitness trainer testing positive for COVID-19.

* Japan's Olympic badminton champion Ayaka Takahashi will not defend her doubles crown with Misaki Matsutomo at next year's Tokyo Games after announcing she will retire at the end of the month. Takahashi and Matsutomo defeated Denmark's Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl in the Rio Olympics in 2016 to claim the women's doubles gold medal and secure their nation's first ever badminton title.