Sampdoria have been relegated to Serie C for the first time in their 78-year history after a season dogged by managerial upheaval. The Genoa-based club were held to a goalless draw at Juve Stabia in their final Serie B match. That ensured they finished in 18th place, a point behind Salernitana who secured a relegation play-off place with a 2-0 victory over Cittadella. Sampdoria, who won their only Serie A title in 1991 with a star-studded team, had been playing in Italian football's second tier since they were relegated at the end of the 2022–23 season. Italian World Cup winner Andrea Pirlo was hired as coach in June 2023 but was unable to secure an immediate return to the top flight after they lost in the play-offs.

Ballard headed in off the underside of the bar in the final seconds of stoppage time to level the match at 1-1 on the night and secure a 3-2 aggregate victory over the Sky Blues. It was an incredible end to an evening filled with tension at the Stadium of Light after Ephron Mason-Clark had scored in the 76th minute to take the match to extra time. The Black Cats will now face Sheffield United at Wembley on Saturday, 24 May to decide who plays in the Premier League next season. In a meeting between the sides who finished fourth and fifth in the regular season, the Wearside club will have the chance to end an eight-year exile from the top flight. But the Sky Blues will rue a chance which USA forward Haji Wright headed wide in regulation stoppage time that would have booked their spot in the final.

The Blades, who won the first leg 3-0 at Ashton Gate on Thursday, started slowly but took the lead on the night when Kieffer Moore headed in Harrison Burrows' corner kick before the break. Gus Hamer added to their advantage with a deflected long-range shot from a corner routine which found him in acres of space at the edge of the area, and substitute Callum O'Hare slammed home his side's sixth of the semi-final. Chris Wilder's men will now face either Sunderland or Coventry City in the play-off final at Wembley on Saturday, 24 May as they look to secure an immediate return to the Premier League. Sheffield United's victory, by a record scoreline for a play-off semi-final at this level, means that the team who finished third in the regular season have progressed to the Championship play-off final in nine of the past 10 seasons.

The 65-year-old Italian will officially take charge of Brazil on 26 May following the conclusion of the La Liga season. He leaves the Santiago Bernabeu as one of the club's most successful managers. Ancelotti won 15 trophies across two spells as Real manager and last season led Los Blancos to a Champions League and La Liga double. However, his exit from Real comes after Sunday's El Clasico defeat left Real seven points behind leaders Barcelona with three games remaining. Barring a spectacular collapse from Barcelona, that result all but confirmed that Real will end the season without a trophy for the first time in four years.

Real Madrid raced into a 2-0 lead with Mbappe scoring twice inside 14 minutes, but Barca hit four by half-time - one each for Eric Garcia and Lamine Yamal, and two for Raphinha. Mbappe scored again with 20 minutes left, to take his club total in all competitions to 39 - the most ever by a Real Madrid player in their debut season - and Barca's Fermin Lopez had a goal ruled out for handball in a gripping finish. Victory put Barca seven points clear of their arch-rivals with three games left to play. Hansi Flick named an unchanged Barcelona side following their draining Champions League semi-final defeat by Inter Milan on Tuesday, and in the early stages they looked lethargic. Mbappe converted from the penalty spot after he was felled by Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, and added a second after running on to Vinicius Junior's through ball in behind Barcelona's high defensive line. As the Frenchman celebrated, he likely didn't expect what came next at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium. Garcia halved the deficit with a header from a corner in the 19th minute, before Lamine Yamal produced his latest piece of brilliance. The 17-year-old was quiet for the first half-an-hour, but announced his arrival in the match by curling a sumptuous strike into the bottom corner of Thibaut Courtois' goal. Barca pressed Real Madrid relentlessly and took the lead less than two minutes later when Raphinha found himself in space on the left of the box - after Mbappe and Lucas Vazquez got in each other's way under pressure - and arrowed past Courtois. The Ballon d'Or candidate then headed over Yamal's cross, but made no mistake in converting Ferran Torres' cut-back after stealing possession from Vazquez. Moments earlier Mbappe thought he had won a penalty, but a video assistant referee review showed Jude Bellingham was fractionally offside. Barcelona started the second half as they ended the first - Raphinha raced into the Real Madrid half and squared for Yamal to tap home, but the Brazilian was rightly flagged offside. Real Madrid looked to be flagging when Mbappe completed his hat-trick from close range to move two goals clear in the race to be La Liga's top scorer, before Raphinha missed a sitter from a few yards out at the other end. Victor Munoz, Madrid's 21-year-old substitute, blazed over when bearing down on goal, before Mbappe forced Szczesny into a smart low stop. Fermin Lopez looked to have scored a brilliant fifth, but a VAR check ruled it out for handball in the build-up. Having already beaten Real Madrid in La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup final and the Copa del Rey final this season, Barca equalled the record they set in 1982-83 of winning four Clasicos in a single campaign. That Real Madrid have conceded 16 goals in four Clasicos this season illustrates their decline and Barcelona's improvement over the past nine months. Barcelona will win the league title with victory against neighbours Espanyol on Thursday, or if Real Madrid lose to Mallorca on Wednesday.